A bit of background, I've been a hard core PC user for the last 10+ years, lived my life sworn to PC's. I'm an A+ PC Tech so I work with them everyday. To me the PC is a safe zone and the Mac an unfamiliar territory.
In the last year or so I've stopped using my computer (PC) to play games and use it now primarily for web surfing, video editing here and there (want to do more) and pictures. I say more because I really want to get into video editing and creating movies however on my PC... it can be a nightmare sometimes. I hook my Sony DV cam up using USB 2.0, and resort to using (don't laugh) Windows Movie Maker to grab the video. Once I have it, I've been using Nero to burn the fottage to DVD and it converts it to whatever format on the fly. Now creating menu's and all the nice fancy stuff... I don't even bother getting into because it's well... painful unless someone wants to say otherwise. The most frustrating thing about the video editing is the codecs because if I encode a movie in one format... my relative/friend may not be able to read it, and it's annoying. Frankly, after working 8-9hrs at work, the last thing I want to do is come home and muck around with codecs... and lately it seems to be a reacuring nightware I wish would just go away.
I was in a Mac store a few weeks back and was playing around with the iDVD. I noticed the "One Step DVD" but didn't think it could be that simple. After talking to the sales rep and him showing me it was infact that easy, I was blown away. I was amazing that it grabs the video from your cam and sticks it on a DVD, and creating menus... that's even more simple and it seems there's so much you can do. Anyways, I was sold. This is how simple it should be, in my eye's anyways.
So for the last few weeks I've been spending my time playing around with iDVD and watching tutorials on youtube while I get ready to make my iMac purchase.
So, fast forward, here's my dilemma... I was going to purchase an iMac Core 2 Duo, 2Ghz, 1GB ram, ATI x1600 128MB with DVDRW in the next few weeks. My buddie's however are he|L bent on stoping me telling me for that the price of the iMac $1480-CND with Tax I could get a HP Core 2 Duo Quad with 2GB ram, 400gb hd and a 256MB Geforce 8600GT, and that includes a 19" widescreen. Now since I've been a PC user for the last 10+ years there's almost an internal war going on in my head lol, I'm lost as to what to do. I don't want to regret any purchase. As for games... I wouldn't mind playing some of the next gen titles, eg; Crysis or Bio Shock but as a side note, I've been using my Xbox 360 mostly for gaming.
So... can anyone help me out in my decision? Am I going to get alot of benefits from switching? or should I just research programs that "might" work for video editing on the PC. I really want the iMac, it's just a hard desision as (1)for the same price you can get an HP Quad core, and (2) I"ve been a PC user for the longest time, it's almost like an addiction and it's hard to pull away. I feel like I'm in a safe zone with the PC and moving to the Mac is unfamiliar territory. On the Mac side, I've now seen how easy it is and fun to add/create DVD menu's and slidshows and stuff on the Mac. Plus, they look 10times better than any PC case. Help give me reasons to switch, (and add comfort... I feel so safe in the PC zone.)
Thanks in advance for any input, sorry for the long post. Cheers.
In the last year or so I've stopped using my computer (PC) to play games and use it now primarily for web surfing, video editing here and there (want to do more) and pictures. I say more because I really want to get into video editing and creating movies however on my PC... it can be a nightmare sometimes. I hook my Sony DV cam up using USB 2.0, and resort to using (don't laugh) Windows Movie Maker to grab the video. Once I have it, I've been using Nero to burn the fottage to DVD and it converts it to whatever format on the fly. Now creating menu's and all the nice fancy stuff... I don't even bother getting into because it's well... painful unless someone wants to say otherwise. The most frustrating thing about the video editing is the codecs because if I encode a movie in one format... my relative/friend may not be able to read it, and it's annoying. Frankly, after working 8-9hrs at work, the last thing I want to do is come home and muck around with codecs... and lately it seems to be a reacuring nightware I wish would just go away.
I was in a Mac store a few weeks back and was playing around with the iDVD. I noticed the "One Step DVD" but didn't think it could be that simple. After talking to the sales rep and him showing me it was infact that easy, I was blown away. I was amazing that it grabs the video from your cam and sticks it on a DVD, and creating menus... that's even more simple and it seems there's so much you can do. Anyways, I was sold. This is how simple it should be, in my eye's anyways.
So for the last few weeks I've been spending my time playing around with iDVD and watching tutorials on youtube while I get ready to make my iMac purchase.
So, fast forward, here's my dilemma... I was going to purchase an iMac Core 2 Duo, 2Ghz, 1GB ram, ATI x1600 128MB with DVDRW in the next few weeks. My buddie's however are he|L bent on stoping me telling me for that the price of the iMac $1480-CND with Tax I could get a HP Core 2 Duo Quad with 2GB ram, 400gb hd and a 256MB Geforce 8600GT, and that includes a 19" widescreen. Now since I've been a PC user for the last 10+ years there's almost an internal war going on in my head lol, I'm lost as to what to do. I don't want to regret any purchase. As for games... I wouldn't mind playing some of the next gen titles, eg; Crysis or Bio Shock but as a side note, I've been using my Xbox 360 mostly for gaming.
So... can anyone help me out in my decision? Am I going to get alot of benefits from switching? or should I just research programs that "might" work for video editing on the PC. I really want the iMac, it's just a hard desision as (1)for the same price you can get an HP Quad core, and (2) I"ve been a PC user for the longest time, it's almost like an addiction and it's hard to pull away. I feel like I'm in a safe zone with the PC and moving to the Mac is unfamiliar territory. On the Mac side, I've now seen how easy it is and fun to add/create DVD menu's and slidshows and stuff on the Mac. Plus, they look 10times better than any PC case. Help give me reasons to switch, (and add comfort... I feel so safe in the PC zone.)
Thanks in advance for any input, sorry for the long post. Cheers.