which mac to buy

ok
i have decided to make the switch.
after seeing what apples are about i dont think i can go back to a straight pc.
im in australia so these prices are aussie dollars.
these are my options of what i can buy and also what upgrades i plan to do in the future if i got that model.

1. mac mini 1.66 1gig ram Amount ex GST A$ 971.82
GST A$ 97.18
Subtotal A$ 1,069
i would like to buy a good 19/20" widescreen monitor to go with it so add 370 to 500 bucks. would have to upgrade the cpu later on.

2. mac mini 1.83 1g ram Amount ex GST A$ 1,244.54
GST A$ 124.45
Subtotal A$ 1,368.99
plus monitor etc

3. mackbook 1.83 c2d Amount ex GST A$ 1,590.00
GST A$ 159.00
Subtotal A$ 1,749.00 upgrade ram later poss cpu. i have an external dvd burner

4. imac 17 base model 512 ram 1.83 ghz Amount ex GST A$ 1,408.18
GST A$ 140.82
Subtotal A$ 1,549.00

all these use the gma 950

or these two
imac 17 2gz 1gram Amount ex GST A$ 1,680.91
GST A$ 168.09
Subtotal A$ 1,849.00


a used /ex demo core duo 20 inch imac for A$1,599 from here
http://www.compnow.com.au/images/assets/pdfs/compnow-clearancelist.pdf
from what ive read i can put a core 2 duo in this machine. if i were to do this would this bring it up to the same standard as the core 2 duo imac

what ere your opinions
im not to fussed over portability. the only thing i worry about is the gpu i want to make sure it can handle future projects i may do (no games really)

andrew

I notice you've got two Mac Mini options in your choices. Ya know, you could buy the cheapest config Mac Mini and upgrade it yourself, if you were so inclined. Here's a link to some people who have done it. You can upgrade the HDD, CPU, and memory in those things. The amount of $$ Apple charges for memory is often outrageous.

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=91459

I was going to go for a mini because I already have a 19" widescreen monitor. Then I saw the iMac's and realised that the core2 duo processor, better hard disc and graphics card all built into a nice package was too good to refuse. Then once I saw the difference between the screen on the 20" and the 24", I had to get the 24:robot:

Once you upgrade the mini and buy a monitor, you might as well have got an imac and upgrade the ram later on.