Any iMac G5 users here?

[Tenex]

Was thinking of replacing my iBook with a new model but the rumour mill in advance of the Intel switch has made me reconsider temporarily (widescreen 13.3"? Yes please...!). So I wondered if it would be worthwhile getting an iMac on the basis they appear to hold their value well and have only just been revised so are unlikely to be top of the list for new Intel CPUs (I could be wrong!).

Would love a 20" but that's unlikely so thinking of getting a new 17" iSight model. I read of LOTS of problems with Rev A & B iMacs and the new model is too new to have many reported problems but probably worth taking a chance?

Anyway I want to use it for iPhoto and iMovie mainly anyone have any comments on whether the 17" is OK for movie editing or is the screen too small?

Anything about the new iMac you think is particularly good/bad?

Will I need to factor in £££s for additional hardware/software (I assume an external HDD fairly soon).

Would a G5 be usable for p2p ie. being left on 24/7 for a few days at a time?

Advice appreciated.

[Mr. Wilby]

I have the 20" new iMac and its one of the best computers I have ever used. Aesthetically, its very pleasing. Its pretty fast (could be a bit faster sometimes I think).

The built in iSight and Front Row (remote etc) aren't particularly important to me. The iSight is a bit of a gimmick IMO anyway as I don't need video conferencing and it seems as though you can only use it anyway with iChat (all my friends & family use MSN), however, I could be wrong about that.

The screen is very very good - sharp, and exceptionally bright. I have it on the lowest brightness and its still far brighter than I would like. I have a dell 24" wide screen as well, and for comparison purposes, the dell is slightly better (the extra resolution on the dell really clinches it) but they are both very good.

I haven't done any video editing, but have been very impressed with the quality of the "built in" software. In the windows world, I would have to go out and buy s/w to get by, but with the apple software, everything is pretty functional from the get-go. iPhoto is great. G/F and I are already using that to sort out our photos and also get some photo books printed off.

About leaving on 24/7 - I haven't done that with mine.... There is a fan inside the iMac and its supposed to be a beast, but its never come on for me yet (I don't game with mine)... so for normal usage (not sure if P2P is processor intensive?) you'll probably be fine for noise.

Overall, very pleased and would buy again without hesitation. I would not buy the new intel based macs though... at least not until the 2nd or 3rd revisions as they are likely to have problems... plus, I figure it will take quite a while for the software to catch up (x86 native binaries included in application packages) so you may be running interpreted code for some time and that can't be very fast...

Good luck

[NicolaUK]

I've had one for 6 months or so, also use them at work.

Definitely get the 20" though, you'll kick yourself if you don't and, of course, up the memory :)

I do quite a lot of video editing with iMovie and it's :thumbs: at work it's mainly Illustrator/Photoshop etc.

I would invest in Applecare though, out of the 3 purchased for work, 2 have died and gone back for repair :(

Edit - being on 24/7 is no problem at all :)

[Tenex]

There's a certain irony in the aesthetics and the 20" screen, it's gorgeous and is a wonderful single unit design but I have a 27" LCD available for monitor use (though not connected at the moment) and it would be pointless sitting at a 20" screen and not using it. If I'd seen the Dell 24" offer in November I'd definitely have bought that for the resolution available.


Mr Wilby
Like you I don't have an immediate use for the iSight though I do play back a lot of AVIs and MPGs on my PC. I didn't realise vid conf was limited to iChat only, that's a serious flaw.

Like you I'm using my iBook for cataloguing photos and I've been offered a free Minolta slide scanner so I could do the 000's of slides I have too (keep thinking that's a winter project and winter is passing ;) ). I'm pretty impressed with the built-in apps too. The upcoming Macworld should see iLife 06 launched and I'm wondering whether to hold off and see what that offers before maing the purchase. Wonder what they'll do? Perhaps bundle iWorks apps as well?

I've read that they've already ported the apps to Intel though I agree that the first generation machines probably wouldn't be the best/wisest investment.

P2P isn't processor intensive at all so if it's not noisy that would be a bonus.


NicolaUK
2 out of 3 dead? Hope they were the Rev A & B ones!

20" + RAM + Applecare = an investment I can't justify at the moment sadly, plus there's the larger LCD available (though I wish it was the Dell).

Good to know 24/7 is OK though I wonder if it contributed to the 2 failures? Do you actually turn yours off or put it into sleep mode? I recall that was recommended for the Mac Mini I bought my mother.


Thanks for the replies.

[NicolaUK]

The 2 out of 3 are Rev A's.

The mac will go to sleep fairly quickly anyway, no need to send it there :D

I don't really do P2P but lots of newsgroups, no issues with noise/fans/leaving it turned on :thumbs:

The failures have both been faulty logic boards, a problem that's plagued Apple with new iMacs and iBooks - I had to return an iBook last year too.

Seriously, Applecare is a must IMO :)

If you already have a 27" screen I'd wait for the new mini to arrive.

[Tenex]

If you already have a 27" screen I'd wait for the new mini to arrive.
Damn, another option :)

Do you mean wait for MWSF or have you heard the spec? Wouldn't be as pretty but would save money I suppose.

[NicolaUK]

http://www.thinksecret.com/news/0511macmini2.html sounds promising :)

[Mr. Wilby]

Yes, good point about the ram. I stuck an extra gb in mine as soon as I got it. We bought a mini at the same time for my gf and that is a superb little machine - especially, as you say, if you already have a monitor (I gave my GF my 19" TFT and I got the 20" G5 ;-)).

The new mini's might be a good stepping stone and a foot into the intel world. My only concern, as with the rest of the intel-based machines, will be the performance. I have seen a centrino notebook running the x86 mac s/w and it was pretty slow (except boot up - which was quite fast.

Its also possible to hook up your other monitor to the iMac. I'm planning on doing this with the G5 & Dell 24" as soon as I get the VGA cable (Dell via VGA is surprisingly good quality).

[Robby]

I have a Rev A 20" G5. I love it to bits but it's not been without it's problems. My logic board died on me about 6-8 months after buying it and i had to have it replaced. (There was an extensive thread on here about it).

I have no proof but i feel the reason it died on me was because it got too hot. I did use to leave it on for extended periods, not 24/7 but long enough. When i had the problems i opened it up and checked the circuitry and would find the capacitors (think it was those, orange bulbous things) had swollen and leaked. I can't see anything other than heat causing this although i could be wrong.

I got a new logic board fitted and *touch wood* all has been fine despite the fact it won't go to sleep by itself any more, i have to do it manually.

I still do run it to the ground some days and the fan will kick in and it can really chuck out some heat. I've turned my radiator off in my room now as the iMac and my LCD TV combined produces enough heat.

Despite this prob i'd still buy another one. It's been the best computer i've owned and there's not a day goes by when i take it for granted. It did cost a bomb but it's worth every penny i saved.

[Tenex]

Aaargh the suspense until Jobs' keynote is killing me. I know the Mini makes sense but it's a G4 vs. a G5 and the iMac I want to buy has gone up £50 in the past few days ... roll on 10 Jan!

[Robby]

I thought the expo is on Mon the 9th?

I feel your pain though. I was all set to buy a powerbook in June of 2003 but then they stopped taking orders for the G4 lampshade and announced a new one to replace it. Those were some looooong months i had to wait :D

[Tenex]

It is but the keynote is on the 10th or so I read on another site.

... 9am PST FWIW