Buying for a designer is like buying clothes for a fashion model, but we'll do our best.
The design community has long had an affinity for Macs, but today, both PCs and Macs offer a stable and powerful platform for running intensive graphics apps.
Three key pieces of hardware to keep an eye on
Processor: You don't need the speediest, but choose one toward the high end.
Hard drive: Get one or maybe two that are fast (7,200rpm or, better yet, 10,000rpm) and roomy.
Graphics card: A current midrange graphics card such as one from Nvidia's just-announced GeForce 6600 line or ATI's Radeon X600 delivers the pixel-pushing goods for designers. Only gamers need to outlay $500 for a top-of-the-line card.
Our favorites
If you go the Mac route, we suggest the
Power Mac G5 for its dual-processing power and upgradability.
For PCs, we like:
MPC ClientPro 545
Polywell 939VF-FX53
Velocity Micro ProMagix PCX
MORE RESOURCES
Send feedback
E-mail to a friend
See the next question
