€1700 +/- to spend... Entice me

unklerosco

Planning on getting a 24" iMac... Now i know for the money i can prob get a much better specced Pc.

Now I wont be using it for gaming(gave up on PC gaming, use my 360 for that)...

Main uses.. Music, Photos, basic vid editing, conversion, net use n basic office work.

So for €1749 can someone beat this??

2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
1GB memory
320GB hard drive1
8x double-layer SuperDrive
ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO with 256MB memory
Wireless, Bluetooth, Webcam, Keyb n Mouse


Basically a build that consists of tower, internals, 24" monitor, speakers,keyb n mouse and OS... And preferably looks tasty

white_falcon

unklerosco wrote: »

Planning on getting a 24" iMac... Now i know for the money i can prob get a much better specced Pc.

Now I wont be using it for gaming(gave up on PC gaming, use my 360 for that)...

Main uses.. Music, Photos, basic vid editing, conversion, net use n basic office work.

So for €1749 can someone beat this??

2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
1GB memory
320GB hard drive1
8x double-layer SuperDrive

ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO with 256MB memory
Wireless, Bluetooth, Webcam, Keyb n Mouse


Basically a build that consists of tower, internals, 24" monitor, speakers,keyb n mouse and OS... And preferably looks tasty

lol people on their macs...when will they learn...

http://www.komplett.ie/k/shoplist.aspx?mode=receive&si=522754&su=70331406-9C02-4B8F-A72D-B7D2D94AB625

that has 4gigs ram, 500 gig hard drive, faster processor, 24" monitor, webcam, wireless keyboard and mouse, and a better graphics card and it costs the same pretty much...

...all the reasons to not get a MAC

DemocAnarchis

If you are willing to put in a bit of work and build the system, you can get similar spec for far less than that from komplett,dabs or hardwareversand. If you are looking for a prebuilt pc, how about:

System: INTEL Core 2 Quad 2.4GHz
Model Q6600 4x2.4GHz
NVIDIA GeForce 8600GT
Equipment:
- MSI P4M900M2-L ATX
- NVidia GeForce 8600GT 512MB PCI-e
- 250GB SATA-II HDD 7200rpm
- 2GB DDR-II RAM MDT
- LG GSH H50L DVD-RW Lightscribe
- Ankermann MidiTower Silver: € 0.00
- Intel Box CPU Cooler | 15 in 1 Cardreader
- 600Watt PFC Switching Power Supply
- Realtek ALC662 6 Channel Audio
- DSL Ready 10/100 Ethernet LAN
- Ankermann ATX Case 6x USB 2.0

€529,00, including shipping and vat from ankermann-pc.com Better processor for applications you have mentioned, video card is grand for what you need, can add another hard drive on the cheap if you need to, cant go wrong for that price. The site also has options to upgrade the ram, hard drive, dvd drive and case.


Edit- White_falcon, that spec is a little extreme for his planned usage, maybe?

white_falcon

DemocAnarchis wrote: »

If you are willing to put in a bit of work and build the system, you can get similar spec for far less than that from komplett,dabs or hardwareversand. If you are looking for a prebuilt pc, how about:

System: INTEL Core 2 Quad 2.4GHz
Model Q6600 4x2.4GHz
NVIDIA GeForce 8600GT
Equipment:
- MSI P4M900M2-L ATX
- NVidia GeForce 8600GT 512MB PCI-e
- 250GB SATA-II HDD 7200rpm
- 2GB DDR-II RAM MDT
- LG GSH H50L DVD-RW Lightscribe
- Ankermann MidiTower Silver: € 0.00
- Intel Box CPU Cooler | 15 in 1 Cardreader
- 600Watt PFC Switching Power Supply
- Realtek ALC662 6 Channel Audio
- DSL Ready 10/100 Ethernet LAN
- Ankermann ATX Case 6x USB 2.0

€529,00, including shipping and vat from ankermann-pc.com Better processor for applications you have mentioned, video card is grand for what you need, can add another hard drive on the cheap if you need to, cant go wrong for that price.


Edit- White_falcon, that spec is a little extreme for his planned usage, maybe?

i was just trying to point out that for the same price as a Mac, you can get a PC that would run circles around it...lol

zAbbo

Personally I'd go with the iMac.

If you are looking at pure specs, the PC wins, but I suspect thats not the reasons you were looking at getting an iMac in the 1st place.

white_falcon

zabbo wrote: »

Personally I'd go with the iMac.

If you are looking at pure specs, the PC wins, but I suspect thats not the reasons you were looking at getting an iMac in the 1st place.

lol why ever ever get a Mac? cuz it looks all white and gay? fair enuf the Mac OS is more stable than windows...but hell...install linux, install Mac OS on a PC if u want. why fork out that much money on a Mac when you can get something that is far better for the same price, but it just looks different?

