Should I just purchase the iMac now?
I'm in real need of a new Mac, and I really need it before the end of January (the earlier, the better). I was planning on getting a new updated iMac from the MW Event, but to my surprise they didn't actually change anything.
Here are my goals with this Mac:
- It must be a good music machine, as in creating music with no limits.
- A good computer that should last me a while.
- While not needed, good at gaming.
The Mac Pro could do all of this, except the Displays are too outdated, and it costs almost twice as much.
I really don't know what to do right now. What do you think I should do? Get an iMac with the best specs? Or buy a Mac Pro, using a very old display I have right now, and purchasing one later?
Here are my goals with this Mac:
- It must be a good music machine, as in creating music with no limits.
- A good computer that should last me a while.
- While not needed, good at gaming.
The Mac Pro could do all of this, except the Displays are too outdated, and it costs almost twice as much.
I really don't know what to do right now. What do you think I should do? Get an iMac with the best specs? Or buy a Mac Pro, using a very old display I have right now, and purchasing one later?
Comments
The iMac with the best spec is around the same price as the quad Mac Pro. With the Mac Pro, you get twice the number of processors and great graphics cards at the expense of the display. You can buy a 20" display for $200-300.
It will keep its value better as it gets updates less and you won't have an ugly shiny screen to look at. You also have the option for more cheap drives and PCI cards.
The Mac Pro could do all of this, except the Displays are too outdated, and it costs almost twice as much.
You don't have to get an Apple display, you know. In fact, only a true moron would buy an Apple display now with the current lineup they have. There is nothing special about the cinema displays, they use industry-standard panels - you can get exactly the same quality from Dell, Samsung etc. (as long as you know which models have IPS panels) for far, far less $$.
If you can afford it, get the Mac Pro. Holds its value well and more future proof with its Penryn processors.
If you hoard media (particularly videos), you'll appreciate the multi-drive capacity of the Mac Pro, but otherwise the disc and specs of the iMac are fine. For playing video games, you'll want a higher end video card anyway, which for the same capital outlay you might as well buy a PS3 or X360.
Lastly, The people who whine about the glossy screen are muppets: keep it out of direct sunlight, problem solved.
But on the flip side, I'd really love that extra umph of speed, and it doesn't cost too much extra. All I'm losing is iSight (which now I think about it, is pretty much useless), and a nice display... I really don't know. X_X
How is the mac pro noisy? I can't hear it if i try, and I'm 2 feet from the front of it!
It can be once you put in disks and noisy video cards. If you don't plan on doing that, then you might as well get an iMac.
But on the flip side, I'd really love that extra umph of speed, and it doesn't cost too much extra. All I'm losing is iSight (which now I think about it, is pretty much useless), and a nice display... I really don't know. X_X
Either way I think you'll be satisfied. If you can front the extra cash, the Mac Pro is better. There are a few things you can do where you might notice the speed advantage of the Mac Pro: high-end video games, working with banner-sized images in Photoshop, 3D video rendering, and heavy mathematical simulation are the primary areas. Even with the Photoshop example, the speed difference is only a matter of seconds per each minute of typical use. For music, I am not an expert, but I am an expert in signal processing. The funny thing about music is that the performance requirements for processing music haven't changed much in the last 20 years. It's just that now a cheap PC (or mac) can do the work of what used to be an elaborate studio. An iMac will perform beyond expectation for music, and that's the only point that I am really trying to make.
The iMac also doesn't save much space. The Mac Pro goes under your desk so you still only have a display on your desk. You can also get two internal optical drives whereas for copying discs, you'd need an external on the iMac (using more desk space than the Mac Pro).
Whether or not you can counter the issues with the glossy display, a matte display just doesn't have the limitations. If you get a few dead pixels, your entire machine has to go back but with a Mac Pro, you can keep working with another display.
Thanks guys.