Sell me an iMac...

Tiny Clanger

Tiny Clanger

Tiny Clanger

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19 Oct 2002
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780
So....Mrs Clanger has just returned from the shops singing the praises of a shiny new iMac...:eek:

Now - I have no idea whatsoever about the world of Apple (apart from my trusty iPod classic) and therefore don't have the foggiest idea of what we'd need to buy (if we were to buy one at all!).

Therefore - please could the OCUK community give me a bit of a steer and persuade/dissuade me that it's a good purchase by answering the following questions?

1. Is it worth spending the extra on the faster processor? (I'd know the answer if this was for my PC which gets mainly used for gaming - however, this is for browsing/streaming/photo editing and a bit of video)

2. Am I better going for a Mac Mini and getting a decent TV/monitor or is the iMac better value for money?

3. Do Macs hold any residual value? (PC's seem to have little/no resale value but is this the same with Apple?)

4. Are iMac's the work of Lucifer? (as a devoted PC user I have to ask you understand...)

Thanks as ever for all your help/advice/insults :)

TC
 
Tiny Clanger said:
1. Is it worth spending the extra on the faster processor? (I'd know the answer if this was for my PC which gets mainly used for gaming - however, this is for browsing/streaming/photo editing and a bit of video)
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Personally... no. In the previous generation when there were 2 core machines, and 4 core machines, the difference was huge between the two. Now all the iMacs are 4 core and the difference is not so much, wouldn't worry imo.

2. Am I better going for a Mac Mini and getting a decent TV/monitor or is the iMac better value for money?
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Mac Mini is good, but its slower then the iMac, quite considerably slower, and the screen on the iMac is just beautiful, especially the 27" one!

3. Do Macs hold any residual value? (PC's seem to have little/no resale value but is this the same with Apple?)
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Its not limitless value-holding, but its better then windows machines. I purchased my 2010 27" iMac .. obviously in 2010, for £14xx because of the HE discount, its value now seems to be £900-£1000 or so, so held value much better then a PC would.

4. Are iMac's the work of Lucifer? (as a devoted PC user I have to ask you understand...)
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Possibly, but at least its warm down here :cool:
 
I have the basic current iMac (2.5 i5) and its great, i think its better value than the mini and you dont plan on connecting it to a TV, the mini is 530 + 200 for a similar monitor + 100 for wireless keyboard and mouse so your paying an extra 100 to have it all in one, faster, higher ram capabilities etc

id say its worth it! the iMacs do keep their value but not like they used too, but they seem to keep a good base price (for example buy it now for £1k and in a year it might only be worth £700, but in 5 years itll probobly still be worth £500 whereas many windows pc's in 5 years would be worth next to nothing)

and do question 1, no i wouldnt say its worth it, £35 crucial ram upgrade (8gb) bumps it up to 12GB and all is good


if you can get a HE discount off someone/family its definately worth it at aound £860 with 3 years applecare
 
#1. Not really. You pay a lot more for a marginal increase, it's not worth it.

#2. When you're buying a Mac, value for money is a relative term because they are all expensive. I personally don't see the point in choosing a Mac Mini and then buying third-party monitor etc. just to save a few quid (unless you already have these). The iMac comes with a quality screen so you might as well benefit from the all-in-one form factor.

#3. They do hold value and just as importantly they are quite easy to sell. I have a few people who wait to buy my old Mac stuff.

#4. No. At the end of the day they are just computers. For me, Mac desktops are just too expensive for what they do. I'd rather build a PC at a fraction of the cost. I'm a big fan of Mac laptops however, but I judge them on build quality, battery life, trackpad etc.
 
I have to say that they DO look nice :)

Thank you all for your help and observations - I think we'll need to see how the finances last for January - then maybe we'll treat ourselves to one in Febuary (finances permitting).

Thanks again,

TC
 
...actually, one final question - is it possible to connect a PC to an iMac display and use it as a PC monitor? The blurb on Thunderbolt suggests that it can but it isn't too specific...
 
I believe only on the older non-thunderbolt models could you use the iMac monitor on another device but you need a thunderbolt enabled input on the latest models
 
Tiny Clanger said:
I have to say that they DO look nice :)

Thank you all for your help and observations - I think we'll need to see how the finances last for January - then maybe we'll treat ourselves to one in Febuary (finances permitting).

Thanks again,

TC
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I am also wanting to buy a mac feb/march time but there must a refresh due soon ???
 
Well the Ivy Bridge chips are due out end of Q1 aren't they? iMac is at the end of cycle though.

I have the 3.4Ghz i7 2011 unit with 16Gb RAM and an SSD - absolutely flies :eek:
 
Depending where you read the info, some suggest it's only "high performance" desktop ivy chips at the end of q1, chips Apple are unlikely to use unless mac pro gets a refresh ... Same reports suggest Apple will have to wait until mid q2 to refresh all of their other lines , because intel are way behind
 
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Apple prices are mostly consistent, changes in VAT aside, new models will come in at current prices and last gen usually starts to show in their clearance or refurb store
 
Righto - thanks for that. Looks like we might wait a month or two for the revised model perhaps.... Curses! - was beginning to look forward to a new gadget around the house :(
 
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