Macmall or Apple?

[tman87]

I saw the macmall powerbook offer of $1,994 (+39 installation of ram fee) for 15inch with free ipod nano 2gb,1gb extra, carrying case, and printer.
I wouldn't have to pay tax so with the education discount I would get at apple, the same computer without the gb ram and nano would be like $1,905 with tax.
Is the ram they add good? If it is, would this be a better deal. Some say if you buy from apple you get better service.
Also what about the imac for $1294 ( plus 39 installation) with 512 extra ram. Apple would cost $1272. Is the ram worth it?

[NosferaDrew]

Check MacPrices.com (http://www.macprices.com/).
They track all of the major Apple resellers and the extras that they offer.

Buy the RAM yourself and install it - it's very easy and you usually save money by doing so.
You'll get the same service from Apple wherever you buy an Apple product.

[Ryan]

Buy the RAM yourself and install it - it's very easy and you usually save money by doing so.
You'll get the same service from Apple wherever you buy an Apple product.On Crucial, RAM prices for the new Powerbooks are about $150 for a gig. Macmall is offering a gig "free" ($40 fee). Are they using slower RAM, or is it a good deal?

[NosferaDrew]

Probably generic RAM - which I've found is fine.
Some RAM is CL 2.5, some is CL 3 and in the real world you won't see much of a difference.

Check RamSeeker (www.ramseeker.com) for the latest RAM prices.

I've bought tons of RAM and found little difference although I swear by Corsair since that's what I put in my PC gaming machines and I've never had a problem.