iMac vs MacPro

[Check 6]

First let me say that I know they are two different animals. That said from you experts (and most are smarter than I) would a 2.8 gig imac with 4 gig of memory, 24 inch screen, optional graphics card satisfy my needs. As I mentioned before I am retired and besides the normal computer uses I do some photo editing with Photoshop CS3 and Lightroom, nothing commercial. Maybe a game or two but again nothing serious.

I did my research on monitors, configured a Mac Pro and then started thinking about the imac. Biggest reason would be desk space.

The first question would be the screen how does it compare to the stand alone Apple monitors or say the NEC IPS displays. Yes I know the imac screen is not a mat finish.
Is the power supply in the imac large enough to handle USB device power drains?

I realize that this thread might be better on the imac forum but I would expect that most of you graduated form the imac. In my switch from many years with using microsoft products I have already purchased and enjoy a macbook pro with the 15 inch screen (small for detailed work with old eyes). As always I appreciate the comments provided.

 

[Sun Baked]

The iMac is basically a MacBook Pro in a desktop case. Perfomance of the two is quite similar.

So getting an external 24" monitor, more RAM, keyboard, and mouse can quickly convert the laptop into a desktop. And quite a bit cheaper than buying an ADDITIONAL dedicated desktop.

As is making ample use of increasing font sizes, fit to width in apps, etc. when you got to a larger monitor to ease the pain on old eyes.

 

[ob81]

For what you want, even the 2.4 would be enough. I was in the same situation, and went with the iMac. The screen is great, but I got an additional Matte monitor for dealing with photos. I play a game or 2 and both are the latest games and they run well. I use Aperture, which is very taxing, and it runs very smooth with 2gb RAM. I upgraded to 4GB and it runs great with additional programs running. As far as the USB portion, I have many ports between the keyboard and the iMac.

 

[Arjy]

An iMac 2.8Ghz with 4 gigs of RAM would be more than pleatny of power for what you are planning on doing. I have a 2.33Ghz iMac with 2 gigs of RAM and mine has served me great for my needs, which are more intense than what you are telling me you need. I do photoshop work with large canvases and I've never had a problem with mine, so you should be just fine with an iMac. They really are powerful machines. If you want to save money I'd say stick with just 2 gigs of RAM and if you feel safe with it drop the CPU to 2.4 Ghz, though 2.8 would be worth it $ gigs of RAM is not worth the price right now though, especially since You probably wont utilize it at all. With only 2 gigs, I've been able to have a movie or some music playing, on iChat talking with friends, a browser open surfing the web, and be working on a 5000x5000 canvas on photoshop, and coding a website in Panic Coda, and had no issues with performance. If you'd rather play it safe and can afford it though, go for 4 gigs. Hope I could help. I think the Mac Pro would be a bit over kill for your needs.

 

[mduser63]

For me the iMac is the ideal machine. I use a 20" 2.0 GHz iMac and aside from wishing the 24" model was available when I bought mine, I couldn't be happier. I use mine fairly seriously for web design, photo editing and software development. For what you're planning, the Mac Pro is definitely overkill and besides being more expensive, they're noisier and much larger.

The suggestion to get a 23" screen for your MacBook Pro is also a viable one. The only real differences between the MBP and the iMac in terms of performance are the screen size and maximum hard drive size. You can always get an external hard drive if you need more hard drive space.