OT - Apple Mac vs PC ?

[clippedgull]

Now I appreciate that they are nice machines, and if you can afford it, why not. But damn that's a lot of money. And what happens in a couple of years when you want either

more storage, Not really a problem, just move personal data on to a 10gbps (Thunderbolt) external drive.

or a faster CPU, Fair enough

more memory user upgradeable

or if you've got some dead pixels on your display? Anyone buying one of these machines at this price would be a fool not to have the excellent Applecare warranty - screen would be replaced

Do you sell the whole thing and buy another? That is an option - Apple products hold their second hand value much better than PC's - especially at 2yrs old

Apart from the CPU, everything solvable.

 

[Triggaaar]

more storage, Not really a problem, just move personal data on to a 10gbps (Thunderbolt) external drive.

I assume that most people will need a new Mac for different reasons before they run out of storage, but for those that do need more it's not ideal to have to go external. I've got two 1TB drives and two 300Gb drives in my machine, so one of my backups is on my machine at all times, it's nice to have the options.

more memory user upgradeable

Ok

or if you've got some dead pixels on your display? Anyone buying one of these machines at this price would be a fool not to have the excellent Applecare warranty - screen would be replaced

You may be right, but that's yet more money (which is really the main disadvantage of Macs, as otherwise they're pretty lovely).

Apple products hold their second hand value much better than PC's - especially at 2yrs old

While a complete second hand PC wouldn't be worth too much, I just sell the components I'm replacing, so upgrading MB, CPU and memory is pretty cheap. Although a second hand mac isn't cheap, I imagine it's still lost quite a lot of value after 2 or 3 years.

One of the things I like most with the current iMacs is the quality of the screens, they are very good. The idea that you have to get rid of them when you upgrade though seems like madness to me though. What mac do you go for if you want to keep your screen when it's time to upgrade? It looks like it has to be a Mac Pro which starts at £2k for not a lot.

 

[gullshark]

Mac Mini or Mac Pro yes

 

[ManxSeagull]

I didn't spec the higher speed processor so didnt cost as much as you have stated

 

[clippedgull]

One of the things I like most with the current iMacs is the quality of the screens, they are very good. The idea that you have to get rid of them when you upgrade though seems like madness to me though. What mac do you go for if you want to keep your screen when it's time to upgrade? It looks like it has to be a Mac Pro which starts at £2k for not a lot.

Well if a user wanted to keep their screen, why not just get another updated Imac and have a dual screen set up?

I have an Imac 27" and as said the screen is beautiful.

I agree that it would be nice to have a second hard drive in the Imac for back up purposes, although plugging a USB powered hard drive in for Time Machine backups is no real hard task!

I was a PC user for years, but the ability to run Windows natively (via Bootcamp) or virtually via Parallels was the clincher in purchasing my first Apple computer. It's 18 months old now and i'm still loving it.

 

[Bold Seagull]

Wow they're expensive. I've just configured one on the apple store:
3.4GHz i7
8 Gb ram
2Gb ram
ATI 6970 2gb

so basically the same spec as my PC, but not clocked as fast
£2169

lol, you're having a laugh.

Now I appreciate that they are nice machines, and if you can afford it, why not. But damn that's a lot of money. And what happens in a couple of years when you want either more storage, or a faster CPU, or more memory, or if you've got some dead pixels on your display? Do you sell the whole thing and buy another?

I could pick up a Vauxhall Astra with the same spec. as a Mercedes C-class, might even go faster, but I know which one I'd rather be driving.

 

[Triggaaar]

I didn't spec the higher speed processor so didnt cost as much as you have stated

I was looking at how much it would cost to have a similar spec to my PC.

Well if a user wanted to keep their screen, why not just get another updated Imac and have a dual screen set up?

Another Imac - you mean another complete computer? Two of everything including the price? How would that work (connectivity)?

I could pick up a Vauxhall Astra with the same spec. as a Mercedes C-class, might even go faster, but I know which one I'd rather be driving.

I guess you think a 3 pointed star on the drive makes you somebody. I wouldn't have a problem owning a Merc, but not if it was the same spec, I would expect it to be better. I'd expect it to be a more comfortable ride with better sound-proofing, better quality fabrics and plastics inside etc.

Comparing PCs isn't totally straightforward because there are so many manufacturers, so many different specs and quality levels. You can get very high quality displays if you need them, or economise if you don't. I currently have a 2 screen set-up, and I'll probably have 3 within a year. Not such an easy option with Macs. A rich friend was recently looking for a new machine, and I recommended an iMac for him, it was perfect for his needs and if he throws it away in 3 years and gets another he won't notice the waste of money. I just don't agree that you can say in all situations, one is better than the other.

 

[Bold Seagull]

I guess you think a 3 pointed star on the drive makes you somebody.

You obviously do!!

 

[clippedgull]

Another Imac - you mean another complete computer? Two of everything including the price? How would that work (connectivity)?

