The ultimate "which one" thread

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G-Nome

Limp Gawd
Joined
Apr 13, 2006
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I'm 15, have a low budget (around $600 max as of now), and need a computer. I recently sold of some of my PC parts so I could get a Mac, but am having some second thoughts. I still have: HD, PSU, GPU, case, monitor and a disk drive. Should I get:

A: Mac Mini Core Solo refurbished with 1GB RAM - $600
B: Save up for a while longer and get an iMac Core Duo 17" - $1100 (refurb)
C: Save up even longer and get a 20" iMac - $1400 (refurb)
D: Keep the parts I have from my PC now and get a new mobo, CPU and RAM.

It will be used for:
Multimedia (music, movies, games)
Photography (editing)
Some graphics (PS)
Gaming

Option D is appealing, because I could afford some pretty decent stuff (X2 3800, nice mobo, 1-2 GB RAM). So which would be better for what I plan on doing? I am really in desparate need of some advice, so it's really appreciated! Thanks!
 
It sounds like you want to go with option D, but you want someone else to make your decision for you. I'd go with D and get a nice PC. MACs are nice but they can't do everything for me.
 
Macs are for sissies with the exeption of a G5 with dual core, 8gb ram and the 30in lcd 1terabyte of ram wich is only good for video programming if you can affort it, otherwise any other Mac is for sissies. You can take the X-2 3800 and overclock it to 4800's speed.
 
Well, one because the OS in general is just more efficient, and two because supposedly they're better for the sort of thing I'll be doing, which is why I made this post. Right now it seems like only the more expensive Macs would make a difference, if at all.
 
G-Nome said:
Well, one because the OS in general is just more efficient, and two because supposedly they're better for the sort of thing I'll be doing, which is why I made this post. Right now it seems like only the more expensive Macs would make a difference, if at all.
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40% of 600 is a lot more than 95% of 200, so efficiency of the OS shouldn't even be a consideration. What matters is which system actually works better. Whether the speed comes from brute force or incredible design is pretty much irrelevant.

What sort of thing are you planning on doing?
 
Well, like I said in my first post, multimedia, photography, some graphic work and other basic things like web browsing and listening to music. Which is why I'm thinking the PC would be faster.
 
If you play games at all PC has more support and games. I did notice something whenever mac sells an OS is cheaper, I remember seeing the new tiger O/S at $100 on sale when it came out, too bad the rest of the Apple hardware cost an arm and leg and has little support for games.
 
G-Nome said:
Well, like I said in my first post, multimedia, photography, some graphic work and other basic things like web browsing and listening to music. Which is why I'm thinking the PC would be faster.
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Completely skipped over that part of your post ;)
 
G-Nome said:
Well, like I said in my first post, multimedia, photography, some graphic work and other basic things like web browsing and listening to music. Which is why I'm thinking the PC would be faster.
Click to expand...

The PC wouldn't necessarily be faster for those things, especially with the new core duo setups. There's also a great deal of support for multimedia programs in MacOS. However, if you plan on doing gaming at all like you said in your first post, then you're going to want to get a PC.
 
How would something like this compare? Penium D 940, 2GB Corsair RAM, etc.
 
Ok, well, I've decided on a PC. So how does this setup look to you guys?

Intel Presler 930 - $212
Abit AW8 mobo - $110
Corsair VS 2GB DDR2 667Mhz - $146
XP Home - $90
A new PSU (Tagen, Smartpower, Liberty)
Total: $557 (w/o PSU)

I would resuse my current case (Centurion 5), GPU (X800XL) and HD (Maxtor 160GB).
 
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