Mac Advice Ping!
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Posted on 05/26/2008 12:33:32 PM PDT by martin_fierro
OK you FR MacHeads.
Having had good experiences with a used eMac, I'm considering replacing my 5 year-old main desktop PC with a Mac.
Cost is a factor, so I’m trying to decide between a maxxed-out Mac Mini (can use my existing LCD screen, mouse and keyboard) or an iMac (longer useful life)
Here are the PC desktop's specs.
|
|
CURRENTLY HAVE |
MAC EQUVALENT OR BETTER? |
|
CPU |
AMD Athlon 2600+, 2.13 GHz |
? |
|
RAM |
1 GB DDR266 SDRAM 184-pin DIMMs |
? |
|
HDD |
120GB ATA/133 |
? |
|
VIDEO |
ATI All-In-Wonder 9000 PRO 64 MB DDR AGP with TV display |
? |
|
OS |
XP Home Edition |
OS X 10.5 |
Here’s what I use this desktop for:
Based on the above needs, which Mac configuration would you recommend?
Mac-user meta-Ping
I love my TRS80 but I am looking at an update someday.
How much can you spend?
OpenOffice is good free software, but also check out NeoOffice. It integrates better with the native OS X system and doesn't require X11.
where’s the “MAC CAUCUS” statement?
I’m running something much like your old computer.
Love that 9000 ATI AIW.
Buy a new iMac and have done with it!!
Life will be good! :-)
On the Macs, I’d suggest waiting a couple of weeks until Steve Jobs delivers the keynote address at Apple’s World Wide Developers’ Conference on Monday, June 9th at 10:00 a.m. PDT. It’s possible that new MacBooks will be announced, and perhaps a new Mac mini in a smaller case.
Most people don’t need professional quality image reproduction, but if you do, I’d recommend the Mac Pro and a Cinema Display. The 24-inch iMac is also a good choice if you prefer the glossy screen instead of a matte finish. Note that the 20-inch iMac uses six-bits per color channel on the screen, but the 24-inch uses 8-bit channels.
For digitizing broadcast video on Macs, check the products at http://www.ElGato.com
For MS Office-compatible applications on Mac, see Apple’s iWork suite. It costs about $80. A 30-day trial package is included on new Macs, so you can try it before purchase. http://www.apple.com/iwork/
Good afternoon, long time lurker, first time poster...
I highly suggest purchasing a refurbished mac. I just bought a “new” iMac earlier this week. The only difference with a store bought machine is you don’t get the “out of the apple box” experience and (on mine) there is a slight scratch on the back of the machine that I would never notice anyhow. Oh, and I saved $500 on the price. You get the same one year warranty as you would with any apple product. I took that $500 and applied it to a 3 year AppleCare plan and MS office for mac.
Yeah, but their driver/software upgrades drive me batsh*t.
< |:(~
One of the things you should be aware of is how old a model is before you buy it - one of the worst feelings in Macdom is when you just spent a load of cash on a computer, and then see it get brand new faster specs for the same price a few weeks later.
That's why you should make sure to check out the MacRumors Buyer's Guide . You can see when certain models have been introduced, the historical gap between new model introductions, and a summary of "rumor" articles that may point to when it will be updated.
That being said, The Mac Mini is very overdue for updating, and would make a poor purchase at this time. I have one and love it, but with only "integrated graphics", it needs a boost in the video department. I'm hoping that the next iteration of the Mini has a graphics chip that - in an encapsulated way - handles decoding DRM video data. If this happens, it's more likely Mini owners can get access to HD movie rentals from the iTunes store. Also, having dedicated h.264 encoding circuitry would be great.
One of the things I love the most about the Mini is its tiny size. You can stick the little silent guy anywhere you want, running it headless if you want, accessing it with screen sharing (VNC). That gives it permanent utility for after its best days are behind it.
The iMac was updated at the end of April, and thus makes it desirable from a timing perspective. Since it includes everything in the box, it also makes it a hassle-free computer for most personal needs. Also, since it has a dedicated graphics processor, it is much better graphics programs that can (or require) shipping processing off to the GPU (not to mention games).
I hope this helps, and good luck!
The sweet spot for the software is 9.08 and whatever driver comes with that.
