General Mac hardware discussions: Should I wait for the Intel processor? Wanting a new Mac.
Interesting,
by mrmacfixit
- 1/13/06 7:44 AM
In reply to: I am well aware the Mac People are real fanatics BUT by azloafer
What Mac & OS was it that you replaced with a Dell?
"I also set up video conferences with my Dell and can talk to Dell people and Mac people. Mac would like you to only talk to other Macc's." I don't understand that statement. You can talk to Mac people using your Dell but Mac people can only talk with Mac people? Something not right there
P
Huh? Those seem like non issues these days...
by RenoDavid - 1/13/06 7:49 AM In reply to: I am well aware the Mac People are real fanatics BUT by azloaferI haven't had any problems playing various kinds of online videos in a while now. Are you sure you were doing this recently?
As for chatting, yes, things could be much improved there, but Apple does support chatting with PC users because iChat users can video chat with anyone using the latest version of AIM. Yahoo Messenger also works, but with no sound. There are other options, but those are the ones I'm familiar with.
Anyway, back on topic, I'd certainly wait to get a new Intel machine if I was in the market for one. The MacBook and the new iMac are VERY impressive and things will only get better. However, the Power Macs (I wonder what they'll be called now, because the word Power will certainly be dumped) will probably be the last to switch, because the change was mainly due to the fact that they couldn't figure out how to put G5s into laptops. The iBooks and the mini will probably be next in line for the Intels, due to their small form factor.
Also, as a VirtualPC user, I find the possible ability to boot into either OS very intriguing! It'll be interesting to see how this all plays out.
Dell vs Mac
by scottae316 - 1/13/06 10:29 AM In reply to: I am well aware the Mac People are real fanatics BUT by azloaferI do not know what kind of graphic work you do, but Mac not PC is the industry standard for graphics, video, photography etc.. Yes, PC's do have better usage in general and you can use PC's to view all videos on line, but there are work arounds I sure. Dell makes a great PC, but even Dell has said that they would love to produce a Mac clone. Something to think about.
apple history
by pjcamp - 1/13/06 8:44 AM In reply to: Should I wait for the Intel processor? Wanting a new Mac. by Joanne BellApple has a long history of abandoning users when Apple decides that their technology is obsolete. On the one hand, one can be philosophical and acknowledge that this is part of doing business with Apple -- you must be ready to spend big bucks to upgrade your hardware when Apple commands you to do so. It is likely that, sooner rather than later, the Mac OS will be specific to Intel hardware and you will be left in the cold.
Knowing that history, if I were on a fixed income I believe I would soldier on with the old machine until the situation settles down.
New Macintel or not
by bigduke - 1/13/06 9:32 AM In reply to: apple history by pjcampI tried a quad G5 with 4 gig memory in local Apple store a week ago. It screams in Photoshop. With 1 gig dual G5's don't scream, but they do reasonably well.
On the other hand We have several laptops at home that have 1 or 1.25 G memory and they do reasonably well in Photoshop. One of laptops is going to get a second 1 G memory and should be significantly faster with added memory.
To have an idea what your machine is doing go to the Activity Monitor which lets you see what is running, how much primary task uses in time and memory and details of disk, I/0, etc. Real good peek at working. It takes about 3-5% of cpu to run, so don't leave it on all the time.
If you use laptops then the side ports can support an eternal screen. It is beside the built in, not a larger of internal screen. I have a 12 inch and 17 external. Makes lots of sense as big screen can contain photo and small one all the menus.
One good part of G5 big boxes is that they can supprt lots of displays, either huge big screen or several small ones. And slots can have extra display cards. My old 7500 can have 3 displays at once. I think these same cards can run in new G5's slots which would make an impressive simulator for one use. Imaging a 20 inch screen (or larger in center and two on each side of say 17 inch. Almost like flight simulators.
Enough dreaming.
The intel replacement of iMac sounds like a limited compromise as there is only two slot memory. 2 gigs.
