Apple iMac Desktop with 24" Display MA878LL/A (2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 1 GB RAM, 320 GB Hard Drive, SuperDrive)

As an illustrator, for years I've felt the pressure to give in and buy a Mac. All artists have Macs, right? It's designed for creative professionals, right?

Well, as I discovered once I did give in and finally bought this one, the answer is yes and no.

My primary objection to Macs in general still stands, and it is this: I don't like computers telling me what to do. I don't like hearing my computer cry, "Excuse me. Safari needs your attention," or whatever it's saying in that garbled, electronic voice. It drives me crazy.

The other problem we had, which we have since fixed, is that we installed an addition GB of RAM, which was causing the computer to crash constantly. The RAM was approved by Apple, and we took the computer to the Apple Store for repair twice to no avail. Only when the additional memory was removed did the problem stop, but we would still like to have a faster computer.

Another thing I hate about the Mac is how much programs cost. I love CorelDraw,for example, and I see no point in switching to PhotoShop, which in my opinion gives you less and costs at least twice as much.

And finally there can be compatibility issues if you're trying to work with something designed for a Windows PC, like a Word document. Of course, these problems can be fixed by buying more programs, which will cost you more money. It would actually cost less to buy an additional, cheap Windows PC to do things the Mac doesn't.

But there are many great features to this computer, namely Garage Band, iWeb (with a subscription to Mobile Me, formerly .mac), iMovie HD, and all the other great programs that are a part of iLife. Right now my husband and I are working on creating an audio-book, and we are using our Mac for that. I would also like to use the Mac for creating a web presence for our company, but unfortunately I can't figure out how to insert keywords in iWeb, which basically makes it useless if you want search engines to be able to find your site.

In short, this is a wonderful computer for very specific uses, although it might cost you a lot more in programs than a PC, and you might still want a PC for everyday tasks.
Buy Apple iMac Desktop with 24" Display MA878LL/A (2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 1 GB RAM, 320 GB Hard Drive, SuperDrive)!