Apple iMac 27in
For those of you who revel in Mac versus Windows shouting matches, click the Comments link now. You’ve already made up your minds, so feel free to dive into the debate without reading the review. That’s what you normally do, anyway. Apple iMac 27in Widescreen viewing: Apple's iMac 27in If you’re still with me, let me confirm …
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Numpad is an option, but you lose the wireless
Yes you can have a numpad, but you lose the wireless. Rather spoils the look, I think.
The Fn and Control keys are only on the left side. So a simple "Del" operation requires two hands rather than one. Other operations require three keys instead of two. It's needless productivity-bashing.
Typical example: if you're bouncing around an Excel sheet, Ctrl-End takes you to the bottom-right corner, Alt-PgDn moves one page to the right, Ctrl-PgDn moves to the next tab. On a standard PC keyboard - even on most laptop keyboards - you can do all those with just your right hand. The same operation on the Mac wireless keyboard needs two hands.
If you're a leftie, that means taking your left hand off the mouse, pressing the Fn key, then trying to remember which combo means PgUp and which combo means Home, then putting your left hand back on the mouse.
I have both an iMac and a PC, and I consistently find that I'm more productive on the PC. The Mac is fine for surfing the internet and for media consumption, but little annoyances like the keyboard and the over-sensitive mouse are too tedious for getting work done. (And don't get me started on the glare from those glossy screens!)
@Buzzword
"On a standard PC keyboard - even on most laptop keyboards - you can do all those with just your right hand"
Maybe, but not all of us need to pick our noses while scrolling around a spreadsheet.
As a developer who has to jump back and forth a lot between sections of code I have no problem issue with using key combinations for scrolling.
Oh and over sensitive mouse? Turn the sensitivity settings down FFS :-S
What is Firewire800 for?
On any but the latest kit the fastest port on a muiti-interface external HD will be the Firewire 800 port, outperforming USB2. You've surely not replaced all of these around the office with now-obsolete USB3 external HDs have you?
status item
Its a shame that most of these will be bought as status items and never do much "real" work other than amuse people with youtube videos and viewing twitter and facebook udpates
Your choice
We went to an Apple store to get my wife an iMac.
I wanted to spec it up to the 27" screen & faster CPU, to give it a bit of headroom against unspecified future needs. The Apple store person asked her what she wanted to do (email, browsing, photo edits, music library), and proposed the low end of the line.
That was 3 years ago, IIRC. I doubt they would've stopped us from spending too much if we insisted, but it's not like they're sinisterly trying to drain our wallets.
BTW, we have since blown another $50 or so to add RAM; that's about as much upgrading as is likely for such a well-integrated box. A hard disk failure in the warrantee period is a no-cost non-issue, and out of warrantee a relatively minor expense. Whereas the integrated temperature sensor is an advance in protecting the drives from failing in the first place.
Temperature Sensors?
I think you'll find that most hard disks have had temperature sensors built in for quite a long time now... Apple aren't interested in keeping your documents safe, they're interested in selling you overpriced replacement components.
Similar experience here
Apple store staff really don't seem to want to sell you the most expensive mac they can: they go out of the way to match the computer to your needs. The guy in the Trafford Centre store saved me about £500 when I went to get a laptop there a few years back. Went all fired up to get a MacBook Pro, came away with a black MacBook (ie slightly faster CPU and bigger hard drive than base model), and it's been just what I needed, and some. Upshot is I'm likely to go back because I *didn't* get ripped off.
Yes, but no
Outwardly attractive? yes, undeniably.
But wedded as I am to the Windows platform, I feel it would be a bit too much of a fashion statement just to run itunes on, or watch DVDs.
For £1600, I could no doubt buy something powerful though pug-ugly, a separate TV for the lounge, NAS for all our files and backups, take the missus out for a nice meal, my offspring and their friends to the cinema, and the Blakes 7 boxset with enough left over to try a tankful of Premium unleaded petrol.
Maybe..
I think your pushing it a bit with the tankful of Premium Unleaded.
Best put yourself down for another telly instead.
yes but no but yes
you're probably right in what you could do with the money except possible a tankful of premium petrol - have you seen what that costs today ????
wrong demographic
Its a WORKSTATION, not generic PC, and comes with an $800-1K 1440v IPS panel. You're paying a $4-500 premium for a screen with high resolution, not just extra inches. Add a similar screen to any generic $1100 SB PC equivalent and it costs more than this iMac. You can barely build this machine from parts on NewEgg and save more than $200 off the retail price, and sacrifice TB and a slew of options in the process.
