thinking of getting an imac g5

[4leaf]

right im new on this forum but im not new to the mac world. this might seem like a long post but i have a couple of questions.

i want to invest in a new mac. i have an ibook g4 from 2003. i bought it mostly for college work and some general use. however since then ive taken a slight career change (i studied zoology but am now going into documentary work- nature hopefully) so i want to be able to use final cut and dvd studio pro etc and my poor ibook (that only has 256mb RAM btw) is doing pretty well with FCP3 but because i have no dvd burner its a pain cos i have to use my boyfriends powerbook to do the final dvd burn in dvd studio pro.

i have just graduated college so im broke but have some savings and should have a job pretty soon. thing is ,and this is the major thing, i am applying for a course in new zealand. im from ireland by the way.now i will need a good machine for the course as its in filmaking so i want to have a computer if i get into the course.but obviously if i buy one now im taking the chance that i might not be able to get it to nz from ireland when the course starts in 7 months.

i have 2 weddings that i shot that i need to get edited which is why i thought of getting the new imac now rather than later. thing is in the back of my head i keep thinking that if new ones come out in jan with the intel chip ill kick myself.

so my questions are :

1) has anyone ever tried moving continents with an imac in tow?

2) is the imac 17" good enough or is the 20" the best i can get for the price for video editing etc?

3)should i keep my ibook (since ive been told its only worth 300euro anyway) and get the imac?

thanks a million

 

[LimeiBook86]

If you want you can sell the iBook here on the forums via the Marketplace section and use the money towards a new Mac. If you can wait, you should, there are a lot of rumors about new Macs in January (Maybe even intel ones) and you don't want to buy a machine and have it be "old" in a few months.

But, if you need it now, then buy it now. It's not like the iMac G5 is slow or anything, it's still a great machine. The 17" screen is nice and big but, if your going to be editing video a bigger screen is always bigger, Final Cut Pro has lots of little windows and pallets , so a 20" screen would be a nice thing to have if you can afford it.

 

[4leaf]

yeah the thing is are they really gonna change the imac all that much other than the intel chip?also cos im not so sure about the inside of computers will the intel chip make it that noticibly faster than the g5?i wanted to get the 20" but i went to see it today and its HUGE!lol id have to sit on the other side of my tiny bedroom to use it...thought that might not be so bad with my wireless keyboard

also would people recommend the wireless keyboard or go with the mighty mouse and normal keyboard.its not that much extra but i was wondering. also the modem. i have broadband at home but the imac doesnt come with the imac its an add on...so i presume ill have to buy it as i dont have wireless right now.

 

[stevep]

1. Mains supply in New Zealand is 230v 50Hz, same as UK and Eire, so an iMac bought at your home will work when you get to NZ without a firework display.
2. After an iBook (esp with 256mB ram!) a 17" iMac will be a dream for editing videos, and a 20" will be a dream come true. Get a 1GB stick of ram if you can afford it.
3. Keep the iBook - unless a madman offers you a lot more than its worth.
4. I personally would wait if you can, until mid-Jan at any rate. Others will say different. But its only a few weeks away.
5. A temporary solution might be to get a ram upgrade for the iBook (assuming you will keep it as a second machine) to keep you going until you leave for NZ. When you get there it might be useful to take on the road with you, maybe to download pics and movies onto when on your course or in the field.

New Zealand looks like a fabulous place to go to - I'm not much of a traveller but its the one place I'm going to when I have the time and money. Good luck.

 

[LimeiBook86]

The Wireless keyboard is nice but, my brother has had some startup issues with the machine and when holding down key commands at startup the Mac doesn't always see the Wireless keyboard. I'd go with the Wireless keyboard only if you have an older USB keyboard just in case of an emergency

 

[4leaf]

thanks very much for your advice

yeah i think for portability sake id like to keep the ibook.never know when it might come in handy. also its not like there is anything wrong with it and when worst comes to worst if im short money if i do go to nz i can sell it or something.

if i order it tomorrow my uncle (who owns the store ) can get it shipped within 2 weeks. ) bloody brilliant christmas present for myself)

are there any things i should add on besides the ram?

 

[4leaf]

hmmm thanks for the keyboard advice...im sure there is one here somewhere from a pc..cheers!

 

[LimeiBook86]

thanks very much for your advice

yeah i think for portability sake id like to keep the ibook.never know when it might come in handy. also its not like there is anything wrong with it and when worst comes to worst if im short money if i do go to nz i can sell it or something.

if i order it tomorrow my uncle (who owns the store ) can get it shipped within 2 weeks. ) bloody brilliant christmas present for myself)

are there any things i should add on besides the ram?

No problem

I think with more RAM you'll be fine. As long as you have a DVD-R drive (SuperDrive) and at least 512mb of RAM you'll be good to go.

 

[4leaf]

cool.well i have a job interview tomorrow so if i get it ill order the job and worry about the money later.i can always just work morning noon and night to pay it off!!

 

[4leaf]

sorry was a bit excited there about the prospect of getting a new imac...i meant ot say if i get the job ill get the imac

 

[LimeiBook86]

cool.well i have a job interview tomorrow so if i get it ill order the job and worry about the money later.i can always just work morning noon and night to pay it off!!

Now that's what I call devotion! Enjoy your new Mac!...just make sure to have a secure job before you get one, you don't want the bills to come before your paycheck does

 

[stevep]

are there any things i should add on besides the ram?

Not really into video myself, but would speakers and a mic be useful if you're adding soundtracks or narrations to movies? An iMac has audio line in and out which will be useful I would imagine.
And don't forget to keep all the packaging ready for shipping it to NZ!

 

[Danksi]

I'd keep the iBook, handy portable to have and I've just ordered one myself to compliment the 17inch iMac I bought recently (Visa loves me this month!). You should find the iBook runs a lot better with an extra 1GB in there, the iMac certainly does!

I do a fair bit of home video editing, personally I prefer two smaller screens side by side, than the little extra the 20inch gives you. So unless you really need the extra .2Ghz CPU speed, slightly bigger hard-drive and video card as standard with the 20inch machine - go for the 17inch and then look at buying a monitor to compliment the iMac with the $ you save between the 17inch and 20inch machines.