Between Apple releasing Boot Camp, which enables dual-booting OS X and Windows XP (or Linux) on an Intel Mac, and the new Parallels Workstation, which allows running Windows or Linux (apparently at near-native speeds) from within OS X, (and rumors that this functionality will actually be built into the next version of OS X) I’m ready for an Intel Mac now!
Windows XP is reported to run smoking fast on the Intel Macs, and there’s even video of someone playing Half-Life 2 on an iMac and getting damn good framerates at high settings. Even F.E.A.R. and Oblivion are reported to run extremely well on MacBooks. Yummy.
Realistically though, it’s not quite time yet. Too much of my music and design software is not updated for the Intel chips yet, which is a huge hurdle. Also, if I were to get a MacBook it would be as a potential desktop replacement, for which I want the big 17″ high-res display. These don’t exist yet, so it’s worth waiting. I’m also thinking it’s worth waiting for the desktop systems to start coming out. How great would it be to sell both my Dual-G5 Mac and Falcon NW desktops and replace them with one system? It could be booted into OS X for all my usual day-to-day stuff, or booted into Win XP for all my gaming needs! So long as it will be compatible with the latest and greatest graphics cards, I don’t see any reason this wouldn’t be possible.
Time will tell. I can be patient for a few more months. *grin*