When we get going in digitizing our family history box of photos over the last century and half we will probably spring for huge memory used G5 rather than intel. I presume Adobe will have photoshop upgrades in not too long a time, but we have paid dues already.
duke
I'd go for the G5
by jbjerome - 1/13/06 1:49 PM In reply to: Should I wait for the Intel processor? Wanting a new Mac. by Joanne BellMe personally, I prefer the G5 because it is true 64 bit computing as opposed to the 32-bit P4 core of the dual-core Intel Duo. (That also made me wonder why they went with Intel when AMD chips are 64-bit now; ah well must have been a political/financial thing.)
I REALLY hope they do a last cycle upgrade on the G5, say to 3GHz, on the Powermacs before they switch to the Intel chips.
Two choices...wait or get the laptop
by NeilFiertel - 1/13/06 2:40 PM In reply to: Should I wait for the Intel processor? Wanting a new Mac. by Joanne BellIf you want the ultimate image processing machine right now..the Quad...if you want to be certain that five years down the road, you will still be happy...wait...I was disappointed that there was not a new Quad but I was also certain that there would not be as that is going to be the very last machine to change over as most of the pro software will have to go to a universal binary before professionals will change. I will wait for an intel PowerMac. Instead, in the meantime, I ordered a 30 inch screen (!!!) and the new MacBook Pro laptop so that I can work with a faster machine than my dual 800 PowerMac which is long in the tooth and feels so very slow compared to pretty much any other machine nowadays. With the laptop having Rosetta and four times faster than the old PowerBook, I figure it has to be about as fast or faster than the ldual 800 even in emulation and when the new software is intel native...it will fly. I will then get the PowerMac and end up with a nice laptop for work on the road and take it with the camera for on sight work...the best of both worlds. The screen naturally will go with the intel PowerMac. All of this to say, if you are going to work with large files which require a lot of RAM, you have no choice but to go for the old Quad (!) or wait. If you do not stress the RAM levels of an amateur machine, get the new iMac Intel which holds the same RAM level as the MacBook Pro and is slightly faster overall...insignificant but cheaper machine. If you need the RAM then ...wait for 8 more months..the baby is in the oven...
Wait?
by taboma - 1/13/06 10:46 PM In reply to: Two choices...wait or get the laptop by NeilFiertelI watched Steve Job's presentation again on my Mac early this morning from 2am until 3am utilizing Apple Quicktime Pro (Full image screen.)
I was very impressed with the graphics presentation.
(I happen to be a graphics person, not a tech.)
The amazing speed of the Intel processor and above all the ability to still be able to use all my present software with the MacIntel is amazing.
It was so late to view this video that I cannot remember the name of the software that would bridge say, Adobe Photoshop with the new processor. Adobe Photoshop would be able to work on the new Mactels as I understand.
Peter, what is that software called??
As far as purchasing a new MacIntel and concerns? As I have posted before, really not even knowing about this new hybrid, Mac and Intel have been working on this project, their engineering departments have ironed it out I am sure. Good guess on my part.
IT WORKS!!!
This is not a Windows Intel processor. This is a brand new Mac Intel processor from scratch. Designed from the ground up by the engineers from Mac and Intel.
Things that I also like is all the great new software that has been designed for the beginner as well as the pro. Seemless professionalism on a presentation. The list goes on. More to come from Microsoft Office suite and a host of others that are impressed.
This will be the single most important step for Mac ever in its history. I am excited about the future of the Mac.
I am a Mac user and probably can afford to send a Mac to my son, who is a PC user presently in Turkey.
Most likely would get it down pat in less than a week. My son speaks seven languages fluently, and presently working toward learning his eighth language.
Mac? Piece of cake!
What say you?? What about PC users?
…Wait, or JUMP ON NOW!
Thanks,
-Kevin
Intel Processors
by mrmacfixit - 1/14/06 7:08 AM
In reply to: Wait? by taboma
''Peter, what is that software called??''
It's called Rosetta.
