# What do you think about iMac?



## Fireface (Jun 7, 2011)

Hello TSF. I'm pretty sure that this is a wrong place to discuss an iMac but in relaxation room only sports and fun are there so I'm posting here. 

So I'm about to have an iMac soon because I'm gonna use it for music production and some web developing.

I'm willing to buy one of the new ones with quad-core i5 and 4gb of RAM.

Though, except my hobbies I'm keen on gaming too. I'm playing WoW which is Mac supported so no problem but I don't know how well it'll run to a Mac. My pc got 2gb ram and core 2 duo intel cpu and I was palying pretty fine except some low fps in high populated cities (into WoW). That's not a problem for me ok it's just a town. Though I wanna ask how well games run in a Mac OS as I know they use different resources than windows to run a program/game.

I'm also keen on installing windows in bootcamp for some more games like APB: Reloaded and League of Legends. Plus I wait Mass Effect 3.

So as my pc is core 2 duo and 2gb ram ain't be better using widows in i5 quad core and 4 gb of ram (even in windows that is bootcamped on an iMac)??

Answers like if you wanna play just don't buy a Mac won't help me because I'm about to quit gaming soon so iMac will be a good choice for some work. Though just asking the gaming experience in Mac and bootcamp windows running on Mac


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

well your gonna have to wait till next year for mass effect 3 now. Its upto you if you want to buy and Imac personally I hate anything that Steve Jobs has had a hand in


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## Fireface (Jun 7, 2011)

Wow, you don't hate Microsoft and you hate apple  first time hearing that


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

Well I have met Steve Jobs twice and both times I though he was a (cant say incase I violate TSF terms and conditions.

I have met Bill Gates too and he was a nice guy.


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## janettfung (Jun 8, 2011)

I am thinking of getting a iMac as well. my current mac pro has i7 and 4gb ram. it works perfect for music production. i expect iMac performs better.


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## Fireface (Jun 7, 2011)

Thanks. I'll keep that in mind


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## SamLea72 (Mar 23, 2011)

Love mac, I switched over a couple years ago and have been very happy with it. Even the basics that come with it are better than the expensive programs I had to buy for my Windows. I am not a big gamer though, but have not had any problems with the minimal gaming I have done on mine, I wouldnt anticipate you having any problems honestly.


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## Fireface (Jun 7, 2011)

Nice one. Thought friend got an iMac too and he's not playing but he is happy too. He just installed civilization V and that was it. For working experience i think macs are the best way to work on.


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## sinclair_tm (Mar 11, 2005)

As an avid computer gamer, I've happy with my MacBook. It played Portal 2 just fine. When you get Windows installed with Boot Camp, it'll run way better then it did on your other PC. I'd recommend you get Windows 7 Pro. As soon as you get your Mac, run Boot Camp to install Windows that way you don't running into any errors of unmovable files from the games and apps you install in OS X.


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## Fireface (Jun 7, 2011)

Ye I'm gonna run boot camp widows and I'll install windows 7 ultimate x64


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## janettfung (Jun 8, 2011)

Fireface, I've installed win 7 x32. should not be a problem


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## Fireface (Jun 7, 2011)

Ye I know but why not x64 while it's supported from the CPU (plus the 4gb ram being recognized)


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## sinclair_tm (Mar 11, 2005)

I chose to run 32bit instead of 64bit because of the history of issues had with drivers and software with 64bit versions of XP and Vista. I do know of several people with 64bit Windows 7 and not had any problems, and chances are on my next Mac I'll use 64bit Windows 7 with Boot Camp.


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## jasonlee91 (Dec 3, 2006)

i love the mac os x
especially after having used a mac for a while, i really like how smooth and stable macs always run

but what does everyone think about the price premium though?
i mean in canada, to get the entry level i mac with an i5 it starts at 1200
but the processors in these imacs are not the same full powered processors in desktops am i right?
you can build a very powerful i5 desktop for about 600-700 now (for not macs)
i guess it really comes down to how much the OS is worth to the user


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## Fireface (Jun 7, 2011)

That's true. If you give the same 1200 for a desktop (without the screen and the keyboards etc, let's say you have them from a previous pc) you can create so powerful PC that it'll be 2x macs. Though Mac is a Mac.. and everything runs smoothly. There's no registry and there's no need to use an anti-virus. like in my pc I click in iTunes and I wait about 5-6 secs until it opens. On my friend's Mac he clicks it and it's instantly there ready for use. This means too much for me that I like to use it for music production and web developing.


