Last questions before the big purchase!

Hello again, everyone! Some might remember me from the thread I made last Christmas. Well I'm her, an inch away from buying an iMac! But, of course, I've got some last questions.

(BTW this is all for the 20" iMac Intel Duo)


1) I understand from what I've heard that Boot Camp runs Windows very well (to the extent that it's like you're using a PC entirely). That means I can play any XP-compatible game I'd like, right? I hope so because I couldn't give them all up, . Also, is the X1600 a good graphics card? Is there any benchmarks so I can compare it to other cards?

2) I'm a student so I qualify for the student discount. However, is there any deals (minus the free iPod one) that I can grab? Is it safe to get a used Apple from someone on Craigslist or something? Or should I stick with a new Apple-shipped iMac?

3) 512 MB of RAM probably won't cut it for me, so I'll add (most likely) a 1GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM stick of some third party (Kingston, Corsair, whatever). Is this okay? Will it cause any sort of slowdown in comparison to Apple RAM? Because I don't want to shell out $270 for more RAM from Apple. <_<

4) Will my iMac work with my wired router? I have a DI-604 ver. C and it connects through Ethernet. I don't think there's any drivers for it, but you can access it through the browser.

5) Is it worth upgrading the graphics card for $68 to the 256MB version? I play some games like Splinter Cell and stuff.

Thanks so much for any responses!

1 - Do a Google search for for that card, you should be able to find benchmarks

2 - I would stick with a new one from Apple, but that is me.

3 - Add the 1Gb of extra RAM. It won't adversely impact your iMac. I did the same thing last week with my wife's new iMac and it works fine.

4 - Probably, especially if it is wired. I plug my iBook into hotel LANs all the time with no issues and god knows what they use for routers.

5 - If the games are very graphics intensive, it wouldn't hurt.

Hope you enjoy your new Mac!

Cool, thanks! Any more responses?

1) Yeah, I would just Google for a benchmark site.

2) Again, stick with Apple.

3) RAM is RAM. As long as it meets the specs for your machine it will be fine.

4) There is no reason why it wouldn't. Routers (wired or wireless) are OS independant.

5) If you are going to work with lots of 3D intense stuff, then go for it

Oh yeah one more!

6) Should I buy it online or in-store? I want the education discount.

nipun49 said:

Oh yeah one more!

6) Should I buy it online or in-store? I want the education discount.

Click to expand...

Doesn't matter. If you are a college student then you get the discount.

The 1600 graphics card gets so-so reviews, but only against the real high-end pc graphics cards.

Could you even find one on craigslist? They're still pretty new.

I just spent $75 on 1gb of ram and it takes about 15 seconds to install, so do it yourself.

I don't know about the router.

Buy the 256mb VRAM. You can't upgrade it later. I bought it and I don't play games, but I figure it'll future-proof it to some degree.

Buy online, the in-store help is pretty lame. I think you get the same price either way though.

Alright, cool! Thx

Also, maybe I should buy in in a tax free city like Portland (I think)? Would my discount be valid out of state?

nipun49 said:

Alright, cool! Thx

Also, maybe I should buy in in a tax free city like Portland (I think)? Would my discount be valid out of state?

Click to expand...

Your discount is valid anywhere in the US... but depending on where you live, the money you would spend going out of your way for a "tax-free" store could far outweigh the actual tax itself. Taxes aren't charged by Apple, but rather by your state/local government. If you have issues with the taxes, contact your local representative. :black:

I was thinking of getting it from this store in Portland:

http://www.apple.com/retail/pioneerplace/week/20060730.html

I heard Portland is tax free, so if I combine that w/ my student discount I could save a lot of money.