Advice on Buying an iMac Right now

[timmy1234s]

First time in the MacRumors forums!

To get to the point, I just need some really strong advice on whether or not I should buy an iMac right now. I've been eyeing the 21.5 inch iMacs with nVidia. I'm looking forward to switching to the Mac! (yay!)

But other than that, the only thing that's been preventing me from buying an iMac is the new updates. New GPU's, possibly some massive hardware updates, redesign, and maybe even a touchscreen (not too sure on that one). I'm usually the jealous person so if I were to buy an iMac right now, I would be really jealous and regretfull of the new iMac. Not only that, Apple has been known to have weird refresh cycle so I'm not too sure!!

Despite this, I've been looking forward to do some video editing with FCE (which might get updated), and possibly FCS in the future. Also going to be doing some Photoshop, xCode, Applescript, and general Internet browsing. Just to be clear, I am NOT going to be doing any gaming on my iMac.

I've went down to the local Apple Store and they said that it would be best to go with the ATI Radeon 21.5 iMac versus the Nvidia 21.5 iMac.

Quote: "It'll (as in FCE, Photoshop, and the likes) definintely run on the Nvidia, but you're better off with the ATI for your needs"

I'm on a budget of somewhere in the $1,000-$1,250ish range and I'll be able to use a student discount.

Also, where should I buy my first iMac? If I buy it at the Apple Store, it'll be a great experience but I have to saddle on another $200-300 tax (unfavorable), but if I buy it online, it's just not the same, great experience. Any opinions on buying online vs. in person?


Thanks!

[alust2013]

Anything you want to do will work on the base model, although the ATi graphics are considerably improved (not that you really need high end graphics). If you would regret buying one within a couple months of a new one coming out, then you may want to wait, but personally I don't think the update will be anything worth waiting for, certainly nothing too major. Although it is possible that they will switch to i5s for the dual core models.

[timmy1234s]

Anything you want to do will work on the base model, although the ATi graphics are considerably improved (not that you really need high end graphics). If you would regret buying one within a couple months of a new one coming out, then you may want to wait, but personally I don't think the update will be anything worth waiting for, certainly nothing too major. Although it is possible that they will switch to i5s for the dual core models.

Thanks for the first reply! Maybe I'll wait for the new updates (but I've been DYING to work on Objective-C, Applescript, xCode, Photoshop, FCE, and more during the summer!

But I do have one question: What type of tasks would best suit the ATI's?

If the i5's might trickle down to the Core 2 Duo's, then that's definintely the wait for me!

[aki]

i5 and i7 are great but it's not like c2d is (too) old.

Final Cut Studio if you are doing work in Motion or working with HD (transcoding and whatnot), will eat up ram and cpu, you just can't have a machine big enough. Having said that we all have to work within a budget :o and I used to do some FCS work on a 24" c2d iMac and it worked very well.

The iMac refresh is highly unlikely to bring anything major. What is probable is a videocard upgrade, (and I guess a possible ripple-down of cpus as noted above).

I think the best advice is what everyone here pretty much always says - if you need it now, buy it now. A c2d iMac is not a poor choice, and if it saves you money, then it's a good choice. Yes, you may be able to buy an i5 iMac in a few months, and then render your video faster; but then again that's a few months when you can't render any video at any speed at all. If you take my point.

Two other things - video editing and Photoshop love ram, don't be afraid to jam it in there.

Lastly, maybe I misread what you were getting at in your post, but for "bog standard" apps like Final Cut, there is no reason to choose nvidia as-a-brand over ati-as-brand. They both work, as brands, equally well. All you need to think about is how fast the actual cards are relatively speaking/how much ram they carry.

Good luck!

[Commenter]

First time in the MacRumors forums!

To get to the point, I just need some really strong advice on whether or not I should buy an iMac right now. I've been eyeing the 21.5 inch iMacs with nVidia. I'm looking forward to switching to the Mac! (yay!)

But other than that, the only thing that's been preventing me from buying an iMac is the new updates. New GPU's, possibly some massive hardware updates, redesign, and maybe even a touchscreen (not too sure on that one). I'm usually the jealous person so if I were to buy an iMac right now, I would be really jealous and regretfull of the new iMac. Not only that, Apple has been known to have weird refresh cycle so I'm not too sure!!

Despite this, I've been looking forward to do some video editing with FCE (which might get updated), and possibly FCS in the future. Also going to be doing some Photoshop, xCode, Applescript, and general Internet browsing. Just to be clear, I am NOT going to be doing any gaming on my iMac.

I've went down to the local Apple Store and they said that it would be best to go with the ATI Radeon 21.5 iMac versus the Nvidia 21.5 iMac.

Quote: "It'll (as in FCE, Photoshop, and the likes) definintely run on the Nvidia, but you're better off with the ATI for your needs"

I'm on a budget of somewhere in the $1,000-$1,250ish range and I'll be able to use a student discount.

Also, where should I buy my first iMac? If I buy it at the Apple Store, it'll be a great experience but I have to saddle on another $200-300 tax (unfavorable), but if I buy it online, it's just not the same, great experience. Any opinions on buying online vs. in person?


Thanks!

