PC Vs iMac (Which to go for?)

Halcyon · 05-03-2009, 18:26

Right, After browsing round the new Apple shop that's opened I quite fancy the look of the slim beautuful Imac's.
I've played around on a Mac before and like the interface and would like to get to know it more.

Does anyone here own an Imac and use it regularly. What do you think ?
Any advantages or dissadvantages to describe ?
If you were a PC user would you go over to Mac? What was it like ?

The only things I can currently see is that PC's tend to have more software freely available to use when compared to Mac. But I see now that you can run Windows on an Imac as well as OSX so that may solve that issue.

The thing which currently bugs me is the price. The 4GB RAM, 3.6Ghz Core Duo, 1TB HD, and 512mb Graphics comes in at Ã‚Â£1800.
For a lot less than that price you can get a much better PC that will have a quad core processor . Why are they so expensive !!!

I really like these Mac's but the price really is the thing stopping me at the moment.

Do Mac owners tend to get a good lifespan out of their machines seeing as they arent upgradable except for the RAM?

The debate starts here...... Have your say and let me know what you think.

DocDutch · 05-03-2009, 18:49

okay the price is steep but then the OS is more stable then a windows 1, also you can run a mac alot longer without noticing any slowdowns in functionality then with Windows.

also with the Imac you get the screen already and still to be honest its quite easy to change things on it you just have to look on google for hints and tips (i done a bit of upgrading on me mac mini)

Another thing with MAC OS is that it has bootcamp so if you want you can always run windows next to it which you cant do on a windows machine (okay before Zing says anything you can do it but its not legit)

danielf · 05-03-2009, 19:02

I'd be extremely hesitant to spend Ã‚Â£1800 on a desktop machine that is integrated into a monitor. I'd normally expect the monitor to last longer than the rest of the machine. Are you prepared to bin that 24" monitor you're buying when you want to upgrade the rest of the machine?

DocDutch · 05-03-2009, 19:08

yeah thats the only issue with the Imac.... but why not go a mac pro also it depands on what you want to use the pc or mac for, if for graphics or anything in media related then deffo the mac programming as well as it has unix base around it.

**Damien** · 05-03-2009, 19:19

Benefits of a Windows PC:

Windows 7 is coming, much better than previous Windows Versions
More software, more free software, more open source software.
Slightly better supported on the Web due to some sites deploying windows only solutions for DRM. This is less common now.
Plays more games!
You have more control over the machine, You can install Linux, upgrade non-trivial hardware (processor, graphic card)
Cheaper

Benefits of a Mac:

Nicer day to day experence in using it. Generally has a superior interface and usablity. Difference is becoming smaller with Win7 but still exists
Robustness and Reliability. This one causes friction but it is true that the Mac is more secure and has almost no viruses.
Mac OS tends to be more innovative. There tend to be more OSX versions and each one tends to bring a least one really cool feature than you may well be dying to use
Software Quality is slightly higher among the smaller amounts of applications. I believe is this simply because of a harder entry for developers which weeds out the poor programmers that make god awful VB 6 applications
Better Design by Apple, and Third Parties. Overall I would say the design of Applications is much much better on the Mac. I think this is because the OS is better designed and developers tend to want/have to try and match this

Really there is little difference between the two. I am a Mac user, Have been for 5 years, and love my mac. But Windows isn't awful, I am a Windows Programmer and like to boot into it for Visual Studio. I do find that anything not game or programming related is better in OSX though. It's the usability and naturalness of it, It feels nice to use one, interacting with it is something of pleasure rather than something that you do purely to get and end result.

Hard to explain but it feels much nicer using a Mac.

You may have some issues at first in switching but not too much. The Main question for you is if it's worth the extra cost?

By the way Apple updated the iMacs and Mac Minis on Tuesday, If your worried you could get a Mac Mini and use an existing monitor? The cost is not as bad if you worried about the risk of investing in a unknown purchase?

DocDutch · 05-03-2009, 19:26

off topic... with those new mini's out am very tempted to "chuck" the current mini down the stairs.

danielf · 05-03-2009, 19:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by DocDutch

yeah thats the only issue with the Imac.... but why not go a mac pro also it depands on what you want to use the pc or mac for, if for graphics or anything in media related then deffo the mac programming as well as it has unix base around it.

Quad core. What use is that? There are no applications to speak of that can utilise that. I was looking for a new mac for work (we budgeted for a Mac pro), and I ended up buying a Macbook pro, as I thought it provided best value for money (and it's portable).

Uncle Peter · 05-03-2009, 19:48

Another couple of advantages of Mac Pro:

Multiple firewire ports (400 and 800)

PCIe slots (you never know when these might come in handy)

Halcyon · 05-03-2009, 20:09

I see the advantages in the Mac Pro as of course you can add a lot more to it.
Though ofcourse you would also have to buy a monitor as it doesnt have one with it.

