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If you haven’t heard, there is quite a bit of buzz about Psystar home-built Open Computers. Essentially, these boxes are PC hardware set up to run an unmodified OS X Leopard kernel. When you see that they start at $399 + $155 for the OS pre-installed, you can imagine that the Mac guys are hopping on these.

So what’s the problem? Well, the OS installation/distribution is against the End User License Agreement (”EULA”) and, therefore, just waiting for a lawsuit by Apple. In that doc, it says the OS cannot be installed by end users on anything other than an “Apple labeled” computer. CNET has an interesting take on this:

If Mac OS X was the only operating system in the entire universe, and Apple required you to use its hardware, lawyers would have a field day.

For that reason, it seems interested users should buy now before everyone’s favorite benevolent monopoly (Apple) shuts the company down.

Paul Murphy with ZDNET goes one step farther and speculates “this particular group is going nowhere because there’s no real value in using even lower quality hardware to compete with Apple’s already low quality hardware”. Honestly, I haven’t yet read of anyone who has actually received their Psystar computer so, at this point, who knows what the true value is going to be other than an interesting legal challenge.

Get one of these Psystar Computers while you can. Not only is their payment processor giving them problems, but the looming EULA challenge by Apple is going to make this a short lived experiment.

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Ranking high on the way-cool scale, the Apple Mac Mini is a compact but powerful desktop computer system many friends of mine are raving about. Yes, it’s now old news (the Mini came out in early 2005) but the specs have kept up with the times and the tiny footprint is still very attractive. What seals the deal? A price starting at under $600.

The first thing you notice about the Mac Mini is the minimal “case”, if you can even call it that. With dimensions (in inches) of 8.7 x 8.6 x 5.4 and a shipping weight under 10 lbs, there’s a lot going on in a small package.

Mac Mini

What are the specs? Start with a 1.83GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor. Add 1 GB DDR2 SDRAM (expandable to 2 GB), a 80 GB SATA hard drive with Mac OS X v10.5 Leopard and a slot-loading DVD-ROM/CD-RW drive. Finish with a FireWire port, 4 USB ports, Gigabit Ethernet and built-in AirPort Extreme Wi-Fi (802.11g) and the small package suddenly looks much, much bigger. One reviewer wrote

This little Mac CPU is perfect for people who want a powerful but inexpensive CPU without the frills. Just 2.5″ high and 6.5″ square, it fits almost anywhere: on a desk, in a drawer, on a narrow shelf. The unit comes with a Mac SuperDrive for burning and playing DVD/CDs, a remote control, BlueTooth technology, the iLife Suite (iPhoto, iTunes, Garage Band, Photo Booth, iMovie, etc.), and the newest OS X Leopard (on CDs, not installed.) That’s it. You have to buy your own keyboard, mouse, monitor, and anything else you’d like to add.

For the most part, people rave about the OS, footprint and speed of the Apple Mac Mini. The two cons I’ve consistently found were i) the power button is in the back and hard to find and ii) upgrading the RAM is difficult. Honestly, that’s it? A quick search turned up this Mac Mini RAM Upgrade article so it seems available resources can cure at least one of those negatives. *L* ok, upgrading the RAM does involve a putty knife.

For those looking to break into the Apple world or simply want a small, powerful desktop, the $595 Mac Mini appears to be a clear option. Pair this machine with your Apple monitor, keyboard and mouse of choice and you have everything that makes Mac great at your fingertips.

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Psst, hey buddy… want an used Apple computer for cheap? I mean really cheap - under $200.00. Yes, yes, they’re perfectly legal.

If you’re willing to go with a used machine and limited drive space, our catalog’s section featuring Apple computer systems has nine desktops at the cheapest price I’ve ever seen for Macs: just $149-$189. Here are a few examples:

• Power Mac AGP G4/50 - priced used from $169, this is a system with 512MB RAM, a 10GB HD and OS 9.2.2 installed.
• iMac G3/400 - for $159.00, you can get one of Apple’s most popular computers. Perfect for kids. 128 MB of RAM ; 10 GB internal drive; internal CD-ROM. OS 9.2.1 installed. No keyboard, though. Ugh.
• Apple iMac DV - there’s only one of these systems available at $177.77 right now, and I think this is the pick of the low-cost list. It’s one of those friendly, one-piece units but it’s loaded with features: 400MHz G3 Processor, 64MB RAM, 10GB Hard Drive to start… Here’s a great features assessment.

Pros and Cons: While these aren’t this year’s models, each of these has plenty of power for every day computing tasks. As I’ve said in previous posts, the small hard drive should not be a major black mark simply because external storage is so fast and cheap. For those worried about these being used Apple computers, I did note that some distributors (like that of the iMac G3/400 listed above) provide a limited warranty with the purchase, so that should provide some quality assurance. It is curious that these sale models come with the OS installed, but they do not include the OS install discs. Since you Apple guys always talk about having a superior OS, the install disc shouldn’t be a deal breaker, right?

The major advantage these used Apple computers give is that they often include the monitor (for under $200). You can get new PC systems for under $400 through Dell™ Home and, of course, there are PCs available for this price without a monitor, but that’s only if the Mac OS doesn’t matter to you. Is there a certain satisfaction in being part of the Cult of Mac? Maybe so…

Technorati Tags: used Apple computers, cheap Apples