Connectivity wise its just a case of utilising the mini display port on each IMac

 

[Triggaaar]

Connectivity wise its just a case of utilising the mini display port on each IMac

When connecting like that is it just using one CPU etc? And can you buy Mac screens on their own, if you want to use them with a Mac Pro etc? I couldn't see them in the Apple online shop.

 

[clippedgull]

When connecting like that is it just using one CPU etc? And can you buy Mac screens on their own, if you want to use them with a Mac Pro etc? I couldn't see them in the Apple online shop.

Not sure about the CPU use, The secondary CPU would be on due to the secondary computer having to be turned on to boot the display. You can't turn the monitor on independently.

As for IMac screens, I believe the Apple LED cinema display is the same screen, not cheap by any means!

 

[Triggaaar]

Not sure about the CPU use, The secondary CPU would be on due to the secondary computer having to be turned on to boot the display. You can't turn the monitor on independently.

That would all be a waste.

As for IMac screens, I believe the Apple LED cinema display is the same screen, not cheap by any means!

Ah yes, found them (google is your friend). £810 for a 27", which although not cheap, I think is reasonable for the quality of display. And presumably you can just plug that (or a smaller version) into your iMac if you want 2 displays. I'd want a lovely 27" screen costing £810 to last several years (which I'm sure it would) and that's half my problem with the iMacs. The guts won't be up to scratch in 4 years time but the screen will still be lovely, I'd just want to change the insides.

 

[Paskman]

That would all be a waste.
Ah yes, found them (google is your friend). £810 for a 27", which although not cheap, I think is reasonable for the quality of display. And presumably you can just plug that (or a smaller version) into your iMac if you want 2 displays. I'd want a lovely 27" screen costing £810 to last several years (which I'm sure it would) and that's half my problem with the iMacs. The guts won't be up to scratch in 4 years time but the screen will still be lovely, I'd just want to change the insides.

Why not just buy an Apple display and Mac Mini? You just replace the computer when required - voila sorted!

Sent from my Desirable Android thingy by Tippy Tappy.

 

[clippedgull]

That would all be a waste.
Ah yes, found them (google is your friend). £810 for a 27", which although not cheap, I think is reasonable for the quality of display. And presumably you can just plug that (or a smaller version) into your iMac if you want 2 displays. I'd want a lovely 27" screen costing £810 to last several years (which I'm sure it would) and that's half my problem with the iMacs. The guts won't be up to scratch in 4 years time but the screen will still be lovely, I'd just want to change the insides.

I can see you are a tinkerer! I used to love building my own PC's.

My strategy these days is to keep the Imac until its second birthday (November) upgrade when they are refreshed then sell the IMac for around £800-£900 (or current market price) with a years Applecare warranty (transferable)

 

[tinx]

I am planning making the jump to Mac this year, I am planning on buying a Macbook pro for the portability and then invest when finance allow in the Apple display to connect the MBP to so I get the bes tof both worlds of a portable macbook and when at home the feel of an iMac with the lovely big screen.

thats the plan anyway.

 

[Triggaaar]

Why not just buy an Apple display and Mac Mini? You just replace the computer when required - voila sorted!

Because it's £900 for a 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo with 4GB memory, 1TB HD, and a rubbish GC. Absoultely fine for those just browsing the web, but if you need a fast PC it doesn't cut it. As an example of cost, if you want to have 8Gb of memory instead of 4, that's £160 extra - WTF! the difference between 4Gb and 8Gb for a standard PC would be £34.

My strategy these days is to keep the Imac until its second birthday (November) upgrade when they are refreshed then sell the IMac for around £800-£900 (or current market price) with a years Applecare warranty (transferable)

It's obviously nice to be able to do that, but it does cost a lot.

I certainly do like a tinker, purely because it saves money and gives you the spec that's right for you. I can't remember the last time I bought a PC ready made, they're so simple and cheap to build yourself. I've never had a problem with viruses either in 20 years of PCs.

 

[Bozza]

Kevin Rose on this week's DIGGNation...

Part of the reason I love my Macbook more than that Alienware laptop is that I believe it is a superior product from a design standpoint. Forget the OS, forget everything else. It's beautiful, it's thin, it's lightweight. Clearly Apple has some of the best engineers on the planet, no-one will dispute that. I felt that internally, and this is a f***ed up thing to say, you feel like you're part of this kind of elitist club with a superior product.

 

[Bozza]

Kevin Rose on this week's DIGGNation...

Part of the reason I love my Macbook more than that Alienware laptop is that I believe it is a superior product from a design standpoint. Forget the OS, forget everything else. It's beautiful, it's thin, it's lightweight. Clearly Apple has some of the best engineers on the planet, no-one will dispute that. I felt that internally, and this is a f***ed up thing to say, you feel like you're part of this kind of elitist club with a superior product.

 

[clippedgull]

Kevin Rose on this week's DIGGNation...

I would agree with that. I took my Macbook Air to a match at Withdean rather than leave it in the car. When the steward was searching my bag and touched the clamshell he said, what's than an axe head? I felt good!