[Luca]

...that is, if you bought one you didn't really need instead of investing in Apple's stock instead!

http://www.kyleconroy.com/apple-stock.php

This guy has assembled a table of what appears to be every Apple computer and iPod since the G3 era (1997). The table compares the new price with how much an equivalent amount of Apple stock would be worth if it was bought at the same time instead.

That stupid eMac I bought in 2003 for $799? Would have been worth $24,730.65 had I bought AAPL instead. I hope you didn't buy an original PowerBook G3/250 for $5,700, because if you had sunk that money into Apple stock instead, you'd be sitting on over $330,000 instead of a broken old laptop.

Use caution, as this link may cause deep depression among past compulsive computer buyers.

[chucker]

Of course, if everyone had followed that advice, Apple stock wouldn't have developed like this.

[Mugge]

Cool!

And think that PowerBook that was selling for $5700 and how people complain about Mac prices today. Yes yes, I know the flaws in that statement, but still.

[MBHockey]

:jumps off bridge:

[bassplayinMacFiend]

Oh man, I would've had $220K if I had bought AAPL instead of a TiBook 500MHz (from Comp-USA no less while all the pre-order people were complaining like mad on AI).

Follows MBHockey off the bridge. So, yes mom, if my friend jumped off a bridge, I would too.

[pscates2.0]

Ha...funny stuff.

Apparently I bypassed $95,000 to own a tangerine iMac DV. Make room on that bridge, fellas...I'm comin' with ya.

[DMBand0026]

The only thing this table illustrates is that we're all idiots. I'd have $61,080 instead of a 12" PowerBook and I'd be damn happy about it too.

[Mugge]

And how many of us would actually have bought AAPL and not just pissed the money away on beer and other things. At least the computers made us smarter.

[thegeriatric]

Hindsight. Ah what a wonderful thing.

[PB PM]

Wow, should have bought stock rather than my Power Mac G4... I'd be $81,000 richer.

[Kyros]

I've bought all my macs used or with a student discount, which makes it extremely difficult to figure out how much money I've thrown away with this chart, a nice little side benefit I hadn't even considered at the time of purchase :P.

[torifile]

The table would have been more informative if it were sorted by ROI rather than absolute values. It also would have given an interesting snapshot of where Apple was as a company at each of these products' intros.

[billybobsky]

i thought the numbers were wrong because i certainly don't believe that i have had that return on investment from my apple stock, but then i checked... and well i do...

[Kickaha]

Yup, just cashed out my stock (a couple days too early, dammit) for a house down payment.

Original investment was around... $6k?

[billybobsky]

i am actually kicking myself for not buying apple in 2004 when i initially started my small portfolio....

[bassplayinMacFiend]

Originally Posted by billybobsky i am actually kicking myself for not buying apple in 2004 when i initially started my small portfolio....

I'm kicking myself for talking myself out of buying AAPL in 2002 when it was ~$14/sh (pre split).

[El Gallo]

You guys be nice to yourself. Everyone has stories like this. If everyone could just be in the right place at the right time, then who would have to work for a living right?

[bassplayinMacFiend]

Originally Posted by MumboJumbo You guys be nice to yourself. Everyone has stories like this. If everyone could just be in the right place at the right time, then who would have to work for a living right?

Sounds like we need to form a posse and put this "right time at the right place" guy to work for us.

[RowdyScot]

Between the tower, the MBP, and the various iPods...$129k. Ouch.