Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Buying my very first mac.. and getting an iMac.. desperate for help/guidance...

A

amelsen

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 5, 2009
38
0
Alright.. so I'm getting a nice bonus from the company I work for, and have decided to purchase my very first mac.

I'm in a bit of a dilemma and have a few questions... I really hope some of you experienced Mac users can guide me a bit.

Anyways.. one thing is for sure... I'm getting a 24" model... so first question is:
Is the panel used in the second biggest mode (the one with 2.93ghz and gt120 card) the same panel as the one in the biggest.
As I've understood, it is supposed to be a H-IPS panel... can someone verify this?

And then for my thoughts.. I'm going to upgraded it with the Radeon 4850 card... and my thoughts are:

1) 640gb is really enough for me.. I'm not in a vast need of getting 1tb
2) Paying the extra 150$ for 3% extra CPU speed (2.93 vs. 3.06) doesn't right off hand seem like a necessity..

So right off hand.. I'm thinking.. am I really getting that much out of it going for the top model rather than just settling for the 2.93ghz?

What would YOU do?
 
amelsen said:
Ah.. suppose I should mention I live in Denmark, and that refurbished models isnt available here... =)
Click to expand...

Ah, okay. Well at a minimum you will want to get the GT 130. I would recommend upgrading the 2.93 GHz iMac to the 4850, though.
 
amelsen said:
What would YOU do?
Click to expand...

You can find the specs on all of the iMacs here. According to those figures both have the same TFT screens. If you call the Apple Store they may be be able to tell you more.

Generally, you are better putting your money into memory rather than CPU speed. But if your work depends on CPU speed, or the best GPU, than it may be worth it to you.

Best wishes.
 
there were some issues with the latest ATI graphics card in which users computers would randomly freeze. this i believe is a firmware issue and even if you do buy, the chances are still quite low of you getting an error. that said it is still obviously possible.

in terms of extra CPU power, well i doubt you will need to use all of it. unless you are going to be constantly editing movies or ripping DVD's you will not notice much of a difference. even when you are playing games there will not be much of a difference in the speed of the game.

i do not know if they use the same screens in models, although i would guess so.
 
supposed
Click to expand...

They ARE better. I'm not saying avoid the 20", but I think that IPS would be better visually to anybody. The dithering on TNs can cause eye strain. To some people dithering can be a problem, but to me its a major eye-strain for long periods of time.
 
Jack Flash said:
Ah, okay. Well at a minimum you will want to get the GT 130. I would recommend upgrading the 2.93 GHz iMac to the 4850, though.
Click to expand...

Why? Unless the OP is doing anything graphically intensive, which he has not mentioned doing, there's absolutely no point in spending money to upgrade the graphics. The integrated graphics would be fine for most home users - the GT120 is more than sufficient.
 
Demosthenes X said:
Why? Unless the OP is doing anything graphically intensive, which he has not mentioned doing, there's absolutely no point in spending money to upgrade the graphics. The integrated graphics would be fine for most home users - the GT120 is more than sufficient.
Click to expand...

I guess thats my fault not mentioning that... I _will_ be needing that just to be able to properly play games on it... I play MMO's from time to time... so that card will come in handy there.
 
amelsen said:
I guess thats my fault not mentioning that... I _will_ be needing that just to be able to properly play games on it... I play MMO's from time to time... so that card will come in handy there.
Click to expand...

The GT120 is plenty. Although stuff like Crysis would need the Radeon chip. And doesn't listen to the people whining about the bugs in the Radeon chip, it's not widespread and you can get a replacement if it happens to you.
 
SnowLeopard2008 said:
The GT120 is plenty. Although stuff like Crysis would need the Radeon chip. And doesn't listen to the people whining about the bugs in the Radeon chip, it's not widespread and you can get a replacement if it happens to you.
Click to expand...

The GT 120 isn't adequate at 1920x1200
 
Jack said :

The GT 120 isn't adequate at 1920x1200

Adequate for what?

Not being snarky just curious for your opinion as I am soon to buy one of the iMacs just haven't decided which yet.
 
m.jakey said:
Jack said :

The GT 120 isn't adequate at 1920x1200

Adequate for what?

Not being snarky just curious for your opinion as I am soon to buy one of the iMacs just haven't decided which yet.
Click to expand...

At that resolution the GT 120 is a bit underpowered for games.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back