Welcome to the Mac


No one knows when the updates will be nor what they will bring. The most reasonable speculation on what to expect is here: http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?p=10418986#post10418986
Massive hardware updates are unlikely, and a redesign is highly unlikely

If you are on a PC (ew) and if you've been dying to work and learn over the summer, I'd say buy a refurbished machine now from the online Apple Store (http://store.apple.com/ , near the end of the left column it says Special Deals - Refurbished Mac )—don't put off working and learning because of the mirage of a (probably minor) refresh, and there are some very nice refurb deals, all of which will likely cover your needs at least initially. I think you can also get an education discount on top of the refurbishness, but I don't know how to do that (maybe 1st going to the education part of the store, or maybe saying you're a student later).

I don't think you need ATI graphics over NVidia

If you find that you need/want more memory, you can always buy it later (I'd recommend www.macsales.com) and install it, keeping the warranty and the memory that came with the machine

Any other questions, don't hesitate to ask


Cheers

[AlvinNguyen]

I would definitely go with the ATI if you can swing the $300 difference. I would even say go to CL and pick up a nice one (or even the base unit if you find a good deal on it). I picked mine up thinking it was a base for $650 in perfectly mint condition - actually turned out to be the 1TB w/ ati 4670! There is another person willing to sell a brand new base model for $950 so definitely the deals are out there - just gotta look for it.

I'm also planning on waiting for the refresh before but if you can get a deal and the specs works for you then why not get it right now? :p

[Commenter]

I would definitely go with the ATI if you can swing the $300 difference. I would even say go to CL and pick up a nice one (or even the base unit if you find a good deal on it). I picked mine up thinking it was a base for $650 in perfectly mint condition - actually turned out to be the 1TB w/ ati 4670! There is another person willing to sell a brand new base model for $950 so definitely the deals are out there - just gotta look for it.

I'm also planning on waiting for the refresh before but if you can get a deal and the specs works for you then why not get it right now? :p

If his budget is ~$1000, he shouldn't be advised to spend a third more in a graphics upgrade that he probably doesn't need.

I also don't think it's a good idea for him to buy it from a random person, especially with good refurbished, full-Apple-warranty deals around.

[peakchua]

if you can, get the quad core model.. or get the 27 model and upgrade to the 4850 though the price differnece then isint that much to the quad model. 4850 will make you not regret when you have those occaisional gaming bursts :D get the 27 inch or the ati 21.5 inch imac

[Commenter]

Guys, what's up with the influencing him to spend way beyond his budget and needs?

[Crunch]

Hey Timmy,

I was in your position two days ago! I bought the base model with the 500GB hard drive and the NVIDIA card, but I ended up taking it back to exchange it for the 1TB/ATI 4670HD model. Why? The screen was flickering a little. It was very subtle and the graphics were also slightly out of place.

With that said, it is my opinion that this is not due to the NVIDIA card, but rather the screen itself. I am super duper happy with the model I chose. The extra 500GB come in handy, too, although I'd really love to install my SSD into the iMac and hook up the 1TB drive externally via USB. But that's another issue.

Why did I get the higher model? Again, I don't think it was the gfx card, but I did the math. The difference is only $250 between the two with the student discount, because you only get $50 off the base model, and $100 for all other iMac's. I bought the iPod touch and the printer, both of which will be free after rebate (except for the sales tax) and I already have a buyer for the iPod touch. lol...I also don't want the printer, but like I said, it's free, so why not. Surely someone can use a brand new printer for $80-$100 w/o tax. :D

If you don't want the hassle of having to buy and sell the two items and also want to avoid sales tax, you can buy it from The Mac Connection in NH, or Powermax in OR. The latter doesn't charge any sales tax in any state, and the Mac Connection only does in very select areas, mainly the Northeast. Sales tax in California (where I live) is a whopping 9.75%, so it can definitely make a difference.

Good luck to you, and let us know what you decided. :)

[peakchua]

Hey Timmy,

I was in your position two days ago! I bought the base model with the 500GB hard drive and the NVIDIA card, but I ended up taking it back to exchange it for the 1TB/ATI 4670HD model. Why? The screen was flickering a little. It was very subtle and the graphics were also slightly out of place.

With that said, it is my opinion that this is not due to the NVIDIA card, but rather the screen itself. I am super duper happy with the model I chose. The extra 500GB come in handy, too, although I'd really love to install my SSD into the iMac and hook up the 1TB drive externally via USB. But that's another issue.

Why did I get the higher model? Again, I don't think it was the gfx card, but I did the math. The difference is only $250 between the two with the student discount, because you only get $50 off the base model, and $100 for all other iMac's. I bought the iPod touch and the printer, both of which will be free after rebate (except for the sales tax) and I already have a buyer for the iPod touch. lol...I also don't want the printer, but like I said, it's free, so why not. Surely someone can use a brand new printer for $80-$100 w/o tax. :D

If you don't want the hassle of having to buy and sell the two items and also want to avoid sales tax, you can buy it from The Mac Connection in NH, or Powermax in OR. The latter doesn't charge any sales tax in any state, and the Mac Connection only does in very select areas, mainly the Northeast. Sales tax in California (where I live) is a whopping 9.75%, so it can definitely make a difference.

Good luck to you, and let us know what you decided. :)


i like your decision :D the ati 21.5 inch is probably the number 2 choice after the quad core one :)

[timmy1234s]

Thanks to everyone who have replied to my thread! I go to sleep, and I see a chockful of replies! Thanks again! Will reply back to everyone!

[timmy1234s]

i5 and i7 are great but it's not like c2d is (too) old.

