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Buy an iMac
- Thread starter lastochka
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Hehe well you are a cheerful bunch aren't you 
Well here's the deal. I've the money, yes. I need a home computer to be used for work (software development) and some fun (occasional gaming). I have a HTPC ( http://valid.x86-secret.com/show_oc.php?id=380497 ) hooked up to 50' plasma used as media centre, so I've got all my movies/music/gaming needs covered.
At this point I'm looking into several options:
1) get an iMac
2) get a powerful notebook with docking bay and 24' monitor
3) build a new PC system
What I like about iMac is that it contains a fairly powerful system in a very compact and aestetically appealing package. I do not care much for OSX - have tried it in VMWare and was not particulary impressed with it.
The drawbacks with Macs seem to be problems with the screen, apple's unpredictable release schedule and most importantly lack of upgrade options. If anything dies beyond warranty period, well, you've got a pretty aluminium and glass piece of furniture decoration then, LOL.
I'm looking at the highest-specc:ed model, in Scandinavia, Sweden. The problem is that I've really looked around and still haven't found a computer system that is equally compact, elegant and powerfull. Dell's latest offerings don't appeal to me at all and Sony doesn't seem to be making desktops...
BTW: is there a serial port in iMac?
Cheers!
Well here's the deal. I've the money, yes. I need a home computer to be used for work (software development) and some fun (occasional gaming). I have a HTPC ( http://valid.x86-secret.com/show_oc.php?id=380497 ) hooked up to 50' plasma used as media centre, so I've got all my movies/music/gaming needs covered.
At this point I'm looking into several options:
1) get an iMac
2) get a powerful notebook with docking bay and 24' monitor
3) build a new PC system
What I like about iMac is that it contains a fairly powerful system in a very compact and aestetically appealing package. I do not care much for OSX - have tried it in VMWare and was not particulary impressed with it.
The drawbacks with Macs seem to be problems with the screen, apple's unpredictable release schedule and most importantly lack of upgrade options. If anything dies beyond warranty period, well, you've got a pretty aluminium and glass piece of furniture decoration then, LOL
.I'm looking at the highest-specc:ed model, in Scandinavia, Sweden. The problem is that I've really looked around and still haven't found a computer system that is equally compact, elegant and powerfull. Dell's latest offerings don't appeal to me at all and Sony doesn't seem to be making desktops...
BTW: is there a serial port in iMac?
Cheers!
Hehe well you are a cheerful bunch aren't you
Well here's the deal. I've the money, yes. I need a home computer to be used for work (software development) and some fun (occasional gaming). I have a HTPC ( http://valid.x86-secret.com/show_oc.php?id=380497 ) hooked up to 50' plasma used as media centre, so I've got all my movies/music/gaming needs covered.
At this point I'm looking into several options:
1) get an iMac
2) get a powerful notebook with docking bay and 24' monitor
3) build a new PC system
What I like about iMac is that it contains a fairly powerful system in a very compact and aestetically appealing package. I do not care much for OSX - have tried it in VMWare and was not particulary impressed with it.
The drawbacks with Macs seem to be problems with the screen, apple's unpredictable release schedule and most importantly lack of upgrade options. If anything dies beyond warranty period, well, you've got a pretty aluminium and glass piece of furniture decoration then, LOL
I'm looking at the highest-specc:ed model, in Scandinavia, Sweden. The problem is that I've really looked around and still haven't found a computer system that is equally compact, elegant and powerfull. Dell's latest offerings don't appeal to me at all and Sony doesn't seem to be making desktops...
BTW: is there a serial port in iMac?
Cheers!
No to the serial port.
You've played with OS X as a virtual machine? Then you haven't seen OS X... It is by far the best operating system. Besides if you don't like it you can just run Windows Vista on it instead, or together.
why not build a hackintosh
does USB count for a serial port ?
Nope, if you're specifically looking for a serial port
. An adapter will help.Hehe, the best (real-time) OS in the world is OSE, but only because I'm working on it
.I didn't say I didn't like OS X, it just didn't, eh, "sparkle" with me. I'm sure it's a wonderful environment to work in. I, however, am quite used to Windows/Linux/Solaris and so the OS is not really a selling point for me. I just want the hardware. I wish there were more products competing with iMac so that we could have a choice...
Nope, if you're specifically looking for a serial port
Hehe, the best (real-time) OS in the world is OSE, but only because I'm working on it
I didn't say I didn't like OS X, it just didn't, eh, "sparkle" with me. I'm sure it's a wonderful environment to work in. I, however, am quite used to Windows/Linux/Solaris and so the OS is not really a selling point for me. I just want the hardware. I wish there were more products competing with iMac so that we could have a choice...
well if you just want the hardware then you def. shouldn't get an iMac, its overpriced. Probably your best bet would be to build your own computer.
Sorry but if you're getting the Imac purely for looks I'd say no. You can build a much more powerful machine for around the same price and although you still have a tower and cables, it beats having hardware in a box that cannot be upgraded and a OS you don't care for.
