Harry Marks, Curious Rat, responding to a Gizmodo post entitled “10 Gadgets You’d Be a Fool To Buy Right Now”:
Here’s a better philosophy: Buy what you need when you need it.
I could not agree more.
Many times over the years I’ve been asked by friends and family when to buy a new Apple product – is the MacBook Pro or iPhone I’m getting today going to be outdated soon?
My answer is always the same: Get what you need when you need to get it, and if you can afford to wait, do so. Because within a few months whatever it is you’re looking at is bound to be replaced by something newer with more features and better capabilities.
Buy the right tool for the task and don’t worry about what’s coming down the pike. Trying to avoid buyer’s remorse is a loser’s game.
I tend to agree, and follow this rule most of the time. I only make an exception if it is absolutely obvious that something ‘leapfrog’ is about to come down the pipe very soon. As an example, if I was in the market for a MacBook Pro, I’d absolutely be hanging on for a a couple of months – it’s highly likely that there will be a move to HiDPI displays and very likely we’ll see SSDs as standard (or at least in conjunction with a HDD), and in all probability that will happen at some point in the next couple of months.
Similarly, if I wanted an iPhone, I’d hold off until October, in line with previous upgrade cycles.
Couldn’t have said it better myself. I can’t stand these idiots who are mad at Apple for releasing a product a month after they buy the older one. So Apple should hold back products just so they can feel special for a little while longer? Buy what you need and don’t look back. If you’re mad, be mad at yourself for buying something you didn’t need.