W10 vs W7 vs iMac Sierra

DougStewart

DougStewart

Greetings All.
I'm just starting; going to buy a new hardware set up to trade emini SP500 on TradeStation.
What do y'all think of a PC system from tradingcomputers.com (Falcon) with Windows 10 home 64 bit versus same with Windows 7 64 bit (both a little over $2K with everything), versus iMac 27" i7 with Sierra OS ($3.4k+ with everything) and Windows emulator Parallels?
I want to avoid hardware and OS ongoing upgrade problems for, say, 3 years. But the premium for Apple seems not worth it. Still I read scary threads about MS Windows & related troubles.
 
Also, go with a PC in my opinion. Almost all trading related programs require windows and I don't care for buying crazy expensive Macs just to emulate windows.

Also don't get too hung up on needing massive PC stats to trade. If you are doing heavy backtesting and optimization maybe but simple point and click trading about any new PC will do the trick IMO.

Most importantly, just remember that a fancy new computer will not elevate your trading skills or otherwise increase your edge.
 
I agree. Trading computer is over-rated. Think about it, if having the fastest PC was an edge, the gamers would be making all the money. You're not competing against HFT and even the $150 Walmart laptop could run TradeStation.

Also, I'd stay the hell away from Apple. Their PCs are a waste of money and they drop OS support after a few years. You can buy much better specs for a lot cheaper by getting a PC instead. Also, you wouldn't want to be running Windows emulation from inside the OS. Dual boot would be a better setup if you decide to go that route. It was possible many years ago, but not sure how Apple has locked down their BIOS / firmware and possibly prevented that. Wouldn't be surprised if they blocked that route off completely as they are control freaks. Also, Windows 10 is a piece of garbage. Unless you want your PC to be more like your phone, stick with Windows 7 for as long as you can. There is a reason they had to give away Windows 10.
 
algofy said:
Spec out your computer at those expensive trading computer sites and then go to computerlx.com and create the exact same computer. They will build it for you and save a ton of money.
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Thanks Algofy, I chickened out. I saw the site, spec'd a similar machine which would be hundreds cheaper. But I finally ordered from http://www.tradingcomputers.com/index.html . I felt I might miss something trying to spec a PC without really knowing what I should. The one I ordered will have some software on it to optimize CPU usage for trading. I got a 3 yr wty, a back up HD. I also, reluctantly, got W10 so I won't be left hanging when they don't support W7 anymore. The sales guy said they haven't had problems with W10 for the last 8-9 months. Hopefully this set up will last 3 years til I find out whether or not I can make it as a day-trader.
 
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