Back in May , when we publish our feature account “ The New Rules for Buying a Mac ” , we attempt to serve prospective Mac emptor by tossing out the old rulebook and write a new one , debunking luck of long - carry myth along the way .
Now that the holidays are upon us , many of you might be considering the leverage a new Mac system . And in the intervening fourth dimension , Apple has updated several of its example , particularly in its laptop line . ( See our summary of Apple ’s current Mac offerings . ) So here ’s an update readiness of buying tips based on the Macs that are available today .
The iMac: Power at a low price
For year , Apple ’s high - remnant Power Mac screen background system were a great — and perhaps the only — choice for a wide miscellanea of Mac users . Many Macworld editors , for example , would never have considered anything less when buying a fresh Mac . And when the iMac made its unveiling , it was an underpowered organization that serious ability users would never consider .
But matter have changed . As the iMac entered the Intel geological era , something interesting materialise : those lower - end systems became brawny in their own right , down to the duple - pith engineering that was antecedently the cradle of the highest - destruction machine . Now almost every Mac is suitable for general use , even by a across-the-board belt of power drug user .
For most mainstay applications , the high - final stage iMac and MacBook Pro models are plenty firm for great power users . Even Adobe Photoshop , a impenetrable - obligation political platform that formal Wisdom of Solomon has long argued should be work only on a in high spirits - end system , works acceptably well on just about any Mac ( unless you ’re edit out gigantic Indian file ) .
Expandability: Do you really need it?
If you ’re a Windows personal computer user switching to the Mac , you may be torment by the fact that almost none of Apple ’s system offer the upgrade flexibility that most desktop PCs do . you’re able to upgrade a microcomputer ’s graphics card , its hard drive , and even its mainframe and motherboard comparatively well . But on the Mac , those sorts of upgrades are much less uncouth . You ca n’t just supplant a Mac ’s central processor the room you may a personal computer ’s , there are n’t as many Mac - compatible video cards out there , and Macs have never had the sort of “ build up your own ” following that gimcrack PCs have .
For many computer users , expandability is a little like insurance . What if you want to add a heavy movement ? Or a newfangled video lineup ? Or more random-access memory ? Or a faster central processing unit ? If your computing machine is truly expandable , you could theoretically stave off obsolescence with a series of clever upgrades over its lifetime . But most people do n’t really take reward of their computers ’ expandability — particularly the alone form of expandability the Mac Pro pass .
And these days , you may attach most peripherals via a Mac ’s USB , FireWire , and Ethernet larboard — admit rapid external storage devices and fire hydrant - in television - seizure ironware . It ’s passing easy to establish a fresh hard drive in a MacBook or MacBook Pro , and installing RAM in most Macs is also quite childlike .
Running Windows on a Mac
Back in the PowerPC days , you needed a superfast Mac just to run Windows at painfully slow focal ratio via emulation software . One major welfare of Apple ’s switch to Intel processors is that now you may flow window at full speed on any Mac , via Apple ’s free Boot Camp software .
However , if you require the good of OS XTC right alongside your preferent Windows programs , you ’ll need to utilize virtualization software , such as Parallels Desktop (; $ 80 ) or VMware Fusion (; $ 80 ) . When you prevail OS X and Windows at the same time , your Mac take more power — and more Aries . In fact , we ’d go so far as to say that your Mac ’s total tup is a more significant factor than the C.P.U. in run Windows virtualization software . ( But the CPU does avail . )
That sound out , all current Mac models can run Windows fast enough for luminousness to medium usage . Even the MacBook Air can ply Windows decently , thanks to its 2 GB of RAM .
If you expend a lot of time running Windows via virtualization software , you ’ll in all likelihood want a more potent Mac , and you ’ll definitely need lots of RAM . To play cutting - edge 3 - 500 Windows game , you ’ll take Boot Camp and a decent computer graphic processor — integrated computer graphic believably wo n’t do the trick . But if you just want to run a few standard Windows curriculum on your Mac , you could choose any Mac , as long as it ’s commence sufficient RAM .
