SMAD Notebook Recommendations for Fall 2023

SMAD suggests that DVC concentrators might consider purchasing Apple’s $199.99 Pro Apps Bundle for Education; it’s a great deal on a collection of professional-grade media production applications that we use in our own labs and classes.

Please note: storage and memory are not upgradable in Apple computers after purchase, so SMAD recommends that one buy as much of both as one can reasonably afford and thus ensure that the computer will run quickly for as many years as possible. One can add external storage, but not external memory, so more memory should nearly always take precedence over more storage.

If the price of any of these systems is a concern, the “Better” system could have its storage reduced to 256 GB or 512 GB, and the “Best” system could have its memory reduced from 32 GB to 16 GB. The only possible price decrease on the "Good" system would come from reducing its memory to 8 GB, but SMAD strongly recommends against doing so.

SMAD MacBook Air (Good)

Available in Midnight, Starlight, Space Gray or Silver
M2 (8-core CPU, 10-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine)
16 GB unified memory
512 GB SSD storage
3 Year AppleCare+ for Mac*

SMAD MacBook Pro 14" (Better)

Available in Silver or Space Gray
M2 Pro (10-core CPU, 16-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine))
16 GB unified memory
1 TBB SSD storage
3 Year AppleCare+ for Mac*

SMAD MacBook Pro 16" (Best)

Available in Silver or Space Gray
M2 Max (12-core CPU, 30-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine)
32 GB unified memory
1 TB SSD storage
3 Year AppleCare+ for Mac*

Our Price: $1,678.00

Phone Order Only

Custom-built configuration, please allow 3-4 weeks for delivery.

Our Price: $2,278.00

Phone Order Only

Custom-built configuration, please allow 3-4 weeks for delivery.

Our Price: $3,398.00

Phone Order Only

Custom-built configuration, please allow 3-4 weeks for delivery.

*Service coverage is available only for Mac and its original included accessories for protection against (i) defects in materials or workmanship, (ii) batteries that retain less than 80 percent of their original capacity, and (iii) up to two incidents per year of accidental damage from handling of your Mac, each incident being subject to a service fee of $99 for screen damage or external enclosure damage, or $299 for other damage, plus applicable tax. If your Mac has catastrophic damage from an accident or is inoperable after unauthorized modifications, you will need to buy a replacement.

Call the Madison CyberZone at 540-568-3989 to place your order.

SMAD Desktop Recommendations for Fall 2023

SMAD suggests that DVC concentrators might consider purchasing Apple’s $199.99 Pro Apps Bundle for Education; it’s a great deal on a collection of professional-grade media production applications that we use in our own labs and classes.

Please note: storage and memory are not upgradable in Apple computers after purchase, so SMAD recommends that one buy as much of both as one can reasonably afford and thus ensure that the computer will run quickly for as many years as possible. One can add external storage, but not external memory, so more memory should nearly always take precedence over more storage.

If price is a concern, the “Better” system could have its storage reduced to 512 GB, and the “Best” system could have its memory reduced to 32 GB or its storage reduced to 512 GB. The only possible price decrease on the “Good” system would come from reducing its memory to 8 GB, but SMAD strongly recommends against doing so.

SMAD 24 inch iMac (Good)

Available in Blue, Green, Pink, Silver, Yellow, Orange or Purple
M2 (8-core CPU, 8-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine) 
16 GB memory
512 GB SSD
3 Year AppleCare+ for Mac*

SMAD Mac Studio 32 GB RAM (Better)

M2 Max (12-core CPU, 30-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine)
32 GB unified memory
1TB SSD
3 Year AppleCare+ for Mac*

SMAD Mac Studio 64 GB RAM (Best)

M2 Max (12-core CPU, 38-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine)
64GB unified memory
1TB SSD
3 Year AppleCare+ for Mac*

Our Price: $1,928.00

Phone Order Only

Custom-built configuration, please allow 3-4 weeks for delivery.

Our Price: $2,148.00

plus peripherals

Phone Order Only

Custom-built configuration, please allow 3-4 weeks for delivery.

Our Price: $2,688.00

plus peripherals

Phone Order Only

Custom-built configuration, please allow 3-4 weeks for delivery.

*Service coverage is available only for Mac and its original included accessories for protection against (i) defects in materials or workmanship, (ii) batteries that retain less than 80 percent of their original capacity, and (iii) up to two incidents per year of accidental damage from handling of your Mac, each incident being subject to a service fee of $99 for screen damage or external enclosure damage, or $299 for other damage, plus applicable tax. If your Mac has catastrophic damage from an accident or is inoperable after unauthorized modifications, you will need to buy a replacement.

Peripherals for Mac Studio

If you purchase a Mac Studio computer, please be aware that it does not come with a monitor, mouse, or keyboard. If you already have any of these peripherals, you can use them with the Mac Studio. If you need to purchase any of these peripherals, here are SMAD’s recommended peripherals that can be purchased through the Madison CyberZone. Other SMAD recommended peripherals are available through other vendors. 

Keyboard

Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keyboard
$129.00

Magic Keyboard with Touch ID and Numeric Keypad for Mac computers with Apple silicon
$179.00

Mouse

Magic Mouse
$79.00

Monitor

Coming Soon

Call the Madison CyberZone at 540-568-3989 to place your order.

Due to industry trends, availability and pricing on all items is subject to change or discontinuation at any time without prior notice. For these reasons, we reserve the right to cancel any order at any time. The price on the date you place the order is final. All purchases are subject to state sales tax. Purchase of academically priced merchandise is for eligible JMU students, parents, faculty and staff only, and requires a valid JMU ID Card or other proof of eligibility.

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