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C2D 3.06 vs i5 ?

macchiato2009 said:
actually, my choice for the i5 is more based on getting the best video card rather than the i5 itself

but still, this combo will be only available in november :(
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As far as I know, you can get the 3.06 GHz Core 2 Duo also with the Radeon 4850 512 MB graphics. However, I would still choose the i5.
 
dwd3885 said:
In getting the 3.06 C2D. It's a $500 difference (from 21.5 to high end 27). So it's not petty cash that's for sure. Coming from a MBP running at 2.4 w/2gb ram, the 3.06 C2D w/4gb will be a beast for everything you through at it. Sure the i5 would be faster and better. But there is always something faster and better unless you get the absolute top of the line.

I think about it like this: in a year or two tops there will be bluray, USB 3, lightpeak all on the iMacs. So will the c2d last 2 years until then when I upgrade? I say without a doubt yes. Because u will want to upgrade when USB 3 bluray and lightpeak are out. So no point in buying a i5 if you won't use it as such until more apps take advantage of it. That's why I saved $500.
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Fair point but I do not get why you would be going for a 21.5" iMac. I mean if you were to spend that amount of money on the 21.5", why not just go for their highest end refurb model?

The thing with the i5 is that not only will it handle anything you throw at it but it will also have a resale value of AT LEAST $300 more than the 3.06. If you are plan of upgrading the gpu to 512....trust me go with the i5. You will be kicking yourself once everything is quad-core!
 
Yeah I've read all your points since I am in the same dilemma, coupled with impatience and I'm on the verge of maybe making a bad purchase.

I know it makes more sense to wait for the i5 or i7 but I also don't know that I would even be able to get all 4 cores working with what I do on a daily basis computing wise.

I use my current C2D 24" iMac for mainly music, school work (word processors, Keynote, Excel), and gaming. My current C2D 3.06 GHz with a 512 GeForce 8800 seems to handle all this really well, yet I'm looking to upgrade soon and I'm just wondering if I will see noticeable performance increase in what I do with the 27" i5/i7 over the 27" C2D.. ?
 
Photekk said:
Yeah I've read all your points since I am in the same dilemma, coupled with impatience and I'm on the verge of maybe making a bad purchase.

I know it makes more sense to wait for the i5 or i7 but I also don't know that I would even be able to get all 4 cores working with what I do on a daily basis computing wise.

I use my current C2D 24" iMac for mainly music, school work (word processors, Keynote, Excel), and gaming. My current C2D 3.06 GHz with a 512 GeForce 8800 seems to handle all this really well, yet I'm looking to upgrade soon and I'm just wondering if I will see noticeable performance increase in what I do with the 27" i5/i7 over the 27" C2D.. ?
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Noticable improvement...yes. Especially from the benchmarks. See here is how I think about it. I can cheap out now and not spend the additional $350-$400 and have a fairly decent machine which in today's world will last me max a year before its internal components are outdated.

Core i5 was VERY recently released. Not only will that "year" be one with you enjoying high speed performance but also should you decide to sell, you would still get very good resale value. Also, even a year down the road, you will have a QUAD CORE iMac, these puppies are just getting started and you are future-proof for at least a few years.

Just think of it down the road, will the $350 pay off or not. Also, when you are buying a machine as expensive as this, there is no point in getting a lower end model. Get the best your money can buy.

I am still on the edge. I will be returning this 24" refurb that I got a couple of days ago. Still cant decide between the core i5 and the 3.06 but I am leaning towards the i5 because I am overlooking the big bite it will take out of my wallet and seeing how that big bite will eventually pay off for sure!
 
would you consider a refurb last gen 3.06 GHz 24" with 4GB RAM? Sweet price on that one now....well there was one in the refurb store this morning....and yesterday...they seem to get snatched up before noon though.
 
fhall1 said:
would you consider a refurb last gen 3.06 GHz 24" with 4GB RAM? Sweet price on that one now....well there was one in the refurb store this morning....and yesterday...they seem to get snatched up before noon though.
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If you cant afford the 27", then go with the 24" refurb. Trust me you wont enjoy the 21.5 size screen as much as the 24 or the 27.
 
Photekk said:
I use my current C2D 24" iMac for mainly music, school work (word processors, Keynote, Excel), and gaming. My current C2D 3.06 GHz with a 512 GeForce 8800 seems to handle all this really well, yet I'm looking to upgrade soon and I'm just wondering if I will see noticeable performance increase in what I do with the 27" i5/i7 over the 27" C2D.. ?
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For what you do on a daily basis I'd look at the SYSMark and gaming results at AnandTech. You won't see a striking amount of benefit from the extra cores and hyper-threading unless you do video, transcoding, animation, some Photoshop stuff etc. Note that the E8600 DC (3.33GHz) actually outperforms the quads on tests that rely strictly on raw CPU speed (Turbo Boost won't always give you a benefit in every situation).

Unless the base, single socket Mac Pro takes a huge dive in pricing soon (and it should!!), I'll probably get a 27"/i5 for myself. My dual G5 PowerPC is being left at the side of the software road (thanks Apple & Adobe! :D).
 
fhall1 said:
would you consider a refurb last gen 3.06 GHz 24" with 4GB RAM? Sweet price on that one now....well there was one in the refurb store this morning....and yesterday...they seem to get snatched up before noon though.
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Well that's like the exact iMac I'm using right now.. am planning on selling it and upgrading to the 27" - hopefully I can sell it for a decent price even though the new iMacs just came out
 
eelpout said:
For what you do on a daily basis I'd look at the SYSMark and gaming results at AnandTech. You won't see a striking amount of benefit from the extra cores and hyper-threading unless you do video, transcoding, animation, some Photoshop stuff etc. Note that the E8600 DC (3.33GHz) actually outperforms the quads on tests that rely strictly on raw CPU speed (Turbo Boost won't always give you a benefit in every situation).