Final Cut Studio if you are doing work in Motion or working with HD (transcoding and whatnot), will eat up ram and cpu, you just can't have a machine big enough. Having said that we all have to work within a budget :o and I used to do some FCS work on a 24" c2d iMac and it worked very well.

The iMac refresh is highly unlikely to bring anything major. What is probable is a videocard upgrade, (and I guess a possible ripple-down of cpus as noted above).

I think the best advice is what everyone here pretty much always says - if you need it now, buy it now. A c2d iMac is not a poor choice, and if it saves you money, then it's a good choice. Yes, you may be able to buy an i5 iMac in a few months, and then render your video faster; but then again that's a few months when you can't render any video at any speed at all. If you take my point.

Two other things - video editing and Photoshop love ram, don't be afraid to jam it in there.

Lastly, maybe I misread what you were getting at in your post, but for "bog standard" apps like Final Cut, there is no reason to choose nvidia as-a-brand over ati-as-brand. They both work, as brands, equally well. All you need to think about is how fast the actual cards are relatively speaking/how much ram they carry.

Good luck!


Thanks for the advice! Just getting started with some research.

Wow, FCS on a C2D iMac?

Other than that, you do have a point there, but the thing is that if the i5 were to trickle down to the base-line iMacs, it would be a significant update (right?). The i5 has a better architecture than the Core 2 Duo. Does the architecture and speed difference between the Core 2 Duo and the i5 impact video editing, Photoshop work, and such much? By the way, when you were talking about the RAM on the iMac, how much RAM would you recommend that I add into my iMac into the future? 6GB? 8GB? 16GB?

And I'm not too sure what brought me into the NVidia over ATI thing. My guess is that one of the Apple Store employees recommended the ATI.

Sorry for asking so many questions, but how does the graphic card influence computer operation? Is it just for gaming?

Again, sorry for asking so many questions! Thanks for the advice too!

[timmy1234s]

Welcome to the Mac


No one knows when the updates will be nor what they will bring. The most reasonable speculation on what to expect is here: http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?p=10418986#post10418986
Massive hardware updates are unlikely, and a redesign is highly unlikely

If you are on a PC (ew) and if you've been dying to work and learn over the summer, I'd say buy a refurbished machine now from the online Apple Store (http://store.apple.com/ , near the end of the left column it says Special Deals - Refurbished Mac )—don't put off working and learning because of the mirage of a (probably minor) refresh, and there are some very nice refurb deals, all of which will likely cover your needs at least initially. I think you can also get an education discount on top of the refurbishness, but I don't know how to do that (maybe 1st going to the education part of the store, or maybe saying you're a student later).

I don't think you need ATI graphics over NVidia

If you find that you need/want more memory, you can always buy it later (I'd recommend www.macsales.com) and install it, keeping the warranty and the memory that came with the machine

Any other questions, don't hesitate to ask


Cheers

Ha, yes, PC's make me cringe (sadly, I'm using one with an Acer Aspire 3680 1.6GHz Celeron M with 2GB of RAM as of now)!:D

Speaking of the thread that you mentioned, I actually gave that one a look before I posted a thread. (would be great to see Apple implement some of the guesses in that thread though!)

To tell you the truth, I haven't had a good experience with refurbs. Most of them have been dealt with PC's and plus, it doesn't give you that authentic, Apple unboxing experience. I also own my own YouTube tech channel and therefore, it would be helpful to unbox an new iMac on video.

I could work on my friend's white iMac Intel (though it might be a little inconvinience, there's the etiquette, and such) for xCode.

I just have a feeling that Apple might update the iMacs with a new redesign and hardware spec updates!!

Just out of curiosity, what kind of tasks/work on the iMac would require me to have an ATI vs. NVidia graphics card? Is it gaming? I don't do any gaming.

Will definintely look at the RAM link! Thanks!

Thanks for the advice! Really appreciated!

[timmy1234s]

I would definitely go with the ATI if you can swing the $300 difference. I would even say go to CL and pick up a nice one (or even the base unit if you find a good deal on it). I picked mine up thinking it was a base for $650 in perfectly mint condition - actually turned out to be the 1TB w/ ati 4670! There is another person willing to sell a brand new base model for $950 so definitely the deals are out there - just gotta look for it.

I'm also planning on waiting for the refresh before but if you can get a deal and the specs works for you then why not get it right now? :p

Yeah, sorry, I'd have to go with Commenter on this one. I have never trusted Craigslist. But for the ATI, I'm not too sure. Trying to save up for a road bike at the same time (for cycling) and $300 is just a lot!

[timmy1234s]

Guys, what's up with the influencing him to spend way beyond his budget and needs?

Exactly! Thank you for saying that!!! :D

[timmy1234s]

if you can, get the quad core model.. or get the 27 model and upgrade to the 4850 though the price differnece then isint that much to the quad model. 4850 will make you not regret when you have those occaisional gaming bursts :D get the 27 inch or the ati 21.5 inch imac

I'm pretty sure that I can't afford something that's $1,000 over my budget.

[timmy1234s]

Hey Timmy,

I was in your position two days ago! I bought the base model with the 500GB hard drive and the NVIDIA card, but I ended up taking it back to exchange it for the 1TB/ATI 4670HD model. Why? The screen was flickering a little. It was very subtle and the graphics were also slightly out of place.

With that said, it is my opinion that this is not due to the NVIDIA card, but rather the screen itself. I am super duper happy with the model I chose. The extra 500GB come in handy, too, although I'd really love to install my SSD into the iMac and hook up the 1TB drive externally via USB. But that's another issue.

