Need help choosing options for 24" iMac

<p >Hi Gang, Still nervous about making the switch from PC but ready to make the leap. I am ready to buy the 24" iMac and wanted advice on suitable options for me while trying to keep the price down if possible. Yeah right:) I am a freelance photographer. Got a pair od D300's. No Gaming and probably no video. Will be updating to CS4 and probably Lightroom although I see Aperture 2 talked about a lot. I mainly shoot for newspapers, magazines, family portraits, table top, art, and sporting events/parties averaging 300-500 photos (why I am looking at Lightroom). The iMac is kind of pricy for me but willing to sacrifice for a trouble free machine if it is as many claim. Looking at what I will be using the 24" for will these options be enough for me?<br>

iMac, 24-inch, 2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo <br />2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo <br />2GB 800MHz DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB <br />500GB Serial ATA Drive <br />ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO w/256MB GDDR3 <br />Apple wireless Mighty Mouse <br />Apple Wireless Keyboard (English) + User's Guide <br />iWork '09 preinstalled <br />Accessory kit <br /><br />I was figuring I could add memory later if needed?</p>

<p >Will the ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO w/256MB GDDR3 be adequate or will the NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GS w/512MB GDDR3 make a huge difference for what I will be working with? </p>

<p >Any other suggestions are appreciated. Thanks in advance, John <br /></p>

<p> </p>

 

<p>I would go with the basic 24imac, but will add asap all the ram possible, meaning 4gig.</p>

<p>Its a good idea of getting a bigger drive, but remember; people who normally get a bigger drive tend not to do backup often because they have lots of place! i would suggest you keep the 320interbal hd and get a second external one of 500gig to backup all your new system and file (keeping a copy on your ointernal as well) until you can get enough money to go get another 500gig to backup the first drive : )</p>

<p>I would also save on wireless keyboard and mouse (if you are close to your money) and put this 50$ on a calibration device such as a eye1 pro or spider3 pro (i any case you really need one as soon as you put your imac out of the box.)</p>

<p>I dont see the point of Iwork, i would buy Office 2008 education instead, since everybody have word / excel / powerpoint on this planet.</p>

<p>Oh, and stay with the basic video card, no need to upgrade it, it work perfectly with all you got.</p>

<p>And finally i would go with Photoshop CS4 and Ligthroom, or Ligthroom and get a wacom bamboo tablet that come with Element; you save some serious money doing so (photoshop is 800$, a bamboo tablet is 120$..you just save 680$, perfect to put on memory / spider3 pro / external hd) And in need later this years IF you feel the need to upgrade to Photoshop CS4, well you had time to put money aside.</p>

 

<p>Hi John-don't sweat making the switch; I did it a year ago and have never looked back. I have a two part suggestion as follows; (1) consider 4GB of memory now but if not then (2) see if you can get a single 2GB of RAM rather than 2-1GB's so that if/when you want to go to 4GB later, you'll only need to get a single 2GB's rather than having to dump your 2X1GB's and having to get 2x2GB's.<br /> I bought my iMac with only 2GB and have the 2x1 and wish in retrospect that I had asked for a single 2GB, I imagine that you can request this. Enjoy your new Mac! regards, cb :-)</p>

<p>Apple wont do it..that the point of updagring; someones have to make money out of it : )</p>

<p>it would be nice do.</p>

<p>Hi Patrick-well, that's unfortunate; I would have expected better from Apple. cb</p>

<p>Upgrading the base hard disk to 500 GB for an extra $50 is a great idea. I would consider bumping that up if you have the $. Also budget for an external FireWire 800 drive; from OWC. Maxing the RAM to 4 GB is essential; also available from OWC at a good price.</p>

<p>I'd pass on the wireless keyboard on mouse personally. iWork 09 is an outstanding productivity choice! Have been using iWork for years - Keynote is great for putting together <a href="http://www.citysnaps.net/blog/?page_id=11">photo essays</a>. And nice being untied from microsoft.</p>

<p>Finally, if you can wait a month, I would. Expect the whole iMac line to be freshened by then with new CPUs and probably a higher performance stock video card.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>"Hi Patrick-well, that's unfortunate; I would have expected better from Apple. cb"</p>

