X4 Ray Tracing - Optimal CPU

[Doug Park]

The iMacs actually are a pretty good value. Some of the earlier large screen iMacs have a higher than average failure rate, but Apple has been good about fixing them.

The iMac definitely has the eye candy appeal.

They do work well in a dual boot situation.

The video card is in general a pretty decent performer for Chief, but not top of the line and you don't get the option of upgrading it later.

If you want more flexibility then the Mac Pro is the way to go.

If you want a super ray trace performer the 12 core Mac Pro is a beast. But you will be into that for more than $4000. One thing that can save money is to buy your memory separate. After market memory for a Mac is less than half what Apple charges and just as good. The Mac Pro case is well designed so putting in memory is easy.

Think of an iMac as a closed system, like a laptop. While there are a few things you can do but getting inside the case is not something that you generally want to do.

While in theory any video card is compatible with a Mac Pro from a hardware standpoint the real issue is drivers. Apple sells some higher end cards for the Mac Pro but they are pricey.