09-29-2010, 01:38 PM

Hi all!

Hopefully I am going to be buying an iMac soon using my HE discount; I have a perfectly fine PC and a 17" Macbook Pro, but I would ideally like to buy an iMac for strictly work only, use my PC for games and my Macbook Pro for going to Uni.

I study Graphic Design and will typically be at my computer for as much as 8 hours a day; this made me think about getting the 27" but after seeing it today I think it might be a bit too big!

Ideally I want to spend no more than £1000; with my discount the low end 21.5" is about £880 which is great, but then for £200 more I can get the same iMac with a 512mb graphics card rather than 256mb.

Should I bother paying £200 more for the graphics card (and HDD) or will the cheaper one work just fine? I won't be playing any games; I just need it to run CS5 as quickly and smoothly as possible!

Thanks!

09-29-2010, 01:56 PM

Ideally I want to spend no more than £1000; with my discount the low end 21.5" is about £880 which is great, but then for £200 more I can get the same iMac with a 512mb graphics card rather than 264mb.

As a student of graphics design, I would think that you would want the best graphics capability that you can afford. The lesser expensive iMac uses an ATI Radeon 4670 with 256 MB of VRAM while the better model has an ATI Radeon 5670 with 512 MB of VRAM. Keep in mind that these machines can not be upgraded, so, what you buy is what you'll have to live with.

09-29-2010, 01:58 PM

I have a late 2009 27in iMac. It's the 3.06GHz C2D w/ 4GB of ram.
It runs my CS5 just fine, so I'm sure these new systems are more then enough to run CS5.

I always say, get the best system you can afford.
If you think the 27in is to large, then go with the 3.2Ghz i3 21.5in iMac.

But the 27in is just so beautiful, i love it!

09-29-2010, 02:04 PM

Would I notice any difference between the two graphics cards?! So if I got the cheaper one would I have wished I got the more expensive one? Ideally I want my iMac to be as fast as if not faster than my MacBook Pro which has a 512mb graphics card!

09-29-2010, 02:19 PM

I think you've answered your own question. If you want your new iMac to be as fast or faster than your MBP, the better graphics is the way to go.

09-29-2010, 02:21 PM

I think you are right! It's a bit annoying though as the price with my HE discount is £1098... do you think if I call Apple or go into a store they might be able to do it for £1000 exactly?!

09-30-2010, 01:11 AM

I would suggest you spend the premium and buy the one with better graphic card and HDD. Its only for another £200, you never know what you might use the extras for...

09-30-2010, 09:57 AM

I always say, if you can afford it right now then just wait a few more weeks till you can get the better system. You wont regret it!