I don't own one. I'm a Windows and Unix systems analyst by trade, and have custom built my own rigs for 20 years. Still, this machine interests me greatly. For the price point, it has everything i want and more (including that screen). If all you want is 1080p content and web browsing, then you want a $600 PC and generic 24-27" screen, not this machine, so don;t buy this machine. I'm looking for something with 16GB RAM (that won't cost $1K extra to get to using 8GB chips, this has 4 RAM slots), with SSD and HDD internally and a slew of high speed external drive ports. I have eyes on a new storage chassis to replace an aging eSATA Multitap chassis, and TB fits that bill, and still lets me add my 2 existing 24" displays to the side of that 27" monster. I can not buy a tower from any major retailer, plus that 27" or similar screen, for less. Factor in that the iMac 27's from 2 years ago still clear $1K easy on ebay, some $1500, means I could replace this iMac every 2 years with a newer better one for less than I average spending overhauling out-of-warranty custom towers, and without all the hassle. Plus, it will run OS X, Windows 7, and Linux (and all at the same time if I want) which can not be done on any generic PC at all.
Yes but, no but...
I managed to finally convice my bosses to swap the PC On my desk for the new 21 inch iMac. The clincher was that the iMac was actually cheaper than our standard desktop PC which have to be rediculously specced for win7.
OS X licence
"Plus, it will run OS X, Windows 7, and Linux (and all at the same time if I want) which can not be done on any generic PC at all."
That's because Windows & Linux don't FORCE you to run on a certain hardware from a certain company. ;-)
Firewire port
Are you seriously suggesting that you can't work out why the Firewire 800 port is still there? Given that high-end iMacs and Mac Pros are fairly popular in pro and semi-pro audio and video work where external video processing hardware and audio interfaces can often be found sporting Firewire 400 or 800 interfaces as their connection method of choice? Until those external hardware manufacturers start moving more universally to USB2 (which they have only just got around to doing fairly recently in some cases) or USB3 (for preference in terms of speed/throughput) or Thunderbolt or whatever, Apple would be rather silly to remove simple Firewire support.
Of course, that doesn't mean that they won't be daft enough to do so at some point, regardless of whether it basically throws out a whole bunch of useful external hardware that their customers would still want to use.
Also, such usage tends to give some support to the argument that, as a straight-forward desktop PC for home, one of these is probably not the best value choice. (Note: contender for understatement of the decade there.)
Well, unless you really really like it and happen to be swimming in spare cash of course, in which case they're rather nice.
Exactly
USB, even 3.0, does not support the camera control protocols essential to Pro-grade video hardware, nor aidio gear. USB3 is fast, but not duplexed, and lacks core protocol stack used by pro equipment. Also, all those legacy FW HDDs that themselves don;t have USB3, well, they run a hell of a lot faster than USB2 using FW, and FW is also fully TB compatible with adapters.
This is a pro focussed box, and pros demand FW. More so than eSATA.
Wireless keyboard features
Complaining that the wireless keyboard doesn't have numerics pad or USB ports - if you don't like it why didn't you just ask for the version that does have them? The whole piece sounds like you really don't know what you are looking at or really care.
Got a point
It's not like the ones with a numpad costs any more.
Would if I could...
But apple do not make a wireless keyboard with a numpad
not a PC/Mac argument, more a practical one
I understand that you pay for the looks, that's a given in life (I've bought many a sony vaio for a few hundred extra purely because they look loads better than other lappys) but if you wanna match this machine by it's only other stand out feature, the screen, then go for the Dell 27" A04 (http://www.scan.co.uk/products/27-dell-u2711-a04-wqhd-widescreen-lcd-2560x1440-hdmi-2xdvi-d-display-port-5-xusb-8in1-reader) or any other monitor that has an IPS panel. It's no Apple magic that causes their screens to be better than all others, they just always use IPS panels.
Slight technical flaw with that
Your link is for a MONITOR only, you still need a system unit to go with that. Going to the Dell site and matching as close as I can to the iMac (XPS 8300, i5 @3.1GHz, Radion 6870 graphics, 6GB of RAM, 1.5TB HDD, wireless keyboard and mouse, WiFi & Bluetooth adaptors, Windows 7 ultimate) I get a bill of £1084, plus your £677 monitor that takes you to about £1760.
What was that about the PC being cheaper? How were you going to hide the system box and all the cables (and reduce the noise)?
@ it’s too good for you
Well that depends on whether you have kids or not .. if you have then you can neither afford nor have the time to appreciate it but if, like me, you are free of money-draining-dribbling-poo-bundles then this beautiful beast is a joy to behold. It also has an off-switch and adjustable volume, two things that ankle bitters could do with.
