Mac or PC?

[Deleted]

* Mod Edit: No. Hackintosh is illegal.

[Deleted]

There's a massive kick in the balls for both Bioware and Mac users, that's very sad.

Apple are certainly partly to blame for that though. They don't take Graphics Hardware seriously at all, and the software/drivers for them is seriously weak. Fact is, if you're running Snow Leopard - you're running something roughly the equivalent of DirectX 8. Lion is better with DX10 equivalence, but stability and performance is still far behind.

[Bitlovin]

I've not heard anything about SW:TOR coming out for the Mac, so that might help with your decision ...

Can always just run Bootcamp and play it on the Windows side.

[cyan421]

A PC is going to give you better performance because you have to dual boot or whatever it is. I was a mac guy until wow ended PPC support, I went PC because what I got for $1000 would have been or $2000 as a mac.

[bigbaddan]

With a mac you're paying an 80% mark up for a brand name. Something self built will always be better.

Love the random % there. Have a link to back it up?

Also, people seem to be, once again, confusing software with hardware. You can build your own machine and put a mac OS on it if you love the OS so much. You don't need a mac to have the mac OS...

Not only is it unlawful to do that, it's much much harder to go that route than you make it out to be. Not all hardware will work, etc

Anyway...since we've already established SW:ToR won't run under Mac OS, you have a couple choices. You can go the custom build route, or you can still get a Mac and buy Parallels to emulate Windows. Or, I guess a third route, you can dualboot windows to run SW:ToR.

While the specs of a custom-built pc look better on paper than the iMac, with those games you won't notice a bit of difference. So in the end it really comes down to your OS preference.

I've got a couple Macs and a windows machine at home, but I do prefer the Macs even though the specs aren't as good. They won't run BF3 on Ultra settings like the windows machine, but they are still as fast playing WoW and doing your normal, everyday end-user stuff...email, websurfing, etc.

[Deleted]

or you can still get a Mac and buy Parallels to emulate Windows.

Running highly performance demanding, hardware acceleration demanding software through a VM...

Yeah.... how about no.

[Tyrianth]

you can still get a Mac and buy Parallels to emulate Windows. Or, I guess a third route, you can dualboot windows to run SW:ToR.

Those should be the other way around. I don't know why you would even considering running a game in a VM.

[Penric]

If I had the money I would buy a high end mac. My old imac broke down and I just dont have the funds for a new model. The operating system is just hands down awesome. The only game I play is WoW so it was perfect for me.

If I did have the money I would buy a Mac Pro Tower and not an iMac as all in one bundles are much harder to maintain.

[Twoflower]

Mac is more expensive. Self built PC can upgrade single components.

For gaming, Macs dont offer much. YOu just have more compability with PC. And only 10% of the games that do come out get a mac version. If you want to play games, there is only one choice.

[Echohunter]

Love the random % there. Have a link to back it up?

I just built one (with an i7 and 8gb of ram) on the apple site to check the numbers and it's really more like twice as much. It's an extremely similar system compared to one I built myself about 6 months ago. The iMac runs for $2,399 (with free shipping) and mine in total was $1183.62 and the one I put together will outperform it.

So long story short, go with a PC for all of your gaming needs, unless of course you're rolling in cash and not savvy with computers.

[Tyrianth]

I just built one (with an i7 and 8gb of ram) on the apple site to check the numbers and it's really more like twice as much. It's an extremely similar system compared to one I built myself about 6 months ago. The iMac runs for $2,399 (with free shipping) and mine in total was $1183.62 and the one I put together will outperform it.

So long story short, go with a PC for all of your gaming needs, unless of course you're rolling in cash and not savvy with computers.

Did yours include a 27", widescreen, backlit display?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16824001523 is the only one newegg has.

The iMac also includes a built in webcam, mic, and speakers as well as the keyboard and mouse. So unless your custom built includes those then you can't really compare the price. Yes it will most likely still be cheaper to build your own but no where near the park of 80%.

[Deleted]

Well, I haven't tried Mac ever. So I won't give any straight answer.
Both have their good sides. I've heard a lot of good about Mac and it would be interesting to give it a try some day.
People usually say Macs are expensive, sure, it may be true but I'm sure the price tag is justified.

[haxs101]

Why go Mac when you can get something twice as powerful, for half the price? You can get the pretty mac UI on windows (I actually have it) Use rainmeter and rocketdock. Mac's don't support many games. You're paying for the APPLE brand and thats it. Build your own PC. Custom PC will blow any mac out of the water and still have money left over for some boose (;

[Makaio]

Those should be the other way around. I don't know why you would even considering running a game in a VM.

You're right, running a game in a VM doesn't make sense. However, you can dual boot a Mac. I have a friend in the Beta of SW ToR who uses Boot Camp, and while I don't have specific performance numbers he says it's very good.

[Tyrianth]

You're right, running a game in a VM doesn't make sense. However, you can dual boot a Mac. I have a friend in the Beta of SW ToR who uses Boot Camp, and while I don't have specific performance numbers he says it's very good.

Oh I know, reread my post I said he should use bootcamp over a VM.

I actually had my macbook triple booted so I could have linux on there as well. That was a pain in the ass. ._.

[AlamarAtMMOC]

I just built one (with an i7 and 8gb of ram) on the apple site to check the numbers and it's really more like twice as much. It's an extremely similar system compared to one I built myself about 6 months ago. The iMac runs for $2,399 (with free shipping) and mine in total was $1183.62 and the one I put together will outperform it.