<p>Better? Hold on and think about that for a minute. If you order 2 GB of RAM, it does not matter a whit to you how the RAM is configured, it's still 2 GB. However, 2GB modules are more expensive than 2-1 GB modules, which would cost Apple more money. Why would Apple throw money away? Besides, nobody with any savvy buys any more RAM from Apple than is necessary. Since Apple is so expensive for RAM, they just buy the minimum from Apple, then purchase additional memory from third party sources. </p>

<p>Patrick has nailed the best configuration for the 24" iMac for still image processing, you will be best served with 4 GBs of RAM. The standard video card is fine unless you are doing video and/or gaming. I heartily agree with patrick about the wireless keyboards and wireless mouse, they are not that great, and I would not spend any extra money for them. <br>

 

 

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<p>Crucial is another good choice for the memory - I'd definitely get the minimum from Apple and upgrade with 3rd party stuff ASAP.</p>

<p>iWork is good unless you need more than a basic adding machine in the spreadsheet program. I quickly found that while Pages is a good Word replacement, Numbers comes nowhere near Excel, so I ended up with both. Word for Mac is not that much more than iWork, so you might just go straight there, depending on your needs.</p>

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<p>iWork is good unless you need more than a basic adding machine in the spreadsheet program</p>

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<p>Curious, how much time have you had with Numbers '09? Sure, it's certainly not Excel, but most here are not doing extensive numerical/financial analysis.</p>

<p>i think the point is, Iwork is excellent if you dont need to share document with the rest of the world. Maybe it open word document? maybe it could save word document? maybe it keep all the foramating? (i know keyword could be export as powerpoint, but lose all is cool transition and mask).</p>

<p>So why bother and dont simply get Office 2008 for 60$ more and be full compatible with your old document and future one?</p>

<p>If you dont care, then i think iwork its a excellent choice. Wont you agree on that Brad?</p>

<p>No, still disagree. </p>

<p>Dumping Office 3 years ago was one of the best decisions I made. And that was from using Office for years. Speaking from direct personal experience, no "maybes" necessary...</p>

<p>Patrick,</p>

<p>I use iWork extensively. Pages will open Word documents, no problem at all. It will also export to PDF, Word, or HTML. I use it all the time, along with Numbers and Keynote, instead of the Microsoft Office suite. The only thing to be wary of is that Microsoft has added a new file format to Word (.DOCX i think) which can break import compatibility ... but I'm still on '08, I haven't obtained '09 yet. Just be sure when someone sends you a Word file that it is .DOC format. </p>

<p>I use Pages to do most of what I'd otherwise want Photoshop, InDesign and Acrobat CS4 to do in terms of generating full quality PDF files for transportable, scalable printing of annotated photographs. It does an excellent job, for my specific needs, and iWork is far less expensive.</p>

<p>For the OP: I'd order an iMac 24" configured pretty much as you specified. I would consider the larger internal drive options ... 750G ... as it is difficult to change the internal drive. Add memory after the fact to max it out at 4G. Also buy a similar size FW800 external drive for backups and an Xrite i1 Display colorimeter to calibrate and profile the screen, for photographic work. Add your favorite image processing application (mine is Lightroom 2) and whatever printer you prefer (Epson R3800 for me) and you have a very complete and competent system for doing photography and everything else most people need. </p>

<p>Godfrey</p>

<p>I've owned (and still own) a string of Macs, and I manage a classroom lab with 31 iMacs at the college where I teach.</p>

<p>The 24" iMac is a great photoshop machine. I use one at home, where I attach a secondary small monitor to hold menus and other programs in order to keep the full main screen available for image editing. As to what sort of setup to get...</p>

<p>For almost everyone, the middle processor speed is fine. Apple often offers three, and the difference between the middle and fastest in actual performance is trivial and not worth the extra cost.</p>

<p>It is very difficult to upgrade the internal hard drive of the new iMacs, so get the largest drive you'll need during the lifetime of the machine. For photographers, this generally means the largest available. If you do much serious photography work and you archive your RAW originals and full PS photos - and you should - you'll likely fill a 500GB drive in a flash! I'd get 1 TB. You can attach additional external drives to extend storage, but it is better to put this off if you can. (You'll likely also need additional external drives for backup.)</p>

