With the bizarre pricing and sub-optimal parts choices of the 2012 iMacs
Umm ... I am going to go out on a limb that the majority of any people who switched to windows are not on this forum to answer your question.
With the bizarre pricing and sub-optimal parts choices of the 2012 iMacs, how many switched to a Windows based system?
With the bizarre pricing and sub-optimal parts choices of the 2012 iMacs, how many switched to a Windows based system?
With the bizarre pricing and sub-optimal parts choices of the 2012 iMacs, how many switched to a Windows based system?
With the bizarre pricing and sub-optimal parts choices of the 2012 iMacs, how many switched to a Windows based system?
The last PC (a decent hot rod box with a Core2Duo Conroe) I built for my office cost just about what I spent on my late 2012 27" iMac (loaded with every top end option except a 756GB SSD).
With inflation, that means that I spent less for the iMac, whose performance blows that custom built PC out of the water.
So . . . . . . . . your defined/asserted landscape has some problems.
I priced up a Windows PC + 27" monitor with the same specs as the 2012 iMac (GTX680, i7 3770, etc) and it came out at $800 less than the iMac.
But in saying that, Apple's prices are hugely marked up here in NZ.
With the bizarre pricing and sub-optimal parts choices of the 2012 iMacs, how many switched to a Windows based system?
bizarre pricing
plus no ugly box sitting on the floor
iMac's do offer very good value for money in comparison to a PC.
Lets look at the entry level 27 inch iMac at a cost of £1499.00.
Specifications:
- 2.9GHz Core i5 Intel 3470S
- 8GB 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x4GB
- 1TB Serial ATA Drive @ 7200 rpm
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660M 512MB GDDR5
- FaceTime Camera
- Apple Magic Mouse
- Apple Wireless Keyboard
- OSX Mountain Lion
Pro's: low power draw and small footprint, no noisy whirring fans, aesthetic design.
Con's: Aftermarket upgrades.
Now let's compare this to a PC with similar specifications.
( All prices taken from SCAN computers, 24 July 2013 ).
Cost of Parts to build a similar PC with a 27 inch Monitor is £1670.12
- Dell UltraSharp LED 27" Monitor IPS U2713HM with 4 Port USB 3.0 = £419.12
- Windows 8 Pro 64 Bit DVD FQC-05955 OEM = £105.36
- Corsair Memory Vengeance Jet Black 8GB DDR3 PC3-12800 (1600)= £56.16
- Intel CPU Core i5 3470S includes Heatsink and Fan - Retail = £152.58
- EVGA GeForce GTX 660 NVIDIA Graphics Card - 2GB = £159.19
- Asus P8Z77-V Premium Thunderbolt Motherboard Intel Z77 S1155 = £239.72
- Hitachi HTS721010A9E630 2.5" 1TB SATA III 7200RPM 1TB = £62.52
- Corsair Enthusiast TX V2 CP-9020042-UK 750W Power Supply = £89.94
- Logitech K750 Wireless Solar Keyboard = £64.32
- Microsoft Arc Mouse Wireless Black PC/MAC = £29.96
- Logitech B910 HD Webcam 5Mpix HD 720P 30fps Carl Zeiss Optics £62.29
- Corsair Obsidian 800D Black Tower Computer Case = £228.96
Pros: Slightly more powerfull graphics card. Aftermarket upgrades if needed.
Cons: Large footprint, larger power draw, noisy fans. MS Windows.
The pricing seems very very reasonable for an iMac. Each to their own
I will be building a PC this year in lieu of upgrading to a new iMac because i don't like the sealed nature of the new iMacs, The 2011 was liveable with, i have added my own after market SSD at a fraction the cost of apples options, and more than double the size that was on offer at the time, and should the inevitable happen, and the HDD fails down the line, ill replace it with a 512gb or higher SSD and go entirely SSD internally, as my main storage drive is an external network Raid anyway.
The PC i will be building is around £900 cheaper than the top of the line BTO imac at the moment, and beats the snot out of it on specifications. And, is it will be only a "games console" for me, i will continue to use my 2011 iMac as my productivity machine (Mainly because a 1000w PSU is going to cost the earth to run 24/7 when compared to an iMac)
PCs for gaming, Hell yes, for productivity, cant beat the iMac
I do bemoan the sealed nature of the new iMac.... slightly. It's ok because the benefits outweigh the cons. I will only ever upgrade the Mac's HD every 2-4 years. I'm ok with spending an hour cutting and re-sealing the machine every 2-4 years.