Thinking of buying a power mac.

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mr..nemo

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Im starting a graphic design degree, and im thinking of definitely getting a powerbook and possibly inversing in a power mac, although would a imac be just as good? i want it to last over my course period and into when i start working.

i like the powermac dual 1.8, but my question is (is 1.8gb the total processor speed, or is it 1.8 x 2, makeing 3.6 the total??)

also i usually batter the **** out of my computers and they only tend to last about 3years, would a mac last longer?

hard drives. it seams every hard drive i fill up, eventually it becomes slow, event when i delete most things from the hard drive, is the common, do they just wear out? or is it a matter of needing more RAM?

the powermac is a little out of my budget but i think i could stretch if i knew it was going to last and was convinced it would be a better machine than what im using at the mo.

any comments appreciated .
 

rman


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mr..nemo said:
Is 1.8gb the total processor speed, or is it 1.8 x 2, makeing 3.6 the total??
The speed of the processor would be 1.8GHz
 
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One thing to keep in mind is if you buy any Mac that it will be a good idea to upgrade the ram straight away. Be a good idea to just add this to the overall price becuase even the powermacs need a ram upgrade, the ram that you get with them just isn't enough.

I've always used iMacs for the Graphic Design work that I do, whatever computer you buy you will be needing to upgrade it sooner or later, the technology is just moving so fast. I've always liked the iMac designs and the price however when I'm rendering 3D images I wish I had a dual 2.5gig G5 powermac with a few gigs of ram as it takes a while, but does get the job done in the end. :eek:
 
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I would recomend the PowerMac G5 dual 1.8. A whole lot of bang for the buck. Upgrade the ram to 1 gig to start with and more later as your need for it increases. It is very upgradeable in the ram area, in the video area, and in the hard drive area. You could add a second 200 gig to it real easy to keep your data on. As long as you don't go jumping up and down or kicking it, the PM 1.8 dulie will go well into the future with you.

Don't think of it as "streaching the budget" think of it as investing in the proper tools for the future. Still costs you as much, but you feel better about it...(G)
 
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Wapa18

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rman said:
The speed of the processor would be 1.8GHz

right, but it's 2 separate 1.8ghz processors, so technically it would be like 3.6ghz total for the whole machine.
 
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mr..nemo

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Wapa18 said:
right, but it's 2 separate 1.8ghz processors, so technically it would be like 3.6ghz total for the whole machine.

Yeah thats what i was thinking, or hopeing, but im no expert.

i like the 20" monitor or the powermac most because i also use my computer as my tv in my room.

will i regret just going for the cheaper option on going down pcworld and purchasing a computer for £1000 and loading it up with the same ram. **** if i even stick the X operating system onto it, i will have myself a mac for half the price? but less style.

any agreements or disagreements?
 
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"will i regret just going for the cheaper option on going down pcworld and purchasing a computer for £1000 and loading it up with the same ram. **** if i even stick the X operating system onto it, i will have myself a mac for half the price? but less style."

Sorry sticking the x operating system into a pc doesn't give you a cheap mac, they are different.
 
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mr..nemo

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James said:
"will i regret just going for the cheaper option on going down pcworld and purchasing a computer for £1000 and loading it up with the same ram. **** if i even stick the X operating system onto it, i will have myself a mac for half the price? but less style."

Sorry sticking the x operating system into a pc doesn't give you a cheap mac, they are different.

im no expert thats why i was wondering if someone could shead some light why there different
 
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flyingpostman

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Wapa18 said:
right, but it's 2 separate 1.8ghz processors, so technically it would be like 3.6ghz total for the whole machine.

I'm no expert but I don't think thats how it works. I'm certain that software has to specifically written to take advantage of the dual processors. Photoshop etc, takes advantage of this. I don't think its going to help you play games, etc. For example Doom3 doesn't from what i've read and it isn't going to render web pages faster or make the OS
"feel" faster. I don't know why apple simply doesn't release a single 2.5ghz machine for the same price as a dual 1.8. This would be more beneficial to the pro-consumer market.
 
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mr..nemo said:
im no expert thats why i was wondering if someone could shead some light why there different

I'm no expert either and will leave the explanation to someone who is. Hey Dennis tell this guy how the pc and the mac differ and why it wouldn't work..
 
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MickMAC

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Right! the dual 1.8 is NOT a machine running at 3.6ghz it is a machine running at 1.8 that had double the processing power for the programs that are written for it ie. Photoshop. a single 2.5 wold be faster then a dual 1.8 at regular system tasks, coping files opening programs etc.
 
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mr..nemo said:
which would be a better buy for a graphic design student?

Depends on how serious you want to be with it. If your going to do top of the line stuff, then use the top of the line equipment. IF your not that serious about it, then one of the lesser systems will do. For light to medium duty either an iMac G5 or a single 1.8 PM will do the job, from medium to heavy a dual PM G5 1.8 will be the right choice, if your gona do some heavy duty stuff and put out the next Starwars then go for the biggie, the Dual 2.5.
 

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