G5.... I'm so sorry

[giffut]

That´s ...

Get the g5 but get the Quad 2.5 it was faster than many intel macpros
only about 300$ more

... hardly true, e.g., my Core 2 Duo 2,33Ghz benchmarks almost the same as the Quad G5, which has double the cores.

If you want raw speed, get the Dell, as the new Nehalem Intel CPUs are smocking fast. Especially the i7-920 has huge overclocking potential. But even in stock configuration the 4 core i7-920 almost equals the former 8 core Mac Pro in raw processing power - and it dusts it in memory speed.

You could hackintosh your Dell, though - just don´t forget to buy OSX, though.

 

[Morriss]

I would get the refurbished iMac, and an external FW drive as your scratch disk for Photoshop. Don't get the G5. I own a 2.0 G5 and will soon be ordering a MP. PPC machines are obsolete and in the future, the latest OS X may not run on them. What happens if you need to replace your graphic card on the G5 in a year or two? Will the compatible cards be available? The macintel machines are much better in the long run, I believe.

 

[Quu]

Don't think I could live without Aperture for Photo work. It's just so fast and powerful, really cuts down on time. So for me the Dell (Running Windows) would not be acceptable.

The current situation of Apple kit is in my opinion quite dire. The Mac Pro is very expensive, the older G5's are outdated with no future OS wise. The iMac's are still running Mobile Dual Core processors. Mini Display Port is rearing its ugly head ..

It's difficult being a Mac user right now Apple is making a lot of decisions that consumers don't like. I bought a 17" MBP recently to use for Work & Home. Aperture, Photoshop, Motion, XCode - And play like IM, Surfing, Email, Music & Video. I'm happy with my Purchase because I think the Apple notebooks are the only real computer they sell at the moment that is actually competitive with the rest of the industry. The other systems they sell have all been re-created and oftentimes with better specifications.

Hard decision you have to make. If it was me in your position I'd probably buy a 15" MacBook Pro.

 

[AdamN]

Faster Mac Mini and refurb iMac

/signed

I went from:
g4 1.42 mini
g5 Powermac single 1.8
c2d 2.16 imac
to octo 2.8 mac pro

And the biggest jump in performance by far was between the G5 and the imac.

The g5 are amazing machines, especially build and quality. And they are still useful for some applications. But core 2 duo's even entry mobile ones are much faster. I would seriously consider a mini if i were strapped for cash. The g5 memory bandwidth is just too low especially if you plan to use it for another couple of years.

Oh and don't waste money on a 2.26 mini (unless you don't care about $$) because i seriously doubt you would tell em apart from a 2.0 one in a blind test. Get 4gb and a fast fw800 drive instead

I agree - and that is what I would do. However, he was pushing for max power for max amount of time so I wanted to make sure he stayed within the Mac Mini line rather than get a Dell . Another issue is that the higher model Mac Mini has double the amount of video card RAM, which could be relevant here. Nonetheless, as said elsewhere about the G5, the new Mac Mini will be more powerful than any G5 out there - and it will support Snow Leopard when it comes out. G5s are great, but they only have another 2 years left before they're totally outdated.

In response to the thread about the refurbed iMac, my only problem with that is that you can't adjust the monitor vertically or rotate it - which can be annoying for photo editing (although totally ok). The new Mac Mini will end up being almost the same price and more flexible - but either is fine.

 

[NoNameBrand]

there is a way to install the iPhone sdk on a PPC. I'm still not sure about the mini though, it costs more than twice as much, and I'm going to school right now, so I don't have a job either. Btw, will leopard run good? I know I should be using tiger, but I need leopard for the iphone sdk.

Leopard works great on my DP 1.8 - it's the first version with 8 DIMM slots.

I have a C2D MacBook and a CD Mini, so here's a comparison:

• The Intel Macs boot faster.
• My MacBook can run iMovie 08 (which chokes on the G5 - haven't run it on the work computer).
• They all feel equally Snappy(TM).
• The G5 has better FPS in GPU bound games.
• The G5 really shines when I need fast disk I/O.
• The G5 is better for audio work due to a glitch in Core Audio on Intel 10.5 systems relating to multi-track monitoring.

My usage:
I wouldn't dream of doing a billboard design on my Mini or MacBook - the disk speed is slow and I only have 2GB of RAM in each. I do lighter Photoshop work on all three, 3D modelling, programming, and single track recording and don't notice significant differences. Due to a much larger amount of RAM, more stuff is running on the G5 at any given time.

The only thing my G5 struggles with is Aperture and there are some games I want to play on an Intel Mac with a decent video card. Pretty awesome for a 5 year old computer. Aperture is OK on the MacBook, but I only keep a very small subset of my library on it.

 

[California]

I haven't run anything but FCP on the G5's I've owned, but I remember at the switch to Intel in 06 I was lectured sternly by an Apple Tech that the PPC architecture is superior to the Intel because of how it performs with certain heavy load programs on the G5.

If the OP finds a DP 1.8 that takes the eight gigs of ram at four hundred bucks Canadian, I think he's got a steal of a deal and when time comes I am sure he will get his money back on the machine.

 

[DarthTreydor]

What about a used rev a mac pro? You can find one on eBay within your price range and still have money left for a monitor. It seems like a good option as it will still be viable for years to come and can be upgraded to 32gb ram, 4 hdd, etc.

 

[OrangeSVTguy]

Yeah a first gen MP would be good.

The 24" is a good deal too and will last your 3+ years. It's got a good video card in there. Not bad for $1200 + Tax. Shipping is free too and you get 1 year warranty. You will have money left over to buy you a better lens.

Refurbished iMac 24-inch 2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo


24-inch glossy widescreen display
2GB memory
320GB hard drive
8x SuperDrive (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO with 256MB memory
Built-in iSight Camera

$1,199.00

 

[benbridle38]

you say your a teacher, so could get student discount one way or another im sure, 10-15%. and that means that you get the 3 year apple care plan.. which means its guaranteed to last 3 years mechanically wise.

obviously a referb wont let you get 3 year plan.

the graphics in the new ones is good enough for most photo editing i'm sure, my almost 3 year old cd macbook handles lightroom and photoshop quite well. So then i can imagine an imac will be fine in 3 years.

When snow leopard comes out, it will get even better.

Dont get G5, you will find yourself replacing it before 3 years, due to wanting to install the newest photo-editing programs, i cant imagine they will support ppc for more than another year.

Obviously a Hackintosh is a very good option too, allthough build quality lacks a little in the dell and there will be some teething problems im sure.

Keep with OSX thought!

 

[OrangeSVTguy]

***

obviously a referb wont let you get 3 year plan.

**

Sure you can.

 

[California]

G5's are a stable, reliable and excellent bargain right now in this depressed economy and I am more than thrilled with mine. I am about to sell my aluminum macbook because I love my G5 too much...

 

[simplymuzik3]

I just got my DP 1.8ghz, 1gb ram, powermac g5 yesterday, and let me tell you, it handles everything perfectly! I installed cs3/cs4 and it runs very smooth! If you can find a good deal on one, then thats even better! I got mine for $400 CDN. See if you can find one cheap, they are still VERY useable computers, and I would reccommend that you get a g5 and save the extra $$. And dont forget that if you buy new/refurb you still have to pay tax, so that might add a few hundred more to the price depending on what you get.