PC or MAC w/Bootcamp ?

[Yuval Shrem]

Dose anybody knows what is the performance differences (if any) between a PC and a MAC with Boot-Camp?

Many of the programs I use are widows only, but I'm wodering if now, as MAC computers have Intel processors, it would make sense to use a MAC hardware with windows instead of a PC.

Any ideas anyone?

 

[Cail Young]

http://crave.cnet.com/8301-1_105-9760910-1.html

That's a comparison between various virtualisation options - my gut says that Boot Camp should offer theoretically identical performance to comparable "PC" hardware - your mileage may vary, as always.

 

[Brook Willard]

The peecee comes with one option available [two with linux] and the Mac comes with two options available [three with linux]. Definitely price out a Dell or something part-for-part with a Mac Pro... you'll be surprised, but the Mac will probably come out cheaper.

I'm a total Apple fanboy, so take that into your consideration... but I see a whole lot more Macs around in this "industry" than I do peecees.

 

[Hrvoje Simic]

"peecee"....heh heh

 

[Zack Birlew]

Bootcamp running Windows XP x64 has been running great with Maya, ZBrush, and Vue 6 on it. I'd get a PC only if you really needed some of the features on the newer nVidia Quadro cards. Now, as far as office applications go, I have no idea, I've been all 3D stuff so far.

 

[Bruce Allen]

Brooke, you're an Apple fanboy (I think we figured it out from the "peecee" thing), but you're a nice guy. Thanks for the PM.

Okay, as the resident "PC guy" (although I've worked almost exclusively on Macs at my day job since 2003 or so), I'll say that Boot Camp is excellent. I am setting up a bottom-of-the-line iMac for my parents right now (ironically, by far the most expensive computer I or they've ever bought) and must say that a combination of Boot Camp and VMWare is working very well for me. My parents will be able to see their Boot Camp install in a window while running OS X, and if they want to go into full graphics mode, they just reboot. Yaay. I like Boot Camp - like the way Apple makes driver installation easy, like the drive re-partitioning, etc.

Again, yes, the main advantages of PC are:
- WAY superior graphics card options
- more motherboard options (but with that come compatibility problems), possiblity of building small computers for field recording, etc.
- less "notched" pricing - Apple is usually excellent value at the beginning of its run (superior to PC). PCs sometimes hit the sweet spot - for example, right now, you can get a quad-core chip for around $300 and build an excellent value system around that. Macs don't offer that.

Finally, if you want to get a certified high-end system to run certain pieces of software (eg discreet Smoke, lustre, other high-end stuff), they haven't certified any Macs running in Boot Camp mode yet. Don't see why they shouldn't in the future...

I'd also add that Apple computers in many other countries (*cough* my home country) have historically been priced at near-rip-off import rates and are usually out of date. Also most American Mac fans don't seem to understand the way exchange rates work - what to them a "dirt cheap" Mac is out of most peoples' price brackets in other countries. People are prepared to learn a bit more about using their PC because the money they save goes a lot further.

I must say this is beginning to change though now that Microsoft is pushing all of those huge software updates on people - the Internet isn't cheap everywhere and sometimes the money you save on the PC will end up not even covering your DSL bill.

If you're American, a filmmaker, don't want to buy a cheap Quad Core system, and are not doing weird high-end graphics stuff, there's no question - get a Mac.

Bruce Allen
www.boacinema.com

 

[Bruce Allen]

Sorry, thought I should give an example of a $1099 quad-core PC:

HP Pavilion Media Center m8120n
Core 2 Quad 2.4ghz
3 GB RAM
640 GB hard drive
Firewire built in
Geforce 7300 GS (I think?)
Vista Premium

Drawbacks: It has less expansion than a Mac Pro, but more than an iMac (only 1 PCI and 1 PCIe slot. plus 2 hard drive / extra optical drive slots) a not very powerful power supply and wimpy built in graphics. But hey, it would probably be nearly double the speed of an iMac for the price. Add a nice 20" or 24" monitor (NOT Apple - they are totally overpriced right now and due for a refresh) for a few hundred bucks and there you are.

If you were a student starting out doing editing or VFX, wanting to build a reel and get a job, you could get that plus a student discount copy of Avid Xpress Pro, and you'd be way more than good to go. Everything on my reel was done with computers that cost <$1000 for everything. Most of what's on my reel now (okay, seriously-out-of-date reel) is done on computers that other people paid for.

Of course, when you become regularly employed, you have no time to play with the computer at home, so it becomes even lower-end

Cheers

Bruce Allen
www.boacinema.com

 

[Dominic Jones]

Definitely price out a Dell or something part-for-part with a Mac Pro... you'll be surprised, but the Mac will probably come out cheaper.

Yes, it's important to realise, for those that don't, that the accepted wisdom that Macs are much more expensive than PCs is now defunct, due to Mac having - for the first time ever - the same economies of scale that PCs enjoy, what with running on the same architecture.

That's assuming you don't do something stupid, like upgrade your computer with Mac ram and hard disks, of course. :wink:

 

[Rocco Schult]

Finally, if you want to get a certified high-end system to run certain pieces of software (eg discreet Smoke, lustre, other high-end stuff), they haven't certified any Macs running in Boot Camp mode yet. Don't see why they shouldn't in the future...

Hi there, hi Bruce,

I am with the comments here, except a little note...
Don't expect Smoke, lustre or such officially supported and surely not distributed on a Mac. These are turnkey systems and Autodesk won't move to Macs until hell freezes. At least in Europe you won't get a license only package. I mean, not officially..