iMac for gaming and movie watching?

[hacke]

Hey!

Do you think it's wasted money to get an iMac for gaming and watching movies? I personally have no TV-screen and would only watch via online stream films and also have no gaming console - that's the main reason why I want to get an iMac and sell my macbook pro (late 2009)

I only have to justify the high price (27" i5 1TB FusionDrive with GTX 680MX) of 2150€ (student rate)

The other option is to get a gaming rig + 27" panel (approx. 1500€), but I really don't like the extra wires and especially the windows OS (hackintosh huddle is not an option) Also the AIO system would be nice in the semester breaks easy taking the iMac home(to my parents home)

Just would like to hear your opinions! Thanks in advance for that!

EDIT: I also would use the iMac with virtual machine (parallels) and image/video editing (but very infrequent, aprox. 3times/month!)

 

[leman]

Well, its your money, so its your decision. We surely can't justify it for you In the end, its you who must be happy with your choice. Extra 500 euro is not that much when you consider that you will be keeping it three or four years (its only 14 euro more per month over the course of 3 years).

 

[mobilehaathi]

Not the best bang for your buck in terms of gaming power, but I think it is a fine choice. Bootcamp it though, don't game in a VM.

 

[hacke]

I know that the iMac is not a real opponent to a gaming rig - but I usually do not play high end games (but would also do with the new iMac, because it's possible). Therefore it's absolutely OK for me. I only want to spend some time to relax with games - I'm not a progamer or anything like this.
And I think I'll even play less games in three years when the iMac will not be good enough for latest games - so I'll still have a pretty good and pretty working station. VM will not be used for gaming, only for some windows software I need and perhaps linux.

 

[mobilehaathi]

I know that the iMac is not a real opponent to a gaming rig - but I usually do not play high end games (but would also do with the new iMac, because it's possible). Therefore it's absolutely OK for me. I only want to spend some time to relax with games - I'm not a progamer or anything like this.
And I think I'll even play less games in three years when the iMac will not be good enough for latest games - so I'll still have a pretty good and pretty working station. VM will not be used for gaming, only for some windows software I need and perhaps linux.

A fine choice then! But we're biased on these boards...

 

[ctdonath]

Heh. I'm so far behind on my to-play gaming queue I'm more worried that any new computer I get will prove too over-powered to run what I want. Looking at ordering a decked-out 27" iMac soon, and want to catch up on Portal, Doom III, Oni, Rage, maybe Halo. (Yes, I have other CPU-hungry uses for the machine.) Comes a point where keeping up with the latest content is less important than getting thru the content you wanted to some time ago.

 

[Coffee Minutes]

There's nothing wrong at all using it to watch movies and game on it. You use it however it best suits you, especially if you don't have a TV. People own these computers for various reasons. I watch movies and TV shows on iTunes all the time. If anything, its a plus to be able to not only use it for standard computing (programs, etc.), but also as a gaming machine and for media consumption.

 

[Mac32]

Heh. I'm so far behind on my to-play gaming queue I'm more worried that any new computer I get will prove too over-powered to run what I want. Looking at ordering a decked-out 27" iMac soon, and want to catch up on Portal, Doom III, Oni, Rage, maybe Halo. (Yes, I have other CPU-hungry uses for the machine.) Comes a point where keeping up with the latest content is less important than getting thru the content you wanted to some time ago.

I can almost guarantee that you will change your opinion of that, once you try out Crysis, Alan Wake or Far Cry 3... Still, Doom 3 is a great experience. Lots people complained about the game, but I still think it's a lot of fun. It has many great moments, and it's very scary. There is this sense of slowly approaching something truly horrific. Just don't try to play the whole game in a few days (it's rather long for a shooter). That way Doom 3's rather repetitive scare tactics won't become so annoying...