| |  | PC Hardware Apple Mac Pro MA970LL/A Desktop (Two 2.8GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon Processors, 2 GB RAM, 320 GB Hard Drive, 16x SuperDrive) |  | | | | | | | | | | Rating:  - Great workstation at great price with few flaws
I know how you always here how apple products are much more expensive then a like minded pc. well, when it comes to workstations, it just isn't true. If you look at the competition (dell) and look at a similarly specced Precision, the price of the dell is higher. Plus, with Apple, you get the option of running other OS as well as OS X. I run os x, windows xp, vista business, and ubuntu on my macbook pro and i couldn't ask for more flexiblity from a laptop that most people who aren't familiar with the real Apple experience would just say is some type of trend or status symbol.
There is no doubt this is the real deal when it comes to workstation use.
The only things about the Mac Pro i can find to criticize are the lack of a higher level video card in the stock machine. You can get it configured with an 8800gt from apple but the nvidia card just can't match the core performance. ATI now offers the hd3870 which is a big step above the 2600xt and a nice performer in os x and windows . i wish apple would have specced the HD a little higher, but the price you are paying for this machine is for the two cpus, the motherboard with a little profit for apple. If you are looking for a workhorse, this is it. Of all the pcs i have ever built for gaming, work, and everything else, i am much more happier with the Mac Pro. If you get this, i would highly recommend bumping the ram up to at least 8gb, the kits are fairly cheap these days, and you get 4x2gb sticks to give you the full output performance of the memory system (2 sticks just doesn't cut it).
oh, the only other thing is don't strain your back picking the box up, it's amazingly heavy for a computer.
Rating:  - Overkill?? Hardly!
I'm not going to tell you how wonderful this Mac is. If you've been around Macs for any length of time, you already know there will be no disappointment if you choose this model.
Instead, I want to address those who wonder if the Mac Pro is overkill. Listen, if you make your living on the Mac (or if you simply want the best) this machine is a terrific value. It is an engineering marvel, especially from the user's point of view. It is highly self-serviceable thanks to the designers at Apple. If you want to add RAM (cheap right now), a second optical drive, an expansion card, or an internal hard drive or three, its a snap. Oh yeah, and it's very fast and practically noiseless.
Each time I buy a new Mac, I remind myself that you don't buy the computer you need today, you buy the one you'll need tomorrow.
One more thing. If you can't pull the trigger on this Mac, consider the iMac. All my consumer-level Mac-using friends have one and without exception they love 'em. The only thing is, the iMac is an enclosed unit that you won't be able to service yourself in the event your hard drive or optical drive fails.
Rating: - Blazing Fast and Dependable.
Self-installed another 8GB of RAM along with a 1TB drive.
This thing is so fast that I just keep looking for more tasks to throw at it but the Activity monitor keeps showing that it has tons of processing power and RAM to spare.
Wow.Nice machine, Apple.
Rating: - The Finest PC you can buy
Read my other review about the G5 for the software advantages of the Mac. And my MacBook review about running Windows on your Mac. Let's talk about the hardware:
First off I don't own one of these machines, but I work with them extensively at work (I'm a PC/Mac Technician). This model in particular. I've probably seen at least 300 of these machines, and the failure rate is about 1 in 300 thus far. So, build quality is great.
Its 2 USB and one Firewire 400 port on the front are very convenient. It has 3 USB, 1 FW400 and 1 FW800 port on the back. The stock video card can drive 2 decent sized DVI monitors. It has a combined Optical/Analog minijack for audio in and one for audio out, as well as SPDIF in and out ports. It also has 2 Ethernet ports. Inside it has 3 open PCIe slots, 4 drive bays and an open removable/optical bay. Aesthetically, it's one of the nicest looking machines I've seen. The case is aluminum, and very solid. (We often take a couple of Macs and sit on the machines without fear of breaking the case. We're even jokingly, made a MacBed out of about 5 or 6 of them. The MacBed gets 1.5 stars.)
It is simply the best designed hardware money can buy PC or Mac. Upgrading parts is as easy as it can get. Installing a drive is child's play. It's so simple my mom could do it. Upgrading RAM is a snap. (Though maybe not mom-proof.) It runs very quiet as everyone has said. I have to look at thelight on the power switch often to see if a machine is on when the screen has been powered down, that's how quiet it is. Everything in this machine is as well thought out as the software (OS X) is, if not better. In fact I would almost venture to say that there is nothing I can think of that could have been done better. (See Caveats below for its 2 flaws.)
Even the side door is a snap. If you're a PC user you know how hard it is on some PCs to even close the side door because the panel is flexible and won't line up? So you sit there for 10 minutes trying to get it back on, only to give up and leave it off half the time? Well the MacPro is just ht opposite. You have to TRY to mis-align the thing. To open it you simple pull a latch and the door pops open. To close it you slide the tab into the slot and close it like a door, and there is a satisfying click when it's closed. And that's just the side door.