The new Intel processor was designed from the ground up by Intel at their plant in Israel. Apple may have had a hand in the latter stages though.
This Duo Core processor will ship in the majority of Windows laptops starting in February. Dell has that as a shipping date for their Intel Duo Core processor laptops.
P
Not so fast
by KayDenmark - 1/16/06 12:44 AM In reply to: Wait? by tabomaKevin, you seem to have been quite taken by Mr. Jobs' sales pitch.
I'm a lifelong Mac user and plan to buy again, but trusting that ''Mac and Intel have been working on this project, their engineering departments have ironed it out I am sure'' and that there won't be any bugs in the new Intel versions is ''buying a cat in a sack'' as the Danish say. (Perhaps your son speaks Danish)
Personally, I'm in a tough spot - my current computer, a G3 Powerbook running 9.2, is on its last breaths, and I doubt I can hold out for two years while Apple introduces and then gets the bugs out of the new Intel versions. It'll also take software awhile to catch up - ie, what we can buy today won't work at its optimum level on Intel.
I'm tempted to just buy a G5 I can use now and for the next 2 or 3 years, but that means that by 2008 I could be in the same position I am now - with last-generation machine that doesn't work with the lastest software. I have a baby daughter who will be needing educational software within 3 or 4 years, so that's a concern.
What's more, I live in Denmark, where in addition to high income taxes we pay 20% sales tax - so buying a new Mac on a regular basis becomes an even more expensive option.
It's a real pickle - usability now or later?
Something you didn't mention.
by R. Proffitt - 1/16/06 7:09 AM
In reply to: Not so fast by KayDenmark
Intel based Macs were delivered to developers about a year ago. I have the fortunate envy of talking to such a developer and the words have been nothing but glowing.
I'm sure you'll read some pundits write to stick with the PowerPC chip, but take a trip back in time when Apple moved from 68K to PowerPC and ... the pundits wrote to stick with the 68K CPU "while the bugs are worked out."
History does repeat itself so ask yourself if you had picked up the 68K Mac, what position would you be in?
Bob
Thanks for all your responses...I'm still reading...
by Joanne Bell - 1/16/06 10:14 AM In reply to: Should I wait for the Intel processor? Wanting a new Mac. by Joanne BellWhen I posted the original question I wondered if I would get any replies. Thank you for sharing...I'm reading and thinking...haven't made any decisions yet, but I am appreciating all the thoughts.
I'm beginning to wonder if the suggestion of a lap top with a 20 inch screen would be an option until the intel processor gets to the level of the G5??? I really liked the idea of having a computer with me in the field to download my images, etc.
Please continue discussion...I am learning...thanks again, Joanne.
That time is now...
by RenoDavid - 1/16/06 12:47 PM In reply to: Thanks for all your responses...I'm still reading... by Joanne BellThe Intel that replaced the G5 processor in the iMac is supposed to be at least twice as fast.
G5 Tower and intel processor???
by Joanne Bell - 1/16/06 5:00 PM In reply to: That time is now... by RenoDavidI know the intel processor is in the new iMac, but I was originally looking at buying the G5 tower and separate 20inch monitor...and I understand that the intel processor isn't in the tower yet, right?
By going to the tower I was looking for greater speed, more memory, and more upgrade potential and plug-ins that would cover my needs now and in the future.
I'll go and read the specs on the new iMac, and the new lap tops and see what amount of memory is possible....now that they have the intel processor...perhaps the speed is there.
If there is a graphic artist...or.... out there that could help direct my thinking. Computers and software are changing so rapidly it is hard to get on top of all the factors you need to know to move ahead.
Thanks everyone.
Didn't mean to confuse things
by RenoDavid - 1/16/06 11:24 PM In reply to: G5 Tower and intel processor??? by Joanne BellWhen you said "until the intel processor gets to the level of the G5???" it sounded like you thought they were inferior to the G5 processors.
The new iMacs have sure got me thinking about replacing MY "old" iMac 800. Looks like they still sale for around $500 on eBay. Not sure how long that'll last...
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