Why did I get the higher model? Again, I don't think it was the gfx card, but I did the math. The difference is only $250 between the two with the student discount, because you only get $50 off the base model, and $100 for all other iMac's. I bought the iPod touch and the printer, both of which will be free after rebate (except for the sales tax) and I already have a buyer for the iPod touch. lol...I also don't want the printer, but like I said, it's free, so why not. Surely someone can use a brand new printer for $80-$100 w/o tax. :D

If you don't want the hassle of having to buy and sell the two items and also want to avoid sales tax, you can buy it from The Mac Connection in NH, or Powermax in OR. The latter doesn't charge any sales tax in any state, and the Mac Connection only does in very select areas, mainly the Northeast. Sales tax in California (where I live) is a whopping 9.75%, so it can definitely make a difference.

Good luck to you, and let us know what you decided. :)


Awesome! Great to know that I can relate to someone! You do have a point with the ATI Graphics card.

However, thing is, believe it or not, I've been looking forward to use the Student iPod Touch program so I can give my little sister an iPod Touch as a present. She recently lost her iPod Nano at 24 Hour, all of her music files were lost, and she's been wanting one ever since she got an iPod Nano! (although this is pretty contradictory to looking forward to the future iMac updates). On the other hand, I've been looking forward to using a printer for my personal use (my laser printer at home has been a hassle).

I will definentily look forward to Mac Connection and Powermax (although I'm more familiar with Mac Connection). Was looking forward to MacMall, but the cost was too high when I went there.

But being someone like myself, I'd favor buying my iMac on Amazon, the online Apple Store, and the Apple Store itself. (again, being somewhat contradictory to what I said)

[timmy1234s]

i like your decision :D the ati 21.5 inch is probably the number 2 choice after the quad core one :)

That is, if I can afford it!

[DesignerOnMac]

Ha, yes, PC's make me cringe (sadly, I'm using one with an Acer Aspire 3680 1.6GHz Celeron M with 2GB of RAM as of now)!:D

Speaking of the thread that you mentioned, I actually gave that one a look before I posted a thread. (would be great to see Apple implement some of the guesses in that thread though!)

To tell you the truth, I haven't had a good experience with refurbs. Most of them have been dealt with PC's and plus, it doesn't give you that authentic, Apple unboxing experience. I also own my own YouTube tech channel and therefore, it would be helpful to unbox an new iMac on video.

I could work on my friend's white iMac Intel (though it might be a little inconvinience, there's the etiquette, and such) for xCode.

I just have a feeling that Apple might update the iMacs with a new redesign and hardware spec updates!!

Just out of curiosity, what kind of tasks/work on the iMac would require me to have an ATI vs. NVidia graphics card? Is it gaming? I don't do any gaming.

Will definintely look at the RAM link! Thanks!

Thanks for the advice! Really appreciated!

Apple just did a slight redesign of the iMac so I do not see any redesign in the near future.

I have purchased many refurbished computers from Apple with no issues.

I have a 2.8 extreme imac c2d and it runs all the latest software you mentioned with no issues, so I do not know where 'Wow' came from....lol!

Keep in mind that even when Apple comes out this update it is already obsolete! The next computer is already in the design stage. Buy a computer for your needs and enjoy it as it will do what you want it to do for you.

[joejoejoe]

Apple just did a slight redesign of the iMac so I do not see any redesign in the near future.

It's been 259 days since Apple touched the iMac. The iMac averages a refresh every 221 days.

http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/

[timmy1234s]

It's been 259 days since Apple touched the iMac. The iMac averages a refresh every 221 days.

http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/

Exactly, time for Apple to update it, but there isn't any sign of them updating it!! :(

[Ravich]

It's not that simple. You cant just average the last 5 updates with those 3 month updates back in 2006 and 2003 and then say "iMac is due for an update."

Look at the last several updates. 8 months, 11 months, 8 months, 11 months, 8 months.... seeing the pattern?

[aki]

Wow, FCS on a C2D iMac?

...

Does the architecture and speed difference between the Core 2 Duo and the i5 impact video editing, Photoshop work, and such much?

By the way, when you were talking about the RAM on the iMac, how much RAM would you recommend that I add into my iMac into the future? 6GB? 8GB? 16GB?

how does the graphic card influence computer operation? Is it just for gaming?

Final Cut runs perfectly fine on a C2D. (Admittedly I was running it on the 3.06 GHz iMac but still the point stands.) Working with video itself isn't especially demanding - iMovie can run nicely on the cheapest laptop mac, for example. Where you really notice the difference is in encoding/transcoding (shifting video or audio from one format to another), and rendering (where the machine applies all your amazing effects to your footage).

Speed with video editing is very much like large screen size, mobile phone and microwaves - you live a wonderfully happy life without them, but once you go there, you can never go back. Obviously, you should always buy the best machine you can afford; but given that you are buying to a budget, it's not the case that a C2D iMac "won't work". Sure, if you are in a work environment, importing and exporting video all day every day, then speed is very much relevant to you. But if you are embarking on "the Mac experience" and want to get used to using FCP etc, a C2D will work fine. (I guess the only caution I'd have is if you are really into motion graphics - the Motion app in FCS is great but once you start really layering on the complex effects, render times skyrocket. If you already know you will be doing a lot of effects (I'm not talking basic video effects here, I'm talking the complex stuff), then you probably should consider a more powerful machine, so as to preserve sanity.)

