Should I stay or should I Go!

Undecided · #1 August 30th, 2005, 01:16 PM

hello... first time user here! Had some questions concerning whether or not to purchase a New G5 Imac 20" or If I should wait to see if Mac gets their act together and reconfigures some of the issues I've been reading about...ie power supply issues , monitor mutations, freezing, loud fans.. etc.

I found something from University Information Services, stating that the machines built between sept 04 - june 05 are the bad apples of the bunch, even specifying serial numbers where the first 5 digits fall into a following range.. interesting artical. [url=http://uis.georgetown.edu/content.html?ID=5782]
Does anyone have some info that can help me make the right decision, on whether to invest into a Imac g5 or not. My primary use for the computer would be photo based. Using apps such as Adobe Photo , illustrator.. dreamweaver etc etc .

Also.. As for the video card/processor Nvidia GForce 5200 that comes with the unit is that the 256 or 128mb... nothing specifies.
Are there any photographers that have this Machine and find the resolution too low for professional use?

Thanks a whole lot... I appreciate all the info you can provide.. I often feel I'm only told from a dealer what I want to hear, not necessarily what I need to hear.

Regards.
Damian.

**fryke** · #2 August 30th, 2005, 01:46 PM

If _I_ go to www.apple.com/imac, the page tells me it's an ATi 9600 with 128 MB VRAM.

My advice: Go to a store that _has_ such a machine. Try it out. And if you decide to buy, let them unpack the one you're buying and let you test the display. So you can make sure that your model is not a Monday model with bad lighting, dead pixels etc. I always do that with my PowerBooks - unless I mail order.

jh2112 · #3 August 30th, 2005, 02:51 PM

I was in the same situation. Fed up with Windows (too much like hard work, not to mention viruses) I looked at several mac websites and was almost put off by the amount of; this is broken, that doesn't work, zap the pram this, trash the plist that et al.....
But I thought on and realised that my decision to buy a pc was never influenced by troubleshooting websites, because I knew what to expect. I knew Windows, I knew how to fix a Windows pc of any faults. Fixing it was no problem at all, therefore the hardware reliability was no issue.

The mac being a new (and slightly scary!) operating system to me, left me cautious and worried that I had bought an expensive laptop that'll go wrong if I turn it on.
I bit the bullet and paid out my hard earned and within 2 days I had decided not go back to Windows.
As long as Apple make computers (actually it's more about Mac OSX, for me!) I'll use them. (I won't go back and you can't make me!)

As for photos:
Photoshop opens and runs much, much quicker on my mac than on my far higher specced pc.

Have some confidence and splurge on a mac. I won't go back to Windows, and I doubt you will either!

If you have any problems, you know where to ask!

Undecided · #4 August 30th, 2005, 02:53 PM

Fryke,
Thanks for your help. Perhaps the older system had the Nvidia 5200, and or the salesman mistakenly misinformed me. I find this surprising that on PC Mag.com it is advertised with having the Nvidia card and not the Ati 9600. Well at a closer look this PC web page was reviewed last year.... Question Answered! http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,1648796,00.asp

Thanks for the advice..... I'll be sure to check the actual unit and its serial numbers before taking it home..

Undecided · #5 August 30th, 2005, 03:04 PM

jh2112,
Thanks for your imput. I really appreciate the responces to this seemingly difficutly decision... I've used Mac in the past.. years ago, and I also know alot has changed as for the OS. I'm nervous about that obviously, however more so with the issues I have been reading about with the machines burning up, and freezing..... well... that makes no sense.... however that is what I'm told about the power supply issue with the G5imac. Concerning, big fear of buying into a product with a history of problems. If these issues have been resolved I'm all for it!!! honestly I want to buy one I think they are great.. I'd just kick myself if I bought something that didn't work, even after being warned..

jh2112 · #6 August 30th, 2005, 03:17 PM

My brother-in-law bought an imac g5 in April. He has no problems with his, although he does occasionally find the fans a little off putting. He readily admits that his (very old! 6 years!) pc was a lot louder, but he is so used to the quiet now that the fans seem noisy!

Personally I think that you pay your monies and you take your chances.

You may be very unlucky and have a mac that has hardware issues aplenty.
On the other hand, your experience could be as good as mine and you'll have very few problems switching.

smithy · #7 August 31st, 2005, 01:39 AM

Just get a mac. You will not regret it 100%.

sirstaunch · #8 August 31st, 2005, 04:04 AM

If you are really concerned there is Apple extended warranty

In which I don't have on my eMac that I have the complete confidence in anyhow...

As for burning Macs, hmmm, I was at a yard full of PC's once. I played spot the Mac and I lost, first time I enjoyed losing

A friends Hewitt Packard XP died the other day, only 3 years old (it was always slow too). He's extended Warranty at the store replaced it with a new machine which was some unknown brand and not a Hewitt Packard replacement. Which basically says stores could pass on anything to you.

Apple don't do that. They give you what you are paying for and take care of you too. If you iMac happens to "burn", they'll replace it with an iMac. Have faith in Apple products, I still have a Mac from the 80's and runs better then what my friends 3 year old Hewitt Packard ever did

And you'll love OSX better then then XP too