Take Control of Buying a Mac, version 2.0

reviewed by Chris Marshall

What they say: What Mac should I buy? When will Apple release new Macs? Where should I buy my Mac? Adam has answered these questions countless times over his 20-year Macintosh career, and now he has distilled the answers into this 91-page ebook. You'll learn how to predict when Apple will release new models and when you can get the most bang for your buck. Worksheets help you decide whether you should buy a desktop or laptop Mac and pick the model that's right for you. When you're ready to buy, Adam helps you compare Mac vendors and tips you off to three little-known ways to buy a Mac below retail!

What I say: I know a lot of people don’t like eBooks and I can understand that. I love the smell, feel and look of a good book. I spend enough time reading things off a screen that I really don’t want or need to do that socially, but I have to admit that with a regular book it can be difficult to keep switching back and forth between pages, sections etc.

I love the Take Control books, although I think they are really guides, and for that reason they work really well as an eBook.

What do I need to know about buying a Mac? After all, I have bought three this year alone!

Why would anybody want a book on the subject? Just google “top 10 Mac reasons to switch” and you will get 1,140,000 reasons! If you read through 20 of them you will get a multitude of them, broadly the same, but each mouth watering enough to get you searching for your nearest store.

So is there room in this overcrowded market for a book on the subject? My initial thoughts were, “No”. By the end of it, I figured that any guy that had bought 10 Mac Desktops and 8 Mac Laptops over the years has some pearls of wisdom to impart and he does. This book is well worth buying before you buy a Mac or for that friend of family member that is thinking of buying a Mac. You could even buy that PC ludite of a boss a copy for Christmas!

The checklist on page 22 would actually make a pretty good party game in my opinion. In fact, the book relies heavily on checklists throughout to walk you through the decisions that you will need to make, and all in all it does a great job. Of course some of it seems (and is) incredibly basic – but who amongst us can’t do with a reminder of the basics from time to time? This can be especially true in the emotionally charged environment of Mac purchasing, where if you don’t watch out, that little Mac gremlin will come along, whisk away all that logic you have stored up, and the next thing you know, that credit card is taking yet another hammering!

Like many books these days, it has good sections for tips and some interesting case studies. I think it does a great job of pulling together all the main points that the Google search would throw up for you. In particular, it covers the peripherals very well, and gives some good suggestions as to what to do with your old Mac. Oh, you didn’t know! You will buy more than one Mac – this first one is just the start of the journey for you J

A final point of interest – Page 12 has a schedule of Mac announcements by month since 2002 thru October 2006. It is fascinating!

In summary: I totally recommend this despite the 3 * rating! The rating is purely linked to the “restrictions” of an eBook and the fact that it is a general overview rather than a detailed view. This isn’t a criticism at all. I just feel that when reviewing I have to keep a perspective on amongst other things the complexity. This is a “simple” guide that does a great job.