Used Mac or new PC?

I love my macs, bout I would not get a G4. I have a g4 powerbook for travel and it is ridiculously slow compared to the newer offerings. It isn't even comparable.

CyberDyneSystems wrote in post #2916390
Gotta agree, used camera sure, used lenses, definitely!
Used computer.. hell no!

I second that! My general recommendation -- whether PC or Mac -- stick with C2D (Core2 Duo). CS2 is a multithreaded application and can make use of 2 cores. With the current CPU prices, there's no reason to go with a single core!

If I may add: Used car - yes! Used computer - nooooo way, José! There are too many things that could go wrong. I built several dozen computers for friends and families in the past and it's a PITA (Pain In The *beep*) to find out what's wrong with a particular machine. From your description, it sounds like you are more of a "user" than a "freak" or "geek" . So get a new rig and enjoy the warranty!

BLHolliday wrote in post #2916430
Ok, CyberDyneSystems, either you have A LOT of free time or you have been a member of this forum since the day it started. I just noticed you have 23,593 posts. Sorry doesnt have anything to do with this thread, but that is just silly rediculous.

I second that, too!

It's really up to you, I would still go with a newer Mac if you can spend the extra $. You wont be disappointed at all.

Capt_KA wrote in post #2917852
I second that! My general recommendation -- whether PC or Mac -- stick with C2D (Core2 Duo). CS2 is a multithreaded application and can make use of 2 cores. With the current CPU prices, there's no reason to go with a single core!

If I may add: Used car - yes! Used computer - nooooo way, José! There are too many things that could go wrong. I built several dozen computers for friends and families in the past and it's a PITA (Pain In The *beep*) to find out what's wrong with a particular machine. From your description, it sounds like you are more of a "user" than a "freak" or "geek" . So get a new rig and enjoy the warranty!


I second that, too!

Capt_KA you just summed up the issues with PC's. Macs can be upgraded easily (Hard-drives etc), but, super video cards are not easily available for a 4-5yr old Mac nowadays. I've added a network card, USB2, hard-drive and a modified PC video card- all working fine the moment installed. I could always buy more ram, but the machine is a bit slow these days. However, my mac is still working fine- how many PC's of this age can you find that are still working without glitches? I have found peace of mind with my Mac- they are worth the extra, they just work.

Two core allows two intensive memory hungry processes to run at the same time, without any loss of speed. I have a program call X Resource Graph which shows me how much processing power is being used by each CPU at any time. I also have it looking at the Stock-market as well, again all at the same time and can be seen in the background of my screensaver -neat.

Phideaux wrote in post #2914137
OR I could look for a used Mac like a G4 on eBay for about £500-£600.

That sounds quite expensive, unless it's one of the later G4 machines with quite a bit of 'add ons'...

tim wrote in post #2916293
The G4 will be horribly slow with modern software, a Core2 duo will be an order of magnitude faster. No way would I get an old mac for image processing. Photoshop will take as much power as you can throw at it, which is especially important if you shoot RAW.

Well... I wouldn't call my G4 (G4 AGP; 1GHz, 1,5Gig) 'horribly' slow. It's not as fast as a G5 or Intel Mac, but it's still quite workable... I don't think an upgrade is a must at this moment.

Then again, a new mac will be faster.

Here is an interesting article: Click

Phideaux wrote in post #2916472
OK. Thank you all for your advice. If Mac users are saying don't go for a used G4 then I think I'll respect that.

Sooooo save up for a couple of months for a new Mac, or build a PC. Hmmmmm. Decisions decisions.

Save for a new Mac, and when CS3 comes out you will see some sweet performance.
You could use your current monitor I'm sure DVI or VGA.
I agere don't get a used G4 or even a used Windows box for that matter.

You have your Windows laptop and with a NEW mac you get best of both (for you) and from there you can really decide which suites you best.

You will NOT regret a Mac.
Incidentally even the iMac 20" or 24" will perform all you need I know some pros who use iMac and take them on location.

Incidentally I'm still running a dual G4 450Mhz! with 1.25 gig of ram and CS2 with 2 users (fast user switching) meaning that 2 desktops are running - still running 6 years later and all OS upgrades since OS 10.0.0 - 10.4.9 as of this week

tim wrote in post #2916293
The G4 will be horribly slow with modern software, a Core2 duo will be an order of magnitude faster. No way would I get an old mac for image processing. Photoshop will take as much power as you can throw at it, which is especially important if you shoot RAW.

