Wouuuu... almost missed this announcement with all talk of the 1D IV. I am actually more excited about this than I am about he Mark IV.

I was looking to add the 24" display to my MacBook Pro but I think I'd rather ad this iMac.

Well done Apple.

www.apple.com

Anxious to see one in person. Wasn't happy about 16:9... But 2600 x 1440 is better than 1920 x 1200... :-)

Quad Core and expandable to 16Gb...

Maybe Aperture won't slow down on this one.

Guess it has an IPS Panel.. That's much better than previous iterations of the iMac, right? Also you can get ATI graphics. I think there were some issues with the previous NVidia dedicated graphics, but I don't know if those were just isolated to the Macbook Pros.

Looks like a great machine and probably the first iMac I would consider buying.

They also released a new macbook which is pretty slick for the price. I never liked the build of the previous polycarbonate ones (Fiancee has one and it's not that great), so maybe this will be a little nicer.

I know that as soon as I can't return my current MBP, they'll do one of those subtle spec-bumps. Thats how technology is I guess, can't stress about it.

Edit: Alright, I just got done looking at that new iMac. That 27" has got me drooling! How much might a windows PC, configured similarly (even home built) with a comparable display cost, with an i5 or i7?

If I were not saving for a wedding, I'd be saving for one of these....maybe she doesn't want to marry me after all?!

They've always been IPS (the aluminum 24" ones) but now they are LED and IPS.

A side note I didn't catch earlier - The 27" display port doubles as an Input so you can also use the imac as a monitor if you wish.

Honestly an LED IPS 30" dual dvi display is not cheap, so a 27" with almost the same resolution (not as tall) with a computer at the same time for 1699 is a good deal.

Booone0 wrote:

Edit: Alright, I just got done looking at that new iMac. That 27" has got me drooling! How much might a windows PC, configured similarly (even home built) with a comparable display cost, with an i5 or i7?



The iMac is about $800 more than a similarly spec'd Dell desktop PC including a 24" monitor ($1209 for the Dell vs. $1999 for the iMac). The Dell XPS All-in-One is about the same price considering the larger size of the iMac 27" model, so if you are shopping for All-in-Ones, the iMac is probably a better deal.

I think people overestimate the value of a large HD monitor. You can get 27" HD monitor for about $400 or less on Newegg. Apple is not using cinema display quality monitors in these iMacs even though they are IPS. They are LED backlit, not full LED.

I know this makes me sound like a fanboy, but these are w-a-y more than a "good" deal.

mdude85 wrote:

I think people overestimate the value of a large HD monitor. You can get 27" HD monitor for about $400 or less on Newegg.

Mdude - there is a huge difference between a 27" 1920 x 1080 monitor and a 27" 2600x1440 monitor. Pricing out a 30" LED IPS monitor and knocking a few dollars off is a more accurate cost estimate, hence my note above about $1699 being a good deal.

mdude85 wrote:
Apple is not using cinema display quality monitors in these iMacs even though they are IPS. They are LED backlit, not full LED.

Just curious, what's the difference between a LED backlit and full LED monitor? I've never heard of full LED.

I was curious about Dells cost too - the core i5 vostro 430 spec'd out to match the imac came to about $1050 with no monitor.

johnip wrote:
mdude85 wrote:
Apple is not using cinema display quality monitors in these iMacs even though they are IPS. They are LED backlit, not full LED.

Just curious, what's the difference between a LED backlit and full LED monitor? I've never heard of full LED.


There are NO full LED panels on the market unless you count the Sony 11" OLED panel that goes for $2400.

EVERY LED panel is LCD with an LED lightsource (either LED backlight (with the possibility of local dimming like the XBR8 or similar samsungs/lgs, or sidelit like the newer XBR9 which is actually worse).

