I see many post about the advantages of getting the 2.66 with more over the 3.0 with less RAM. I was wondering say you have to stay on budget and you can only spend an extra $300 on upgrades, is it better to get that in RAM or on the x1900? I am using this Mac for Photoshop, Maya, Cinema 4d and After Effects/Motion work. I know thee are all RAM hungry apps, but they are also apps that require big video card needs. Also, could I buy any old x1900 off of the shelf and slap that in my Mac in a few months or so? Thanks.
Apple recommends the X1900 for Motion and anything that is really graphics intensive. How much ram are you going to start out with? You should have at least 2 gigs in there.
More RAM than what is the question. Photoshop and other intense graphics programs definitely want 2 Gb or more total RAM to perform. THe other part of the question is: You can add RAM at any time. You can only choose the graphics card or the CPU speed once (practically - its far too expensive to change them out later). So: Is the $300 budget the limit for all time? If so, get the RAM, no question. Or, could you consider adding more RAM in a few months as you have funds? Then, you have to balance the benefit vs. the cost of waiting. Adding an off-the-shelf (PC) X1900 is a no-go.
More RAM than the crappy stock 1gig. I would be adding 2 more gigs for a total 3 gigs to that or the x1900.
Honestly, if I was in your position I'd wait a few extra weeks so I could afford both upgrades. If you cant do that however, I would much prefer 3GB/Nvidia over the 1GB/ATI option. If you can, save a little more and do both upgrades.
Well, You'll want more than 1 Gb RAM for running those programs, so if it is an either-or proposition, then the RAM has to be the first purchase.
I would get the ATI video card now. Ram is easy to upgrade and install and you can pick some up later.
Ok you guys have convinced me, I will stay patient and get both, who knows maybe apple will drop the price or bump the specs in that time...yeah right.