Subjectively speaking, as I said I did a fair amount of video on a C2D 3.06 GHz iMac for over a year, and it worked well for me.

If we knew for a fact there were going to be i5 iMacs at the same price point in a week, obviously I'd say you should wait. But we don't and we never will. You could end up waiting till the end of the year, who knows.

As regards Photoshop work, I think the difference (C2D to i5) is fairly trivial, again unless you know for a fact you will want to be editing huuuuge images or something - and even then, ram is as much help as cpu.

As regards how much ram - upgrading ram is the single simplest cheapest way to make a mac faster. Upgrading ram is a good way to help your machine "keep pace" a little longer. And apps like Motion and Photoshop like ram. Buy the max eventually. For basic operation 4gb is fine to start.

Graphics cards used to be for gaming, but they have become so powerful and complex that more and more they are leveraged for other purposes. OSX for example uses your graphics card for aspects of its operation like Quartz Extreme and Core Image. Final Cut and Motion most certainly use your graphics card and will run better the better your video card is.

I think my take home message would be - none of the purchases you could make will be poor choices. When you are buying to a budget, there are always compromises you will be making. That's inevitable. Myself, I'd either sit on my hands and wait for a possible i5; or just buy a C2D with the best graphics option I could afford, planning to add extra ram down the road.

Good luck!

[AlvinNguyen]

If his budget is ~$1000, he shouldn't be advised to spend a third more in a graphics upgrade that he probably doesn't need.

I also don't think it's a good idea for him to buy it from a random person, especially with good refurbished, full-Apple-warranty deals around.

I disagree because I do think he needs it. With buying refurb or used with warranty (check the serial number) he should be fine. Obviously be smart about it, meet in a public place, use good character judgment of the seller, and test the machine thoroughly. There are deals out there. Even a refurb on amazon is roughly ~$1250 which is closer to his budget. Like I said, I picked mine up for $650 cash and I met at a star bucks and spent about 30 min checking the machine and then did a fresh install. A 21.5" iMac that's got till Dec for warranty with 1TB and ATI Radeon 4670 - you can find the deals if you're willing to look. I have not had any issue with mine at all except the yellow screen issue which isn't that bad and will be covered under the replacement warranty they issued.

Now, those who are advising him to buy an iMac right now knowing the upgrade is coming, that's not a good idea.

[timmy1234s]

Final Cut runs perfectly fine on a C2D. (Admittedly I was running it on the 3.06 GHz iMac but still the point stands.) Working with video itself isn't especially demanding - iMovie can run nicely on the cheapest laptop mac, for example. Where you really notice the difference is in encoding/transcoding (shifting video or audio from one format to another), and rendering (where the machine applies all your amazing effects to your footage).

Speed with video editing is very much like large screen size, mobile phone and microwaves - you live a wonderfully happy life without them, but once you go there, you can never go back. Obviously, you should always buy the best machine you can afford; but given that you are buying to a budget, it's not the case that a C2D iMac "won't work". Sure, if you are in a work environment, importing and exporting video all day every day, then speed is very much relevant to you. But if you are embarking on "the Mac experience" and want to get used to using FCP etc, a C2D will work fine. (I guess the only caution I'd have is if you are really into motion graphics - the Motion app in FCS is great but once you start really layering on the complex effects, render times skyrocket. If you already know you will be doing a lot of effects (I'm not talking basic video effects here, I'm talking the complex stuff), then you probably should consider a more powerful machine, so as to preserve sanity.)

Subjectively speaking, as I said I did a fair amount of video on a C2D 3.06 GHz iMac for over a year, and it worked well for me.

If we knew for a fact there were going to be i5 iMacs at the same price point in a week, obviously I'd say you should wait. But we don't and we never will. You could end up waiting till the end of the year, who knows.

As regards Photoshop work, I think the difference (C2D to i5) is fairly trivial, again unless you know for a fact you will want to be editing huuuuge images or something - and even then, ram is as much help as cpu.

As regards how much ram - upgrading ram is the single simplest cheapest way to make a mac faster. Upgrading ram is a good way to help your machine "keep pace" a little longer. And apps like Motion and Photoshop like ram. Buy the max eventually. For basic operation 4gb is fine to start.

Graphics cards used to be for gaming, but they have become so powerful and complex that more and more they are leveraged for other purposes. OSX for example uses your graphics card for aspects of its operation like Quartz Extreme and Core Image. Final Cut and Motion most certainly use your graphics card and will run better the better your video card is.

I think my take home message would be - none of the purchases you could make will be poor choices. When you are buying to a budget, there are always compromises you will be making. That's inevitable. Myself, I'd either sit on my hands and wait for a possible i5; or just buy a C2D with the best graphics option I could afford, planning to add extra ram down the road.

Good luck!


I'm speechless. You probably have one of the best answers so far on the thread.

With having virtually no experience with graphics cards, the media industry and such, this piece of advice has been really helpful to me! At least I know that I'll be fine with the baseline.

Now comes the decision if I should wait or not...

Thanks for your analysis and advice on my question and situation!

[Crunch]

Very good points from everyone here. I've always considered the Mac community of a higher caliber than the masses (i.e. PC users) lol...Such is my first impression anyway. <pinch> Yes, I was an avid Windows 7 user.

