New Here...27" i7 512mg or 27" i7 1G

[SiriS]

Hi,
So...here I am, I am taking the plunge, the purchased has been approved and I am going to be a Max , I am going to buy a refurb, because I have always had great experiences with Dell refurbs.

So I am torn between these 2 models and I need some input from users:

27" i7 2.8 with 4G ram, 1T HD and 512mg Vid
27" i5 2.8 with 4G ram, 1T HD and 1G vid

Both of these models are 1699

27" i7 2.93 with 4G ram, 1T HD and 1G vid for 1899

Is the later worth the extra 200 bucks?

I don't edit videos, but I might, I am simply looking for a machine that will last awhile and will do everything I ask it to for that length of time. Any personal experiences? Really just looking for someone to tell me to spend the extra 200 bucks

Thank you in advance!

 

[bossxii]

Given the same choice, I went the i7 route (2009 iMac w/512meg GPU) for the CPU speed and Hyperthreading as the main "heavy" uses of my iMac is programs like video editing and converting such as Handbrake which takes advantage of all 8 cores.

If you plan to have more general uses and game a fair bit the 1gig GPU upgrade would be worth it as it is possible to upgrade a GPU in an iMac, it's rather expensive as an aftermarket item. I think to move to the 1gig 5870 from an 3rd party vendor is something like $400 bucks, while retail for a card on a home built pc it's maybe a $150 card.

Good Luck!

 

[akm3]

Given the same choice, I went the i7 route (2009 iMac w/512meg GPU) for the CPU speed and Hyperthreading as the main "heavy" uses of my iMac is programs like video editing and converting such as Handbrake which takes advantage of all 8 cores.

If you plan to have more general uses and game a fair bit the 1gig GPU upgrade would be worth it as it is possible to upgrade a GPU in an iMac, it's rather expensive as an aftermarket item. I think to move to the 1gig 5870 from an 3rd party vendor is something like $400 bucks, while retail for a card on a home built pc it's maybe a $150 card.

Good Luck!

WHAT?!?!

To the OP no the extra video ram isn't worth the $200, however getting a 2010 model instead of the 2009 model IS worth the $200.

 

[TMRaven]

Get the i7 version if you plan on doing any cpu intensive tasks such as video rendering.

Get the i5 if you plan on doing any gaming.


If you're not sure of what you will do with the computer, but you won't game on it, then the i7 will futureproof you moreso than the i5 because of its virtual threading.