Where to buy an iMac G4

[zippy]

Just wondering if anyone has any advice on where to look for a good, used iMac G4. I have looked in Ebay, and I know that's an option, but I have reservations about buying something that expensive from an unknown source. I don't mind buying online, I just prefer it to be from a "store".

I'd prefer to just grab a brand new iMac G5, but since I don't really NEED a new machine right now, it's a little hard to justify the expense. I was hoping I could find an affordable enough G4 that I could take the plunge. (this will be my first Mac)

Thanks in advance for whatever nuggets you have to offer.

[Luca]

I'd suggest an online buy/sell forum. A lot of very large computer-related message boards have them. We don't, as our community is a little too small for it. But they're generally a lot safer than eBay (though not as reliable as a store).

I have bought a lot of items from the AnandTech (http://forums.anandtech.com/) forum, and I've also gone through MacNN (http://forums.macnn.com), [H]ard|OCP (http://www.hardforum.com), and ArsTechnica (http://episteme.arstechnica.com). Keep in mind that although only MacNN is specifically Mac-centric, most people at the other forums know quite a bit about Macs. Generally they know quite a lot about computers in general... Anand, Ars and [H] are full of computer enthusiasts. Most are PC users, but a good portion of them have Macs as well. Also, the people selling things at those boards use an online feedback system called Heatware to leave references for each other. After a successful transaction, the two people leave each other Heatware feedback, giving them an online reputation of trustworthiness.

[zippy]

Thanks for the info Luca. I'll check into these and see what I can find.

[switchr92]

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=156514
Try that. Good luck.