Back in January I wrote an article about the MacWorld convention and how Apple had failed, yet again, to deliver on their promise of the mythical Power Mac which would break the 3GHz barrier. I was shocked that a company (especially Apple) had still not managed to produce what they had promised 6 friggin' years earlier. This infuriated me as I had been wanting to upgrade my system for years, but was waiting for "the next big thing". I ended my remarks about the MacWorld convention with... "Unfortunately, I'll probably end up with some half-ass, stop-gap system whose overall performance is marginally better than what they put out over a year ago." Sure enough, in March Apple unveiled it's latest and greatest offering which was exactly what I had anticipated. A nominal speed bump to their previously released system. The big news however was the fact that their latest systems were now the highest priced Macintosh computers ever sold - a whopping $6,100 for their top-of-the-line model!
Now the computer I was using at the time was a gray and white G4 that I bought back in 2000. Over the past 9 years I upgraded the internal components two times, bringing it to a point where further upgrades to either the hardware or software was no longer possible. Even after 9 years the computer functioned flawlessly in every aspect. Unfortunately, I was running into compatibility issues with agencies who would send me CS3 or CS4 files that I couldn't open with CS2. I knew that if I was going to continue working from home I needed to bite the bullet.
I looked at every possible Mac configuration 10 times a day for weeks on end. I checked out iMacs, Power Books, used Intel-based Mac towers and even considered buying a "Hackintosh clone". I ran all the numbers and considered every price range. I hung out in all the Mac forums to see which models were having problems, and read through all sorts of bench mark speed test results. Yes, I know. I'm a Mac nerd. Anyhow, in the end I did what I always do. I bought the most powerful Mac tower available.
I've had a lot of folks ask me why I would spend so much money on a high-end tower when an iMac or laptop can handle much of the work that we do these days. Yes, a laptop or iMac can perform many creative needs, but for how long? A computers longevity represents increased profit. Case in point; my old G4. In 2000 I bought the top-of-the-line model which generated income for the better part of 10 years. For the record, this is remarkable given the sheer amount of work that I've produced on it. I know for a fact that this wouldn't have been possible with any iMac or laptop as they lack the expandability that a tower has. Yes, I had to cash in two 401Ks and drain my bank account to purchase the new Mac Pro, but I firmly believe (and have experienced first hand) that spending more money up front can save twice as much (if not more) in the future.
So did I do the right thing? So far, yes. I barely had time to install all the new software when I picked up an illustration job. The illustration was for a beer mass display that needed to be built hi-res at full size. While I did see a few progress bars I sure didn't see them for long. The new Mac Pro handled the huge Photoshop file (5GB working size) like Sally Struthers handles a Twinkee. Considering that I went from an old G4 to a new Mac Pro, the speed increase is incredible. Obvioulsly, I doubt that anyone who is currently using a newer Intel-based G5 or Mac Pro would see the performance gains that I have. I've been using the Mac Pro for several months now and have had no major issues other than an application or two unexpectedly quitting. I'm using CS4 and the latest Snow Leopard OS, and both have been working well. The little work I have had so far has paid for a good portion of the equipment, and the tax write-off will be significant. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'll pick up some work to pay off my debt, and look forward to rockin' this new Mac for the next ten years!
