Apple quietly refreshes iMac line, now up to 3.06GHz

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  • Reply 21 of 362
    benroethigbenroethig Posts: 2,782member
    Well, at least I know what's replacing by rev. A aluminum iMac either this fall or next spring.
  • Reply 22 of 362
    zengazenga Posts: 267member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by json View Post


    These look like nice updates. And the Swedish prices have also been adjusted in the right direction.

    It's interesting to see that the new 3.06 with wireless keyboard/mouse and 750GB HD is about 20% cheaper than my 24" white iMac with 2.33 GHz, 2 GB memory, wireless keyboard/mouse and the better graphics card was when I bought it two years ago. I guess the value of the dollar also "works in our favour".....



    Maybe it's time to upgrade from the white iMac..... but on the other hand I'm still hoping they will introduce a 30" model....



    buy a 50" bravia and attach a mac mini to it!



  • Reply 23 of 362
    zengazenga Posts: 267member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ascii View Post


    No glossy/matte screen choice. Customer feedback not reaching engineers.



    aye!

  • Reply 24 of 362
    asciiascii Posts: 5,936member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by wtbard View Post


    Are all of the new ones just glossy? Weren't some of the previous version matte? (I may be confusing the iMac with the MacBook Pro) My big complaint with the glossy is I see things behind me which is distracting.



    Yes, you are thinking of the MacBook Pro. There is a choice of screen on that but not the iMac.
  • Reply 25 of 362
    Hi all this is my first post here. I have been checking this site almost daily for around a year so I figure I should post here. This refresh looks pretty good. But I still wont be repalcing my iMac G5 with isight.
  • Reply 26 of 362
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ascii View Post


    No glossy/matte screen choice. Customer feedback not reaching engineers.



    Just take the glass off the front. and you have matte finish.
  • Reply 27 of 362
    akanbeakanbe Posts: 15member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ascii View Post


    No glossy/matte screen choice. Customer feedback not reaching engineers.



    Yeppers. I wonder if the 20" is still the same screen with the uneven brightness and other problems?
  • Reply 28 of 362
    posnerposner Posts: 13member
    [QUOTE=wizard69;1245076]Last I knew registration in a college



    [quote]

    and wouldn't the base 2.4ghz be adequate or should i spend the extra for more processor??

    Quote:

    If you are buying for long term get the fastest processor you can afford.



    Dave



    Processor speed definitely helps, but here is where you can quickly get routed up the price chart because Apple bundles faster processors with slightly upgraded features across the line -- so in the 20" line, $300 gets you an extra .266GHz speed (~11% increase), but also 1GB RAM, 70GB HD and a slightly better video card. To get any faster, you pay $300 to buy another .134GHz speed (~6% increase) but must move up to 24" monitor. So yes, more speed is great, but you quickly start paying for lots of other stuff that you might not want or that will certainly be cheaper to buy separately later (RAM, HD). Even the base model should be fine for elementary school work for 5+ years. If one of them gets really into processor-intensive multimedia, then you'll be in better shape to spring for whatever Apple is selling 5yrs from now.
  • Reply 29 of 362
    wizard69wizard69 Posts: 13,377member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by posner View Post




    The tasks most likely to tax an aging iMac are heavy photo and video editing and storage. Fortunately those tasks are not common in elementary school.



    Well you hope not do realize that the usage of computers in schools has changed and will continue to change. While I don't know the age group we are talking about here it is not to difficult to imagine a kid taking a photography class or having a video project to deal with. Even with these though you will not tax the iMac that much.





    I liked your arguments about RAM and memory, but in my mind your suggestion to go low end with Apple hardware is a bit off base. You go up a model or two not for the RAM and disk space offered, which as you point out gets cheaper every year, but for the processor speed. Like video RAM not easy to update so it pays to get the faster machine if you expect to have it around for the long haul.



    The question of course for this specific issue is just how fast will software and the users outgrow the processor speed of a base unit. The problem is you can't predict when or how that will happen, but you can give your self as much breathing room as possible. As an example some time ago I built up a Linux machine which I thought was a pretty good value even if the processor was modest. That Linux box worked pretty good through (1) one upgrade of the OS after which it was noticeably under powered.



    Now I'm not trying to say that Apple will evolve it OS in a way that will outstrip the ability of todays processors to deliver good performance in 4 years. Just that you don't really know what will happen and the difference between the slowest and fastest processor 4 to 6 years down the road could be significant. Considering you can't normally upgrade an iMacs processor it is something to think about.



    Dave
  • Reply 30 of 362
    wizard69wizard69 Posts: 13,377member
    Guys I think this is one of the best updates Apple has produced in a long long time. If it wasn't for just buying a Mac Book Pro I think I'd be in line for one right now.



    There is already some speculation that this might be Montevina, due to the bus speeds and clock rates. Not sure if that is the case or not but either way this is more than just a modest update. Appel should really be able to drive a lot of sales with this revision for the next 6 months or so.



