going shopping

[sickyute]

So i'm about to buy a desktop. I don't know if i want to buy a mac or a PC.
I'm leaning towards a imac with these specs:

Specifications
24" screen
2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Extreme
2GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB
500GB Serial ATA Drive (don't need much storage here cuz i'll be using external sources)
SuperDrive 8x (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Apple wireless Mighty Mouse
Apple Wireless Keyboard (English) + Mac OS X
Accessory kit
ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO with 256MB memory
24-inch glossy widescreen LCD
AirPort Extreme
Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR
price is about $2350 and i will add 2 more GB or ram later

i'm also thinking about buying a PC but not sure which brand i want to go with. The only thing i know is that it will be equipped similar to the imac.

This desktop will not be a workhorse. will be used for regular browsing of the internet, some word processing, picture uploads + media station use etc.

So should i stay with the imac or get a pc keeping in mind i need them both to access + control a soon to be constructed network with full wireless media capabilies/streaming.

i already know my windoze laptop will be capable as pc's are almost 100% compatible with whatever is out there.

also what wireless media sharing/streaming device would u recommend for a all in one if u choose the mac or the pc? i need lots of space

PS: if u choose the imac keep in mind i have a windows laptop when recommending a media station as to avoid compatability issues.

[FunkPnut]

I'm a mac guy, so I'm obviously going to suggest the iMac. My sister just got one and loves it. The screen is amazing.

A PC is going to be cheaper and will do all the things that you ask too. I don't have any recommendations for desktops as I can only suggest building your own, which if you haven't should consider trying if you're somewhat tech savvy.

My personal opinion and experience with wireless media sharing/streaming is that you should hardwire whatever device to your router. This will make transfer and streaming faster/smoother. Make sure your router is well placed and fast.

If you have a dedicated media center PC/extender, either hard wire it (ethernet over power line adaptors are great if you can't actually run cable, but a bit spendy) or use an A+G router and dedicate the A channel to that device. Wireless N is also an option.

Apple makes a router that has a hard drive built-in. Other manufacturers have similar types of routers or have USB ports to add an external hard drive. I've heard these can be slow or finicky.

You could use your desktop that you will get to host the files and share them out to your laptop. Then you are cutting out extra costs except for more hard drive space.

You could always use an old computer as a file server and load it up with hard drives, preferably in RAID 5 or at the bare minimum, RAID 1. Old Apple G4 towers are perfect for file servers and can be found for cheap.

Also, check out Drobo. These are pretty sweet and allow for data redundancy similar to RAID w/o the need for matching hard drives. They just came out with a new one that is a lot cheaper than the original and uses a gigabit ethernet interface instead of USB. I've only used the USB version though, but the new one looks very promising.

Finally, if you really want to go above and beyond, Windows Home Server could be another option. These seem interesting and integrate with Windows and other Microsoft devices, such as Xbox 360. You can also access your server offsite w/o much extra setup. This is the initial version, so this might seriously suck and no I haven't tried one yet. Also, this is going to be the most expensive option.

I'm sure someone will mention a Linux server running SAMBA as well.

Hope that helps!

[sickyute]

Everything apart from the desktop and laptop will be connected via gigabit ethernet ports unless i run out of ports.

The network will be N1 though.

What is the best N router out there?
I had one of the new belkin N vision and wasn't satisfied with it at all as it was having serious compatibility issues with my laptop even if i was using the belkin wireless card designed for it or not ... just when i thought i figured out the problem if acted up again. not even the geek squad could rectify it.
So again what's the best N router according to experience or reviews?

what are the advantages of using gaming routers?
I always thought they weren't necessary but am i wrong?
My ps3 + xbox360 are connected via gigabit ports ... would it benefit to have a gaming router?

i'm seriously eying the 1TB time capsule. Seems like a good all in one device.
i don't think i'll ever need more than 1TB of memory unless i decide to start saving blu rays/dvds to my hard drive(doesn't sound like a bad idea).

this is what i think will happen. Please tell me if it's good thinking/planning.

-imac desktop as described, though not set in stone (wireless connection)
-current pc laptop (wireless connection)
-comcast cable(currently the fastest option is south florida) pushing a "N" router (let me know if gaming router is better)
-router may be the 1TB time capsule (unless i'm recommended a better solution)
-attached to the router will be a ps3, xbox360, apple tv (just cuz i like to have gadgets lol)- thinking about attaching a usb external to the apple tv for even more storage if i decide to save dvds to it or just to have more options.

if i'm not going to be using the 1TB time capsule then i'm guessing it will be a regular gaming/non gaming router which means all the above will be connected to it but then i'll need another storage device.

windows home server seems good. been looking at it for some time now. would make everything very simple. Is it compatible with macs though?
I don't think it is cuz i can't find any info. that says it is. everything seems to mention PC this or that. I don't see why i shouldn't be as it's just basically a storage/streaming device. Just need to be sure before i go spending.

so u know the hardware stuff
imac, pc laptop, ps3, xbox360, apple tv
need best "n" router for the above + networking streaming/storage solution.

build me a couple systems/solutions/options.

PS: i'm pretty tech savy, i'm just not interested in building my own pc as it's not going to be that seriously worked/used. Haven't been keeping up with the "best" stuff electronic wise lately either so i'm kinda out of the loop right now atleast where networking is concerned.

I NEED OPTIONS!!!

[FunkPnut]

I think Time Capsule would be a good choice. The only thing I don't like about it is that it doesn't have data redundancy in case the hard drive dies.

There aren't enough reviews on the internet to judge whether this will work great for media streaming or not, so you will be a guinea pig. But I don't see why there would be any issues since its wireless N and has a supposed server grade hard drive directly integrated.

You've heard my other suggestions, so really we need someone else to chime in with their thoughts.

Let me know if you end up getting one.

[sickyute]