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Switching from Windows 10 machine to Mac – anyone here who did that recently?

Timmy

Timmy

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Since my 13 years old Windows 10 PC needs to be replaced soon, I am thinking about switching to Mac. When bought, the old PC was quite a fast and reliable thing (Intel Core i7-2600K, 16 GB G-Skill RipJaws RAM, NVIDIA QUADRO 2000 GPU, 125 GB SSD), but with today’s apps and demands, it is simply too slow.

I wonder what sort of Mac would be the right one for me. It should be at least as competitive as my old machine when it was new. I am heavily using Adobe Creative Cloud apps, especially Illustrator, Photoshop and Dimension. The latter is painful slow when it comes to rendering.

Maybe an iMac of some sort could be sufficient. But I am not even sure if I can drive two displays with it – which I would need to do.

So a Mac mini instead? Or a Mac Studio? Although the Studios are quite above my price idea, it seems.

Thanks for any hints on this!
 
The newly released base-spec M4 Mac Mini offers tremendous value for money, and will run circles around your old PC.

Just keep in mind that Apple charges 10x the market value for RAM and mass storage (a shameless rip-off), so it's best to stick to the base configuration.

You can add mass storage easily using external drives, only RAM cannot be expanded as it is soldered on.

The base M4 Mini has 16GB of RAM, which is plenty for Illustrator and Photoshop.
 
Good way to become angry. My wife has a iPad, myself I am walking from DOS to Windows. In Windows I mainly know what happens and I can find solutions. Further, a lot of measuring and other software is available for Windows which is not so easy to get for the Mac. Sadly Apple is a closed system as far I guess. At the iPad I don't know what to do when the system does something automatically. Next is that the iPad is mandatory tied to an Apple account which has the effect that it asks sometimes for a password. Of course I will be punished by happy Mac users here.
 
SSS said:
Good way to become angry. My wife has a iPad, myself I am walking from DOS to Windows. In Windows I mainly know what happens and I can find solutions. Further, a lot of measuring and other software is available for Windows which is not so easy to get for the Mac. Sadly Apple is a closed system as far I guess. At the iPad I don't know what to do when the system does something automatically. Next is that the iPad is mandatory tied to an Apple account which has the effect that it asks sometimes for a password. Of course I will be punished by happy Mac users here.
Click to expand...
Punished is a bit of an exaggeration.

I would personally not use Apple hardware, but their advantages are undeniable.

It's just a matter of personal attitude. Do you value convenience, or full control?

Most people fall into the former category, and for them Apple absolutely is the way to go.
 
Sure, that is also my impression from Mac users. They are often not technically oriented and want just a system to work with. With Windows I have much more options to create a PC for my needs because of lots of hardware and processors available. And as mentioned cost is in a fair relation.
 
On my job, before retirement, I was working with Macs for decades, but those were the pro beasts, like Power Mac, and even Sun
Sparc-stations. Maybe I am bit spoiled with that history.

Will have a look at the M4 Mac Mini nevertheless :cool:
 
Last edited:
The new base Mac Mini is indeed a great computer, this being said if you plan to change your monitor as well and the 24" size is right for you, the iMac has a great screen.
 
Any M4 Mac will run circles around your old computer. They are expensive, and I echo comments by SSS about the whole eco-system being a little restrictive. Also, don't be fooled, you can get Windows machines that run right with or in some ways better than the Macs. They just use 50 to 100% more power doing so. They also can be about as expensive. If you are talking desktop use, then who cares about a few watts if you get what you want.

Now my preference is Linux, I use Windows and some Macbooks for remote recording. I purchased a M4 Mini 10 days ago.

iMacs come in two versions with the M4. One will run a second display at up to 6k resolution at 60 hz. You use an adapter via the Thunderbolt port for a display port output (I am pretty sure you can also get an adapter for HDMI). The other version can run two such external displays.