    Dave
  • Reply 31 of 362
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by tdhockeyfan424 View Post


    today I ordered my new iMac 24" 2.4ghz with 2gb of ram and got the wireless keyboard and mouse.



    I am wondering if apple updates the iMacs can I send mine in becuase I probably won't get mine for 3-5 days and the updates would come on Tuesday.



    If I can send it I'm what do I have to do and how can I do it.



    Also if they changes the ram to 2gb standard do I get 100 back because I updated it



    Please help



    I am assuming you come to this site often. So why would you order an iMac if you knew a refresh was coming?
  • Reply 32 of 362
    shanmugamshanmugam Posts: 1,200member
    where we can find all these CPUs in intel site?



    all of them seems to be special order from Apple to intel...



    these are desktop cpus or next generation notebook cpus.



    good upgrades!
  • Reply 33 of 362
    backtomacbacktomac Posts: 4,579member
    Is it me or are the chips in this refresh from the Montevina platform?



    If so looks like Apple got them a bit early.
  • Reply 34 of 362
    jsonjson Posts: 54member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Zenga View Post


    buy a 50" bravia and attach a mac mini to it!











    Bring on the 3.06 GHz, 750GB HD, nVidia 8800 Mini and I will remodel the bedroom to make room for the Bravia!

    And oh yeah, a better yen exchange rate too please.
  • Reply 35 of 362
    ros3ntanros3ntan Posts: 201member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by tdhockeyfan424 View Post


    today I ordered my new iMac 24" 2.4ghz with 2gb of ram and got the wireless keyboard and mouse.



    I am wondering if apple updates the iMacs can I send mine in becuase I probably won't get mine for 3-5 days and the updates would come on Tuesday.



    If I can send it I'm what do I have to do and how can I do it.



    Also if they changes the ram to 2gb standard do I get 100 back because I updated it



    Please help



    call them and tell them your problem. Customer is always right
  • Reply 36 of 362
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by roehlstation View Post


    Just take the glass off the front. and you have matte finish.



    Or use steel wool.
  • Reply 37 of 362
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by backtomac View Post


    Is it me or are the chips in this refresh from the Montevina platform?



    If so looks like Apple got them a bit early.



    Yeah, I highly doubt Apple is shipping desktop processors - that would be too good in terms of cost/performance. I bet this is PC6400 200-PIN RAM don't get your hopes up for desktop RAM, we'd be at a 1.33GHz BUS for both the processor and the RAM.
  • Reply 38 of 362
    So are these Montevina chips?
  • Reply 39 of 362
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    What are the model numbers of these chips. A cursory looks suggests Penryn's lower power consumption?and thus subsequent heat output?allowed Apple to use desktop-grade C2Ds in the iMac. This would allow for a better bump in speed and slightly lower price of the chip.
  • Reply 40 of 362
    posnerposner Posts: 13member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by wizard69 View Post


    Well you hope not do realize that the usage of computers in schools has changed and will continue to change. While I don't know the age group we are talking about here it is not to difficult to imagine a kid taking a photography class or having a video project to deal with. Even with these though you will not tax the iMac that much.





    I liked your arguments about RAM and memory, but in my mind your suggestion to go low end with Apple hardware is a bit off base. You go up a model or two not for the RAM and disk space offered, which as you point out gets cheaper every year, but for the processor speed. Like video RAM not easy to update so it pays to get the faster machine if you expect to have it around for the long haul.



    The question of course for this specific issue is just how fast will software and the users outgrow the processor speed of a base unit. The problem is you can't predict when or how that will happen, but you can give your self as much breathing room as possible. As an example some time ago I built up a Linux machine which I thought was a pretty good value even if the processor was modest. That Linux box worked pretty good through (1) one upgrade of the OS after which it was noticeably under powered.



    Now I'm not trying to say that Apple will evolve it OS in a way that will outstrip the ability of todays processors to deliver good performance in 4 years. Just that you don't really know what will happen and the difference between the slowest and fastest processor 4 to 6 years down the road could be significant. Considering you can't normally upgrade an iMacs processor it is something to think about.



    Dave



    The original poster's question was about kids who will be in elementary school over the next 5 years. My 6th grader is currently having a great time playing with Final Cut Express on our 2yr old iMac -- far beyond anything required by his school. I realize schools are going more multimedia, but I'm confident today's base iMac will handle anything required of elementary kids over the next 5yrs. So here's my bottom line: if money is no object, by all means get the fastest possible beast ($2199 for the 3.06GHz with all the extras). But the base model ($1199) will likely be MORE than enough for young kids for several years. In 4 years, you can then take that $1000 you saved (perhaps doubled or tripled if invested in AAPL!) and buy something that will be far more powerful than the maxed-out system you could buy right now.



    (I realize I'm not talking about gaming issues, but the poster was asking about schoolwork. If you want to run the hottest games at the highest speeds, then you'll absolutely benefit from the maxed-out system.)
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