"I’m trying to determine if I really need a new Mac."
That’s really up to you and how much and/or big images you deal with.
Jaguar and Photoshop on older G4’s work (surprisingly) just fine.
Works great on a G3! I’m overjoyed by it.
I run the tryout version of CS on a 7300 upgraded to a G4/700, 1Gig RAM. OS 10.3.2. My usual file size are around 200 Mb 16 bit.
The healing brush IS a downgrade from 7, it’s slow.
For the rest if you are not in a hurry, i’d say that it run very smooth. The most important thing I think is to have plenty of scratch disk space (15 Gig min. not on the same disk as the system) and a healthy system. No rocket science here. And of course the most RAM you can stuff in your box.
The new file browser is well worth the upgrade in my opinion.
So it all depend on what you intend to do. Sunday hobby or serious well paid contract?
Trouble is, you have to try it. Run your work on a G5 for a few hours then go back…
No way a G5 is not worth it if you are working a large number of hours professionally in PS.
It’s always good to get a new Mac.
However, you should be fine with your system, and that’s the beauty of it all. I would suggest getting more ram even though you have a good amount, but more will always benefit the system and PS CS.
I’m on a dual 450 G4 but my friend has a single and he’s doing fine with it.