So long story short, go with a PC for all of your gaming needs, unless of course you're rolling in cash and not savvy with computers.

As a PC vs Mac discussion, this argument is pointless...

Compare building your own PC system to something comparable... like, a pre-built PC system...

Or compare iMac's to pre-built PCs... Pre-Built 'all in one's' to be more consistent... The prices don't vary that wildly...

Also need to consider timing... iMac models are updated yearly, so comparing an 11 month old model to the current selection is moot, as next month, the ratio varies wildly... (not all that unlike comparing PC's to Consoles vs their life cycle... Consoles will be the new hotness in a few years : ).

Lastly, comparing budget parts, to high quality parts is a little pointless too... You can buy a 27" monitor from apple for $1k, which is INSANE... unless you notice the same items at newegg (with as high quality) don't differ much in price...

Also, and this is merely a question... There is still a lot of 'mac's are garbage, except for image/video stuff' talk all over the place? I'd like to see proof of this. I know it was true 20 years ago, but from someone that has used both, for image/video stuff, I'm not seeing the difference... Unless you compare applications, which may be available on both anyways...

-Alamar

[Seldirion]

If you just want the Mac for the design, you could wait for DELL's revision of the XPS 15z. This is the current model:

I think it looks good, but looks is a very subjective matter.


If DELL listens to the community, like they use to, the new model will be better in every aspect(compared to the current model), and still way cheaper than a Mac.

Take a look at the DELL XPS 15z here

[lakhesis]

The iMac also includes a built in webcam, mic, and speakers as well as the keyboard and mouse. So unless your custom built includes those then you can't really compare the price. Yes it will most likely still be cheaper to build your own but no where near the park of 80%.

Yeah, the "half the price" crowd really don't take this into account. If you want to construct a hardware-identical PC system, the mac systems actually start to look fairly competitive on price.

On the other hand, if you don't want top end monitors, webcams, keyboards, quality branded dvd burners, built in firewire, built in wifi, etc etc that's the point at which the custom built PC options start getting substantially cheaper. It's the freedom of choice from a custom build, not exceptionally cheaper parts.

Which is really an argument in favour of PCs if you're operating-system-agnostic & looking for a machine for a specialised purpose (gaming & only gaming).

[hayharut]

I've just restored and sold a '73 vw bus and made some money, so now i can afford to get a decent computer. I'm going to be playing WoW and SWTOR. I'm wondering if i should get a iMac(21.5 inch one for 1,199) or could i build a computer from newegg thats better for the same price?

seems to me like the answer is in your question. also with a newegg build for that price... that would be a beast in comparison

[bleakeh]

Did yours include a 27", widescreen, backlit display?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16824001523 is the only one newegg has.

The iMac also includes a built in webcam, mic, and speakers as well as the keyboard and mouse. So unless your custom built includes those then you can't really compare the price. Yes it will most likely still be cheaper to build your own but no where near the park of 80%.

He never said he wanted the 27" display. Since he is going for the cheaper option I say DO NOT GET AN IMAC FOR GAMING. The best graphics card you can get with the 21.5" is the AMD Radeon HD 6770M 512MB GDDR5. This is a notebook card that can barely play SC2 on high, you do not want something so awful holding you back when you are gaming. The iMac is great for people who have no common sense and don't know how to use google, but if you are able to use google I would recommend either a PC or the Mac Pro. In 3 years when you want to upgrade you computer without breaking your wallet it will be a simple touch of a clip and you can put in a new graphics card or RAM, if you have the iMac the graphics card will either be impossible to replace or really difficult.

I could make an easy list for you

iMac
Pros
- Really easy to use works right out of the box
- Pretty UI
- Has some cool features/software for creative types
- Just go to the store to fix it

Cons
- Has a mobile graphics card (that is kinda awful)
- Will not have a large amount of games unless you use bootcamp
- Has a down clocked processor
- Difficult/impossible to upgrade
- Costs more than a standard PC that will work better

PC
Pros
- Very easy to upgrade, tons of guides on the internet that are helpful
- You will have no issues with game comparability
- Fully capable graphics card / CPU

Cons
- Some people get viruses I guess? (I have yet to get one in the last 3 years. I'm going to assume that the people who do get them are downloading files only someone stupid would download like "HARD CORE XXX" which just screams virus to me)
- You may have to google to resolve problems while with an iMac you can just run to the store

Anyway lets look at the specs... With the $1,200 iMac you can get this.

Configuration
2.5GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i5 (Underclocked)
4GB 1333MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x2GB
500GB Serial ATA Drive
AMD Radeon HD 6750M 512MB GDDR5 (This is literally a notebook graphics card)

For 1,400 (Canadian, should be up to $200 less in the US) You can get this beast
4.0GHZ Quad-Core Intel Core i5 (sexy beast, the i7 isn't any better for gaming)
Seagate Barracuda 1TB 7200 Hard drive
Asus P8z68 Motherboard
8GB 1333MHz RAM
GeForce GTX 560 Ti 1GB (Beautiful graphics card, I own it myself)
Coolermaster 700W Power supply
Samsung 23" LCD Monitor

This includes the other stuff like a DVD writer windows and such... If you want you can try and find a free copy of windows 7 either through school or other means. Doing so will bring the total down to around $1,300 Canadian which basically means you could probably get it in the US for $1.1-1.2k.

I forgot it's almost black friday in the US! You should be able to get some cheap parts on newegg or tigerdirect