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i5 or i7 How much difference will it make?
A very good friend of mine, upon hearing that I was needing to replace my old iMac, offered to sell me his two month old iMac, that he bought in October, so he could upgrade to a Mac Pro ( He doesn’t edit video ). I need a new iMac badly. My iMac is 6 years old and getting close to its last legs. He is giving me a really good deal, basically saving me $600, plus he’s letting me pay it out over the next 12 months at 0% interest. The one thing that’s concerning me is that his iMac comes with a i5 processor rather than a i7 processor. Otherwise it’s pretty loaded. Here’s the computer configuration:
After reading about Hyper-Threading, am I making the right decision to buy this iMac or should I try to wait and save up for one with i7? I’m not sure if thats even possible. Money is tight and a factor. Will there be a HUGE difference between the two processors when editing on FCPX? Will I regret the decision if I go with the i5? Please help! Pre-buyers remorse.
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7 Replies
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Everybody here will give you better advice about the tech, but if I’m reading you right, no need to over think specs. Any 2-month old iMac is going to feel like greased lightning compared to any 6 year old iMac. The terms sound great. So here’s the lifestyle advice from your old uncle Timmy: relax, enjoy your new computer. 🙂
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[Tim Wilson] “Any 2-month old iMac is going to feel like greased lightning compared to any 6 year old iMac. The terms sound great. So here’s the lifestyle advice from your old uncle Timmy: relax, enjoy your new computer. :-)”
I concur. 🙂
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~”It is a poor craftsman who blames his tools.”~
~”The function you just attempted is not yet implemented”~ -
Add 16 GB more RAM and commence to editing. You’ll be fine. That Nvidia card will carry a lot of the load.
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To delicately demur, in general, I wouldn’t worry about more RAM just yet. Of course, if you’re used to running 32, go for it. You can get another 16gb for $150 give or take, but in your situation, no need to spend a thing you don’t actually need to. If you decide to add more later, you can, and it’ll probably cost even less.
Until you get into a specific jam that people here tell you you can ONLY fix with more RAM, hold off. If you’ve been running 16 on your old iMac, you’re going to be so happy with the same amount of ram on this new one that you’d be better off paying the bills or having some extra holiday fun. The same amount of money would get you to the end of March 2015 on Netflix, or take a nice bite out of your imac bill.
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I can agree with both Paul and Tim on RAM.
If you’re just using FCPX, then 16GB should be a fine way to start. If you dive into a few 64-bit apps simultaneously, this is where the RAM can really come in to shine. if you use FCP X + PSD + AE + C4D or some similar combination of multiple 64-bit applications. If money is super tight, 16gb isn’t bad. If you can swing the extra money and may do what I describe above, then go for 32GB.
Dennis
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Thanks for all the input and advice. I’m feeling better about buying my friends iMac. However I’m still curious if there will be a noticeable performance difference between an iMac with a i5 processor and an iMac with a i7 processor. Will the virtual 8 core processing with less RAM and a less powerful video card still be faster than a i5 processor with more RAM and the 780M 4GB video card plus the 3TB Fusion drive or will the RAM and card and Fusion drive make things feel equal. I know it’s probably not a black and white issue and it depends on what your doing on the computer but I’m curious in terms of the overall working experience.
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[Charles Ford] ” I know it’s probably not a black and white issue and it depends on what your doing on the computer but I’m curious in terms of the overall working experience.”
Here’s some comparisons including an i5 vs i7 iMac: https://www.barefeats.com/imac12b1.html
Here’s an older 2011 i5 vs i7 comparison: https://www.barefeats.com/imac11f.html
Yes, you will notice a difference with the iMacs sitting next to each other.
But an i5 is still going to go faster than your 6 year old iMac. Much faster.
Jeremy
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