Hey guys
Thanks for having me on the forum, its my first time posting and even though I'm not new to apple products, i am looking to buy my very first iMac computer. I need help because even though i understand the technical differences between components such as faster vs. slower cpu or gpu, more vs less cores, more vs less ram, i haven't managed to figure out which model will suit my needs best.
My buget is pretty limited at around $600 and my needs aren't very diverse. I don't need it to play games or anything like that. I know I want it to be a unibody model (so late 2009 or newer). As of right now I'm not leaning one way or another regarding the size, 21.5 or 27, whichever.
I'll be using it mainly to operate app design programs such as gamesalad, indesign, photoshop (maybe some photo editing) plus other adobe software, browsing and that's about it. I'd love it if it would be able to perform these tasks without taking its time between processes, showing me the spinning beach ball.
Can you guys please tell me which late 2009 or newer models would fit my needs best, regardless of size? Would the older late 2009 core 2 duo 3.33ghz still cut it today, if it had sufficient ram? Is enough ram what i need most for running those programs or a faster cpu? I'm aware that the newer the iMac is, the faster it will be, but since you guys know them so well maybe you can tell me if there's any older model almost as fast as its newer counterpart, which would help me maybe get the larger screen version.
Should I only look at i5 models? If so is the late 2009 still a good choice or should i make a push for a mid 2010 or even mid 2011 model. Maybe i3?
And of course the video card. Should i stay away from the 256mb or 512mb cards?
Thank you!
Thanks for having me on the forum, its my first time posting and even though I'm not new to apple products, i am looking to buy my very first iMac computer. I need help because even though i understand the technical differences between components such as faster vs. slower cpu or gpu, more vs less cores, more vs less ram, i haven't managed to figure out which model will suit my needs best.
My buget is pretty limited at around $600 and my needs aren't very diverse. I don't need it to play games or anything like that. I know I want it to be a unibody model (so late 2009 or newer). As of right now I'm not leaning one way or another regarding the size, 21.5 or 27, whichever.
I'll be using it mainly to operate app design programs such as gamesalad, indesign, photoshop (maybe some photo editing) plus other adobe software, browsing and that's about it. I'd love it if it would be able to perform these tasks without taking its time between processes, showing me the spinning beach ball.
Can you guys please tell me which late 2009 or newer models would fit my needs best, regardless of size? Would the older late 2009 core 2 duo 3.33ghz still cut it today, if it had sufficient ram? Is enough ram what i need most for running those programs or a faster cpu? I'm aware that the newer the iMac is, the faster it will be, but since you guys know them so well maybe you can tell me if there's any older model almost as fast as its newer counterpart, which would help me maybe get the larger screen version.
Should I only look at i5 models? If so is the late 2009 still a good choice or should i make a push for a mid 2010 or even mid 2011 model. Maybe i3?
And of course the video card. Should i stay away from the 256mb or 512mb cards?
Thank you!