The Mac Mini supports 3 displays. It has an HDMI port and works over Thunderbolt or USB C adapters for two more (I've already tried this out with a 4k, and pair of 2K displays using adapters that only cost $15-20). It supports a bit higher resolution than the iMac this way. There are a few combinations like an extra 5k 60 hz and an 8k 60 hz along with its own HDMI output. I did get the 24 gb memory option since it cannot be upgraded. Obviously the Mac Mini M4 pro is better still which of course costs even more.

Now if your overwhelming needs are the Adobe apps you listed, the Mini or iMac would likely be great choices for you. OTOH, you likely will need to replace it in 8 to 10 years as Apple will drop support for it.
 
palm said:
if you plan to change your monitor as well and the 24" size is right for you, the iMac has a great screen.
Click to expand...

24" would be just fine with me. Crucial point is that I’d need the possibility to connect and to drive a second monitor.
 
Mac guy here but I maintain a Windows and Linux machine as well. I do 98% of what I need to do on my M2 Mac mini with 24GB of RAM with Parallels installed (Windows virtual machine) I haven't run across an app yet that doesn't work in the Windows environment. I'm not a gamer, most of the PC tools I use are audio related and low demand on the hardware so your milage will vary of course.

I also maintain a 2018 Mac mini with the last OS that supports Adobe CS6 because I paid for the suite back in the day and it still works fine for my needs. With the M2 and Intel machine connected via Thunderbolt I have fast screen sharing between the 2 machines and a seamless workflow.
 
Timmy said:
24" would be just fine with me. Crucial point is that I’d need the possibility to connect and to drive a second monitor.
Click to expand...

From a provisioning/performance-to-price ratio, the M4 Pro Mini is the better choice. You pay more for the screen on the iMac with less on the inside from a CPU/GPU standpoint. Unfortunately, even the top-end M4 Pro Mini is under-provisioned for creative professionals or power users.
 
Just make sure you get enough memory for the apps you want to run smoothly. I don't use Illustrator, Photoshop and Dimension but I'd guess it depends on the complexity of the projects. One possibility is to measure the max memory allocations on your current Windows machine and assume approx the same. Another is to prepare for stress testing whatever Mac you get and do so asap and if necessary return it. Don't forget to plan ahead, e.g. plan on 2x what you're using now.

Personally, I prefer to upgrade computer and display independently if I can so the only all-in-one computers I like are laptops.
 
staticV3 said:
The newly released base-spec M4 Mac Mini offers tremendous value for money, and will run circles around your old PC.

Just keep in mind that Apple charges 10x the market value for RAM and mass storage (a shameless rip-off), so it's best to stick to the base configuration.

You can add mass storage easily using external drives, only RAM cannot be expanded as it is soldered on.

The base M4 Mini has 16GB of RAM, which is plenty for Illustrator and Photoshop.
Click to expand...
Thanks Static, M4 MacMini my next machine.
 
Seems, that an M2 Mac Studio with 2 TB SSD plus two new monitors, keyboard and mouse would quite easily cross the 4k Euro margin. My wife won’t ever forgive me.
 
I also use a separate monitor because I use a laptop from my employer. I also like the idea to be able to keep a great screen when changing the computer, but on the other hand an iMac will still be worth something in a few years (it can find a new owner, and that’s better than keeping a bunch a old screens because you don’t want to throw them away)

There is one thing a bit annoying with Macs : you can’t really adjust fonts and interface elements, it’s either x1 or x2 (HDPI or retina). This means that a great screen for a Mac is either a 21” 4K, or a 24” 4.5K like the iMac, or a 27” 5K like the Studio Display and a limited list of alternatives.
You can also use a 27” QHD (1440p) if you don’t care for HDPI, but other combinations aren’t that great.

As you mentioned graphics work I thought it was worth considering the iMac despite the all in one downsides because a great screen is really something that makes you enjoy sitting in front of the computer IMO.
 
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