I got my 17" iMac G4 with 512 mb ram and an 80 gb HDD for Christmas in 2002 and have decided it's about time to finally upgrade. I use it mostly for internet, word processing, and syncing my iPhone. Every couple months I play a 24 hour marathon session of Civ and I'd like to be able to play a few hours of multiplayer SC2 a week for nostalgia's sake. I have a 1 year old daughter and would like to do some light video editing for family movies -- putting clips together, transitions, and a sound track. I enjoyed it the one time I did it on my G4. (Of course it also screwed up my HD because of the shuffling of giant files. That's the one time I've had to format and reinstall in 8 years.) Lasly, I'd like to be able to rip some of my dvds and watch them on my iPhone when I travel or commute on mass transit. I would probably hold off longer but the lack of usb 2 is killing me and watching any flash video is a chore.
I thought that I'd be able to swoop in and pick up a 1-2 year old iMac for a song on craigslist, but they all seem to think that iMacs don't depreciate and that their software is worth something.
I have narrowed it down to what I feel are the two iMacs with the most bang for the buck.
21.5" i3 3.06ghz and the refurb 27" quad i5. The 27 incher seems a little unwieldly so in my eyes so it's size is neither a plus nor a minus. The quad i5 is faster and has a better graphics card, but the i3 is no slouch according MacWorld. I'm a teacher so I get education pricing. Is the quad i5 worth ~$400 and $500 if you toss in the iPod deal for my needs?
Thank you for your advice.
I thought that I'd be able to swoop in and pick up a 1-2 year old iMac for a song on craigslist, but they all seem to think that iMacs don't depreciate and that their software is worth something.
I have narrowed it down to what I feel are the two iMacs with the most bang for the buck.
21.5" i3 3.06ghz and the refurb 27" quad i5. The 27 incher seems a little unwieldly so in my eyes so it's size is neither a plus nor a minus. The quad i5 is faster and has a better graphics card, but the i3 is no slouch according MacWorld. I'm a teacher so I get education pricing. Is the quad i5 worth ~$400 and $500 if you toss in the iPod deal for my needs?
Thank you for your advice.