DemocAnarchis

OSX isnt more stable than windows, there just isnt the issue of driver incompatibility etc because they only support their own hardware. Besides the point though, OSX runs on any x86 platform, ie you can dual boot with OSX. There really isnt a good reason to spent that amount of money just because it looks pretty.

white_falcon

DemocAnarchis wrote: »

OSX isnt more stable than windows, there just isnt the issue of driver incompatibility etc because they only support their own hardware. Besides the point though, OSX runs on any x86 platform, ie you can dual boot with OSX. There really isnt a good reason to spent that amount of money just because it looks pretty.

precisely the point i was trying to put across...:D

zAbbo

Pointless discussing if the argument you are making is that its 'white & gay'

The advantages would be the build quality, in that the whole system is inside a single casing (including monitor), as well as the applications you wanted to use, I think are superior in OSX (Final Cut Pro is a great app)

The new OS(Leopard) is also extremely slick, and intuitive to use (something I've never had with a windows os)

My argument was, even though a much better spec can be put together, it still won't be a mac, which I suspect is what had drawn the OP in the first place.

Is it a crime to choose style ?

unklerosco

Zabbo is the only one here making sense.... Falcon, calling it white n gay tells me u aint got a clue what ur on about.

My reasons for wanting a mac, all in one package, fantastic quality and a brilliant OS. I've been building and using PCs for years n years. I work with them all day. The GF has a iMac(a white gay one:rolleyes:) and after using that for the past year they seem to make so much more sense than PCs...

I'm just wondering what my other options are.... In an all in one sense there's the new Gateway or Dell XPS but to me they're just iMacs with a "worse" OS...

zAbbo

I think you already know the answer, but for what it's worth I went from a 20" iMac G5 to a Cube PC + 26" Widescreen, and I've not come across anything as close to the build quality of an iMac, especially twinned with a wireless kb/mouse.

It's expensive, but maybe you can wrangle an educational discount (about 100 euro)

white_falcon

unklerosco wrote: »

Zabbo is the only one here making sense.... Falcon, calling it white n gay tells me u aint got a clue what ur on about.

My reasons for wanting a mac, all in one package, fantastic quality and a brilliant OS. I've been building and using PCs for years n years. I work with them all day. The GF has a iMac(a white gay one:rolleyes:) and after using that for the past year they seem to make so much more sense than PCs...

I'm just wondering what my other options are.... In an all in one sense there's the new Gateway or Dell XPS but to me they're just iMacs with a "worse" OS...

i think this is turning into a Mac Vs PC arguement thread which we all know will go on a long time lol.

"In an all in one sense there's the new Gateway or Dell XPS but to me they're just iMacs with a "worse" OS..." - so what you are saying there is that Dell and Gateways are on par with Mac's except for the OS

You say that a Mac is better due to the "build quality, in that the whole system is inside a single casing"...sorry but duh...so are PC's.

What I'm saying is that why bother buying an overpriced Mac - Operating system aside. The build quality of a Mac is no different any other PC - I can't see how you can justify the price of a Mac due to its build quality in that the monitor is built into the computer....

Most people would take a more powerful computer that is better bang for buck over a Mac that has its monitor built into it

That mac OP was looking at:
2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
1GB memory
320GB hard drive1
ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO
Wireless,
Webcam
Keyb n Mouse

For the same price you can get
2.6ghz intel core 2 duo
4 gigs ram
500 gig hard drive
way better graphics card
way better speakers
webcam
keyboard
mouse

hey, i really don't care if u go for a Mac...just pointing out that its "build quality" and its "style" don't make it a better computer for the price

unklerosco

white_falcon wrote: »

You say that a Mac is better due to the "build quality, in that the whole system is inside a single casing"...sorry but duh...so are PC's.

Really....

I agree with what ur saying in a sense, for €1700 i could get a much better spec... I could have gotten one of the XPS 720's on ebay, QX6700, 2x150gb raptors, 2x8800gtx etc etc.... But thats not what i'm looking for. I want something neat, thats fast, hassle free etc etc

I had a dell running Vista for a few months and it did my nut in.. Vista looks pretty but is dog slow. Copying files was a nightmare... Much prefared XP

I should have also stated that I dont really wanna go building a PC, I don't have the space or the time to be fiddling about... I've spent far to long building and modding PCs and never getting to use them. Suppose I'm looking at a dell/hp etc.

Suppose ur right Falcon, this is just gonna turn into a mac/pc fight... Gues I knew what I really wanted when i started the thread

just pointing out that its "build quality" and its "style" don't make it a better computer for the price

That can be said for a load of things, why buy a BMW when u can get a Mondeo for much less.... Me, i'd take the mondeo n spend the money i saved on a mac(or a 2nd car;)) :p

Shiny

Go for the Mac. I am a PC lover myself but I need to play games, run
windows only engineering programms etc....