As far as waiting for a new model of the iMac to come around, that is usually never a good idea, because you will likely find yourself waiting for new technology all the time. The exception here is how Apple treats its iPhone/iPad product lines, which always have a specific date attached to them, so you can definitely plan for those.

Your issue as to which video card to go for, I would recommend that you definitely not take a store employee's opinion as to what you should buy. They will almost always point you to a higher, pricier model. Do you need a full 1TB of storage? You can always get more storage externally when the need arises, which in my case will be necessary very shortly, as my 1TB drive only has 200GB left. Again, the price difference will be $250, as you only get a $50 discount for the base model and $100 for all other flavors.

As far as the source for your iMac is concerned, I would definitely not eliminate either ebay or Craigslist as possibilities, as you can save a ton of money that way. Having said that, it's not for everyone, but the student discount as well as the free printer and free iPod touch is as good as it gets with Apple discounts. Remember, Apple does not, and has never competed on price for any of its Mac products. Apple's idea of a significant reduction in price means that the 17" MacBook Pro, for example, was reduced by a whopping $300 in 2009. It won't cost you $2,799 anymore, oh no! You, too, can have that baby for a measly $2,499, and keep in mind that you're also getting a 500GB drive instead of a 320GB to boot. :D That was part of the sales pitch at WWDC '09.

This leaves one very basic, yet quite significant variable, which you can tweak after you buy your machine. The least expensive, easiest to install, and best bang-for-your-buck ratio as far as how you can increase your system's responsiveness is to simply add RAM. I definitely need more than the 4GB that it comes with, but you should never buy RAM from any computer manufacturer. Be forewarned, by the way, while the iMac is certainly not a portable computer, it does take laptop memory! In fact, the NVIDIA 9400M graphics card is also found in tons of MacBook Pro's, so that appears to be a theme with iMac's. The likely reason for that is that Apple uses the comparatively much smaller laptop components as a space-saving technique, so as to keep the iMac as thin as possible, which makes total sense to me.

Whichever model you end up getting, I think you will be impressed and then some. I work in IT and happen to love operating systems, so I'm in heaven with OS X's Boot Camp, which allows you to dual-boot into Windows 7. You can also run it in a virtual machine within OS X, and that's incidentally where my 4GB of RAM quickly ran out. I will install at least another 4GB, possibly more.

I think you have a lot of bases upon which you can make an informed decision as to which iMac will ultimately make it onto your desk. Let us know how you like it once you finally get it.

Good luck to you. :)

Crunch

[timmy1234s]

Very good points from everyone here. I've always considered the Mac community of a higher caliber than the masses (i.e. PC users) lol...Such is my first impression anyway. <pinch> Yes, I was an avid Windows 7 user.

As far as waiting for a new model of the iMac to come around, that is usually never a good idea, because you will likely find yourself waiting for new technology all the time. The exception here is how Apple treats its iPhone/iPad product lines, which always have a specific date attached to them, so you can definitely plan for those.

Your issue as to which video card to go for, I would recommend that you definitely not take a store employee's opinion as to what you should buy. They will almost always point you to a higher, pricier model. Do you need a full 1TB of storage? You can always get more storage externally when the need arises, which in my case will be necessary very shortly, as my 1TB drive only has 200GB left. Again, the price difference will be $250, as you only get a $50 discount for the base model and $100 for all other flavors.

As far as the source for your iMac is concerned, I would definitely not eliminate either ebay or Craigslist as possibilities, as you can save a ton of money that way. Having said that, it's not for everyone, but the student discount as well as the free printer and free iPod touch is as good as it gets with Apple discounts. Remember, Apple does not, and has never competed on price for any of its Mac products. Apple's idea of a significant reduction in price means that the 17" MacBook Pro, for example, was reduced by a whopping $300 in 2009. It won't cost you $2,799 anymore, oh no! You, too, can have that baby for a measly $2,499, and keep in mind that you're also getting a 500GB drive instead of a 320GB to boot. :D That was part of the sales pitch at WWDC '09.

This leaves one very basic, yet quite significant variable, which you can tweak after you buy your machine. The least expensive, easiest to install, and best bang-for-your-buck ratio as far as how you can increase your system's responsiveness is to simply add RAM. I definitely need more than the 4GB that it comes with, but you should never buy RAM from any computer manufacturer. Be forewarned, by the way, while the iMac is certainly not a portable computer, it does take laptop memory! In fact, the NVIDIA 9400M graphics card is also found in tons of MacBook Pro's, so that appears to be a theme with iMac's. The likely reason for that is that Apple uses the comparatively much smaller laptop components as a space-saving technique, so as to keep the iMac as thin as possible, which makes total sense to me.

Whichever model you end up getting, I think you will be impressed and then some. I work in IT and happen to love operating systems, so I'm in heaven with OS X's Boot Camp, which allows you to dual-boot into Windows 7. You can also run it in a virtual machine within OS X, and that's incidentally where my 4GB of RAM quickly ran out. I will install at least another 4GB, possibly more.

I think you have a lot of bases upon which you can make an informed decision as to which iMac will ultimately make it onto your desk. Let us know how you like it once you finally get it.

Good luck to you. :)

Crunch

One word: Thanks!

Other than that, you've got a few strong points there! Will definitely let everyone know what I ultimately get!