<p>Regarding external backup drives... 1 TB external USB (and sometimes firewire) drives are now available for around $100 if you watch for sales. Get one right away and at least set up Time Machine (the built in back application) to do automatic backups to this external drive. More secure and diversified backup strategies are well worth it, but I won't get into that here.</p>

<p>For Photoshop and other processor intensive applications, put the maximum amount of RAM into the machine. It was 4GB when I got mine a year ago, and I think it is still 4GB. It used to be that it was always a lot cheaper to buy Macs with the minimum available RAM and then install third party upgrades yourself, but I'm not so sure that is now the case - check both Apple's cost for installing 4GB and the cost of buying 4GB from third parties and doing your own install.</p>

<p>(This changes the equation a bit regarding the question of trying to get one 2GB memory card, which you cannot do anyway. The question would be whether or not it is worth getting the 2GB of built-in RAM, removing it and replacing with third party 4GB, and then trying to sell the original RAM. I suspect it makes more sense to just get the 4GB from Apple with the machine these days. Although I've always "gamed" Apple's memory prices in the past, I generally do not any more.)</p>

<p>I would only get the wireless keyboard if you have a functional reason for doing so. Frankly, unless having no wires in incredibly important to you, the bother of having to deal with occasional battery issues doesn't seem worth it to me - same for wireless mice. YMMV. (I do have a wireless mouse for other purposes.)</p>

<p>The "iWork question" is an interesting one, and I don't think there is one universal right answer. It is true that MS Office is the most used set of apps like those in iWork, and if easy compatibility is important to you - and especially if you are eligible for any of the discounted prices on Office - you might want to go that route. On the other hand, the iWork package is very capable and unless you _need_ Office it is quite sufficient. But that leads to the thought that free apps like Google Docs may also be able to do what you need.</p>

<p>I don't believe you <em>can</em> upgrade the video card - that is just what it comes with. It is fine for Photoshop.</p>

<p>Photoshop (and maybe Lightroom) are well worth the cost. It always amazes me that people will resist the cost of Photoshop (their <em>darkroom</em> , for God's sake!) while spending many times that cost on a lens or two. In your photographic world, Photoshop is a tool that is at least as critical to your work as your camera. (Do look for education discounts if you can get one.) If cost is an issue, forego Lightroom at first since most people can get by quite nicely with Bridge/ACR included with PS.</p>

<p>Dan</p>

<p>As a Mac owner, I can say don't worry too much about switching to Mac. As with anything new, there is a learning curve. But once you get used to a Mac, you're unlikely to go back to Windows. Now that being said, you may want to hold off on buying a Mac for a month or so. Why? Well, there's lots of rumors that Apple will be upgrading the new iMacs using 4-core processors. Yes, the current iMacs are more than up to the task for almost any photographic and Photoshop work right now. But keep in mind that Macs tend to last longer than your average PC. So in four or five years, that 2-core iMac with with 4Gb maximum RAM might seem a little weak when using that latest version of Photoshop processing photos coming out of cameras that could be using sensors in excess of 20 to 25 megapixels. 4-core processors, combined with the expected release of Snow Leopard (which is expected to make better use of multi-core processors) would likely be enough computing horsepower to tackle whatever photographic work you throw at it for years. Also, it's quite possible that next upgrade of iMac will accomondate more than 4Gb of RAM. Again, 4Gb is quite enough for now, but in about 4 years, that could seem small. Finally, with Apple's track record of offering upgraded models at the same price as the previous model, all you lose by waiting is time.</p>

<p>Thanks Godfrey, appreciate the details..i might get it for my office! At home unfortunatly i have to keep Office 2008 (docx) because my grlfriend on PC at work and she need to open / add / fix / many of her document in word and excel, plus she doing major excel document...no just our regular excel sheet thing.</p>

<p>I use keynote on another version i had, so it igth be a good thing to update everything on this new year : )</p>

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<p>Finally, if you can wait a month, I would. Expect the whole iMac line to be freshened by then with new CPUs and probably a higher performance stock video card.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Ditto.</p>