I really like the style of the Imac. I think that as a whole they would probably last a while.
I'm not a gamer but am more into using it for Internet, Graphics, Video, and music production.

I used to use a Mac mini a while ago when I was lent one from work. They are definately powerful for their size!

**Damien** · 05-03-2009, 20:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by Halcyon

I see the advantages in the Mac Pro as of course you can add a lot more to it.
Though ofcourse you would also have to buy a monitor as it doesnt have one with it.

I really like the style of the Imac. I think that as a whole they would probably last a while.
I'm not a gamer but am more into using it for Internet, Graphics, Video, and music production.

I used to use a Mac mini a while ago when I was lent one from work. They are definately powerful for their size!

To be honest if those are the things you would do then a Mac is ideal. They already have technology to offload work to the idle GPU units, something Windows is still working on. Although I think it's in Windows 7.

Why not a Mac Mini and a Monitor?

Uncle Peter · 05-03-2009, 22:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by Halcyon

I see the advantages in the Mac Pro as of course you can add a lot more to it.
Though ofcourse you would also have to buy a monitor as it doesnt have one with it.

I really like the style of the Imac. I think that as a whole they would probably last a while.
I'm not a gamer but am more into using it for Internet, Graphics, Video, and music production.

I used to use a Mac mini a while ago when I was lent one from work. They are definately powerful for their size!

If you're going to do music production then get ready to have things hanging off that single Firewire 800 port

If you're using outboard gear then I'd recommend a decent FW audio interface. Working with multitrack audio you'll also need an external HDD (7200RPM). The Mac Pro is handy because you have the option of using PCIe audio interfaces and DSP cards like the UAD1 plus support for multiple internal HDDs.

danielf · 05-03-2009, 22:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by Halcyon

I see the advantages in the Mac Pro as of course you can add a lot more to it.
Though ofcourse you would also have to buy a monitor as it doesnt have one with it.

I really like the style of the Imac. I think that as a whole they would probably last a while.
I'm not a gamer but am more into using it for Internet, Graphics, Video, and music production.

I used to use a Mac mini a while ago when I was lent one from work. They are definately powerful for their size!

I had another look at the Imac and from what I gather you cannot use the Imac as the monitor for another computer. This really means that you are buying a 24" screen that will be useless when the rest of the hardware is outdated. You should really view it as a 24" laptop. Which is ok if you want that, but to me it sounds incredibly wasteful. The Mac pro is overkill as I posted before. The Mac mini isn't very high specced.

I really think Apple should develop a headless model with specs somewhere between the Mac Pro and the Mac Mini. They probably think there is more money to be made by flogging people expensive 20-24" screens that need replacing every couple of years though

Halcyon · 06-03-2009, 16:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by Uncle Peter

If you're going to do music production then get ready to have things hanging off that single Firewire 800 port

If you're using outboard gear then I'd recommend a decent FW audio interface. Working with multitrack audio you'll also need an external HDD (7200RPM). The Mac Pro is handy because you have the option of using PCIe audio interfaces and DSP cards like the UAD1 plus support for multiple internal HDDs.

This is one thing that gotme thinking. I currently use a PCI sound card in my PC. I realise I would need to get either a firewire or USB soundcard. It all adds to the price.
Software wise, Reason and Ableton will be fine. It's just some VST's that won't work on Mac from what I've read.

I don't tend to use external equipment at the moment apart from my midi keyboard which takes USB so not much of a problem.

Although it is true that the Imac would become redundant and out of date, I tend to keep my computers quite long. I had a 486 for about ten years and my Pentium4 3.2ghz has been going strong for the past 5 years.

I read about someone using his Mac to remote into his PC using a remote desktop. That was his way of controlling both PC and Mac at once.

Apple should really let people use the Imac as an external monitor. It would be very helpful indeed.

Uncle Peter · 06-03-2009, 17:26

Yeah if you want to run at decent resolution/depth like 24/96 then you'll need a decent audio interface. If you're not multitracking then an inexpensive USB2 one should be fine.

You do have to watch some of the VST/AU plugins for Leopard support. eg: I was going to buy Korg Legacy Collection Digital the other week (for the Wavestation) but it doesn't run on Intel Macs. Digidesign took an age to make Protools LE Leopard compliant to the point where I got fed up waiting and got Logic Studio instead.

Halcyon · 06-03-2009, 17:30

The thing I've found when looking at soundcards is there ar eplenty of professional ones in PCI form that are pretty decent and don't cost the earth.
External ones seem to eaither be cheap creative audio products or then expensive MOTU products.
Do you know anything half decent but that doesnt drain your wallet completly ?

Thanks.