It’s buggy batsh!t after that.
Welcome to FR! You might want to ask “Swordmaker” to get on his Mac ping list....
I recently needed to replace my old PC. It sort of quit working, at least for ME, when my wife took it with her when she moved out. Anyway, I had been wanting a Mac for over a year, and went with the 20” iMac. Apple had just bumped up the processor speed from 2.0 GHz to 2.4 GHz. Anyway, Amazon has the previous 2.0 GHz version discounted over $100. My brother in law is a Mac user and didn’t think for my needs (yours may be different; I mainly just use it for the internet) I would even notice the difference in speed, so I saved the money and ordered from Amazon. No sales tax and free shipping. Sweet!
Ouch.
Your thoughts, please.
Huh. The damndest thing.
< |:)~
If it's a MS Office compatible apps suite you want, why not...MS Office?
NeoOffice is a great version of OpenOffice for the Mac, but iWork '08 is pretty good, too, and though it has a price tag, it's much cheaper than Office 2008.
If you want on or off the Mac Ping List, Freepmail me.
I just bought a refurbished MacBook Pro....I almost had to sell my wife to do it but found some extra cash.
I would absolutely shell out the extra bread for a 24” screen iMac over the 20”..the screen is no less than stunning.
El Gato seems to be the best choice for Mac TV cards.
Under any circumstances, get a capture card that supports HDTV.
To Martin_fierro’s question, I would really recommend an iMac rather than a Mini as an only computer. The iMac’s memory can be easily upgraded by anyone with some aptitude. A Mini needs the putty knife treatment for any upgrade.
The iMac also includes a desktop hard drive, which is larger and faster — something that really helps with video capture.
If you go with the Mini, you will have to get an external drive for storage, a memory upgrade and either buy the $799 version or get an external DVD burner.
One other thought. Buy a Macbook and use your current keyboard and mouse for desktop use. The midrange Macbook is only $100 more than an iMac and it gives you the convienience of a notebook.
Go with the iMac.
I agree with Stravinskyrules. Get the 24 in. screen. I have had a 20 in. for years and last December bought a 24 in. and gave the 20 in. to my daughter to replace her old iMac CRT. Then I got another 24 in. which I’ve hooked up to a 20 in. display. The extra real estate is worth it. If you can afford it max out on the RAM too.
I think for your uses, I’d probably go with the iMac. It has a faster processor, which will help with video rendering for DVDs, and it can take up to 4GB of RAM (2 is standard), where the Mini maxes out at 2.
If you decide to run Windows in Parallels or VMWare Fusion, you’re going to want all the RAM you can throw at it.
The iMac allows you to keep your existing LCD display as a second monitor — and if you’ve never played around with two monitors, I recommend it. You can keep the main monitor as 100% work space, and use the second for stuff like palettes, updating news headlines, and e-mail and IM. I used to keep the weather radar widget up when there were storms coming.
I had a two-monitor setup for many years, and three for a while. It’s the one thing I miss with my Mini.
And even your monitor. If it's VGA you'll have to get an adapter.
+
The big drawback to the Mac mini is that it uses a 5200 rpm laptop hard drive, and it doesn’t have Firewire 800 so you can’t just get an external drive to make up for that (Firewire 400 max). It’s basically a laptop without a screen, keyboard and track pad.
Don’t get one unless you’re willing to take that speed hit as opposed to what you’d get in a regular desktop model.
If you like doing a lot of TV capturing and encoding, I would recommend a refurbished mac pro. One of the 2.66GHz ones can be had for $1999. With quad xeon processors you can compress video really fast. Plus, it has four bays for hard drives and you can upgrade the ram to 32GB.
As far as tv capture is concerned... maybe one of the Elgato devices (like the EyeTV 250 Plus?). I have a little usb HDTV capture stick. It works great, unfortunately mine is windows only. I dual boot my mac pro and so only capture (for now) on the windows side. I'm planning on buying a mac one soon.
The one warning I would have is that for 1080p playback you will probably need at least a 2.2 or 2.4GHz core 2 duo. Some of the less speedy mac minis won't cut it. I'm not sure if you are anticipating handling videos of that resolution, but I notice that you tend to keep computers for a while so it might be a good idea to future proof.