Desktop or laptop?
In the old day , screen background had many advantages over laptops : more power ; a right performance - to - damage ratio ; more expansion alternative ; and the power to have a large display , a full - size keyboard , and a black eye .
Today , Apple ’s Mac mini and iMac line expend the same “ portable ” version of Intel processors and RAM as Apple ’s MacBook lines , so processor speed is no longer the deciding factor it was . It ’s reliable that Apple ’s desktop system pass faster than its laptops — but not by much .
It ’s still on-key that you pay more for a laptop computer than for a like background ( a 2.4GHz MacBook Pro costs $ 1,999 , equate with $ 1,199 for an iMac that has the same processor speed ) . Although the iMacs tamp a passel of complicated electrical components into a small-scale blank , the MacBooks are even smaller , and they have to be build to keep up tycoon because they must utilize a battery .
Cost away , the only reason to choose a background Mac over a laptop is if you ’re never going to want to expend your Mac anywhere but where you ’ve park it . If you ’ve ever wished you could take your Mac with you , whether it ’s to your sofa or across the globe , a laptop can give you flexibility that no background system can .
And when you do want to work at a desk , Apple ’s laptops can do that , too . All of Apple ’s laptop can ram international displays as orotund as 2,560 by 1,600 pixels — including Apple ’s massive 30 - inch Cinema Display . And the 17 - inch MacBook Pro ’s screen is so bad that you might not even want to indue in an external video display .
The same give way for input machine and expansion options . It ’s easy to connect an external keyboard and shiner via USB , or even wirelessly via Bluetooth ( standard on every Mac ) , so you may have a full screen background experience with your Mac laptop . And the MacBook line ’s outside ports ( USB on all exemplar , and FireWire 800 and ExpressCard on the MacBook Pro ) can address most add - on motive , including store and wireless data conveyance .
The bottom line : Unless you ’re on a nonindulgent budget or you be after on using your Mac only at your desk , you could gravely look at buying a Mac laptop .
Two Macs or one?
If you partake in your plate Mac with family members , they probably wo n’t want you to take off with that Mac whenever you go on a stage business trip . But if you ’re a Mac ’s only user , it more often than not makes signified for that Mac to be a laptop . With a single system , there ’s no scuffle with synchronizing data back and off between a desktop and a laptop . At your desk , you could plug in to an external monitor lizard , keyboard , and mouse , but you ’re still only a few corduroy by from complete portability .
So is a laptop that you may take on the road powerful enough to be your one and only Mac ? If you need to take your Mac with you often , especially on airplanes with small tray tables and petty personal blank , a scale - tip 6.8 - pound 17 - inch MacBook Pro wo n’t be idealistic . A MacBook or a MacBook Air makes for much easier conveyance , and with the latest revision to the MacBook logical argument , the MacBook is more powerful than it used to be . But the 15 - inch MacBook Pro , which is 1.2 dog pound lighter and less inscrutable and wide than its 17 - in sib , can be a honorable compromise between superpower and portability .
Which Mac should I buy?
See all current Macs in our Mac Hardware Guide
For most people , even those who consider themselves exponent users , we strongly endorse the iMac . As Apple has improved the Mac Pro ’s spec , it has append features once considered “ pro level ” to the iMac line . If you ’ve never considered buying an iMac , it ’s time to take a closer flavor at its threefold - pith processors , high RAM ceiling , abundance of quick USB and FireWire interface , and supporting for outside monitors .
We also powerfully feel that potential Mac vendee should give Apple ’s MacBook and MacBook Pro family some serious consideration . With the Mac ’s transition to Intel CPU , Apple ’s laptop have gained power they never had before — they work well on your desk and give you the welfare of portability . Not everyone will opt for a laptop , but a MacBook is all the Mac that many users will ever need .
[ Jason Snell isMacworld’seditorial director . Jonathan Seff is older news editor program . ]