<p>Patrick, both you and your gf should try out "Google Documents" and share that way. You'll both have to make a gmail account. I could go on for hours how wonderful gmail alone is. But with it, comes google documents. It's still a little "beta" but there is nothing like having your word/excel files stored online. No need for back up, no need for carrying around devices so one can work on them at different terminals, no need to worry about theft and private files floating around. When you both have a gmail account, you share as collaborators and both have access to it and work on it in "the clouds". Check it out. I as well try to not use MS products as best as possible. As Unix, it cares not what platform is using it. Any given day I am using it one terminal with Win XP/Word, then later at a different terminal with Ubuntu/Open Office. When I travel around the world, I've yet to use a computer that isn't online or find a wifi, I log on and there they are.</p>

<p>Carl- I think that you may have understood me; I didn't suggest that getting 1x2 GB memory would be the same price as 2x1 GB memory, merely that it might be a better idea. If one intends to stick with Apple memory (another subject entirely), it would be more economical in the long run to get a single 2GB to start-even if it cost a little more than 2x1..cb</p>

<p>I made the switch about a year ago and have been very happy. IMHO, one of the nicest features of the Apple OS is Time Machine. I bought a 1TB external Firewire drive, plugged it in, and I haven't had to worry about backups since then. I would definitely recommend getting the largest internal HD you can afford and maxing out the RAM at 4GB, either from Apple or from a third party vendor to save some dollars. I elected to use a wired keyboard and mouse just so I don't have to worry about a battery failing just when I need it most. The USB port on the keyboard is very convenient for downloading photos from my cameras.</p>

<p>Thanks Garrison, is not that i really care about word personally..i mainly use photoshop , indesign and transmit : )</p>

<p>My girlfriend need to acces is companie database, SAP and stuff like that i dont really understand!? but i know that her companie is across canda and they all use some server and the same old software not updated to do the task. But i will have a look just because im curious : )</p>

<p>John-you're right; Time Machine is terrific! I got a wireless keyboard/mouse when I bought the computer but I found the mouse used a lot of juice and I was constantly recharging batteries (the keyboard's consumption, on the other hand, was minimal) so I switched back to wired keyboard and mouse. cb</p>

<p> </p>

<p><em> ... got a wireless keyboard/mouse when I bought the computer but I<br /> found the mouse used a lot of juice and I was constantly<br /> recharging batteries (the keybard's consumption, on the other<br /> hand, was minimal). ... </em><br /> <br /> <br /> I use the wireless keyboard and mouse as I prefer the lack of wire clutter on my desk ... it's cluttered enough anyway! After testing high-energy Alkalines, disposable Lithiums and 2400mah NiMH batteries, I found they all provided about the same amount of time per charge. Now I just keep a complete set of spares ready for both keyboard and mouse. As soon as the signal comes up that something is getting low, I charge up the spares again. When the keyboard or mouse stop working, I swap in the spare set and recharge the exhausted ones. <br /> <br /> I haven't done any careful analysis of the time per cycle, but the mouse definitely pulls them down faster than the keyboard. I think it runs about every three weeks on a charge for the mouse and about every five weeks for the keyboard. That's little enough annoyance for me. <br /> <br /> And yes, definitely: Time Machine is a big win! <br /><br /> Godfrey</p>

<p>Charles, you are missing the point. Apple DOES NOT offer a single 2GB RAM module for the iMac, and I explained why. What may, or may not, be a "better idea' to anyone else, has no bearing on what Apple offers. You cannot order an iMac with a single 2GB RAM module, so it's a waste of time talking about it. </p>

<p>Carl-that being the case, how does one put 4GB of RAM in; I always thought it was by having 2x2 GB or am I wrong? Not being a wise guy here, just trying to see what's what. cb</p>

<p>Charles you are right about getting 2 x 2 gig for the Imac.</p>

<p>What Carl said is you cant order a Imac with a single 2gig module, it 2 x 1gig, or 2 x 2gig.</p>

<p>Patrick-Apple is offering a 30 day free trial of iWork 09; here's a link to it. cb<br>

http://www.apple.com/ca/iwork/</p>