Unless the base, single socket Mac Pro takes a huge dive in pricing soon (and it should!!), I'll probably get a 27"/i5 for myself. My dual G5 PowerPC is being left at the side of the software road (thanks Apple & Adobe! :D).
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I can see that you are planning to get the i5 over the 3.06 or 3.33. Why is this??
 
GadgetAddicted said:
I can see that you are planning to get the i5 over the 3.06 or 3.33. Why is this??
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The i5 will boost to 3.2Ghz when using two cores. And when compared to the 3.33 with upgraded graphics, the i5 is $50 cheaper. A few years from now the quad core will hold it's value well while the C2D will drop quickly in price. The i5 is a much better value.
 
Do you guys think that if I picked up the i5 flavor 27" that when playing older games like World of Warcraft and some of the less-graphically intense games that the "turbo boost" + quad cores would kick in?

Not that those features would even be necessary, but I'm wondering if I could utilize them anyways by maybe manually turning it on for when I'm using say Photoshop or gaming..?
 
lasuther said:
The i5 will boost to 3.2Ghz when using two cores. And when compared to the 3.33 with upgraded graphics, the i5 is $50 cheaper. A few years from now the quad core will hold it's value well while the C2D will drop quickly in price. The i5 is a much better value.
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Cool! Very clean n concise response. Why did you decide on the i5 over i7?
 
GadgetAddicted said:
I can see that you are planning to get the i5 over the 3.06 or 3.33. Why is this??
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Fair question. ;)

For the photography I do, the apps involved (Photoshop CS, Lightroom, LightZone (hopefully) etc.) should see some benefit from the extra cores. And potentially even more with i7's hyper-threading, though I'm not convinced of a practical benefit for that yet on the Mac. It's actually kind of a tough choice, sometimes I think I should just get the 3.33 GHz dual for now, but I'm trusting Apple's tools and Adobe's word that CS5 and Lightroom 3 will be more multiple-core friendly.
 
lasuther said:
The i5 will boost to 3.2Ghz when using two cores. And when compared to the 3.33 with upgraded graphics, the i5 is $50 cheaper. A few years from now the quad core will hold it's value well while the C2D will drop quickly in price. The i5 is a much better value.
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There's an interesting article on Turbo Boost at CNET.
 
GadgetAddicted said:
Cool! Very clean n concise response. Why did you decide on the i5 over i7?
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It came down to value mainly. The performance between the two are very close. The only real difference is hyper threading. I didn't feel that was worth spending $200 on. And for resale in the future I don't think it will be different between the two.
 
lasuther said:
It came down to value mainly. The performance between the two are very close. The only real difference is hyper threading. I didn't feel that was worth spending $200 on. And for resale in the future I don't think it will be different between the two.
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I would have to agree. My buddy is pushing me towards getting the 3.06 w/ 256 mb because he sayd that $350 for upgrading the 3.06 and gpu is NOT worth it as for every day computing purposes, I would not even notice a difference. I am a bit picky about speed, i hate lag and i will be using a dual monitor setup. Why is this so confusing :-(
 
GadgetAddicted said:
Fair point but I do not get why you would be going for a 21.5" iMac. I mean if you were to spend that amount of money on the 21.5", why not just go for their highest end refurb model?

The thing with the i5 is that not only will it handle anything you throw at it but it will also have a resale value of AT LEAST $300 more than the 3.06. If you are plan of upgrading the gpu to 512....trust me go with the i5. You will be kicking yourself once everything is quad-core!
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Main reasons for not wanting the old 24 over the new 21.5? Resolution is about the same in a little smaller frame, so the quality is there nalso, led looks really good compared to last gen. The sd slot is great, freeing up a USB port. 16gb ram max is great too. Cheaper to upgrade with two extra slots now. And unlike the aspect ratio of the new ones. Also get the wireless kb and mouse for free, which is an extra $120 if you add after the fact.
 
Unless you're a user that swaps out hardware every year, having the quad (and Grand Central) and better graphics card is strong reason to "go big, or go home" if you're in the market for an iMac and intend on keeping it around through a couple more product releases.
 
MTI said:
Unless you're a user that swaps out hardware every year, having the quad (and Grand Central) and better graphics card is strong reason to "go big, or go home" if you're in the market for an iMac and intend on keeping it around through a couple more product releases.
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except that the difference between the 21.5 high end and 27 is $500. Not exactly chump change.
 
Fozzybadfeet said:
Since I am in the same dilemma, let me ask you all this. Is the 3.06 strong enough to handle moderate use of Photoshop, music (downloading, creating, etc), minor gaming, and the rest for email, browsing, etc, etc? I was thinking of buying the 3.06 and upgrading the ram in the future. I can afford the 3.06 but the i5 would take me longer to get...And I'm getting impatient =(
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Ahm my 3+ year old 2.16 core 2 duo iMac is strong enough for that. I run photoshop, illustrator, firefox, safari and run windows xp in its own "space" with no annoying slowdowns. I haven't tried playing any games on it. If that is your only use, you could save $600 and buy a Refurbished iMac 24-inch 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo at the online apple store and be set for 3 years :)

Take that $600 and buy a few shares of apple stock and hopefully in 3 years time it will buy you a fresh new $1,800 imac.
 
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