iMac for Photoshop?

[pictures]

I currently use a last gen 20" white iMac (matte screen), an old G3 Power PC (CRT monitor) and a Windows PC (matte display)for Photoshop. I am considering replacing the PC with a new 24" iMac but have a few concerns....

1) The glossy screen. Is it distracting and reflective? Are the colors true? Is it too contrasty?

2) Performance with Photoshop? The white iMac sometimes seems to hang on me. Granted, I probably don't have enough RAM in it (is this RAM compatible with this year's 24" iMac?), but still, I haven't really pushed it either.

3) I'm reading here about possible upgrades, most important being LED displays. Would that be such a big improvement over the current display? For tax purposes, I would like to get the new computer this year, but if the changes are expected to be huge....

I just don't know!

 

[wawanarchist]

1) As long as you dont have huge windows behind you you should be fine, the colors are nicely tuned, although the contrast is a bit high, and tends to make pictures look better than they will printed, which can be dissapointing.

2) Check out Link for some benchmark comparisons, they fare pretty damn well

3) I'd get it now, the LED display is doubtful and rumors get disproved every day (ie: 4gb iphone) so when you think of macworld, dont think anything past 'there might be a slight upgrade' and even thats a maybe

 

[BJMRamage]

I use my 24" iMac for Photoshop/Illustrator/InDesign without a problem.
in fact I keep them all open at the same time too.

you will enjoy it.

 

[pictures]

Thanks, guys!!

 

[coneman5259]

I'm a graphic design student and our school just upgraded to the 24" imacs, and the difference from working on the 20" matte G5's was outstanding, great colors and the reflections are hard to notice. However you do need to sit back a little farther since the last couple days i've been getting bad headaches from being so close to the screen (old habits, from smaller screen) but that is the only down side, plus when in photoshop, you can zoom to your hearts desire without having to lean in.

 

[andychris02]

Pictures, I'm a Graphic Designer / Photoshop user, it's my job, and I have 3.06Ghz Alu iMac at home and it's fine to use. I do a lot of retouching, photo manipulation, layer work and the like and have never had a problem with the mac. Granted the screen can get a bit distracting at times (very rarely) if it is really sunny outside but I just shut the blinds and all is fine.

The colors are pretty true so you don't need to really worry about that, I did calibrate it but I found that I tend to use the default calibrations most of the time.

You do need to upgrade your ram, I have my mac maxed out to 4gigs and I find that it works well and there never seems to be any stuttering, even with relatively large files (80 - 100megs), but I have a habit of only having Photoshop open and maybe iTunes, I just keep my open apps to a minimum. I actually find my iMac to be a bit quicker than the the Mac Pro I use at work, maybe thats because I have more software open and stuff, but it does seem quicker.

If you have the cash get your mac now, I'd say there MAY be an upgrade to the iMac, if any, I'd say will be small, as wawanarchist said, "'there might be a slight upgrade' and even thats a maybe".

Hope that helps.

 

[Hates]

Absolutely fine for Photoshop. I do a lot of photography stuff with photos that are around 20-30Gb at times and it's worked perfectly. You'll need the RAM boost though to be on the safe side though.

 

[ikermalli]

I prefer matte screen for anything, much less distracting, that being said, my MacBook is supposed to be glossy but in places where the light isn't superbly high there is no reflection, it also depends on the location in your room of where to keep one with a glossy screen, obviously not so the sun can hit the screen then there will be a relection for most of the time you use it, unless you use it at night, but I am sure sun hitting your screen all day with sun coudn't be good for it.

 

[pwn247]

1. Not to me, at least. The desktop monitor I'm using has a glossy finish, and the room I'm in has tons of windows and tons of light. I do webdesign and graphics with absolutely no issues. If I do catch a glare, simply turning or tilting my monitor will eliminate it. If you're in a room with controlled light, you should be good to go.

2. 2GB is more than enough for Photoshop. Even the little Mac Minis with half a gig can run Photoshop. Then again, simple RAM upgrades make OS X feel like a whole new computer.

3. Not many monitors come with LED backlighting. Apple does it because LEDs use much less electricity and can be much brighter than standard backlighting you find in 99% of LCDs. In my opinion, it looks great, and is well worth the upgrade.

 

[chadrob30]

I mess around with Photoshop as a hobby. I just got CS3, and decided I needed a RAM upgrade. Picked up a 2gb stick today, and literally 3 minutes later it was installed. I've never seen a better and easier upgrade as this was.