Upgrading from 2.1 G5 iMac to i3 iMac, no need for i7

[BA Baracus]

I keep my hardware for a long time. My G5 is now 5 years old and has served me well but boy is it starting to creak, slow to launch apps, bit flaky with the wireless connection etc etc...

Its a bit of an OAP.

So when funds allow I am going to upgrade, because I should see a noticeable difference, right?

i3 should be plenty fast enough for me, but my question is, what is the point in buying the i5 or i7?

I keep my machines for years, my G5 was top of the range 5 years ago and is now sluggish. If the i7 is top of the range now, might that not be sluggish in 5 years time, what with advances with the OS and software?

IE the extra £££s right now might not be worth it.

Appreciate that if you are looking to do processor intensive stuff then then i7 will smash the i3.

Many thanks in advance for comments received.

 

[Hellhammer]

If you don't do anything that requires much CPU power, just go for the i3. "Future-proofing" is a moot point. In 5 years, the base iMac will be faster than any iMac that is currently available.

 

[orbital~debris]

You'll certainly notice the difference between your iMac and the new generation!

I just upgraded from the same gen as you. Mine was an iMac G5 2.1 GHz. I went for the iMac i7

Whilst it's true that in five years the base iMac will be faster than any currently shipping iMac, to my mind future-proofing is about elongating the time before you start to notice any 'creakiness'.

You don't have to worry about buying a moderately cheaper computer so often, and you get many new features in the new computer because your old one has lasted for some time. At the same time, you remain reasonably up-to-date speed-wise, as it takes time for the top of the range processor to be worked to the bottom of the range or eventually be replaced.

 

[TMRaven]

If I were wanting another 5 years, I'd honestly get the i7. 5 years' worth of software progress should do well with 8 threads.

I was on the same boat as you actually. I had a 2ghz G5 iMac I kept from 2005 to 2010, then I bought this i7 iMac, which I hope to keep until 2015.