If my G5 croaks then I'm in the Market .. pity it keeps soldiering on though.
Hard disks.
First of all, nice review Alistair. You are bang on with the HDD criticisms. It has been a weak point of every Mac that I have owned; always too slow and never big enough for the price you pay. As a happy 24" iMac user I must say the beauty of the product is it's screen. You'd be hard pushed to find as good a screen that didn't cost the better side of £500. Take that to 27" and I bet your talking serious money. Were Apple to use cheaper screen, I've no doubt that the price would be more acceptable. Trouble is the experience wouldn't be as good and love 'em or hate 'em, Apple are all about the user experience. I've have a suspicion that the 27" iMacs aren't really for home users anyway. These machines are perfect for Apple's more traditional print design clientele, with the Mac Mini being more for your average home user.
Glossy screen
"These machines are perfect for Apple's more traditional print design clientele..."
Not with that glossy screen. Why can't they give the choice of iMacs without it, like the Macbook Pros?
HDD...
A serious bottleneck.
Anyone else agree?
I've always said this. iMacs have all the disadvantages of a laptop and desktop and arguably none of the advantages of either.
Brilliant opening
Loved the opening! Classic. I've actually jumped straight here to comment, although I am going to go back and read the article anyway.
Made my day, that did!
Wouldn't bother if I were you ...
... if you're a serious Apple fan you'll be embarrassed by the sycophantic drivel from what is possibly the worst review ever to grace the pages and if you're anti-Apple then you'll see it as a blatant challenge to flame.
You had me at....
"For those of you who revel in Mac versus Windows shouting matches, click the Comments link now. You’ve already made up your minds, so feel free to dive into the debate without reading the review. That’s what you normally do, anyway."
With this article you are spoiling us
"For those of you who revel in Mac versus Windows shouting matches, click the Comments link now. You’ve already made up your minds, so feel free to dive into the debate without reading the review. That’s what you normally do, anyway."
Oh you know us so well :) What was the article about again?
lol
I just came straight to the comments section after reading the first paragraph :)
Class comment!!!
I'm a windows user, however I dont really care what Im using as long as what I need works on it (hows that to put a spanner in the works!!)
Firewire 800 - What's it for?
You see. I did read the review first. I'll tell you what the firewire 800 port could be for. If you wanted a Drobo when they first came out but held off until there was a decent connection then the second generation Drobo was the one to get because it had Firewire 800. I did and I hope to get much more use from it, so the 800 port would be very welcome (if I wasn't already using a Mac Pro).
Don't always assume that everyone ditches all their gear every two months, just because you get yours provided free.
P.S. Shame there isn't a Firewire 400 port for my CF card reader.
here you go
https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/?tag=duckduckgo-b-20&url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=fw800%20to%20fw400
I am a Marmite fan!
Got my Core i7 3.4GHz, 12GB (I added 8GB on delivery) with 2GB HD6970 card a few weeks back and it is amazing, I looked around to see what else I could get with such a good display and spec, Dell in a tower format with seperate hi-res 27" display wanted £210 more than buying the iMac and HP, well they didn't have anything as close to the Dell but even then was starting to work out £100+ more with lower CPU and Graphics!
Really happy with my purchase and can't wait for Thunderbolt peripherals to add an external SSD and get full speed from it! With bandwidth to spare!
That Dell might have been more expensive...
but you do realise that the '6970' in your Mac is actually a MOBILE card, right, and the one in the Dell, even if it is a desktop 6850, will be faster....
All the silicone of a full fat GPU in a case with pretty much no serious venting, and it would gradually sink through your desk with all the heat.
Post your own message
Card selection aside, you do realize that the enormous slab of aluminum make a fantastic heat-sink, yes? 'Should be a decent radiator as well; not as efficient as a fan forced mass of copper fins but the much larger area would count for a lot.
Very impressive bit of kit.
I purchased the 21.5" quad-core i5 model and it goes like the proverbial off a shovel. The screen, as the reviewer noted, is a marvel. It's an excellent machine.
The screen is a marvel...
... if you like your own reflection.
Any machine with an i5 is fast... so?
Touche...
"For those of you who revel in Mac versus Windows shouting matches, click the Comments link now. You’ve already made up your minds, so feel free to dive into the debate without reading the review. That’s what you normally do, anyway."
Unfortunately I suspect you will be absolutely on the money with that comment. Personally, I suspect many will just read the price, and *then* go straight to comments...