[timmy1234s]

Well, thanks to the great amount of help on the MacRumors forums (I love this forum!) and my dad (a really resourceful person on tech), I've decided to go with the Baseline iMac. Why? Well I won't be doing any gaming or major 3D work and I'm pretty sure that I'll be fine with the 9400M. After all, iMacs lost long, I can always upgrade the RAM, and I'm pretty sure the aluminum unibody and glass will make it last for years to come. However, I've decided to buy the iMac soon (have to sort out everything, get discounts, and use the education discount) despite a revision coming. Most likely the next revision won't be anything major. I also have to use up my summer for XCoding and Photoshop work (I'll be buying FCE later on).

I've also decided to go buy an iPod Touch, Epson Printer, Baseline iMac with iWork preinstalled, and of course Photoshop through my local Apple retail store. Will be a great experience and I also get to hand-give the iPod Touch to my sister (who had just recently lost her iPod Nano).

Either or, I have yet to buy an iMac because I have to organize, prepare, and find the best deals for my upcoming iMac purchase. Will follow-up on this!


THANKS to everyone who posted on this thread. I've really appreciated the help!

MacRumors: Forum rocks!

[Durious]

Well, thanks to the great amount of help on the MacRumors forums (I love this forum!) and my dad (a really resourceful person on tech), I've decided to go with the Baseline iMac. Why? Well I won't be doing any gaming or major 3D work and I'm pretty sure that I'll be fine with the 9400M. After all, iMacs lost long, I can always upgrade the RAM, and I'm pretty sure the aluminum unibody and glass will make it last for years to come. However, I've decided to buy the iMac soon (have to sort out everything, get discounts, and use the education discount) despite a revision coming. Most likely the next revision won't be anything major. I also have to use up my summer for XCoding and Photoshop work (I'll be buying FCE later on).

I've also decided to go buy an iPod Touch, Epson Printer, Baseline iMac with iWork preinstalled, and of course Photoshop through my local Apple retail store. Will be a great experience and I also get to hand-give the iPod Touch to my sister (who had just recently lost her iPod Nano).

Either or, I have yet to buy an iMac because I have to organize, prepare, and find the best deals for my upcoming iMac purchase. Will follow-up on this!


THANKS to everyone who posted on this thread. I've really appreciated the help!

MacRumors: Forum rocks!

This thread also helped me, in waiting for a refresh and the small upgrades it will bring I realized the current model is more than sufficient for my purposes so I just ordered the iMac 27", 2.8Ghz core i7, 1Tb HDD, ATI 4850 w/512 Mb ram, 16Gb ram with 3 year apple care.. Due note I am purchasing nuram from macsales.com as it's cheaper than apples price

I also ordered final cut express a 8Gb iPod touch and Epson wireless printer! Apparently I can get a rebate on the ipod touch for full price and 100$ off the printer! Part time university ftw!

Thanks all!!!

[eat me]

Very good points from everyone here. I've always considered the Mac community of a higher caliber than the masses (i.e. PC users) lol...

Can we please stop with that? There are masses of smug and clueless iTrolls that are of no good either.

[wildjohn999]

Also, where should I buy my first iMac? If I buy it at the Apple Store, it'll be a great experience but I have to saddle on another $200-300 tax (unfavorable), but if I buy it online, it's just not the same, great experience. Any opinions on buying online vs. in person?

I bought mine from Powermax.com. Great company, they even send you a personalized thank you note post purchase and the CEO sends you a survey to make sure his reps took care of you correctly.

Powermax's shipping speed is all dependent on how far you live from Oregon but I wasn't in a hurry since I had my MBA to use as my main while my iMac traveled to the east coast.

[Crunch]

Where are you guys getting your additional RAM from and how much? When I plugged the specs of the type of RAM (PC2-8500 DDR3-1066MHz) a part searching engine, it came back with three(!) different types of that RAM. Looks like there are three different types of speed (the RAM timings), one ended in CL6, another one in CL7 and I forgot the last one.

The obvious question is as to whether it truly matters which RAM timings. I would think that all RAM chips should at least be consistent, no?

I ordered a lot of RAM (:D) from IBM (I get a decent discount; wouldn't mind sharing the love if anyone wants a couple of 4GB chips), and you would think that IBM has high-quality RAM.

So what about those RAM (CL6/CL7 :confused:) chips if one is CL6 and the other CL7?

[2005CTS]

It's not that simple. You cant just average the last 5 updates with those 3 month updates back in 2006 and 2003 and then say "iMac is due for an update."

Look at the last several updates. 8 months, 11 months, 8 months, 11 months, 8 months.... seeing the pattern?

Yes...I see the pattern and it has now been nearly nine months. There is another pattern I have been following:

April 13th - MacBook Pro Update
May 18th - MacBook Update
June 15th - Mac Mini Update

What do all those dates have in common? They were updates made to Mac Computer lines all due for an update on the Tuesday closest to the middle of the month. If you take that pattern and project it out for the rest of the summer...then we have three more months with three more computers due for an update:

July 13th - ?
August 17th - ?
September 14th - ?

It is anyone's guess what of the three remaining Mac lines will get updated on which month...but given the highest demand for iMacs and then MacBook Airs leading up to the back to school buying season - I would bet that we see a MacBook Air update next Tuesday followed by an iMac update in August and finally the Mac Pro in September...but again...this is a guess.

Either way - I think the trend points very favorably to a Mac update of some kind next week!!!

[Durious]

Where are you guys getting your additional RAM from and how much? When I plugged the specs of the type of RAM (PC2-8500 DDR3-1066MHz) a part searching engine, it came back with three(!) different types of that RAM. Looks like there are three different types of speed (the RAM timings), one ended in CL6, another one in CL7 and I forgot the last one.

