Core Duo or upgrade QS????

[xyian]

I presently have a G4 PM with Dual 800 processors. I have a dilemma though. I am moving and will no longer have use of a monitor so I will have to come up with a solution to that issue. I really want the dell 20" WS and if I want to do that then I have to get a new video card as well. I have also been entertaining the notion of upgrading the processors but that's pricey(~$4-500).
I ask you people: Would you do all this upgrading to have the day before yesterday's technology or would you just get a new 20" iMac?
I use quite a bit of photoshop/illustrator, iWeb and the like. I just don't know how the iMac would perform with this but my dual 800 is getting a bit slow these days.

 

[xyian]

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[Jovian9]

Hey, thanks a lot people. Maybe I should just go back to windows.

Well, if that's what you really want to do

 

[twoodcc]

to me, that really depends on much you want to spend, and if money is an issue. that being said, i just ordered a 17" intel imac a few days ago. so of course i could tell you to go for the imac, but you are going to have to make the decision for yourself. if i were you, i would buy a new computer, but that's me

 

[wpwj40e]

Well I am a new Apple user - so my opinion may not be worth much

But having just received my 20", gotta tell you VERY happy with my purchase. Certainly would not go back to windows!!!!

If you could live with the "perceived" slower performance of photoshop - than everything else should be fine. I say perceived because I have read the reports of the slower performance for Rosetta apps and I quite frankly do not buy it. I am now running a number of apps under Rosetta and am very happy with the performance. While Photoshop on some functions seems to "hesitate" for a second or so - I am simply not seeing the poor performance that the benchmarkers are seeing. My windows apps(2004) are much speedier than on my windows machines and lightening compared to the mac mini(1.5, 1 gig, 64).

I do not have or ever had any other MAC - so maybe when compared to the G5 iMac - the intel iMac does not seem impressive - cannot comment there - compared to some pretty decent pc's(windows) - it just moves!

The good news is its supposed to only get better...Given that I would certainly opt for the 20" iMac. When I decided to switch this month - I could have chosen any of the Apple lineup - the intel iMac seems like the best value per performance.

Just my amateur .02$

Therese

 

[CanadaRAM]

Hey, thanks a lot people. Maybe I should just go back to windows.

Nag posts in your own thread are %*#&^ annoying. I'm sorry all to #=!! that I didn't reply to your post in the first 6 hours. Jeebus.

You can run the Dell monitor via VGA on the QS until you can afford a Intel Tower or Mini. It's not perfect but it will work until you upgrade. Alternatively you can get an ADC-DVI extractor for $25 and use it at the maximum resolution your particular card is capable of.

Right now, Photoshop and Illustrator will suck on the iMac iNtel under Rosetta until their binaries are updated. Until that point you may as well stay wih the dual G4

So I say wait 6 months before buying any new Mac.

 

[RealityCheque]

Go with the iMac

The G5 iMac was significantly faster than the dual 800 G4 (faster system bus, faster RAM, more efficient chip, faster MHz) that you have. And the Intel iMac is again significantly faster than the G5 iMac (dual chips, faster RAM). So you will gain a lot of speed by going with the new Intel iMac over your current system.

The only issue is PS/AI running under Rosetta. But that's just temporary. It seems, from what I've read, that at the very worst PS & AI will run about the same speed as your current dual 800 G4, and at best slightly faster. But with CS3, probably due around June, PS & AI will scream on your new iMac! Given that you can't wait until June and need to make a decision now, I'd say it's a no-brainer to go with the iMac.

I am making an almost identical upgrade (from a dual 867 PM to the 20" Intel iMac) and this was the reasoning that I used -- plus the new iMacs finally let us use a non-mirrored 2nd monitor! The only difference is that I'm going to wait until Adobe CS3 comes out and buy that at the same time as the iMac.

 

[dmw007]

I say go for a new iMac with a super-fast Intel Core Duo processor. For the amount of $$$ that it would take to upgrade your G4 to somewhat up to date specs, you could probably almost buy a new iMac. Just my $0.02.

 

[xyian]

Thanks people. I am not using money as an issue, but more as a driving force. I'm not really convinced that I want to spend roughly $900 and still have a machine that's behind by quite a bit(G4). I do like the fact that I have options to upgrade things in the tower. That said, I love the 20" iMac but PS is already kinda lagging as well as iWeb on my current machine and if PS has to run under Rosetta I wonder how it does.
If I had all the money to play with I'd get a quad core but I can't justify it. The $900 is what it would cost me after selling this machine including my student discount.

PS - as for the rant, sorry, I get bored at work and expect some sort of amusement.

 

[xyian]

>>I do not have or ever had any other MAC - so maybe when compared to the G5 iMac - the intel iMac does not seem impressive - cannot comment there - compared to some pretty decent pc's(windows) - it just moves!

Thanks Therese. My current computer moves just as fast as my dual core PC at work so that's why I've been questionable as to moving to the Core Duo but then again it's the OS that's making it sluggish as well as the programs which are not optimized for it. I feel bad, Illustrator should run better but it still drags.

Good to hear there's another that has switched. Now, if we could only get all program companies to make them for us.......