Actually, the used route might not be too bad. I've seen used mac pro 3.0GHz advertised locally for ~$1600 with lots of ram. You could probably get one from Fall 2006 that still has a good bit of time left on applecare pretty cheap. Thanks,
I have one of the original Mac Pros and love it. The mini is quite nice as well, just not nearly as fast. paridel
Can you get by with a built-in Intel graphics chip? Is being limited to 2 gigs of ram ok? Then get a Mini. If not, get an iMac.
Can an iMac or Mac Mini either support cable TV in? There may also be issues with external displays, especially with the iMac. Maybe that's something you don't really need, but most everything I do at home is TV/video related, and why I mostly use PC's. I think Apple now includes the Apple TV application with Leopard, but most of the content has to come from the network.
According to this on Apple’s site, you have to remove the panel off the bottom of the display to plug in the VGA cable. This will only display what is on the iMac screen, “extending” the desktop isn’t available.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=58467
Get Apple's new Time Capsule device for automatic backups in conjunction with Leopard's Time Machine software. It also serves as a network gateway and an 802.11b/g/n wireless access point.
The AppleCare 3-year extended warranty is also recommended.
Apple TV is a separate system from Macs, although they share a lot of technology. One key advantage of Apple TV is the ability to download and watch 720p-encoded HDTV movies from iTunes. Windows PCs and Macs are restricted to SD content from iTunes.
On Macs, an application called Front Row provides some similar functionality to Apple TV.
Re: maxxed out RAM
Your best bet is to buy your additional RAM from some other source than Apple.
I guess I might as well ask this question here (and as for your question, I’d recommend any of the new macs; mine works great with 230 GB/2GB RAM 256 MB video card, OSX 5.2).
I’ve recently noticed (and I don’t know if this has always been the case, or if it’s something new) that the left side (as I face the front) of my iMac is quite warm to the touch. Does anyone know if this is normal? Is it ok to leave it on at night?
Thanks for the exact name, couldn't remember it. I watch more live TV than recorded TV, and therefore get most of my input from cable TV signals. Is there an input option for this on iMac or Mac Mini, other than a WinTV type external device? Does Apple TV support it at all? Thanks, this along with the external display issues are exactly what have stalled any transition I might have otherwise had to Apple the last few years. I've also been somewhat disapointed in my iPhone's ability to stream live signals of any kind as well, if you have any advice for that.
Re: VGA and iMac’s
That information you linked to does not refer to modern iMacs. It was last updated in June 2004 and refers to models last manufactured in 2000 and 2001 and apply to pre-OSX Macs. The current iMacs and most of the flat panel iMacs can both mirror and extend the desktop with additional monitors.
Thanks for the correction, glad they got that fixed. Any ideas on cable TV inputs?
Re: questions about heat and leaving it on.
The heat is coming from the power supply and is normal so long as it is not too hot to touch. It is also safe to leave it on. OSX automatically takes care of house cleaning and runs utilities over night to optimize the files.
Some cable TV settop boxes now have IEEE 1394 Firewire connections that can send a signal to Macs for recording and playback.
Robert X. Cringely has been peddling a rumor that future Macs will include an H.264 hardware encoder. His rumors haven't been so accurate lately, but it's a good idea.
The exclusion of direct video input on Macs may be a concession by Apple to the Hollywood studios. But Apple is conspicuious in not offering Blu-Ray drives too, apparently in order to promote iTunes movie sales over physical media.
Excellent response, thank you very much, and very similar to my understanding. My only add is the consideration of the “Slingbox” external device, which is Apple compatabile and uses wireless connections to display TV signals.
Good choice, just remember the only thing you can ever display on that screen is the Mac, there are no "external in" options for the monitor unfortunately, for HDMI etc. Even to display a cable TV signal on the screen you're going to need an external box of some sort. Might not matter for you, but you did mention TV signal capability in your original post, hope this helps break that function down some more for you. Good luck.
The iMac has a mini-DVI output, so you'll probably need an adapter for either input on the monitor. Apple offers a mini-DVI to DVI adapter and a mini-DVI to VGA adapter for $19.99 each, and there are probably cheaper options out there. If your monitor has a DVI input, that's the way I'd go.
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