G5 iMac or intel iMac? at DVinfo.net

Michael Plunkett · March 17th, 2006, 06:09 PM

Boyd,

In your opinion would you buy the top of the line (slightly?) slower pure Mac G5 iMac or the new (slightly?) faster top of the line intel Core Duo and save 200 bucks?

My concern is the amount of software available in the intel version. Final Cut is in the future but so is Photoshop which I need now.

I respect your opinion

mp

Boyd Ostroff · March 17th, 2006, 06:21 PM

That's a tough call. I have a friend who bought one of the first Intel iMacs. He's very happy with it, but the stock amount of RAM is way too little. His main beef is that he can't run his old MacOS 9 applications since the Intel boxes don't support Classic mode. But he's pretty much a "home user" and doesn't do any video editing. If he ever does then I'm sure iMovie will be more than enough for him.

We'll have the universal version of FCP in two weeks, so you'll find out how that works pretty soon. I'd wait until then before making any decisions. Photoshop will run under Rosetta on the new machines, evidently at about half the speed it runs on the G5 iMacs. This might be fine as a stopgap - see the new issue of MacWorld, they discuss this and other issues related to the Intel iMacs.

Personally, I have a dual 2.5 ghz G5 and it will keep me happy for at least another year. Also have a 1ghz 15" aluminum Powerbook. I only use that for "office work" kinds of things, so it's just fine for now as well. I'm happy to wait and watch the dust settle on the Intel models. In a year I think they will be phenomenal.

If I had to buy today however, I don't think I'd want to get a G5 iMac. But I wouldn't hesitate to get a dual or quad PowerMac....

Michael Plunkett · March 17th, 2006, 08:07 PM

Thanks Boyd- time will tell. I'll read the results from macworld. Thanks.

mp

Michael Plunkett · March 28th, 2006, 10:57 PM

I'm still grinning from ear to ear. I bought the iMac G5- not the intel Core Dual.

Saved more 300 dollars and hope that FCP will be reduced when the Universal edition is on the market. Also came with iLife '06 like the intel, Quicken, plus three months of iWorks, etc that the ICD version excluded.

Going to used the saved money and buy 1 or 2 gigs of memory and have some fun.

Thanks Boyd- you are always helpful.

mp

Mark Sloan · March 29th, 2006, 01:30 AM

Anything using the Rosetta will benefit from more RAM, the default is definitely NOT enough even for Universal apps.

Boyd Ostroff · March 29th, 2006, 05:51 AM

Congratulations on the new computer Michael!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mark Sloan

Anything using the Rosetta will benefit from more RAM

Michael says he bought the G5, so he won't need to use Rosetta, which is the PPC emulator that runs on the Intel Macs. But more RAM is always better anyway.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Michael Plunkett

Saved more 300 dollars and hope that FCP will be reduced when the Universal edition is on the market.

Oh I don't think you'll see a price drop on FCP. They are only offering it as part of the entire production suite now, and I think that price is gonna stay where it is, unless you can find a vendor who still has individual copies of FCP5 , which might be hard at this point.

Let us know how the new system works out for you.

Michael Plunkett · April 24th, 2006, 10:16 PM

Just a quick update. I'm glad I bought the G5 and not the intel dual core. I have Photoshop up and running which i could not do with the new version without a great loss of speed. Photoshop is still be bread and butter.

The newer iMovie is much better than the older version as is iPhoto, iDVD and GarageBand (what no i ?? iGrung doesn't work ??) as it tries together to be a lite (very) version of FCP. Still hoping to get FCP by the summer but the new versions are fine for now.

I love the set up.

mike

March 17th, 2006, 06:09 PM	#1
Michael Plunkett Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Cherry Hill, New Jersey Posts: 75	G5 iMac or intel iMac? Boyd, In your opinion would you buy the top of the line (slightly?) slower pure Mac G5 iMac or the new (slightly?) faster top of the line intel Core Duo and save 200 bucks? My concern is the amount of software available in the intel version. Final Cut is in the future but so is Photoshop which I need now. I respect your opinion mp __________________ "The Light is the melody, the Motion is the lyrics..."

March 17th, 2006, 08:07 PM	#3
Michael Plunkett Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Cherry Hill, New Jersey Posts: 75	Thanks Boyd- time will tell. I'll read the results from macworld. Thanks. mp __________________ "The Light is the melody, the Motion is the lyrics..."

March 28th, 2006, 10:57 PM	#4
Michael Plunkett Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Cherry Hill, New Jersey Posts: 75	bought the G5 I'm still grinning from ear to ear. I bought the iMac G5- not the intel Core Dual. Saved more 300 dollars and hope that FCP will be reduced when the Universal edition is on the market. Also came with iLife '06 like the intel, Quicken, plus three months of iWorks, etc that the ICD version excluded. Going to used the saved money and buy 1 or 2 gigs of memory and have some fun. Thanks Boyd- you are always helpful. mp __________________ "The Light is the melody, the Motion is the lyrics..."

April 24th, 2006, 10:16 PM	#7
Michael Plunkett Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Cherry Hill, New Jersey Posts: 75	Great !! Just a quick update. I'm glad I bought the G5 and not the intel dual core. I have Photoshop up and running which i could not do with the new version without a great loss of speed. Photoshop is still be bread and butter. The newer iMovie is much better than the older version as is iPhoto, iDVD and GarageBand (what no i ?? iGrung doesn't work ??) as it tries together to be a lite (very) version of FCP. Still hoping to get FCP by the summer but the new versions are fine for now. I love the set up. mike __________________ "The Light is the melody, the Motion is the lyrics..."

March 17th, 2006, 06:21 PM	#2
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,787	That's a tough call. I have a friend who bought one of the first Intel iMacs. He's very happy with it, but the stock amount of RAM is way too little. His main beef is that he can't run his old MacOS 9 applications since the Intel boxes don't support Classic mode. But he's pretty much a "home user" and doesn't do any video editing. If he ever does then I'm sure iMovie will be more than enough for him. We'll have the universal version of FCP in two weeks, so you'll find out how that works pretty soon. I'd wait until then before making any decisions. Photoshop will run under Rosetta on the new machines, evidently at about half the speed it runs on the G5 iMacs. This might be fine as a stopgap - see the new issue of MacWorld, they discuss this and other issues related to the Intel iMacs. Personally, I have a dual 2.5 ghz G5 and it will keep me happy for at least another year. Also have a 1ghz 15" aluminum Powerbook. I only use that for "office work" kinds of things, so it's just fine for now as well. I'm happy to wait and watch the dust settle on the Intel models. In a year I think they will be phenomenal. If I had to buy today however, I don't think I'd want to get a G5 iMac. But I wouldn't hesitate to get a dual or quad PowerMac....

March 29th, 2006, 01:30 AM	#5
Mark Sloan Major Player Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Venice, CA Posts: 346	Anything using the Rosetta will benefit from more RAM, the default is definitely NOT enough even for Universal apps.