Unfortunately
if you're going to troll your readers like that it really helps to have a review worth more than a damn. Maybe he just wanted to see if a flamewar would develop whether or not he put anything useful in the review?
FW800?
Well, D'Uh. Its so you can buy an adaptor and connect all your FW400 devices.
About the keyboard.
You're showing the US keyboard. The UK one has no hash key, and the enter key is seriously tiny and squashed up at the edge. My shiny new iMac's keyboard went onto a shelf almost immediately, and in went a Microsoft wireless USB keyboard. I suppose the keyboard's OK for the occasional email or internet search, but as a daily workhorse, forget it.
Re: About the keyboard
"You're showing the US keyboard. The UK one has no hash key"
Hash is easily typed with Alt + 3
##### <- See?
Small enter key? It's as big as either shift key, surely you can type those easily enough? Enter is, after all, typed using your *little* finger, unless you're a two-finger typist ...
The keyboard and mouse put me off
I've used one of these things in the office.
All the problems are ones of ergonomics.
Firstly, where is the on button. Answer? You have to feel 'round the back of the telly'. Is that really a good design decision? (No it isn't).
Secondly, I'm a good touch typist, but these 'laptop keyboards on the desk' things are awful. There's no concave curve to the buttons to help your fingers find their place easily and where's the numeric keypad? I can accept such compromises on a laptop which has to be thin, but on a desktop, I prefer proper full travel keyboards with a numeric keypad. Good job you can get one for a tenner these days :-)
As for the mouse, well the machine I was using belonged to my colleague. She was scrolling her browser using the scroll bars. I asked her why. She said because her mouse didn't have a mouse wheel.
Oh.. and it doesn't have an obvious second button (or a first one for that matter :-) )
Finally, the screen I used was impossibly glossy. I think there's a matt option, so I wouldn't want to complain about that - just thought I'd mention that it's best to avoid.
I do wish that ergonomics of things were more obvious. Simple things like clicking, switching on, typing etc should not need a trip to the manual.
Disagree
I type an awful lot - about 70k characters per day on average, up to 150k if necessary - and I love this type of keyboards to bits. I find them very easy to type on and less tiring than the normal type, something to do with key travel, I suppose.
The Magic Mouse, along with every other Apple mouse, though, is a giant heap of steaming fail.
lol
"Secondly, I'm a good touch typist"
Yes, so am I, and I have no problem on laptop keyboards, massive old HP keyboards, huge clanky 80s Microsoft keyboards, Dell's cheapo plastic keyboards, or Apple's flashy bluetooth keyboards.
Maybe you're just not quite good enough at touch-typing?
On-off round the back?
Have you ever had a kid sit in front of a screen where there are buttons facing them - especially and on-off button?
No. I thought not.
Why is it so important to you that it's easy to see? You press it to turn it on on a Monday morning and that's it 'til going home on Friday (and you don't use it to turn tha machine off anyway) Good design decision? Yes it is.
You comment about the keyboard being no good for touch-typing is OK - for you. I've plenty of clients who claim that it's the best keyboard they've used in years for touch-typing.
Personally I prefer the loget wire keyboard because I use the number keys a lot and over the years have gone away from using the top row.
The mouse is definitely love/hate. Some of my clients think it's fabulous, I'm not so convinced (but it looks great!)
On the screen - I do think it looks amazing but I do wish is wasn't so shiny. However, a good design studio will not be equipped with bright lights everywhere so it is not quite the problem that some claim.
I'm not sure why you would need a trip to the manual to find out how to click. That strikes me as the comment of a person who has no idea what a mouse is for or has lived in a cave since 1984.
You're just too poor.
If you can't afford a Mac, then you are simply too poor. That's all. Get a better job or a second or third job.
The problem of any other PC is that it is NOT a Mac. It will NEVER run as sweetly, easily, quietly, beautifuly, virus-free, as worry-free and as asthetically pleasing as a Mac.
Other PCs are simply UGLY. They just don't get the design LOVE that is given to a Mac.
get on-site support
My wife was not pleased when she had trouble with anti-virus software, and had to take it back to the shop (3 trips) to have the software disentangled. 27inches didn't carry well under her arm.
AV?
And what did she need AV software for on a Mac?
Because some Windows fixated 'every-computer-must-have-AV' dribbler told her to!
Am I the only one?
Who actually thinks Macs with all that aluminum are a tad ugly and looks like a 5 year old kitchen appliance?
Personally I'm also much more impressed by something which is not only fast but also good value for money...
Nice if that's your thing (faux style++, substance=meh), not for me though thanks.
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