Contemplating an iMac soon...

[neoelectronaut]

I've been thinking, and I've finally decided that I want to take the old home videos off of VHS and get them onto DVDs, using iMovie, iDVD, and a Firewire Analog to DV bridge.

To do this, I need a new computer. My 1Ghz eMac just won't cut it anymore. Thus, I've decided to go up to a 20" iMac. However, I've got three quick opinion questions to those here, just for the hell of it.

1) Is the extra 128MB of Video Ram worth it? This is my major deciding factor in getting it online with my student discount or getting it in-store with my employee discount.

2) Video needs as much HDD space as possible. Would it be most cost effective to go with a 500GB HDD in the iMac, or in a 250GB FW External Drive in addition to the stock 250GB in the computer itself?

3) How soon does anyone think the iMacs will be revisioned? We've had these since January, and Apple products seem to go 8-10 months between revisions.

 

[Capt Underpants]

I've been thinking, and I've finally decided that I want to take the old home videos off of VHS and get them onto DVDs, using iMovie, iDVD, and a Firewire Analog to DV bridge.

To do this, I need a new computer. My 1Ghz eMac just won't cut it anymore. Thus, I've decided to go up to a 20" iMac. However, I've got three quick opinion questions to those here, just for the hell of it.

1) Is the extra 128MB of Video Ram worth it? This is my major deciding factor in getting it online with my student discount or getting it in-store with my employee discount.

2) Video needs as much HDD space as possible. Would it be most cost effective to go with a 500GB HDD in the iMac, or in a 250GB FW External Drive in addition to the stock 250GB in the computer itself?

3) How soon does anyone think the iMacs will be revisioned? We've had these since January, and Apple products seem to go 8-10 months between revisions.

1) The extra VRAM is only worth it if you're going to be gaming

2) You can get 300 GB external hard drives for ~$150. External would be the most cost effective option, but that would add clutter to your desk. Some people get bothered by clutter (I don't know if you're one of those people).

3) I think the iMacs will be revised in late August, incorporating Merom into their design.

 

[emptyCup]

1) The extra VRAM is only worth it if you're going to be gaming.

According to Bare Feats, the extra VRAM only improves graphic performance by 3-5%. But it may be worth it if you are going to connect an external monitor to the machine.

I do not know about iMovie, but people working with Final Cut do not recommend storing your video on the same drive that has the System (or Final Cut)

Best wishes.

 

[dmw007]

1) Is the extra 128MB of Video Ram worth it? This is my major deciding factor in getting it online with my student discount or getting it in-store with my employee discount.

I would definitely go for the extra VRAM- it may not make a huge difference in performance, but it can not be upgraded later.

2) Video needs as much HDD space as possible. Would it be most cost effective to go with a 500GB HDD in the iMac, or in a 250GB FW External Drive in addition to the stock 250GB in the computer itself?

I think that I would go for an internal 500GB HDD just to avoid desktop clutter.

3) How soon does anyone think the iMacs will be revisioned? We've had these since January, and Apple products seem to go 8-10 months between revisions.

Sometime in Fall/Winter after the Core 2 Duo is released I envision new iMacs being released.

But if you need a new computer now, I would not hesitate to pick up the current revision of the 20" iMac (you can upgrade the cpu later if you so choose).