I'm currently in the same boat except I just don't like the way Apple finds it that they need to upgrade every 6 months and somehow find that fair to the consumer that just paid $2300+ for a desktop/notebook.
I definitely haven't had to many problems with Windows so I don't mind it one bit and the big advantage is upgradable hardware. And, I love building PC's so it's all good fun for me.
Did I mention Macs are the most expensive PC with minimal hardware to make up for the substantial price difference?
I'm currently in the same boat except I just don't like the way Apple finds it that they need to upgrade every 6 months and somehow find that fair to the consumer that just paid $2300+ for a desktop/notebook.
I definitely haven't had to many problems with Windows so I don't mind it one bit and the big advantage is upgradable hardware. And, I love building PC's so it's all good fun for me.
Did I mention Macs are the most expensive PC with minimal hardware to make up for the substantial price difference?
drfp25 and Hoopdy thanks for your feedback. Yes, I agree that iMacs are overprised and it is possible to get better performing hardware for just as much or less $. However money is not an issue in this case. I have the budget to pay whatever Apple are asking...
What really excites me about mac is this: http://www.switchingtomac.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/macvspc.jpg
I already have a system similar to the one on the right. I really want something that's as compact and clutterfree as the one on the left.
I feel very ambivalent at this point, and so the question, as subjective as it is, remains unanswered: should I buy an iMac?
What really excites me about mac is this: http://www.switchingtomac.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/macvspc.jpg
I already have a system similar to the one on the right. I really want something that's as compact and clutterfree as the one on the left.
I feel very ambivalent at this point, and so the question, as subjective as it is, remains unanswered: should I buy an iMac?
Suggest option#2 a MacBook Pro. You can get an additional external display if you want more screen real estate.
That picture's cute, but if you plan on having decent speakers and any external drives, and you stuff all the cables all next to iMac, it will look just like the Dell. I have seven cables coming out the back of my iMac
So Apple should never upgrade it's computers? Or only upgrade once a year or so? IMO upgrades don't happen frequently enough.
Buy a PC/notebook from any manufacturer and it'll be out of date within five minutes, that's just the way it is
I considered getting a MacBook + LG W2600HP-BF. MacBook Pro is butt ugly and features allegedly faulty nVidia graphics. It seems an update to the notebooks may come soon so perhaps it is be wise to wait a little...
I have a few more questions:
1. My understanding is that BootCamp allows installing of WinXP. Does Windows then run natively or thru vitualization/emulation of sorts?
2. How fast does Windows run if installed on an iMac?
3. Is it possible to switch between WinXP and OS X instantly or does one have to reboot?
7. What about file sharing between OSes - can OS X read/write NTFS. Does BootCamp provide a driver for WinXP to access OS X's HFS partition?
91. Out of the box, OS X doesn't seem to have gcc installed. Do I have to download and install XCode manually?
106. 24' iMac comes with a S-IPS panel, right?
388. And of course a question that has been puzzling the scietific community since the beginning of time: How the bloody hell do hedgehogs really do it?!
Thanks!
1. No emulation, it just makes a partition on your hard drive so it all runs natively.
2. It runs amazingly well, Apple made some good drivers for it.
3. Nope, unless you have Windows running in Parallels or VMWare Fusion. In both of those cases you would have to be running Windows in emulation.
7?. No. But you can buy one called macdrive, but it really isn't necessary if you have parallels or VMWare Fusion.
91. No, you can just install it off the disk. Just insert your OS X disk and install Developer tools.
106. (you're number scheme isn't funny btw) I dunno. But I believe so...
388. I watched this on animal planet. They do it just like most other animals, doggy style. However the narator noted that they must do it 'very carefully'.
I can give some input on these questions:
1. My understanding is that BootCamp allows installing of WinXP. Does Windows then run natively or thru vitualization/emulation of sorts? Natively. Of course, you can also run Windows through virtualization. In fact, with VMWare Fusion, you can also run your Boot Camp installation as a virtual machine in OS X. I don't do that, though...I have two separate installations of Vista, a more stripped down version for the VM, and another with all the bells & whistles for Boot Camp.
2. How fast does Windows run if installed on an iMac? Just like a nice PC. In fact, for what it's worth, my Vista performance score actually went up due to the graphics card (although the processor subscore went down). I even prefer to use the iMac now for Vista because of the monitor. The monitor, man...it's where it's at!
3. Is it possible to switch between WinXP and OS X instantly or does one have to reboot? Reboot
7. What about file sharing between OSes - can OS X read/write NTFS. Does BootCamp provide a driver for WinXP to access OS X's HFS partition? OS X can only read NTFS, not write. No included ability for Boot Camp windows installation to access HFS partition. I think you can get some kind of third party software to this? Don't really know anything about that, so don't quote me on it.
106. 24' iMac comes with a S-IPS panel, right? It's some kind of IPS. Viewing HD video or high-resolution pictures, it's like looking through a window at the real thing. It's almost a little freaky.
