How long should an imac last?
Ok here is the deal. I'm in the market to buy another imac but I need some input from other mac users before I do. I'd like to give you a little background on my experience with owing a mac.
I bought a brand new imac in 2008. I loved it...it did everything I needed it to. I recorded my songs (garageband), edited video (final cut pro studio then later switched to express), surfed the web....etc. I carried it around with me to go to gigs or places to record. But after a couple years of use it started giving me trouble on startup. It got where it would not want to start when i turn power on. It would give me a flashing folder with a question mark in it. I wasn't sure what was going on so I learned that if I turn it off and turn it back on again, I could get it to start after a few times. I should have gotten it seen about but you know, as long as you are able to get it going and use it , you can tend to put off something like that. I wondered what was wrong with it but just went on using it anyway. This went on for months until eventually one day, it would not start. At all. So i took it to a local repair shop and they told me BOTH the motherboard and hard drive are done. I'm not a computer expert but I didn't understand how both would go out at the same time or the chances of that.
So, here are my questions before I buy another one. I wouldn't want to repeat the mistakes.
1) does anyone have any idea of what went wrong my imac? was it something I did wrong? or did I just have a dud machine? Could I do something differently in the future so this doesn't happen again? What type of maintenance is required on these? It only lasted about 3 years so it makes me wonder how long does other mac's last?
I'm looking at both used mac's and new ones. There are used imacs out there for sale that appear to be very well taken care of and in pristine condition.......Should I buy a used mac that is already 3 or 4 years old and expect it to last a long time if it's in good shape now? Or (if imacs lifespan is only a few years) should I buy a new one to be sure I can get even a few years use?
Can I expect them to only last 3 years?
Is it really normal for an imac to last 10 years or is that the exception?
iMac