27.5" Core i7 iMac comparable to PCs! - Overclock.net

steelbom · 3 Weeks Ago

I'm quite thrilled about this, I've spec'd up some store bought PCs with as close as possible specs and the iMac is very close to the price of a PC, even building a computer myself from NewEgg costs around $1600 with a 27" (2048x1366) screen.

iMac @ $2,568 (US)

2.8GHz quad core i7 processor @ 2.8GHz w/ 8MB shared L3 cache, turbo boost up to 3.46GHz
1TB SATA Hard Drive
8GB DDR3 1066MHz RAM
ATI Radeon 4850 512MB
Apple Care Protection Plan (Extended 3 year warranty)
Apple Wireless Keyboard + Magic Mouse (touch mouse)
27.5" 2560x1440 resolution (16:9) IPS Display

e9280t @ 2,144.98 US (1,754.98 US with rebate)

Windows 7 Ultimate (don't know about warranty for this machine)
Intel Core i7 920 @ 2.66GHz w/ 1MB L2 cache + 8MB shared L3 cache
1TB SATA Hard Drive
8GB DDR3 1066MHz RAM
ATI Radeon 4850 1GB
HP Wireless Keyboard + Mouse
27" 1920x1080 resolution

The iMac has a slightly faster processor, the e9280t has a better graphics card, the iMac has a better screen.
Can anyone find a better deal than this in a store or built from parts bought from a shop - either a Desktop or All-in-one system?, I'm browsing around right now.

EDIT:
600xt All-in-one @ 2,559.99 US (2,309.99 US with rebate)

Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Intel(R) Core(TM) 2 Duo processor T9800 [2.93GHz, 6MB L2, 1066 FSB]
8GB DDR3-1066MHz SDRAM [2 DIMMs]
1TB 7200 rpm SATA 3Gb/s hard drive
1GB NVIDIA GeForce GT230M
I think it may be touch screen as well, not sure.

That doesn't come in close with the iMac imo, even the graphics card isn't as good iirc although it does have more memory.

EDIT:
XPS 8000 @ 1,687 US

Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English
Intel® Core™ i7-920 processor(8MB L3 Cache, 2.66GHz)
3 yr In-home Service after remote diagnosis + Complete Care
8GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1066MHz - 4 DIMMs
1TB 7200 RPM SATA Hard Drive
ATI Radeon HD 4350 512MB
Dell Mouse & Keyboard, wireless

Upgrade to GTX 260 1.8GB for $270 which is better than the iMacs GPU I think.
This is without a monitor, the only 27" display was I think 1920x1080 (16:9) res and cost $900.

gbrilliantq · 3 Weeks Ago

How can that iMac be considered close in price with a pc, when the pc you compared it to costs $800 dollars less?

FSF-Foxhound · 3 Weeks Ago

OP, you can't compare that without a newegg built review. With 2100 dollars you could have 2 5870s.

joman2055 · 3 Weeks Ago

haha. not to mention that the PC can be upgraded down the line to keep up with current tech. with a mac, what you buy is what you have until you buy a new system.

jshay · 3 Weeks Ago

For 2100 dollars that's a pretty big rip off. (PC Wise)

**Marin** · 3 Weeks Ago

Someone right now build me a rig on Newegg with comparable parts and it has to have a LED display that uses an IPS panel.

steelbom · 3 Weeks Ago

Quote:

How can that iMac be considered close in price with a pc, when the pc you compared it to costs $800 dollars less?

Try getting a screen that high quality and that high resolution, you'll be paying a minimum of $1000 for anything 2560x1440 or higher (it's also an IPS display), it has a slightly faster processor, and AppleCare ($169 I think) when the PC spec'd up had no extended warranty options (I don't know what the warranty was with the PC in the first place though). You also get good speakers & iSight camera + mic.

Quote:

OP, you can't compare that without a newegg built review. With 2100 dollars you could have 2 5870s.

What do you mean a newegg built review? something newegg have built?

Quote:

haha. not to mention that the PC can be upgraded down the line to keep up with current tech. with a mac, what you buy is what you have until you buy a new system.

That's right, you can upgrade the RAM to 16GB though, Macs hold their value pretty well as they don't get constantly outdated all the time, so when and if you do sell it you should get a fair bit of your money back.

Quote:

For 2100 dollars that's a pretty big rip off. (PC Wise)

Know any good setups and can post links?

I just enjoy talking about this stuff and trying to find the cheapest PC and Mac spec and comparing them, if anyone knows any sites or wants to post specs + links that'd be good. I'm currently looking at alienware, dell, HP etc..

Unknownm · 3 Weeks Ago

screw any mac or Pc setup. Make yourself a hackintosh pc. OSX is awesome on a fast pc and you can dual boot windows also

LarsMarkelson · 3 Weeks Ago

Actually the iMac is only $2200 with the i7 and 4GB of RAM. Apple vastly overcharges on RAM so just replace it yourself and still have a really awesome system with a 27" screen for ~$2350. Not a bad deal imo.

I can't find anywhere to buy a screen that nice... actually, looking on newegg the closest I can find is this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16824005115

30" LG LCD, 2560 x 1600 (bigger than the iMac), IPS Panel, but it's not an LED monitor... not sure if that makes too huge a difference.

A very nice i7 920 system I just parted out with the above monitor came up to $2,319.88. I put in a heatsink (equivalent price to a Megahalems, which is what I'd get) and fans too to make it more realistic. It also has a 1GB 4850 instead of the 512MB version the iMac has. These are all quality components, very close to stuff I'd actually buy for myself. Maybe I could've gone cheaper in some areas but I wanted to make sure it was a quality build. Missing the OS and kb/mouse too.

edit: OOPS I forgot a hard drive on this build, lol... add $87 for a 1TB 7200RPM HD... new total is $2406.88.

Just because I'm curious I'll try and match the iMac computer specs as closely as I can, but go for the cheapest solutions. My above build could overclock to at least 4GHz.

---

Okay, here's the el cheapo build, came out to $2,050.90 without kb/mouse but with OS (Windows 7 Home Premium)... I matched all the specs to what was in the iMac... same 30" LG monitor as above.

So in conclusion, besides the rip-offs on RAM/hard drive upgrades, the iMac is surprisingly a very good deal.

dejanh · 3 Weeks Ago

"2.8GHz quad core i7 processor @ 2.8GHz w/ 8MB shared L3 cache, turbo boost up to 3.46GHz" - i5 maybe? Certainly not i7...

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27.5" Core i7 iMac comparable to PCs!

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