The obvious question is as to whether it truly matters which RAM timings. I would think that all RAM chips should at least be consistent, no?

I ordered a lot of RAM (:D) from IBM (I get a decent discount; wouldn't mind sharing the love if anyone wants a couple of 4GB chips), and you would think that IBM has high-quality RAM.

So what about those RAM (CL6/CL7 :confused:) chips if one is CL6 and the other CL7?

Macsales.com they also list your specific model for you to ensure you are getting the right type

[kazzthemurse]

Hello everyone!

I too am thinking about making the switch to mac, however I do some casual gaming every once in a while with games like EVE and CS:Source.

would the base model be fine running these programs?

I mean I suppose a new mac would run better than my 4 year old vaio craptop :)

[Durious]

Hello everyone!

I too am thinking about making the switch to mac, however I do some casual gaming every once in a while with games like EVE and CS:Source.

would the base model be fine running these programs?

I mean I suppose a new mac would run better than my 4 year old vaio craptop :)

For cs source it would be fine however as eve is always evolving id invest in at least the 21.5" with the 4670

[timmy1234s]

Hey everyone! So I just recently, I ordered my iMac off of Powermax (baseline) and I should be expecting it soon enough (within a week). I already have my new copy of iWork '09 sitting right next to me that I got fro $25 off of 1SaleaDay! Can't wait to receive my iMac!

[DHart]

I think the base iMac is the best deal Apple has offered in a Mac since, oh, about 1984 when I started buying them! 3.06 GHz, 4 GB RAM, 500GB HDD, LED backed IPS monitor, FW800 connectivity, wireless keyboard, Magic Mouse, Snow Leopard... YIKES! This rocks. I couldn't resist picking one up for $999 from the refurb store last week - it'll be here tomorrow. I'll be running Photoshop CS5, Lightroom 3, Dreamweaver, and the usual web/mail/iTunes/Excel/iWorks/ and a little FCStudio, etc. This is no doubt a smokin' hot Macintosh for a really moderate price. EVen with 4GB it will be quite sprightly and capable. Jack it up to 8GB and there's little this machine won't be able to do well, including concurrently running a whole BUNCH of apps... effortlessly. For $999 you just can't go wrong.

You're going to LOVE your new iMac.

[timmy1234s]

I think the base iMac is the best deal Apple has offered in a Mac since, oh, about 1984 when I started buying them! 3.06 GHz, 4 GB RAM, 500GB HDD, LED backed IPS monitor, FW800 connectivity, wireless keyboard, Magic Mouse, Snow Leopard... YIKES! This rocks. I couldn't resist picking one up for $999 from the refurb store last week - it'll be here tomorrow. I'll be running Photoshop CS5, Lightroom 3, Dreamweaver, and the usual web/mail/iTunes/Excel/iWorks/ and a little FCStudio, etc. This is no doubt a smokin' hot Macintosh for a really moderate price. EVen with 4GB it will be quite sprightly and capable. Jack it up to 8GB and there's little this machine won't be able to do well, including concurrently running a whole BUNCH of apps... effortlessly. For $999 you just can't go wrong.

You're going to LOVE your new iMac.

Thanks! That makes my purchase a lot more comforting/soothing! But I do have a question or two. Didn't you have to pay sales tax if you bought a refurb from Apple? Wouldn't it have been more worth while if you bought it from an Apple reseller? Sorry, just skeptics and judgement. But other than that, how can you afford Lightroom, Dreamweaver, and FCS? I can barely afford Photoshop CS5 (education) and a graphics tablet!

[DHart]

Thanks! That makes my purchase a lot more comforting/soothing! But I do have a question or two. Didn't you have to pay sales tax if you bought a refurb from Apple? Wouldn't it have been more worth while if you bought it from an Apple reseller? Sorry, just skeptics and judgement. But other than that, how can you afford Lightroom, Dreamweaver, and FCS? I can barely afford Photoshop CS5 (education) and a graphics tablet!

Yes, I did pay sales tax, but still came out ahead and no shipping charge either. BTW, I almost feel a refurb is a better risk in that the machine has been given much more scrutiny and oversight than a new one coming off the line. I've been reading for years about what great luck people have had with their refurbs, so I decided to spring for one. I'm using it this moment... just got it set up. It's sweet!

I own and run and professional portrait photography studio, so great imaging gear and current software is pretty much essential around here.

[timmy1234s]

Yes, I did pay sales tax, but still came out ahead and no shipping charge either. BTW, I almost feel a refurb is a better risk in that the machine has been given much more scrutiny and oversight than a new one coming off the line. I've been reading for years about what great luck people have had with their refurbs, so I decided to spring for one. I'm using it this moment... just got it set up. It's sweet!

I own and run and professional portrait photography studio, so great imaging gear and current software is pretty much essential around here.

Ouch (sorry just can't imagine paying sales tax). But like you and many others have said about refurbs, you're right! But considering I own a YouTube tech channel (yes, I'm that nerdy) I have to get a new iMac to unbox! Great to know that you received yours! (and also great to know that someone else has the same iMac that's being delivered! How hard was it for you to wait for your iMac to be delivered? It's agonizing to me!

I'm trying my best to get better at photography. Could we keep in contact? Really want to explore the fields of photography and lighting and such!

Again, sorry for the raid of questions!