Apple Mac Pro Dual-Core Xeon 5150 2.66 GHz

Pros: Massive speed, next gen hardware, perfect for any true multitasking professional

Cons: below average GPU, hard drives aren't 10k RPM

Summary: I bought the quad 2.66 ghz model with 2 gigs of ram and thus far it has served me exceptionally well. I'm an experienced computer tech / designer with roughly 13 years of experience. Machines packing less power just can't meet my needs as far as tasking out the multitude of applications I use when I'm designing a website, editing gigabyte sized image files, or working with video and the fact of the matter is I don't necessarily want to be forced to dedicate everything I have power wise to just one application. This is especially the case if I'm using two or more of those programs in conjunction with each other to create a specific final product so this machine is perfect for me. It's not necessarily something one would recommend to an average web surfer / emailer but that should be apparent in the price tag. As for it not having a wireless card, that should be expected seeing as it weighs a ton and will more than likely be stationary for any professional who is using it. Wireless isn't secure, nor is it as fast as a wired ethernet connection so the reasoning behind excluding it is acceptable. What isn't acceptable, however, is the fact that apple decided to use 7200 rpm hard drives instead of 10k as well as the fact that it comes stock with a substandard nvidia GPU chipset. Other than that, this system is perfect. Upgrades are easy, the internals of the case are extremely organized and there is much more room for airflow than the previous G5. Installing memory is as easy as pulling out one of the riser cards and popping it in. Hard drive installation is so easy a 4 year old could do it. Bravo Apple. Lastly, there has been some talk about this computer having a lot of power which it might not necessarily be capable of fully facilitating when it comes to multiprocessing in programs that are not yet designed to take advantage of it, but the fact is that many professional programs have been authored in the past to take advantage of dual and quad chipsets from the old G5's so its only a matter of time before they're rewritten as universal binaries. With heat issues rapidly becoming the barrier between processor / mobo manufacturers and higher clock speeds it only makes sense that multiple core processing would be the next logical step in the progression of computer evolution so its only a matter of time before it becomes the standard. I recommend this computer to any professional looking for the next level.