388. And of course a question that has been puzzling the scietific community since the beginning of time: How the bloody hell do hedgehogs really do it?!
Sorry...to tell you the truth, I don't even remember how humans do it
Just buy the thing already!
1. My understanding is that BootCamp allows installing of WinXP. Does Windows then run natively or thru vitualization/emulation of sorts? Natively. Of course, you can also run Windows through virtualization. In fact, with VMWare Fusion, you can also run your Boot Camp installation as a virtual machine in OS X. I don't do that, though...I have two separate installations of Vista, a more stripped down version for the VM, and another with all the bells & whistles for Boot Camp.
2. How fast does Windows run if installed on an iMac? Just like a nice PC. In fact, for what it's worth, my Vista performance score actually went up due to the graphics card (although the processor subscore went down). I even prefer to use the iMac now for Vista because of the monitor. The monitor, man...it's where it's at!
3. Is it possible to switch between WinXP and OS X instantly or does one have to reboot? Reboot
7. What about file sharing between OSes - can OS X read/write NTFS. Does BootCamp provide a driver for WinXP to access OS X's HFS partition? OS X can only read NTFS, not write. No included ability for Boot Camp windows installation to access HFS partition. I think you can get some kind of third party software to this? Don't really know anything about that, so don't quote me on it.
106. 24' iMac comes with a S-IPS panel, right? It's some kind of IPS. Viewing HD video or high-resolution pictures, it's like looking through a window at the real thing. It's almost a little freaky.
388. And of course a question that has been puzzling the scietific community since the beginning of time: How the bloody hell do hedgehogs really do it?!
Sorry...to tell you the truth, I don't even remember how humans do it
Just buy the thing already!
Some more remarks...
Bootcamp is nice if you need to run Windows at full processor speed. For most day-to-day work, running Windows virtually under Mac OS is still fast enough, plus you can switch instantly between the OSses. Both VMware and Parallels allow to use your bootcamp partition in a virtual machine. With that, you set up your Windows environment only once and run it natively or virtually just as you need.
Mac OS comes with read support for NTFS out of the box; that means you can access your XP files, but not write on the partition. With a VM running, you have full access to all your XP and Mac files. There are also free (and commercial) solutions to add HFS (Mac) file support for Windows.
As said by others, you find Xcode and gcc on the install disks. However, this is probably not the latest version (Xcode 3.1 with gcc 4.2), which was released a few weeks ago. To get the latest versions, you have to register as a member of the Apple Developer Connection (basic membership is free), after that you can download the latest tools.
Sperm teleportation. Quite simple.
Bootcamp is nice if you need to run Windows at full processor speed. For most day-to-day work, running Windows virtually under Mac OS is still fast enough, plus you can switch instantly between the OSses. Both VMware and Parallels allow to use your bootcamp partition in a virtual machine. With that, you set up your Windows environment only once and run it natively or virtually just as you need.
Mac OS comes with read support for NTFS out of the box; that means you can access your XP files, but not write on the partition. With a VM running, you have full access to all your XP and Mac files. There are also free (and commercial) solutions to add HFS (Mac) file support for Windows.
As said by others, you find Xcode and gcc on the install disks. However, this is probably not the latest version (Xcode 3.1 with gcc 4.2), which was released a few weeks ago. To get the latest versions, you have to register as a member of the Apple Developer Connection (basic membership is free), after that you can download the latest tools.
Sperm teleportation. Quite simple.
Thanks for feedback everyone!
I've checked out parallels and was very impressed with their online presentation. It looks as if it's possible to run Windows applications from within MacOS.
Can Parallels run WinXP off a partition created by BootCamp or does it require another installation of windows? It would be great if it was possible to boot into WinXP whenever speed is needed but be able to share the same set of applications and documents if I wanted to run windows programs from within OS X.
I think I'll go for 24' 3GHz with 500Gig HDD and GeForce 8800.
!
The worst thing that could happen is if two weeks after the purchase they (Apple) came out with a new line of iMacs with Montevina, Radeon 4650, SSD and BlueRay. What are the chances of that happening (as predicted by that Magic 8 Ball hehe)?
Good god! Haven't anyone heard it before?! The correct answer is, of course, "very carefully" LOL .
Cheers!
I've checked out parallels and was very impressed with their online presentation. It looks as if it's possible to run Windows applications from within MacOS.
Can Parallels run WinXP off a partition created by BootCamp or does it require another installation of windows? It would be great if it was possible to boot into WinXP whenever speed is needed but be able to share the same set of applications and documents if I wanted to run windows programs from within OS X.
I think I'll go for 24' 3GHz with 500Gig HDD and GeForce 8800.
I probably will
!The worst thing that could happen is if two weeks after the purchase they (Apple) came out with a new line of iMacs with Montevina, Radeon 4650, SSD and BlueRay. What are the chances of that happening (as predicted by that Magic 8 Ball hehe
)?Sperm teleportation. Quite simple.
Good god! Haven't anyone heard it before?! The correct answer is, of course, "very carefully" LOL
.Cheers!