I have a 17" Powerbook G4, 1.67GHz, 100GB HD, 1GB RAM, 128MB ATI Radion Mobility and it runs very nicely. Photoshop CS2 and CS3 launches in about 10 seconds. It hasn't slowed down at all since I got it almost 2 years ago. It never crashes and my wireless hasn't had a problem or connection loss yet, it's a perfect machine. Even though I have one processor I can still run multiple applications at the same time including PS CS3.

I have the option of putting 2 GB Ram but I don't need it that much.

Get a Mac they are awesome, the Operating System is so reliable.

Tim you decide how mush memory CS2 or 3 uses don't give it all your memory and It will run faster with other applications open.

My 17" Powerbook G4 screen is calibrated perfectly out of the box. I fyou want to calibrate you can even in expert mode, but Apple does a great job there with ColorSync.

RgB wrote in post #2921625
Photoshop CS2 and CS3 launches in about 10 seconds.[/B]

Why are people hung up on startup time? I don't care how long an app takes to startup, I care how responsive it is, and the throughput of batch jobs.

RgB wrote in post #2921625
Tim you decide how mush memory CS2 or 3 uses don't give it all your memory and It will run faster with other applications open.

Yep you have to leave space for the other apps and the OS to run.

RgB wrote in post #2921625
Get a Mac they are awesome, the Operating System is so reliable.

Agreed, MacOS is good.

The G4 is 2-3 generations of processors old, performance will always be less than current gen processors. Personally i'm quite a high volume photographer, I shoot weddings, I regularly process 300+ photos RAW to JPG. I bet a G4 would take a lot longer than a Core 2 Duo. Mac OS has advantages, but not enough to pick a G4 over a Core2 IMNSHO.

transcend wrote in post #2917840
I love my macs, bout I would not get a G4. I have a g4 powerbook for travel and it is ridiculously slow compared to the newer offerings. It isn't even comparable.

What are the specs?

Tim I am just trying to make a point that a Good G4 like my Powerbook is not horribly slow as you put it. The OP has mentioned he is interested in a G4, perhaps he can't afford a new Core 2 Duo.

There is a big differenced between a G4's with 400MHz and one with 1.67GHz like mine (as it was released along side G5's). Mine would of had a G5 if they could put one of those in there.

Point taken, but the price of a new PC is comparable to the price of the mac system he's looking at. For things like RAW conversion, and anything else, I bet the Core2 would be much much faster

One thing to consider...you already have a PC - yes, it is 6 years old but is it good enough for web surfing? I was in your position a month ago. My PC was inadequate for my CS2 use. I was THIS clos to getting a new MAC. I like MAC user interface and the less worrying about viruses, spyware, trojans and drivers.

BUT when I built the rig that I use for Photoshop I constructed a PC because I could buy so much more at much less cost. You get much more RAM, faster processor and more storage in the PC world for the money. But you get the possibility of bigger headaches. Sure you can fret about viruses, adware and spyware. But I use this new rig solely for CS2 work. I don't browse the net with it and have NO fear of it getting infected with spyware, viruses.

So, if you can dedicate one machine to Photoshop - get a PC and keep the old one for web surfing. Most of the hassles of a PC disappear if you keep it off of the internet. If you can only have one machine AND you are concerned about viruses, spyware and not proficient at setting up AV, firewalls and spyware programs - then buy a MAC, it will be money (lots of it) well spent. You don't need an expensive rig to surf the net - keep the old one and buy a PC dedicated to digital image processing - it should never be infected with spyware, trojans or viruses.

Sincere question to MAC owners.....Can you overclock a MAC? I know that later I can do a few minor OC tweaks to my PC and squeeze out even more free performance.

RgB wrote in post #2922314
What are the specs?

It's a 1.67 with 2 gb of ram picked up about a week before the last g4 screen update. It is horribly slow in comparison to my brother's macbook pro or my macpro or even my older 3ghz XP desktop. It is painful processing in c1, and aperture barely runs. Basically, it would be a complete waste of $ as he already has a slow machine.

transcend wrote in post #2928634
It's a 1.67 with 2 gb of ram picked up about a week before the last g4 screen update. It is horribly slow in comparison to my brother's macbook pro or my macpro or even my older 3ghz XP desktop. It is painful processing in c1, and aperture barely runs. Basically, it would be a complete waste of $ as he already has a slow machine.

I agree Aperture was way to slow but SC2 is fine and I had the option of updating but didn't see the need as CS2 runs very nicely. Give CS2 less RAM and it will use the PPC and it will be faster. I have half your ram and I find it fine though I do have to reboot to save memory if I have had the machine running for a few days without rebooting.

Each to their own.