Let's talk about speed:
Most of the current Macs boot up in less than 30 seconds from button press to logon screen. After you type in (or select) your user name and type in your password (*though you can configure it to automatically logon), the machine is ready to use -- meaning everything is completely loaded and the system is idle in maybe 15-20 seconds in stock configuration. And that's with the stock 320GB HD. So, all told you can be up and running in about a minute from a cold start on this model Mac.
Applications launch very fast as well. Most will bounce in the dock a few times and just come up. Some, like Adobe Photoshop and MS Word take longer, but they're very big programs. I've never taken a stopwatch to them, but I estimate about 5-10 seconds for most app launches. With a few, you literally blink after you click the icon on the dock and they're up and running.
Caveats:
With all these pluses there must be some minuses right? There's 2: First off: The weight. Unless you're used to carrying around 50 pounds of weight, these are pretty cumbersome because of the second design flaw: The handles, they're very uncomfortable to use (after all there's 50 pounds cutting off your circulation at the edge of the handles), but I'm glad they're there. I'm not worried about a system slipping out on my hands when I'm moving one, unlike a lot of PCs where you have to hunt for a stable place to hold on to the plastic most of those boxes are made out of.
A word about 10.5 (Leopard):
My other reviews on the G5 and MacBook cover Mac OS X (the mac's unique operating system) more generally and give the pros and cons vs. Winodws, but they were written before Leopard came out. In short, 10.5 (Leopard) is awesome. So, without further ado, here's the best of what Leopard offers:
Screen sharing/remote control is the best new feature. It works better than Windows RDC too because you don't have to have one person log out.
Time machine is a backup application built into the OS that makes backups painless -- just shell out a hundred bucks for another Hard Drive and you'll be set.
Stacks (where you click one folder icon in the dock and a grid of other icons spring up out of it) is a mixed bag. New users might like it, while older users might not. It's easy enough to switch is back to list view or folder behavior. (Right click the stack icon on the dock -- or click and hold -- and choose View content as "List" and/or Display as "Folder".
iChat 4: about the best and easiest teleconferencing software out there.
Coverflow and page previews in the finder makes it even easier to find just what your looking for. cover flow basically shows document previews of everything from images to Word and PDF files to videos and audio files. Want to see a larger preview? just highlight the document and hit the space bar. This saves you the trouble of launching the application just to look to see if that .tif is the right one.
Exposé and Spaces are huge time savers too. Exposé is a way to control all or some of the windows on screen. Just hit a function key (assignable by you) and all the windows on screen or of an app tile on you display so you can find the one buried under 5 other windows. Spaces allows you to have "virtual desktops" that you can quickly switch. Say you're working on music is garage band or reason and oyu have all the windows laid out how you like them and a Friend instant messages you. Instead of having to minimize and juggle windows, you simply switch to another desktop where you only have to see your IM window. When you're done a lcick of garage bad on the dock or a key-combo will switch the desktop and windows right back to where you were. Check out the Spaces and Exposé System Preferences for more cool features and ways to customize it.
There's more but ths rview is getting long. SO buying advice:
You can't go wrong with this machine or the 3.0 model if you have the money to spend.
To PC users considering this or building/buying a PC: I built a PC system on par spec wise with the last rev of this machine about a year and a half ago for about $300-$400 less* (and I still didn't have as nice of a machine hardware design-wise as this one) -- but then I have to run Windows or Linux on it. The OS X will save you time and energy in the first 6 months to justify the added expense.
(*Yes, I probably could have built it cheaper but I was buying parts comparable in quality to Apple Hardware.)
To First Time Mac Purchasers:
Unless you're pretty well off, you have a demanding Application (video/3d rendering/software development) or need the extra 3 PCI slots, (or if you just like to cut to the chase and get the best when you jump into things), you'll probably be better served saving a bit of cash by getting an entry level consumer Mac first to try things out, then step up to the big boy if you need it.
To Mac Users considering this machine:
If you're comning from a non-intel Mac, you'll be blown away by the speed boost. If you're coming form a consumer level Mac, then you'll also be very pleased with the added speed and the quality of the hardware. I'm assuming you're gettin this because you need the speed. If you just surf the web all day and write Word docs, save your money and get an iMac, MacBook or MacBook Pro or even, dare I say, a Mac Mini. This is really a machine for people who need the power and are willing to pay for it.
Summary:
There is yet to be any review under 4 stars for this machine and it's been out for the better half of a year. And this is in a world where you can't please everyone. That right there should tell you how good these systems are. Expect this machine to outlast everything else currently on the market. If you cna afford it, it's a great purchase decision. You won't be disappointed.
Rating: - Five stars ain't enough
Most of the other reviews have covered this ground already but:
- Have had the machine since 11/7/07 and I'm not sure it has ever crashed.
-Four internal drives and it is almost silent
-Does usea bit of power on start- lights dim
-Awesome power! Fast beyond anything I have that can test it and I use, WINXP via Parallels, FCP HD, Photoshop and inDesign CS3, constantly
-Windows XP roars on this machine, boot camp or virtual
- I have 8 GB RAM- maybe you don't need that much but don't skimp
What more can I say?
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