Which imac is for me?

[M-apple-T]

I definitely want a 24" one.
I did do some searching but I heard that the 2600 was better for everything else besides gaming.
Does that mean the 8800 shouldn't be bought for media production?
I mean I want to game some of the latest games, nothing like crysis on ultra high, I just want the 8800 because it seems more future proof.
For a person who wants to game and do multimedia, which card would be better? When I was using the imac with the 2600 at the apple store the GUI seemed very fluid and opening all the programs were very fast. Would having the 8800 make it any slower?
As for proccesor should I be getting the 3.06 or the 2.8? I do want to run final cut and some game at times. But is the speed difference worth the extra 200 bucks?
Sorry if these questions are dumb, I just don't want to go and buy a computer and buy the wrong one. And the questions I asked may have been asked before but I was worried that those questions were outdated by an update or something that made the 8800 faster than the 2600
thanks a lot for the help

 

[techlover828]

I'd probably just go all out with the 3.06 and 8800 just to make it more future proof, should run better too if your running final cut.

 

[audiophile42]

I was in a similar situation a few weeks ago, and finally made my decision this week. I decided that I wanted the 8800 simply for longevity of the machine. It may not have as mature of drivers as the 2600, but I'm fairly confident that it will outlast it. I always regretted not upgrading the graphics card on my PowerBook years ago. I was planning on buying the 2.8GHz 8800 combo, but eventually decided on the Ultimate Model (3.06Ghz, 8800, 500GB HD). There were a few reasons:

1. Could go pick up at a Apple Store, and wouldn't have to wait for delivery.
2. I wasn't comfortable having something this valuable delivered to my residence (extended stay hotel for the summer), and I would have had to drive 2 hours to pick it up from a family member's house.
3. After taking shipping, my edu discount, and the cost of gas, it was only about $100 more to upgrade to the higher model.

I could have gone with the 2.8GHz 8800 model and been perfectly happy, but I opted for the 3.06GHz for availability reasons.

 

[Jon.Stewart87]

audiophile,

i had very similar reasons, but in the end my reasoning was simply looking to the future - I plan on using this computer at least to the end of its apple care probably further.

they're amazing machines.

my screen is fine, everything is running smoothly.. couldn't be luckier on my first mac!

never goin back.

 

[kabunaru]

Just get what your heart tells you to. If you want the 8800 GS and can afford it and think it's a good choice, get it.

 

[bob vansteel]

I definitely want a 24" one.
I did do some searching but I heard that the 2600 was better for everything else besides gaming.
Does that mean the 8800 shouldn't be bought for media production?
I mean I want to game some of the latest games, nothing like crysis on ultra high, I just want the 8800 because it seems more future proof.
For a person who wants to game and do multimedia, which card would be better? When I was using the imac with the 2600 at the apple store the GUI seemed very fluid and opening all the programs were very fast. Would having the 8800 make it any slower?
As for proccesor should I be getting the 3.06 or the 2.8? I do want to run final cut and some game at times. But is the speed difference worth the extra 200 bucks?
Sorry if these questions are dumb, I just don't want to go and buy a computer and buy the wrong one. And the questions I asked may have been asked before but I was worried that those questions were outdated by an update or something that made the 8800 faster than the 2600
thanks a lot for the help

the 2.8Ghz should be plenty to do those task, what you really should be looking at is your processors front side bus...and the current Pyren(however u spell it) has plenty, and there is no diff. between the 2.8's and 3.06's front side bus, so your good.

but seriously if you really want 3.06, save yourself $200, get the 2.8ghz and overclock it to 3.06

also for gaming get the nvidia