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Should I buy one?

U

username:

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Dec 16, 2013
707
365
My situation:

I have enough money
I have an iPad mini, iPhone 4s, and MBA 2013
I have an external monitor for the MBA

Why I think a 27" iMac would be good for me:

More powerful computer for video and photo editing
The MBA struggles with iMovie occasionally, so I haven't even installed FCP.
More RAM and storage (MBA only has 4GB, 128GB SSD)
Gives me more freedom with the MBA.
Gives me a base to work from, while the MBA can be purely for mobility, rather than doing two jobs.
I think the iMac display looks good
I can use my existing display as a second monitor.
The current iMacs look amazing
Thunderbolt 1.0 doesn't bother me

What's holding me back:

I think I'm being lazy/fussy in wanting a more powerful and more convenient option than MBA + external monitor
I have a laptop PC from 2006 which I never use now. I would feel weird having yet another computer in the house.
There will be a new model coming out this year, possibly new redesign.
I don't think I can ever go back to using windows, but PC's are way cheaper, and I could possibly use linux or a hackintosh.

I have no idea what to do. Money is extremely useful stuff. Is it worth throwing so much of it away on a computer?
 
simon48

simon48

macrumors 65816
Sep 1, 2010
1,315
88
The age of your computers might not line up right now for this to be the right why to go, but a rMBP + external display is the best of both worlds for many people (myself included).
 
B

BESLC

macrumors regular
Apr 20, 2010
123
0
Having that big beautiful screen is a big plus, be it for work or play. I have the MBP and iPad,but the iMac is my go to at home . I think the iMac is my favorite of all my Mac products..it might be just me,but I really like the iMac for a number of reasons.
 
M

mvmanolov

macrumors 6502a
Aug 27, 2013
858
5
have you considered a maxed out mac mini? those are some pretty powerful little machines... check it out. ( i cannot testify to their use in FCP, but iMovie has no issues on mine - though i am not by any means an advanced user)
 
U

username:

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Dec 16, 2013
707
365
BESLC said:
Having that big beautiful screen is a big plus, be it for work or play. I have the MBP and iPad,but the iMac is my go to at home . I think the iMac is my favorite of all my Mac products..it might be just me,but I really like the iMac for a number of reasons.
Click to expand...

I'm thinking the imac would become my go to at home as well.

----------
mvmanolov said:
have you considered a maxed out mac mini? those are some pretty powerful little machines... check it out. ( i cannot testify to their use in FCP, but iMovie has no issues on mine - though i am not by any means an advanced user)
Click to expand...

I'm waiting and waiting for that mac mini update!
 
W

WallToWallMacs

macrumors regular
Jan 26, 2014
166
0
If I had to re-buy my setup again the only thing I'd change would be:

iMac - top CPU and GPU on BTO.
MacBook Air
iPhone 5S

Right now I have a MacBook Pro 13.3" non-retina and to be honest I should have actually gone for the MacBook Air given that my main focus has been mobility where as when I need the heavy lifting I'll go straight to the iMac such as video compression, games, long periods of typing etc. There are benefits of having the iMac but honestly I question the wisdom owning both an iPhone and an iPad mini because it seems to be a device that would be used the least in the line up.
 
U

username:

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Dec 16, 2013
707
365
WallToWallMacs said:
If I had to re-buy my setup again the only thing I'd change would be:

iMac - top CPU and GPU on BTO.
MacBook Air
iPhone 5S

Right now I have a MacBook Pro 13.3" non-retina and to be honest I should have actually gone for the MacBook Air given that my main focus has been mobility where as when I need the heavy lifting I'll go straight to the iMac such as video compression, games, long periods of typing etc. There are benefits of having the iMac but honestly I question the wisdom owning both an iPhone and an iPad mini because it seems to be a device that would be used the least in the line up.
Click to expand...

Thanks a lot for your reply! I think I would use the imac similar to you i.e. Editing, long periods of writing, gaming. Here in Aus with education pricing it's ~$2800 for the i7 imac with 1Tb fusion. It's A LOT but starting to think it will be worth it?

Im actually questioning how much I would use the MBA if I bought an imac rather than the ipad mini, which I use for pretty much all my reading as well as annotating PDFs from uni.

Another factor is the resale value on apple products seems to be good. Ipad minis on eBay are still going for ~$250, and MBA 2013's ~$1000.
 
W

WallToWallMacs

macrumors regular
Jan 26, 2014
166
0
username: said:
Thanks a lot for your reply! I think I would use the imac similar to you i.e. Editing, long periods of writing, gaming. Here in Aus with education pricing it's ~$2800 for the i7 imac with 1Tb fusion. It's A LOT but starting to think it will be worth it?

Im actually questioning how much I would use the MBA if I bought an imac rather than the ipad mini, which I use for pretty much all my reading as well as annotating PDFs from uni.

Another factor is the resale value on apple products seems to be good. Ipad minis on eBay are still going for ~$250, and MBA 2013's ~$1000.
Click to expand...

I guess it depends as a student whether you're going to use your laptop at university because really the iPad mini sounds great but when you went to use it beyond consuming and start creating even for example writing up notes at uni or surfing the net in bed you may find it easier just to hold onto the MacBook Air.
 
rankinmikee

rankinmikee

macrumors newbie
Jan 14, 2014
7
0
username: said:
My situation:

I have enough money
I have an iPad mini, iPhone 4s, and MBA 2013
I have an external monitor for the MBA

Why I think a 27" iMac would be good for me:

More powerful computer for video and photo editing
The MBA struggles with iMovie occasionally, so I haven't even installed FCP.
More RAM and storage (MBA only has 4GB, 128GB SSD)
Gives me more freedom with the MBA.
Gives me a base to work from, while the MBA can be purely for mobility, rather than doing two jobs.
I think the iMac display looks good
I can use my existing display as a second monitor.
The current iMacs look amazing
Thunderbolt 1.0 doesn't bother me

What's holding me back:

I think I'm being lazy/fussy in wanting a more powerful and more convenient option than MBA + external monitor
I have a laptop PC from 2006 which I never use now. I would feel weird having yet another computer in the house.
There will be a new model coming out this year, possibly new redesign.
I don't think I can ever go back to using windows, but PC's are way cheaper, and I could possibly use linux or a hackintosh.

I have no idea what to do. Money is extremely useful stuff. Is it worth throwing so much of it away on a computer?
Click to expand...

My advice is to spend it on a PC. For the same amount of money you'd have a way more powerful machine. Go for Windows 7 though.
 
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