The use of Macs has dominated the graphic design industry for many years
The best computers for graphic design offer extreme computing power and speed, plus system reliability and graphic excellence. For many years Mac computers have remained the choice for visually creative professionals. Whatever system a person chooses the basic requirements needed to meet the demands of the graphic artist remain the same---superior performance, system stability and ease of use.
Mac Pro
The Mac Pro features advanced chip architecture designed to speed up data retrieval and boost clock speeds when used with labor-intensive software such as graphic design programs. The Mac Pro also has the ability to connect up to eight monitors to one unit. The Mac Pro 8-core 2.93 GHz model rates 1.2x faster when using Adobe Photoshop CS4 than the previous Mac Pro 8-core 3.2 GHz model. The Mac Pro supports up to 32 GB of main memory, has a choice of Intel Xeon 8-core or quad-core processers with up to 3.33 GHz speed and supports up to 8TB of internal hard drive space. The Mac Pro also features four firewire 800 ports, five USB 2.0 ports and three PCI expansion slots. The two available video cards support up to 2560 by 1600 pixels in digital resolution and 2048 by 1536 pixels in analog resolution. As of April 2010 the base quad-core model starts at $2,499.00 while the base 8-core model starts at 3,299.00. (See references 1.)
27-inch iMac
With its 27-inch backlit LED screen, choice of Intel i5 or i7 processor and ATI Radeon graphics card, the 27-inch iMac offers graphic designers a combination of form and function. The 27-inch iMac features up to a 2.8GHz processor with turbo boost up to 3.4 GHz, supports up to 16GB of internal ram and comes standard with a 1TB internal hard drive that can get upgraded to 2TB. The 16:9 aspect ratio of the 27-inch screen manages 2560 by 1440 pixels and can be wall-mounted or attached to an articulating arm. The unit also features build-in Airport Extreme wireless networking and Bluetooth wireless technology for fast data transmission to and from Bluetooth-enabled devices. As of April 2010 the base 27-inch iMac with quad-core processing starts at $1,999. (See References 2.)
Dell Precision T7500 64-bit
The basic Dell Precision T7500 computer must get configured to meet the demands of graphic design software and designers, but once configured the unit has the processing power to fulfill most tasks. The T7500 was designed for heavy-duty use by architects, analyst, graphic designers and other software-intensive users. The basic unit features a dual-core Intel 1.86GHz processor, 2Gb of DDR3 memory and a 256MB ATI video card and a 250GB internal hard drive. Dell recommends the 64-bit Windows 7 operating system for this unit. As of April 2010 this unit with the features specified retails for $1,387.00. (See References 3.)
