Game Development Community

Mac dev machine

by Ron Yacketta · in Torque Game Engine · 01/16/2004 (8:09 am) · 6 replies

Folks,

It is about time that I go and get me a spiffy new mac, have not used a mac sense oh about Fresh year in HighSchool many many many moons ago.

I am looking for some insight and feedback regarding which machine should I get. I am currently looking at getting either a G5 (darn things dont come with a monitor :( ) or a spiffy little powerbook with a 15 inch monitor. I am leaning more towards the powerbook because it has a monitor (snicker) and is portable.

What are you thoughts?

Also, know of any place to buy macs (referebed, used or new) at a decent price? or does apple govern the price on these puppies?

-Ron

#1
01/16/2004 (8:24 am)
I would also be interested in hearing about where on can get powerbooks cheap. :)
#2
01/16/2004 (10:08 am)
If you are a student, Apple usually has pretty sweet educational deals. Also, they usually have even better deals right before they are about to release a new model.

For example, I got my 12 inch powerbook G4 right before they came out with a speedbumped version - for the standard ed. price (about $150 off the list price) I got maxed out ram & storage (640mb/60gb) DVD burner upgrade, and airport card all free, plus a free printer and $200 off an iPod.

That saved me about $850 from the price if I'd bought all those things at list price.
#3
01/16/2004 (10:37 am)
Get a powerbook G4 17 inch, with as much ram and HD Space as you can afford, they come with built in air-port cards
#4
01/16/2004 (10:51 am)
@Chris,

I think the 17 inch is out of the question for me, only have ~2K to play with.

The G4 Powerbook with a 15 inc monitor, 512MB Ram, 60GB HDD and a SuperDrive is listing somewhere around ~1.8K

-Ron
#5
01/16/2004 (12:20 pm)
Don't buy the additional ram from Apple. Get in online for a LOT cheaper :)
If you want it to become you main workstation, go for the G5, and use your present monitor with an adapter or direct, depending on what kind it is....
If you still want to use your PC as your main computer, the g4 powerbook is not a bad choice. What kind of video chip does it come with again ?
Enjoy !! :)
#6
01/16/2004 (1:34 pm)
This is what I am considering

Processor Class: PowerPC G4 
Processor Speed: 1 GHz 
Memory Technology: DDR-SDRAM (DDRRAM) 
Installed Memory: 512 MB 
Maximum Memory: 1 GB 
Memory Speed: PC2700 (333MHz) 
Hard Drive Capacity: 60 GB 
Sound Support: Digital Audio (16-bit) 
Video Chipset: NVIDIA® GeForce4 440 Go 
Installed Video Memory: 64 MB 
Resolution: 1440 x 900 
Display Size: 17.0 in 
Display Type: Active Matrix LCD (TFT) 
Port Connectors: DVI output port 
VGA output using included DVI to VGA Adapter 
S-video output port 
Composite video output using included S-video to composite adapter 
Audio line in (minijack) 
Headphone out (minijack) 
One FireWire 800 port at up to 800 Mbps 
One FireWire 400 port at up to 400 Mbps 
Two 12-Mbps USB 1.1 ports 
Integrated 54-Mbps AirPort Extreme wireless networking (based on 802.11g draft specification; IEEE 802.11b Wi-Fi certified) 
Integrated Bluetooth 1.1 
Integrated 10/100/1000BASE-T Ethernet RJ-45 
Integrated 56K V.92 modem RJ-11 
Power adapter port 

 
Card Slots: Type II CardBus 
Included Drives: DVD-R/CD-RW
Hard Drive 
Network Support: Gigabit Ethernet (1000 Mbps) 
Modem Speed: 56 Kbps 
Input Devices: Keyboard
Touchpad 
Battery Life (average): up to 4.5 Hours 
Number of Batteries: 1 
Installed Operating System: Mac® OS X 
Included Software: QuickTime 
iCal 
iChat 
iMovie 
iPhoto 
iTunes 
DVD Player 
Mac OS X Mail 
Microsoft Internet Explorer 
EarthLink (includes 30 days of free service) 
Adobe Acrobat Reader 
Art Directors Toolkit 
FAXstf 
FileMaker Pro Trial 
GraphicConverter 
Microsoft Office v. X Test Drive 
OmniGraffle 
OmniOutliner 
QuickBooks for Mac New User Edition 
Developer Tools 
Apple Hardware Test 

 
Chassis Color: Grey 
In the Box: PowerBook 
S-video to composite adapter 
DVI to VGA adapter 
modem cable 
power adapter 
AC wall plug 
power cord 

 
Height: 1.0 in 
Width: 15.4 in 
Depth: 10.2 in 
Weight: 6.8 lbs 
Limited Warranty: 1 Year (12 Months)