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2017 quad-core i7 vs. 2020 6-core i5

I am trying to decide on a long-term replacement machine, as my current one is starting to have all kinds of issues.

Current machine

• iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Late 2014)

• Processor: 4 GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i7

• Memory: 32 GB 1600 MHz DDR3

• Storage: 512GB SSD

• Graphics: AMD Radeon R9 M295X 4 GB

I'm looking at these two machines.

Option 1 - Refurbished 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K display (originally released June 2017)

• Processor: 4.2GHz quad-core Intel Core i7

• Memory: 64GB of 2400MHz DDR4 memory

• Storage: 2TB SSD

• Graphics: Radeon Pro 580 with 8GB video memory

Option 2 - New 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K display

• Processor: 3.7GHz 6-core 9th-generation Intel Core i5 processor

• Memory: 64GB of 2666MHz DDR4 memory

• Storage: 512GB SSD

• Graphics: Radeon Pro Vega 48 with 8GB of HBM2 memory

What I use my computer for

• Illustrator/Photoshop/Indesign/AfterEffects

• Very complex layered vector documents is where I spent most of my days (my current machine starts to slow noticeably if there are a lot of vector details - textures, brushes, patterns, etc.)

• AfterEffects - learning basics for now, but hoping to dive a lot further into animation (hence the longevity part of my question)

Prices are very similar. Either one will be my main machine for at least 5 years, if not more. And...I am not quite sure what to go for in terms of capabilities and longevity.

Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks y'all! :)

Posted on Apr 6, 2020 10:17 AM

2017 quad-core i7 vs. 2020 6-core i5

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