I have always been a PC owner, so if I choose to get a Mac, it will be my first. I am an avid gamer, and mostly play Blizzard games. But I would use Parallels so that I have the best of both worlds. Through the research I have done, it seems that the Mac Pro is generally used for people that do video editing and so forth, and your general iMac is just a general computer.

I am curious what would be my best fit, I want to play my games on the best settings and dont mind spending a few bucks if necessary. The comparable PCs I have looked at, have been comparable pricewise to the Mac Pro I configured. I am also not sure if an iMac can even be upgraded, ie...Video Cards, Ram, etc. Whereas the Pro is.

This will be something that I want to have for 3-4 years without having to purchase another computer.

I look forward to all your suggestions, and thank you for taking the time to help me out

I have an iMac and I love it, but if you want an iMac keep in mind there are hardly any games that support Mac.

I'd say buy a PC.

You may play mainly Blizzard products, but it's sure a downer when you want to pick up that one game, if only it was cross-platform.

I'm typing this on my MacBook Pro, but if I was to buy a desktop it would not be a Mac.

That's right. You're talking to one of the few Mac users who recognizes the strengths and flaws in every OS are pretty evenly matched, whether Windows, Linux, or Mac.

You can upgrade the RAM in an iMac but I think that's all. What you would want is the Mac Pro and I would recommend using the BootCamp utility to install a Windows partition on the hard drive if you want to do any PC gaming.

If you are interested in games at all, Mac is the wrong choice.

I'd argue that they are also the wrong choice if you are at all computer literate and not doing very specific things on a professional basis, but whatever, go with what you like. But keep in mind even when dual-booting or whatever, it is not going to do new games well at all, and that will only get worse when the new console generation hits and specs jump.

@CannonGoose said:

You can upgrade the RAM in an iMac but I think that's all. What you would want is the Mac Pro and I would recommend using the BootCamp utility to install a Windows partition on the hard drive if you want to do any PC gaming.

as what he said.... don't use parallels

I'd wait until the next upgrade of both of these products, since they are due for an update soon according to MacRumors. You must be doing your research wrong though, since the cost of the cheapest MacBook Pro ($1200) can get you this pretty ridiculous build. Unless you're looking at a prebuilt PC, which i suggest you don't do if gaming is your goal. The prebuilt gaming PC market is all about markups on cheap products, like Apple (boom). Macs are great for content creation due to the powerful software available exclusively for the OS. They are also a joy to use for surfing and videos. Gaming? Not so much.

I did not know it was a problem to run games if you were using parallels. I guess some more homework is due. I know my way around computers, just never bothered with a Mac, as they have always been over-priced (still are) and you were essentially stuck with what you bought, and were not able to upgrade anything. Obviously some things have changed over the years for Apple, and they are user friendly.

Another question is, can I have OSX and the Windows OS on the same drive or do they have to be on different drives on the Mac?

I appreciate all the feedback, keep it coming :)

@Razorlution: BootCamp is very straight forward. You just run the utility in OS X and use a slider to allocate how much hard drive space you want for Windows. Then the utility makes the partition and prompts you to insert your Windows install disk and it's basically all gravy.

I don't know if you've installed Windows before, but it's also pretty straight forward. Might want to have this printed off or open on your phone as you go through the process though.

I'd say look through steam pc catalog and compare the to the meager Mac catalog and ask yourself one more time if you really want to buy a Mac if you are truly and avid pc gamer.

You do realize that you have to trade in your yacht for a smaller yacht if you move from a PC to a Mac for gaming, right?

Out of your two options, I'm going to have to go with PC.

@Hizang said:

I have an iMac and I love it, but if you want an iMac keep in mind there are hardly any games that support Mac.

You should have Windows on as Boot Camp anyway, the Mac versions of games always run worse than their Windows counterparts. Always.

@Razorlution said:

I have always been a PC owner, so if I choose to get a Mac, it will be my first. I am an avid gamer, and mostly play Blizzard games. But I would use Parallels so that I have the best of both worlds. Through the research I have done, it seems that the Mac Pro is generally used for people that do video editing and so forth, and your general iMac is just a general computer.

I am curious what would be my best fit, I want to play my games on the best settings and dont mind spending a few bucks if necessary. The comparable PCs I have looked at, have been comparable pricewise to the Mac Pro I configured. I am also not sure if an iMac can even be upgraded, ie...Video Cards, Ram, etc. Whereas the Pro is.

This will be something that I want to have for 3-4 years without having to purchase another computer.

I look forward to all your suggestions, and thank you for taking the time to help me out

Mac Pros are for people doing serious, heavy encoding and such, not gaming. You never buy a Mac Pro with the intention of gaming.

Custom build and get a powerful gaming PC for 1/3 of the price. Otherwise, iMac. I don't think the iMac is even a very good value for money proposition, the 27" model is okay because the screen is fantastic, but the others? Not so much.

Funnily enough the Mac laptops are the best deals because having great screens, touchpads and keyboards is pretty rare for a single laptop to have, but the MacBooks all nail it.

Edit: Also Mac Pros are hardly upgradeable, you do know you are restricted in what you can get right? You have to get Mac specific video cards, they aren't common. (though in some cases you can buy the PC model and flash it, I believe)

PC is the correct choice for gaming.

Macs are for production work and hipsters.