iMac G5 2.0 and PowerMac G5 Dual 2.0 comparison

Anyone lucky enough to play with both?

[solly]

I was just wondering if anyone out there has had a chance to do some real world testing of the new iMac G5 2.0 GHz and the PowerMac G5 Dual 2.0 GHz.

My monitor died today but I have been thinking about getting a new Mac anyway. I was thinking of getting a 20" Cinema display and a new PowerMac G5 Dual 2.0. But the $2,800 price tag has got me to thinking iMac G5 2.0 for $1,800. Basically, I would pay an extra grand for a few PCI slots (which I probably won't use), FireWire 800, a faster graphics card, and another 2.0 GHz processor, and not get the larger hard drive, Bluetooth wireless, a modem, and some software.

I know the PowerMac will be faster, but golly...$1,000 faster? I'd say the most intensive apps I run are MySQL, Safari, QuickTime, VLC, FileMaker and iTunes.

I am curious if the difference is "night and day" or just "dusk and night." Thanks for your opinions!

[techrealm]

I have an old school 2.0 dual powermac with 2gigs ram and many options that I use for video and audio editing with no real issues. But if you weren't doing editing like that I would say that the IMac should be fine just make sure you get what you want out of the box to avoid any upgrade issues.

I have only lightly played with the new imacs but they appear to be fine for your needs as i run similiar apps on a g4 powerbook with 1.2 gigs of ram that works fast enough for most every thing except video editing long sequences.

But like any good consultant I will add my disclaimer, its hard to say for sure but I'd lean to "dusk and nite" for running simple services. If you are using it to host sites that are accessed from the outside by the public then get what the pocket book can afford for upgrades - its a long term purchase so you should look ahead at what you see your needs growing too.

And congrats on the upgrade either way!

[travelin cat]

I would go for the iMacs.... we had the same dilemma and bought new G5 20" iMacs...

It sounds like your not doing hi end video/audio nor hi rez graphics, save the $$ you will not be dissapointed, we love our new iMacs they are fast enough for eveything.

[solly]

Thank you for the opinions. I agreed with all of you and went with the iMac. It didn't help any that the Apple Store did not have any Dual 2.0 on the floor to play with...

Well, off to reinstall/reconfigure/play!

[travelin cat]

Solly, congrats!

Not sure what you had previously but I think you will find your new iMac to be incredibly fast... we upgraded from g3's and g4's and the performance increases were major....

marc

[whoisgregg]

If you were running Filemaker Server 7 you would see benefits from a dual 2.0 ghz over an iMac, but Filemaker client will run just fine on the iMac.

You're going to love any new G5 computer, of course. :)

[solly]

I was running a Dual 450MHz G4. When I bought it, there were few apps that could take advantage of the Dual processors, but I knew when OS X came out it would be faster than a single. And, it served me well. It was plenty snappy for a computer that was 5 years old.

But, my new iMac is great and much faster. I figure I will keep it until the Intel Macs come out and then go from there. Apple is talking a few years out before the professional line comes out with the Intel processors so I figure I can buy a new computer in another 4-5 years...