The Mac Pro for me

[iisarenotnobody]

My iMac has served me well over the past few months but as I have used heavy apps more often and more taxing (Photoshop 1920x1200, illustrator, Dreamweaver 3 sites open at one time, Final Cut Express (hope to get Studio soon) rendering in HD and learning the basics of xcode and the mac and iphone OS developer wise) it seems that even with 4GB of RAM the most I have free at one time is 370MB (iStat)

Once the new Mac pro's came out, i began looking into them and thinking of getting one,
Specs:

Quad 2.66
8GB RAM (Upgrade from OWC)
640GB HD (Add 1.5TB from existing drives laying around)
2x Superdrive
4x GT 120 (Snow leopard, using more monitors to my advantage)
Airport

Everything else standard
I plan to buy it via the Student discount so the price is a lot more manageable.

My question is, for a Student who is going into Med/Computer Science/Graphic Design (mostly freelance) would this computer be

A. the perfect fit
B. Too much for what I need
(too many tests taken as you can tell.. )

I thank you ahead of time for your responses.

Edit: I will be getting 3 of these monitors (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236053) and using an old Dell 19" Monitor as a twitter/Mail monitor.

 

[Scottsdale]

My iMac has served me well over the past few months but as I have used heavy apps more often and more taxing (Photoshop 1920x1200, illustrator, Dreamweaver 3 sites open at one time, Final Cut Express (hope to get Studio soon) rendering in HD and learning the basics of xcode and the mac and iphone OS developer wise) it seems that even with 4GB of RAM the most I have free at one time is 370MB (iStat)

Once the new Mac pro's came out, i began looking into them and thinking of getting one,
Specs:

Quad 2.66
8GB RAM (Upgrade from OWC)
640GB HD (Add 1.5TB from existing drives laying around)
2x Superdrive
4x GT 120 (Snow leopard, using more monitors to my advantage)
Airport

Everything else standard
I plan to buy it via the Student discount so the price is a lot more manageable.

My question is, for a Student who is going into Med/Computer Science/Graphic Design (mostly freelance) would this computer be

A. the perfect fit
B. Too much for what I need
(too many tests taken as you can tell.. )

I thank you ahead of time for your responses.

I personally think the new Middle grade 24" iMac is a great Mac. So, it's $1799. And, you can upgrade the graphics to the ATI 4850 for only $200. As soon as RAM prices drop, probably within six months, you can throw in 8 GB RAM for less than $300. You get an absolutely stunning display. I really think at 2.93 GHz, with 640 GB or for $100 more get 1 TB HDD, and the 4850 graphics is REALLY REALLY NICE. Probably come close to matching last generation Mac Pros. Well maybe close if you consider 8 GB RAM.

So, you spend $2099 now, get an incredible iMac with 4850 ATI Graphics, and you spend probably less than $300 to get 8 GB RAM within six months when RAM prices have dropped further.

I think for MOST people, even doing what you do, this is one hell of a MAC!

Really amazing this card is available for the iMac. Really amazing how low end everything is in the new low-end Mac Pro (other than CPU).

Just my personal opinion, but you get all of that and an incredible display for probably $500 less than you get the Mac Pro. Seems like a smart deal to me.

Don't fall into the hype of new complaints about iMac. It really maxes out on the high end when consider 8 GB RAM, same as Max on low end Mac Pro. Same graphics as Mac Pro. Really an incredible deal in my opinion.

Best wishes.

 

[Igantius]

How are you finding the performance currently? If you do feel in need of a bit more pep, then I think the MP would be a sensible move– and it sounds like you’ve got your heart set on it! I do think the OP made a good point about the new iMacs having 8GM RAM, though.

Personally, I’m waiting to see some real-world tests at sites like barefeats.com before deciding to take the plunge.

 

[iisarenotnobody]

The performance is ok, but I do need that little boost as it tends to lag at times when editing with final cut and using photoshop heavily. I don't plan on selling my current iMac, will keep it as iTunes server and family computer. I am waiting until I see the tear down by ifixit, and the benchmarks.