I have been considering switching from Windows to Mac for a long time. I've been looking at the iMacs but there is one thing holding me back... high-end 3D gaming, specifically my favorite games: Half-Life 2 and HL2:Ep1. I have been looking at three configurations of the iMac: 1) 17-inch with 2.16 GHz Core 2 Duo, 2 GB RAM, ATI Radeon X1600 (256 MB), and a 500 GB hard drive; 2) 20-inch with 2.33 GHz processor, 2 GB RAM, Radeon X1600 (256), and 500 GB HD, 3) 24-inch with 2.33 GHz processor, 2 GB RAM,, Nvidia GeForce 7600 GT (256) and 750 GB HD.
I have two questions: 1) Are any of these setups powerful enough to run HL2:Ep1 with full visual effects, including HDR lighting, AA and AF at full-screen resolution and still give a decent frame-rate (30+ FPS), and 2) The HL2:Lost Coast episode says it runs best on a 3GHz or faster processor. How does a 2.33 GHz Core 2 Duo compare to a 3 GHz Pentium 4?
I apologize if any of this seems confusing but I would appreciate any information anyone can offer.
I have two questions: 1) Are any of these setups powerful enough to run HL2:Ep1 with full visual effects, including HDR lighting, AA and AF at full-screen resolution and still give a decent frame-rate (30+ FPS), and 2) The HL2:Lost Coast episode says it runs best on a 3GHz or faster processor. How does a 2.33 GHz Core 2 Duo compare to a 3 GHz Pentium 4?
I apologize if any of this seems confusing but I would appreciate any information anyone can offer.