Performance of iMac HD 5670

[swanysto]

Hey guys,

I was thinking about crossing over to the apple side to clean up my office a little bit. The wires everywhere are killing me, and I just don't use computers as hard core as I used to, to put up with all of them.

The only game I really play these days when I am feeling frisky is Counter Strike Source and TF2.

Will the 27" iMac with this video card be able to handle these games relatively easily? I am not too familiar with Mac performance.

TIA

 

[TheStu]

It should be able to, but the current word on the web is that iMac supplies are dwindling which usually precedes a refresh. Expect them to get 6000 series AMD cards or the equivalent as well as Sandy Bridge processors.

 

[ViRGE]

A 5670 is going to struggle with TF2 at the iMac's native resolution, but at a lower resolution it should be peachy.

 

[KeithP]

As TheStu said, new iMacs are not far off so I would wait. However, here are some benchmarks for the current hardware.
http://www.barefeats.com/imac10g.html

-KeithP

 

[Hellhammer]

ATI 5670 = ATI Mobility 5730

27" iMac with ATI 4850 (aka 4850M) runs TF2 at 2560x1600 at maximum settings and gets around 50FPS. While 5730M is much slower (up to 50% in some benchmarks), I would expect it to be able to handle TF2 at 2560x1600 at low settings at least with acceptable FPS. At 1920x1080, you should be able to run it at medium or high settings.

Consider 2.8GHz i5 with ATI 5750 refurb though, it costs the same as brand new low-end 27" iMac. Refurbs are as good as new so don't worry about that part. It gets you a quad core CPU and much speedier GPU so you don't have to worry about games.

 

[swanysto]

Thanks for the replies guys. I guess I will wait and see what pops up in the new ones. It is kind of disappointing my two-three year old hardware runs it without a problem, but I guess apple doesn't revolve around me and my games, so I can't really complain. I guess fitting a really nice video card into that small area is a pretty tough thing to do as well.

 

[TheStu]

Thanks for the replies guys. I guess I will wait and see what pops up in the new ones. It is kind of disappointing my two-three year old hardware runs it without a problem, but I guess apple doesn't revolve around me and my games, so I can't really complain. I guess fitting a really nice video card into that small area is a pretty tough thing to do as well.

Exactly. Certain things need to be sacrificed if you want to play in Apple's sandbox. Updates are on their schedule, and there is nowhere else to go to get a significantly different price. There is no HP to Apple's Dell.

However, you generally get pretty good hardware, that for the exception of games will run really really well. I mean, the 27" IPS panel in the iMac is just a sight to behold, and if you want that sort of display as a standalone, it will cost you $1000 (not just from Apple, from anyone). So, you are looking at it and thinking 'Gosh, $2000 for that? I can build something 3x better for half the cost' just remember it is actually a $1000 computer strapped to a $1000 display.

 

[swanysto]

Exactly. Certain things need to be sacrificed if you want to play in Apple's sandbox. Updates are on their schedule, and there is nowhere else to go to get a significantly different price. There is no HP to Apple's Dell.

However, you generally get pretty good hardware, that for the exception of games will run really really well. I mean, the 27" IPS panel in the iMac is just a sight to behold, and if you want that sort of display as a standalone, it will cost you $1000 (not just from Apple, from anyone). So, you are looking at it and thinking 'Gosh, $2000 for that? I can build something 3x better for half the cost' just remember it is actually a $1000 computer strapped to a $1000 display.

You are right, the display is gorgeous. I played with it in store, which is why I came here to find out a little more. The money doesn't bother me so much, and I realize the other all-in-ones do not compare to them as of yet. The only thing keeping me idle is it not being able to play my games. I guess I will keep my eye out for the new models.