How many of you went with the single quad setup?

[Gunga Din]

I'm waivering back to getting a Mac Pro instead of a notebook.

With no tax and edu discount these were my options:

(1) Single Quad with 8800 gt $2329 (Wait 2-4 Weeks

or

(2) Dual Quad with the ATI $2599 (Get today) Upgrade to 8800 gt at a later time.

I would love to just pick this thing up today and start using it since it will be my first Mac. I know its gonna cost me more to upgrade to the 8800gt later but if I order it online not only would I have to wait 2-4 weeks but i'd have to ship to a friend in a tax free state. The store is in a tax free state 20min away so I can just drive there.

ARG!

I was ready to wait for the Macbook Pro update but i'm concerned about the durability of a Laptop vs the Tower. Should I be concerned?

 

[GoCubsGo]

Here is my rule of thumb. You get the most you can afford and focus on things you cannot change. IE: Processor. If you were getting a notebook I would also recommend maxing or getting close to it on your video and hard drive. However, on the MacPro getting the single quad seems like you're just getting older tech. I know the chip is different and the performance would be great, but what if you decide to sell? Resale of that may not be desirable due to the single quad chip. If you can afford to just get the base octo-quad and not add anything else (but maybe airport) then I would do that.

 

[LostSunrise]

OCTOCORE or bust

You should probably get the Octo Core if you're on a budget like me you're not going to be driving 2 30 inch monitors and unless you're doing gaming or certain graphics that take advantage of the GPU it shouldn't make a difference. You should really look into the programs you want to use and see if they take advantage of GPU acceleration. If you start using something that does you upgrade. Just don't miss out on OCTOCORE the 500 dollars savings isnt worth the loss of that second CPU.

 

[Gunga Din]

You should probably get the Octo Core if you're on a budget like me you're not going to be driving 2 30 inch monitors and unless you're doing gaming or certain graphics that take advantage of the GPU it shouldn't make a difference. You should really look into the programs you want to use and see if they take advantage of GPU acceleration. If you start using something that does you upgrade. Just don't miss out on OCTOCORE the 500 dollars savings isnt worth the loss of that second CPU.

Yea, the Mac Pro with the 8800 gt will more than cover the switch from my Dell and cover my gaming needs. Guess with me Dell still running I can wait to upgrade to the 8800gt for at least 6 months. By that time I can easily save up for the 8800gt upgrade.

Agreed, Octocore FTW. I will no longer consider the single quad. Guess my main choice is between and new Macbook Pro (who knows when they update this) and the new Mac Pro. I feel safer with a tower purchase over a laptop. Isnt the lifespan on a Notebook alot less, more things can go wrong with them etc? How durable are Apple notebooks?