iMac 20" and its suitability to a former PC user?

Status
Not open for further replies.
J

JohnBurrows

Guest
I have always been a PC-user. However, I'm switching to Mac. Why you ask? Well let me start the tale from a year ago. I was looking for a compact computer for netsurfing, writing word documents and for some gaming. Editing digital pics and video clips would be a secondary type of usage. Initally, I really gave Powerbook some thought but PC-Windows-combo seemed better so I went with a 17" performance PC-laptop. However, this laptop has been proofed as being flawed and I have an opportunity to get my money back. And what do you know... time has passed and now, thanks to boot camp, you can use Windows with yout Mac. Talk about 'best of both worlds'...

So I have been looking for a good computer for me and iMac 20" (with the best specs) in on the top of my list. Why? Well it's cool-looking, compact, seems to have great performance (at least spescwise) and YOU CAN USE WINDOWS with it. Don't get me wrong... I really want to use Tiger, and later Leopard, and will use it but the truth is that for gaming and MS Office I need to use Windows.

So my first question to you is do you think getting an iMac is the right step for me? I mean obviously I'm looking for a great compact desktop replacement which costs under 2500 dollars. If I got an iMac what would I do with it? Well firstly I'd use boot camp to install Windows and would use it as my primary OS for games and MS Office (and surfing and MS Messenger use) while using Tiger with audio/video-stuff and such. Oh, I have accessories such as Logitech G5 mouse, Belkin Nostromo N52-gamepad, Buffalo USB-WLAN stick, Nero 6 Reloaded, Norton Internet Security 2005, MS Office and would like to use them as well. So all of this in mind, do you think I'd be happy with an iMac?

My second question has to do with memory. I mean I've read many many messages saying that AppleStore additional memory is overpriced, and if you want 2gig of memory you should really buy the additional 1gig from somewhere else. Is this true? I mean I do want to save but it seems an awful lot of trouble... Also, do you think 2gig memory is recommended? Today 1gig is thought of as minimum so I guess it should be...

My third and final question has to do with discounts. I'm currently studying in a university and have taken some computer-related courses. So I'm eligeble to get ADC membership which would give me 10% off of iMac plus I'd get a free copy of Leopard within a couple of years. On the other hand, I'd have to fax degrees and such to abroad and pay the fee of 99 dollars (was it?). On the other hand, AppleStore does give student discounts of 6% off and I guess that's something... What do you think? Would ADC membership be wise for me?

Finally, I want to deal with a couple of issues. Firstly, you might ask why I'm not thinking of getting a desktop-PC? Well, certainly it'd give me the edge in games but my working room is kinda small and a tower would take up too much space. Secondly, I know a lot of people will comment that iMac is great but my not using OS X would be a total waste, and in that logic a Mac would be a waste for me. Well, I AM going to use Tiger, but the truth is that a lot of what I regularly do with a computer has to be done in Windows due to my owning Windows-programs I can't afford to replace or just that doing a specific thing in Windows is a whole lot easier or altogether possible. Oh, and when I talk about gaming I mean that I'd play maybe 50 minutes of CS:source a day, that's all.

So in conclusion, I'd appreciate it if you could help me with the following:
1) iMac 20" and it suitability to me - a former PC-user who wants to continue using mostly Windows as primary OS
2) Does it make sense to up the memory to 2gig when I buy iMac from Apple Store?
3) ADC discount vs. Student Discount - ADC worth the trouble?

Many thanks in advance! Cheers!
 
Joined
Feb 17, 2006
Messages
688
Reaction score
26
Points
28
Your Mac's Specs
iMac 17" Intel Core Duo 1.83GHz 512 MB Ram 128 vRAM 60GB HD
Hmm... well it seems that your primary OS is Windows, so I suggest first by going with a Windows machine... a Mac is only good if you're REALLY gonna use everything possible for it. There's MS Office for Macs, and if you're getting the Intel Mac, there's plenty of word processor replacements for MS Office... iWork does well (although it could use a good spreadsheet app...)

Let me first quickly attack the RAM question, you really won't need 2 gigs of ram, 1 should be enough, unless you're doing some serious stuff... but anyway I've read around here that Crucial ram is good, i think crucial.com should do the trick. You won't need it, though. I'm running Rome: Total War and Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion in Windows with 512 RAM no problem. So save yourself money and if you want to upgrade RAM (which is nice, as OS X loves RAM...), go with only 1gb and use the extra money towards games that you would have used on 2gb.

Apple Discounts do look like they're worth it, they give you a 10% discount vs. the 6% you mentioned above, plus you get Leopard.

Okay, now time to elaborate on the first question...

If you want to use Windows as your primary OS, you could do it on an iMac, setting up your startup disk to Windows. I wouldn't suggest it, though. The only reason you'd need Windows is to game (it's the only reason I use my Windows partition). EVERYTHING else can be done in OS X. You'll find that OS X is MUCH more efficient than Windows, it's a great OS and it's fast, a LOT faster than Windows. Trust me. If you really want to, your best bet is to go to an Apple Store and try out an iMac for at least an hour, talk to the sales reps, and find out everything you want to know until you're satisfied.

But, I say, by looking at what you're doing, go with a Windows machine, it suits your needs better.

Okay, time to ice hands, that took a while...
 
Joined
Feb 2, 2004
Messages
12,455
Reaction score
604
Points
113
Location
PA
Your Mac's Specs
MacBook
JohnBurrows said:
So in conclusion, I'd appreciate it if you could help me with the following:
1) iMac 20" and it suitability to me - a former PC-user who wants to continue using mostly Windows as primary OS
Use the best tool for the job. You want to use Windows.. then get a Windows machine, its really that simple. If you would like to venture into Mac, then I would suggest getting a used Mac from eBay or a similar auction site. But as you yourself said, you want to make Windows your primary OS. It is, in my opinion as someone who uses both Windows and Mac, downright foolish to buy a Mac and use it to run Windows as the primary OS on it. If one is to take the step to get a Mac, then your needs, desires and purpose for the Mac should merit it as such. For what you intend on doing, it doesn't.
 
Joined
Oct 10, 2004
Messages
10,345
Reaction score
597
Points
113
Location
Margaritaville
Your Mac's Specs
3.4 Ghz i7 MacBook Pro (2015), iPad Pro (2014), iPhone Xs Max. Apple TV 4K
Posting the same question in two forums is frowned upon in most forums, including here.

the other post is HERE.
 
OP
J

JohnBurrows

Guest
baggss said:
Posting the same question in two forums is frowned upon in most forums, including here.

the other post is HERE.

I do apologize but on the other hand I felt my post was suitable for both forums so that's why I posted it to them. But let me tell you what I frown upon. It is just a universal truth that some folks in forums just read specific forums and especially when we are dealing with Apple I bet a lot of people don't necessarily want to read the switchers thread or whatever... So I just wanted to make sure that I get as much replies as possible. Does this mean that everybody are now in their full right to post in several forums the same post. No, but in my case you have a post that is suitable for both forums and when you combine this with my point of "some people only read specific threads" you see why I did this.

So again I appreciate your point (though I hope you didn't post that link to 'reveal my misdoings') but I felt this was necessary.
 
Joined
Apr 27, 2006
Messages
8
Reaction score
0
Points
1
just made this same switch

You can see my thread in this forum titled "new to the mac..pretty underwhelmed with it...".

We just made this same switch. There is lots of good, thoughtful responses and some pretty realistic expectation setting in their....good luck.

If you want fast and use a lot of Windows applications, you can buy a faster Windows application machine for a lot less money.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Shop Amazon


Shop for your Apple, Mac, iPhone and other computer products on Amazon.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.
Top