The hardrive is a bit low but if I remember correctly dont you have more
hardrives than you know what do do with??? : )

Also the Mac will include tonnes of software wont it?

white_falcon

unklerosco wrote: »

But thats not what i'm looking for. I want something neat, thats fast, hassle free etc etc

I had a dell running Vista for a few months and it did my nut in.. Vista looks pretty but is dog slow. Copying files was a nightmare... Much prefared XP

ur talking about operating systems there - im not saying vista is good by any means. its just people say a Mac is better because it runs better. u can take all of the parts that mac use and make a PC and install Mac OS on it and it will perform exactly like a Mac - what i mean is the Mac looks, do not make it perform better and seeing as how it has all of the same parts as a normal computer it really is nothing special

having said that yes...if u want something that is neat, fast and hassle free by all means go for i almost would myself if i was looking for that. i can completely understand why people would want to get one - they are neat, and they do blend in nicely, and some people do like the look of them.

its just this is the building and upgrading forum, i thought u originally meant cud u build a PC for less than buying a Mac...my mistake

unklerosco

Over 1.5tb sitting on a shelf, just need some sata caddys for them. The mac does have everything included... espec comic book... great little bit of software

unklerosco

white_falcon wrote: »

its just this is the building and upgrading forum, i thought u originally meant cud u build a PC for less than buying a Mac...my mistake

Good point... Suppose i wanted to know can u build an all in one, quality PC.

I do agree with u in that for €1700 I could build a much better specced tower and get a monitor etc etc to add on. I think i'll keep pcs for work n macs for home....

DemocAnarchis

Or you could buy a decent specced pc for what you need for a fraction of the price of a mac, and not spend the rest? You dont have to spend it all.

jessy

DemocAnarchis wrote: »

Or you could buy a decent specced pc for what you need for a fraction of the price of a mac, and not spend the rest? You dont have to spend it all.

You’re completely missing the point as to why this guy wants a Mac! It’s not to save money! It’s to have a decent computer (not the greatest spec in the world but more than adequate for what he wants to do) and most importantly an "all in one" computer that has a 24" screen!

For the other people who listed components to build a PC, which to be fair are more powerful than the imac but you never included an OS!

For the people who say just duel boot and stick OSX on the PC! it is not all that easy to put OS X on a PC!!

Looking at what The OP wants to do I would say if you can afford to spend €1700 then do! The Mac has the perfect software to do what you want!

white_falcon

jessy wrote: »

You’re completely missing the point as to why this guy wants a Mac! It’s not to save money! It’s to have a decent computer (not the greatest spec in the world but more than adequate for what he wants to do) and most importantly an "all in one" computer that has a 24" screen!

For the other people who listed components to build a PC, which to be fair are more powerful than the imac but you never included an OS!

For the people who say just duel boot and stick OSX on the PC! it is not all that easy to put OS X on a PC!!

Looking at what The OP wants to do I would say if you can afford to spend €1700 then do! The Mac has the perfect software to do what you want!

yes....but this is the building and upgrading forum...people usually come on here to ask advise on how to build or upgrade parts of their PC - which is why people were a tab bit confused...

jessy

Have a look at this sony http://www.pcmag.com/slideshow/0,1206,l=186580&pg=0&s=1564&a=186496,00.asp
screen is smaller though.

dazftw

Get a set of logitech Z5500's

I gave up on pc gaming aswell cause of my 360 :rolleyes:

apart from team fortress two and the half life series

WizZard

Go for the iMac, you won't be dissapointed.
Make sure your external drive caddies are FW800 though, as they can be daisy chained

I'm a Mac convert too Gone are the days of spending thousands of euro on PC stuff and then spending most of the time with it open, eking the next 100 3DMarks out of them

Not @OP:
It's Mac, not MAC

white_falcon

WizZard wrote: »

Not @OP:
It's Mac, not MAC

lol i believe thats aimed at me...

I spend my entire day dealing with MAC codes so im trigger happy when typing Mac I think lol sorry

awhir

WizZard wrote: »

Go for the iMac, you won't be dissapointed.
Make sure your external drive caddies are FW800 though, as they can be daisy chained

I'm a Mac convert too Gone are the days of spending thousands of euro on PC stuff and then spending most of the time with it open, eking the next 100 3DMarks out of them

Not @OP:
It's Mac, not MAC

everone just go linux and no1 can complain

Shiny

Linux ...photoshop, video editing, gaming......oh wait...no.

At least Macs have can do the first 2 options.

TerrorFirmer

Lets please try to keep Mac VS PC out of this from now on. The man wants a Mac for specific tasks that a Mac can, without question, do better then a Windows OS out of the box. I'm not a particularly big fan of Mac's, but I see no reason why the Mac is anything but a good choice in this instance.

HP and Sony do some great all in one machines as well, but to be honest, they don't work out any cheaper. And you're still restricted to Win Vista/XP.

the other alternative is running OSX on an emulator but to be honest, why bother? Just get the Mac..

You could also look at getting a cheap Mac Mini and then a monitor seperate. You can get the Mini for about 800 for a respectable model, leaving you with a nice 1k for a bigger monitor like 26". Though I think all in all the iMac is the best way to go.