Looking for a New Computer (PC vs Mac) -- advise and suggestions needed!!

[green tea]

Hi all.. my pc (it's a custom from Frys) that I've had since 2003 has been through some tough times. It's currently experiencing it's second malware infection (the first was beginning of this year) and I'm getting help in the spyware/virus help section of this forum.

So anyways, I'm thinking it's about time to get a new computer very soon, so I need all the recommendations I can get from all you computer experts. I spend A LOT of time on the pc but don't really know much about the technical aspects..

I want something that is extremely user friendly but something that I can use and grow with. I'm thinking I should try and buy a Mac this time around but not sure.

Some info about my pc activities and concerns--
1. I d/l A LOT of movies and music, so I need a huge harddrive. What's the best size for a main operating harddrive (200, 300, 500 gb??). Currently I have a primary 100 gb harddrive with a 200 gb slave drive-->> not enough storage space I tell you

Since all these vids are currently on a pc.. If  I buy a Mac, do I have to convert the videos so they're mac compatible? OR would I be able to watch them the minute I transfer them to a mac? I'm guessing Windows Media Player would be out of the question for a mac then? How about the image quality/resolution.. does that get affected when it gets converted?

2. I have tons of pictures on my pc as well since I am camera-crazy. Would I need to make any adjustments (reformat my camera?) to make it compatible witha a Mac?

..........
I checked Apple and saw their iMac. How good is that pc? I love the idea that it's mainly wireless with 1-2 cords. But are there any problems with this? Does it freeze or crash a lot??

What about PC's?? What's the best one to buy as of this year?

[Zylstra]

Topic moved from "Hardware" to "Other"

Why dont you stick with your current PC? (Unless its too slow)

You can always upgrade certain components.

A PC is much more functional than a Mac. Due to codecs differences, its probably better to get a PC in the world of video playing.

You might do some reading, here is a topic that has gone on and on on ComputerHope for a long time, a debate on whether or not a Mac is better than a PC:
http://www.computerhope.com/forum/index.php/topic,24301.0.html
(This topic was made out of rant, I would just kind of browse it)

A Mac is just as insecure and as capable as getting a virus as a PC. There are less virus programmers for the Macintosh operating system, since its a much less used system. Dont let the guys at your local Apple store trick you. Chances are, if you are used to using Windows, its going to be even harder to switch to the Mac OS. Compatibility with software and hardware is a huge issue with Apple computers, as they are so "closed up" and prevent users from being able to really start customizing their systems.

[michaewlewis]

I would recommend getting a 500gb hard drive.
You can most likely watch all of your downloaded movies on a new pc or a mac.
You will not need to reconfigure your camera to make it compatible with a mac.

As far as mac vs pc, they're both very good operating systems with strengths and weaknesses. Which one you choose should be entirely based on your personal preferences, not based on a mac or a pc guy saying their os is best.

[mcxeb52!]

what software and / or games do you use? That's one defining factor about what operating system you would want to use.

As far as mac or windows, if you're not sure you can always get the mac and install windows thru mac's bootcamp software so you can access both worlds on one computer.

and oh yeah, be sure to check the graphics card. You'll want to get a decent graphics card for what you want to do. I'd recommend, if you're using windows, a geforce 8500 if occasional gaming is fine with you but watching the videos is more important. (You save some $$ that way but I don't know about graphics cards in terms of the mac operating systems)

But if you're really into games then you'll need a bigger and better card.

[green tea]

^Not into games. Most of my harddrive is allocated to movies, tv shows from Asia. I just want something High Quality so I can watch my vids haha.

[mcxeb52!]

well then Nvidia 8500 gt graphics is enough. It only requires a 300 w psu and you can get it cheap. geforce 8500 is a media card primarily so it serves your computer right.

[Zylstra]

well then Nvidia 8500 gt graphics is enough. It only requires a 300 w psu and you can get it cheap. geforce 8500 is a media card primarily so it serves your computer right.

A video card will only make video playback better to a certain point, and that is very dependent on the type of video. If its regular SD video playback, a video card will not make it better. HD Video in a file or DVD format will become better with a video card.

[mcxeb52!]

I suppose that's true but having a newer graphics card just helps in terms of not having to change graphics cards so soon with newer stuff coming out and I guess it's nice to have a relatively modern graphics card that is more or less in par with the CPU so that CPU/GPU don't have bottleneck issues.....

A while back, I purchased BFG 256mb 8500GT for $29.99 , it's a steal given that green tea is not into playing video games, but just general computer use and watching videos and yes, it's high quality. H.264 encoded video playback is smooth and pretty which means I can watch all the HD clips that's been recorded from TV without any lagging.