Late 2007 iMac model

[njpodder]

I need advice. I am buying an iMac, its the late 2007 model, where they switched to the aluminum body. I am buying off my sister and her husband who use their macbooks all the time now. I did some research online and offered them $750, which seemed pretty fair considering the average prices on e-bay, Craigslist, and those pricing sites for old macs, plus I know that they have taken great care of it, since I live down the street and have spent lots of time around the machine.

I mostly want to use it for tasks that Mac excels at, and frankly, I just want a Mac. I have a desktop PC and a PC laptop (not by choice, it was a gift), so when it comes to gaming, etc I can get my fix there. However, would the Raedon 2600 PRO in this model be able to run current games that aren't ridiculously graphics dependant? I do play some WoW here and there and really gearing up for Starcraft 2, which says it only requires an x1600 Radeon for Mac (based on my research, the 2600 Pro outperforms this). Again, this isn't the basis for my decision, just would be fun to try it out. He booted it up in Wondows and it plays Call of Duty 4 beautifully.

So, what do you think? Good deal? bad deal? Keep my $750 and buy one of the new mac minis? Help me out here, macrumors brothers and sisters!

Oh the specs are 24" iMac, 2.4 GHz Core 2 Duo, Raedon HD 2600 PRO, 2 GB RAM, 320gb hard drive, 8x superdrive, etc etc etc

 

[njpodder]

Maybe I would be better off with one of the new Mac minis instead? I really liket hat all-in-one design with the beautiful 24" screen, though.

 

[js81]

Maybe I would be better off with one of the new Mac minis instead? I really liket hat all-in-one design with the beautiful 24" screen, though.

Tough call - the new Mini would be faster and have warranty, but by the time you add the peripherals and a 24" screen (assuming you'd want something equivalent), you'd be into the $1000 range.

Mini --> $700
24" LCD --> $160 (I just bought one for this price - cheap TN, so not as good as the iMac's screen, but not terrible, unless you do lots of Photoshop, etc.)
KB & mouse --> $30-$110 (depending on if you want Apple or not)
Speakers --> at least $30 for anything remotely decent (I'd figure $100 for something pretty good)

You're looking at $920 minimum. If you have the money, I'd get the Mini, unless getting the iMac helps your family out - then I'd go for it, as its not a bad machine AT ALL for the price.

 

[njpodder]

Thanks for your thoughts. It's a tough call. the iMac actually still has about 6 months left on its Applecare extended warranty, but obviously, that is not too much of a factor. I guess my mian question si "What woudl I use it for?" The iMac will end up as a desktop, but where and how often will i use it? With the mac mini, I would most likely be hooking it up to my TV and using it as a media center. Speakers, keyboard, mouse, etc... I have so many computer parts laying around, that is covered. Although, my 4 year old 20" lcd computer monitor will never match how beautiful that 24" built in screen is.

Thanks again for your thoughts!