Hey guys,I am thinking of buying the iMac with gtx 775m (gtx 780m version not available in my country 🙁).I will primarily use the Mac for gaming so I wanted some opinions on whether the iMac is a viable gaming solution down the line for 3-4 years.Thanks in advance for gaminh
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Is the 27 inch iMac good for gaming?
- Thread starter Radon87000
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
MacOG728893
macrumors 68000
jondunford
macrumors 6502
I would have to say no. I have an iMac with 680MX, and it works quite well as a gaming machine for me, although gaming is not my primary iMac use. However as slick the iMac package might be, if gaming is your main goal go for a PC with a GTX780ti and proper monitor instead. Much more performance for the same amount of money (or even less). Don't forget 680MX is more powerful than the 775M. Btw 2Q next year the iMac will get a big GPU upgrade, ie. the Nvidia Maxwell.
Last edited:
I don't have deep knowledge about workstation graphics but aren't they plenty powerful enough to play most high end spec games with no hiccups? I mean it's got dual graphics. I don't know what games we're talking about in particular but I would personally think that it would work like a charm(most games).
A 400$ PS4 is more powerful than the top iMac (it has 80% of the power of one Mac Pro GPU). They are close to jailbreaking it. Next step is running Windows on it. But with a closed platform like PS4 you also benefit from much tighter programming. Have a look at GTA5. It runs on 7 year old hardware and looks fantastic. Forget anything like that on a Mac. It is the last machine in the line. A console is used 100%, a PC maybe 70% and a Mac is used 30-40%. So combine that rate with the Mac Pro video power, and you will have less effective gaming power than a PS4.
On a Mac you should run Windows as well. DirectX is way more efficient than OpenGL.
On a Mac you should run Windows as well. DirectX is way more efficient than OpenGL.
Last edited:
silvetti
macrumors 6502a
So much misinformation on this post... jesus...
Just from the top of my head...
GTA V on dips to 16fps on Xbox 360 and to 24fps on PS3, with what you consider " fantastic" . I assure you I would be able to get that on a 780M 4GB Vram...
Second, 80% of one Mac Pro GPU ?! What Mac Pro GPU are we talking about ?!
A PC 70% a Mac 30% ?! How do you even come up with this numbers !?
Last edited:
I think the Mac Pro GPU is either the 4GB-dual D300 FirePro, or the 6GB-dual D500 FirePro, or 12GB-dual D700 FirePro.
Well it's out in the wild already, but only in the hands of a very select few. One of them is photographer Lucas Gilman. http://9to5mac.com/2013/10/22/inter...y-pros-already-using-apples-next-gen-mac-pro/
General availability is only around February next year.
silvetti
macrumors 6502a
Still how can he claim that PS4 is 80% of a Mac Pro GPU ?!
Specially since both GPU's are aimed at different tasks and I doubt drivers for D*00 will be optimised for gaming.
Also, he OP asked if the iMac was good for gaming... not should I buy a iMac or a PS4 for gaming...
My 2cents, I have a iMac with 780m and this are my max/min/average frames on Battlefield 4 with everything on max except AA which is off.
2013-12-02 13:04:40 - bf4
Frames: 5302 - Time: 125422ms - Avg: 47.273 - Min: 35 - Max: 106
(was just playing when you replied 😀)
And this is on native resolution.
You can either reduce resulution to 1080p or reduce one or two sliders to High instead of Ultra. Or disable AA post processing completely and I think you get close to 60 average.
This is multiplayer btw.
Specially since both GPU's are aimed at different tasks and I doubt drivers for D*00 will be optimised for gaming.
Also, he OP asked if the iMac was good for gaming... not should I buy a iMac or a PS4 for gaming...
My 2cents, I have a iMac with 780m and this are my max/min/average frames on Battlefield 4 with everything on max except AA which is off.
2013-12-02 13:04:40 - bf4
Frames: 5302 - Time: 125422ms - Avg: 47.273 - Min: 35 - Max: 106
(was just playing when you replied 😀)
And this is on native resolution.
You can either reduce resulution to 1080p or reduce one or two sliders to High instead of Ultra. Or disable AA post processing completely and I think you get close to 60 average.
This is multiplayer btw.
I also have the 27" with 3.5GHz i7, 32GB RAM, 512GB SSD and 4GB GTX780M.
BF4 is buggier than BF3 imo, but I still play it at medium settings and it still goes smooth.
By the way, the D*00 FirePros were never optimized for gaming in the first place. They're workstation cards and are meant for doing what workstations do.
It's just like how the GTX780 can't beat the FirePro in workstation tasks and how the FirePro can't beat the GTX780 in gaming.
silvetti
macrumors 6502a
My point exactly regarding the other user comparing the PS4 to 80% of a Mac Pro GPU... has no relevance to the OP question 🙂
Just prediction on number of shaders/clock frequency and that. The PS4 is roughly a smaller cousin of the Mac pro chip.
silvetti
macrumors 6502a
And you're telling me that comparing shaders/clock between a iMac, PS4 and a Mac Pro GPU makes a difference for games ?
Especially the Mac Pro part ?