Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Defecting from Windows to Mac, but can't find a Mac "desktop" computer?
- Thread starter arrowtree
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I am defecting from Windows to Mac. 30+ years of Windows prison was
too long for me. Now I deserve a treat.
I started with the MBA to replace my Windows 8 laptop.(a.k.a machine from
Microsoft hell) Windows 8 is the #1 reason that I'm defecting, by the way.
However, I can't seem to find a Mac "desktop" computer to buy. How come
Apple doesn't make those anymore? I would rather not buy one of those
iMacs because I prefer monitor and desktop separate. However, the new
Mac Pro black cylinder is both a little too expensive and weird for my tastes.
There doesn't seem to be anything in-between?
I've built all of my PCs since my initial Tandy 1000A and finally realized Macs had become a viable replacement. So I started out with a used 2009 MacMini to get my feet wet in OSX (Linux made my transition easier than expected).
This year I bought my first New MacMini 2.3GHZ Quad with 16GB and have been totally pleased with it. I am still using my Samsung monitor and keyboard from my last PC.
So the MacMini should be what you're looking for. You can use the keyboard and monitor you already have, and it will take up a lot less space on your desk : )
I'm going to go against the crowd here and suggest simply getting Windows 7.
But you can have Windows 7 and OSX if you get a mac
Heading to any major retailer these days, it's hard to find an old-school "desktop" computer that doesn't look like an iMac. If they do have one, it's usually a $500ish box with budget components that's been shoved under a shelf in the corner. While online offerings are a bit more expanded, it's the trend of the industry.
I am defecting from Windows to Mac. 30+ years of Windows prison was
too long for me. Now I deserve a treat.
I started with the MBA to replace my Windows 8 laptop.(a.k.a machine from
Microsoft hell) Windows 8 is the #1 reason that I'm defecting, by the way.
However, I can't seem to find a Mac "desktop" computer to buy. How come
Apple doesn't make those anymore? I would rather not buy one of those
iMacs because I prefer monitor and desktop separate. However, the new
Mac Pro black cylinder is both a little too expensive and weird for my tastes.
There doesn't seem to be anything in-between?
This is one of the reasons I left mac and went pc, at least for my main workstation. I plan to go back to mac asap and have on hate for the computers. Its just that there was no inbetween.
It's not really on-topic, but if you're in the US you should try NewEgg.com, just pick a case in the size you want, pick a compatible motherboard for the processor you want and go from there; just add a PSU, GPU, some RAM and a hard drive and you've got pretty much everything you need.
Here's a quick example I tried, it's a very unoptimised list, and I used an APU instead of a typical CPU, so you if you drop the discrete GPU you can see what a decent $600 gaming computer might look like.
Point is you can make up a good gaming rig pretty easily and affordable, and if you're not happy to self-build you should still be able to get something pretty good, though you of course have to be prepared to pay a premium for that.
Of course the new Mac Pro would definitely outperform the $600 variation, but the money you saved getting that plus a Mac Mini instead could easily go toward upgrading the GPU straight away or in future.
You've missed my point mate. I know how to build a computer. I cannot build anything that could actually play games for $600.
That APU will happily play games within the $600 mark, it's not amazing but well above XBox 360 levels and at $600 you have a ton of scope to expand whenever you want, but for the sake of argument I've tweaked the list with a more modest PSU, which easily leaves room for decent discrete graphics within the $600 mark, though personally I'd spend extra on a good PSU early on, since it enables better GPUs as upgrades (such as the 290X GPU I had listed in there before).
Apple don't make towers anymore.
I have a Mac Pro 3,1 which is still a fast enough machine for today.
I also built a Hackintosh this year because of the lack of towers choice.
The nMP is a major leap for Apple's Pro performance to size ratio dream.
This leaves the iMac and Mac Mini as the reasonably priced consumer models.
If you want a tower for £300 that games, adding a windows 7 license is unfortunately your best choice.
http://http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/AMD-APU-Cheap-Quad-Core-HDMI-4-10-GHz-x4-A10-6800K-8GB-1TB-Fast-Ultra-Gaming-PC-/181241918757?pt=UK_Computing_DesktopPCs&hash=item2a32dc3525
HD4000 has about half the graphics grunt of a decent APU. Iris graphics should be another story.
I think it would be nice if Apple had an APU based computer but Intel have other chips to fry.
I have a Mac Pro 3,1 which is still a fast enough machine for today.
I also built a Hackintosh this year because of the lack of towers choice.
The nMP is a major leap for Apple's Pro performance to size ratio dream.
This leaves the iMac and Mac Mini as the reasonably priced consumer models.
If you want a tower for £300 that games, adding a windows 7 license is unfortunately your best choice.
http://http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/AMD-APU-Cheap-Quad-Core-HDMI-4-10-GHz-x4-A10-6800K-8GB-1TB-Fast-Ultra-Gaming-PC-/181241918757?pt=UK_Computing_DesktopPCs&hash=item2a32dc3525
HD4000 has about half the graphics grunt of a decent APU. Iris graphics should be another story.
I think it would be nice if Apple had an APU based computer but Intel have other chips to fry.