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## Fireface (Jun 7, 2011)

I checked out that the iMac I wanna have got AMD Radeon HD 6750M. What do you say about this graphic card??


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## jasonlee91 (Dec 3, 2006)

Graphics cards are not my domain However, I could my agree with you about what you just said. Especially since most of the general public does not require such a powerful CPU, perhaps the stability is much more key


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## Fireface (Jun 7, 2011)

That's the point you get a mac. Also my friend is doing his work (web developing) much much faster than windows because of the flexibility that mac programs have.

About this card, I've read that this is series for laptops but Apple guarantees that those graphic cards are faster than the old macs used to have.


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## sinclair_tm (Mar 11, 2005)

The processors in the iMacs are desktop CPUs, not the mobile versions. Apple does clock them down during normal use to keep them cool, but during intense CPU usage, they will clock to full speed.
As for the GPU, it is a mobile version, as the M at the end means. I have a MacBook with a NVIDIA mobile GPU, and it works great. Of course the last GPU I was using in my desktop home built PC was a NVIDIA 6600, so the 9400M is light years ahead. The best thing to see how the GPU does is to find benchmark charts online. Tom's Hardware once was a good site, but last I checked, they haven't been updated in a long time. But a Google search should find you a current chart.
As for the price, are you looking at software as well as hardware when you compare? New Macs aren't just the hardware and OS, there is also iLife. Right out of the box you have everything 90% of users need as far as media apps. And these apps are easy to use. Windows may include some of them, but they are a pain to learn and use, if you can find them. Buying a Mac isn't just buying a PC and OS, it's buying the whole user experience.


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## Fireface (Jun 7, 2011)

Exactly mate. Thanks for your time because your answer is really good. That's why I need a mac for the whole experience. I'm on a higher level using PCs so I want some more professional work to do so iMac with such smoothly way it runs will be an upgrade. Though in my free time I would like to relax nicely in some games. I don't have a clue why apple using mobile version of gpu.. But anyways this is on the next standard of my needs on a mac. Just asked because I need to check if it is a good deal comparing the gpus. And ofc I know there is more power in a pc (talking about gpu) but still Mac is the best for my needs even if I have to play 1-2 games in medium than ultra graphics.


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## sinclair_tm (Mar 11, 2005)

Apple used mobile GPUs because they run cooler, and use less power. With today's GPUs, don't be fooled into thinking just because it's mobile that they aren't as good as desktop GPUs. The core is the same, they only have a couple less pipelines and pixel shaders, which you'll never notice unless you are running the newest games at max visual settings, or do some major extended graphics rendering.


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## Fireface (Jun 7, 2011)

Ye that's nice. I think I wont have a problem with the GPU


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## jargonbust (Apr 18, 2011)

i like window 7 but liked the post


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## sinclair_tm (Mar 11, 2005)

Um, your post makes no sense whatsoever. It just screams bot, which will get you banned.


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## Amd_Man (Jan 27, 2009)

sinclair_tm said:


> Um, your post makes no sense whatsoever. It just screams bot, which will get you banned.


I'd say! :grin:


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## Fireface (Jun 7, 2011)

sinclair_tm said:


> Um, your post makes no sense whatsoever. It just screams bot, which will get you banned.


Ok. Feel free and go for it.. Sorry for the trouble.


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## sinclair_tm (Mar 11, 2005)

Fireface said:


> Ok. Feel free and go for it.. Sorry for the trouble.


Not your post, there was a post that has been removed and you can't see now that I was referring to.


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## Fireface (Jun 7, 2011)

sinclair_tm said:


> Not your post, there was a post that has been removed and you can't see now that I was referring to.


Oh, sorry then for the offensive post I did to "go on ban me". Though I wanted just to ask about macs in here. And as I said I couldn't find any better place than here :grin:


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