Mac vs Dell questions

[Ldema3333]

Hello,
I am getting a new desktop, I am a photographer therefore I do a lot of editing in Photoshop, Canon Raw and Bridge. I know I can get more bank for my buck with Dell but all of my photog friends say I should go with Mac. I am looking at :
2.7Ghz Quad-Core i5
8GB 1333Mhz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x4GB
1TB ATA drive
AMD Radeon HD 6770M 512MB GDDRS

After speaking with an Apple guy yesterday he said that I would be fine with the 4 GB and if it were him he would stick with 4 instead of 8. What do yall think about that ?

 

[Raiddinn]

I despise Macs, BUT I will at least admit that graphics design people tend to love the things and it is probably for a good reason.

That being said, I don't know why the apple guy would tell you to take 4 GB RAM instead of 8 GB. What would it save like $5 out of $45?

RAM is so cheap it doesn't make sense to get less than 8GBs IF you have a 64 bit OS AND IF you aren't on an extreme budget.

 

[rwpritchett]

Ah, but you forget it's apple we're talking about here. If you go to the online apple store and look at the iMac the OP is considering you'll find they want $200 to up the RAM from 4GB to 8GB.

I suggest if you do go for the Mac, get 4GB and upgrade it to 8GB yourself for about $40 from newegg. Don't go through apple.

That said, the iMac does come with a very good high resolution display that is ideal for photo work. You can find an equivalent display for a Windows PC but you'll have to do your homework. A decent 2560 x 1440 27" equivalent monitor will run about $900-1000. Unless you already have a monitor to use?

I think it mostly comes down to software. Try out some of the Mac software and see if you like it better than the Windows based software you're used to. You could also run your Windows photo software on the mac using parallels or bootcamp.

 

[Raiddinn]

I didn't mean to imply that paying $200 for +4GB was an option on the table.

What I meant was the difference between a normal set of 4GB and 8GB should be $10 maybe $20 at the most. Any more than that and they are just getting ripped off.

Regardless, 64 bit OSs like to have 8 GBs in 2012. The page file is the devil, you want to stay out of it if possible. Thrashing is your enemy and you combat it by +RAM.

 

[Outlander_04]

Mac hardware is the same as pc hardware .

The OS is nice , but not magic

the applications are the same

the only reason to run a Mac is if you like paying more for less

 

[phyco126]

Mac = status symbol and looks. I have literally seen girls flock to guys with apple products. It boggles my mind, really. Sure it looks nice, but dell is more bang for buck.

Same software, same (or better for the Dell) hardware, same use. Only thing is different is the OS.

8 GB is better than 4 GB; don't let anyone tell you differently. I can max out 4 GB of RAM when I do photo-editing (though I have to disclaim I'm also running several other software in the background while doing other stuff while waiting for Photoshop to finish its thing).

However, you strongly recommend buying a IPS monitor for photo editing. If you are on a budget, Dell's 24 inch 2412M is a wonderful purchase for the price. Not as great as the more expensive panels, but it gets the freaking job done.

 

[Raiddinn]

Girls flock to guys with Apple products for the same reason they flock to doctors, because those people have tons of money to waste.

If you are a female and want to trade your resources for a man's resources, you can often get a better deal if the man has more resources than if he has less.

It isn't always true, but a rule of thumb commonly used is the guys driving around in a Rolls Royce probably have more resources than those driving a Kia.

Women are hard wired to stay away from "bang for your buck" people. Anyone who needs to get the best bang for their buck obviously just doesn't have enough resources in general as another rule of thumb.

This is all the 2012 version of basic stuff hard wired into people's DNA over millions of years.

 

[phyco126]

So true, but still just as mind boggling for me as anything.

 

[Outlander_04]

I have been both wealthy , and really quite poor over the last 30 years .

It never made any difference to how often I was able to attract women .

 

[Raiddinn]

Outlander_04 just refuted the entire scientific field of Behavioral Economics. Many other related fields as well (heuristics, decision theory, prospect theory, etc).

 

[Outlander_04]

Outlander_04 just refuted the entire scientific field of Behavioral Economics. Many other related fields as well (heuristics, decision theory, prospect theory, etc).

Actually I just pointed out I am a guy women think is attractive , even without considering my financial well being

But , hey, Im sure what you are saying is true if you are an ugly weedy geek with no personality .

 

[Raiddinn]

You are good at putting down women too.

Stellar thing to pair with good looks when you want all women to hate your gender.

 

[Outlander_04]

You mean acknowledging there are biological as well as social reasons women find men attractive is putting women down?

I think you need to start queuing for an iPhone 5 right NOW