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Mac Pro vs. iMac


Grasshopper

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I've been really impressed with the design of the iMac and one of these days, my wife and I are going to switch to Macs (she wants a Macbook Pro).I've been comparing specs between the iMac and the Mac Pro (desktop). From what I see, the big differences between the two are the processor (Xeon vs. Core 2) and type of video card. With all other specs close to the same, the Mac Pro is around a grand more expensive than the iMac.So, is the Mac Pro more of a business computer with the Xeon processor?? I'm considering an iMac since it's stylish, compact, and is able to spec'd powerfully in the HD and RAM areas. Are iMacs powerful enough for a power user like me?? How about cooling?? Can I still use Boot Camp and/or the virtual OS program to run XP on an iMac?

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The only thing I'd worry about is the all in one design of the iMac.My first computer, an IBM had the computer and monitor in one. The horizontal went on the monitor so I had no computer! IBM used to use propriotory "screws" (for lack of a better word) to connect the monitor and computer. I went to my electronics store (no not Radio Shack), my local Vo-tech school and contacted two people who worked for IBM to see if I could purchase a tool. No luck.I currently have a freebie, all in one design where the computer it attached behind the monitor and the floppy drive just went out on it. I'm afraid to remove the LCD screen from the computer because most of the parts are plastic. If I break something, there goes a working computer/monitor. We decided to use an external USB floppy drive instead of prying the computer and LCD apart.All in ones sure look great and the small footprint is fantastic but if something goes wrong with the monitor or the computer, it isn't a simple fix. Just something to consider.

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For sure.I prolly wouldn't be considering one except that a Mac Pro is a lot more expensive due to the Xeon processor, et. al. I'm not really in the market (for me) for a laptop, so for a Mac, it's either the iMac or the Pro. Price may the big determining factor, especially since you can still get a powerful rig, even from an all-in-one.I'll do some research on the general reliability of the newest iMacs. There may be some lemons but I find it hard to believe that buying an iMac would be a big risk.

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Guest LilBambi

All the new Macs are Intel Macs though, right? I would imagine that if that is the case, Parallels and VMWare will work on it.I have tried out Q (QEMU) for the Mac for virtualization on my Mac Mini. The Ubuntu preconfigured one is too large of a memory footprint for my Mac Mini's 1GB RAM max availble for the PPC Mac Mini. I would like to try one of the lesser GUIs for Linux in there. And I want to try Windows too. Will see about that later if I can get another copy of Win2K, or no longer need Win2K on one of my other computers. I have one non-OEM version I could use (full version).But Q is abit persnickity. I recently heard about another virtualization/emulation for the PPC Mac, but it's not a free one either, but not too bad on price. I think it was made in Germany. Will have to find my link for it. I put it somewhere and can't find it right now. The name is Guest PC.There's another one called iEmulator that's inexpensive for both PPC and Intel Macs.Several more listed below for Intel and PPC Macs, and virtualizing Macs from all kinds of directions!http://www.macwindows.com/emulator.htmlIf I could afford it, the Mac Pro, but any Mac would be great.I am thoroughly enjoying the much less expensive Mac Mini very much.

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The Mac Pro is the powerhouse. The iMac does not allow for any changes in the configuration. It is sleek, works great, and just works. I have never owned a Mac Pro - just a MacBook Pro. Everything I have read about the Mac Pro is it is really a professional machine - used a lot by folks in the graphic world.

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Julia,That's the impression I got re: the Mac Pro.Fran,I hadn't really even noticed the Mini. I guess it'd be similar to the iMac in lack of configurability, but would be more stylish.Thanks for your input, ladies!

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