Mac Users: Which Mac should I buy?

What Mac (and model) should I get?

- Mac Pro
- iMac
- Mac mini
- Macbook
- Macbook Pro

Can anyone give anectodal advice about the difference in speed among these different models and the worthiness of paying more for the top-of-the line versions? I'm a moderate to heavy user and I often have 5 or 6 applications running at the same time. I have taken on broadcast writing projects in the past, and might in the future, where it is helpful to have 5-6 QuickTime movies running simultaneously (my Dell would probably freak out), along with a Word document and Excel spreadsheet and the Internet.

I've had two lovely Mac iBooks through work. I'm pretty tough on laptops, loading and unloading a lot (3-4 times per day) and sometimes using them in harsh environs, and in my experience, the hardware from the Mac notebooks have not been up to the challenge.

Now I am using a Dell Insprion and I cannot wait to get back into a Mac. I'm very heavily leaning towards getting a desktop to use at home while keeping the laptop for on-the-move work usage. I don't have an iPod but enjoyed iTunes from time to time, but not make-or-break. The apps I use most are:

Word
Sony Sound Forge
RealPlayer
Quicktime
Internet
Photoshop
Messenger
Excel
Outlook
Acrobat

Thanks for any advice.

 

If the Mac Pro is in your budget, get it.

The Mac mini wouldn't suit your needs. And while I love my home iMac, it sounds like you might need more power than it has.

 

i dunno... my best friend runs a webdesign business and does everything on an imac. he loves it. that said, he does have it set up wtih an extra monitor, which does make a world of difference

 

The one that has the three letters stamped on it:

I - B - M

 

welcome to 1989

 

Only if you are a member of the "democrat" party . It a computer for the left leaning.

 

Point, you obviously know of the advantages of a Mac. It is, of course, not a "1989" question. PCs are better with word-based programs; Macs are better with art-based programs and generally more stable.

I use an I-Mac at work, and I can tell you it has plenty of power. Among the programs which run, and run fast:

Photoshop
Illustrator
Quark
Aldus Freehand
Internet Explorer
A secondary Mac-based browser, the name of which escapes me

I-Macs are great for music ... and they're as user-friendly as you can get.

 

Thanks Shot. That's what I was looking for. I think the iMac can probably hang with me.

 

You realize, of course, that they don't make laptops any more.

Sold their ThinkPad business to Lenovo, at least a year ago.

 

Spoken like a true shareholder.

 

I usually stick with Kraft, but no crazy shapes like dinosaurs and stuff.
I guess the store brands are alright.
When I was kid I liked the Velveeta shells and cheese, but I won't eat that now.

 

MacPro if you can afford it.

Get a laptop and if you can swing it, hook up a monitor to it. No sense in being perma-desk-bound.

If you wait like a month, they'll probably add more stuff and drop the prices.