There are NO local dimming LED computer monitors in this range, if they even exist. the LED local dimmers are usually just HDTVs in the 55" range.

mdude85 wrote:
Booone0 wrote:

Edit: Alright, I just got done looking at that new iMac. That 27" has got me drooling! How much might a windows PC, configured similarly (even home built) with a comparable display cost, with an i5 or i7?



The iMac is about $800 more than a similarly spec'd Dell desktop PC including a 24" monitor ($1209 for the Dell vs. $1999 for the iMac). The Dell XPS All-in-One is about the same price considering the larger size of the iMac 27" model, so if you are shopping for All-in-Ones, the iMac is probably a better deal.

I think people overestimate the value of a large HD monitor. You can get 27" HD monitor for about $400 or less on Newegg. Apple is not using cinema display quality monitors in these iMacs even though they are IPS. They are LED backlit, not full LED.

see above... the monitors you compare them to are a night and day difference. the quality of this is miles ahead of that cheap stuff. i'll challenge you to find me a full true LED 2600*1440 panel. they dont exist, they all use the LED as a backlight (or sidelight in laptops). OLED isnt even out of the research labs over 11".

The proof will be in the calibration.

humm its very compelling for me.. i was about to buy a Mac Pro, but instead brought a Core 2 Duo Mac Book Pro, as i run a NEC2490 as an external monitor, but with the new imac and quad core processing, thinking about switching. But how well will the 27" imac screen match with my NEC 2490 as a dual screen setup, if only they had a non gloss version??

What do you guys think?

I prefer gloss since I never print on Matte paper...

I like it!

finally a product from apple where i see that the price/performance ratio isn't high. the new 27 inch imacs are bitchingly sweet. too bad i need to save money as i might be switching jobs. gotta save for a rainy day. who ever buys this... congrats

I was saving for a MacPro. I am getting an Intel i7 iMac 27" with 8GB RAM. Good thing is I already have enough money saved up for that!

I'm assuming these are glossy only?
Can you add ram to these aftermarket? Or do you have to give the money to Steve Jobs (oh noes!).

desktop processors and 4 ram slots, what's not to like.

Booone0 wrote:
Edit: Alright, I just got done looking at that new iMac. That 27" has got me drooling! How much might a windows PC, configured similarly (even home built) with a comparable display cost, with an i5 or i7?



I just built an i7-860, 8GB 1600 DDR3, Radeon 4870 w/1GB and two 1.5TB SATA HDD, Logitech Wave Pro KB and mouse, Anatec case and PS. - $1254. No monitor.

As a home built, you also have to come up with the OS which is about $200 for W7 depending on the flavor and if you qualify for an upgrade.

The iMac with the same components except a 512MB video card and a single 1TB HDD is $2399. Includes Snow Leopard.

irfan wrote:

see above... the monitors you compare them to are a night and day difference. the quality of this is miles ahead of that cheap stuff. i'll challenge you to find me a full true LED 2600*1440 panel. they dont exist, they all use the LED as a backlight (or sidelight in laptops). OLED isnt even out of the research labs over 11".

The iMac monitor is also not a full LED monitor, it is just a LCD monitor with an LED backlight.

I myself will be selling my mac pro (2006 model) and buying the i7 27" iMac. I'm debating 1 thing though, would it still be beneficial (or worth it) to get the 24" LED display in addition to the iMac? When I first saw the announcement, I was 100% sure I needed to have the additional display, but the more I think about it, i'll have basically the same resolution available as a 30" display. I'm not sure I would need more than that for my photoshop and lightroom work.

I have 2 displays currently with my mac pro, and I love it. but it almost seems a bit frivolous. Almost.


What would you do in my situation? (for your consideration, I'll be getting a very hefty discount on everything through a friend)

musclepics wrote:
I'm assuming these are glossy only?
Can you add ram to these aftermarket? Or do you have to give the money to Steve Jobs (oh noes!).



Yes glossy only, and of course you can add ram afterwards There are 4 slots total. Going to 8GB through OWC would cost you less than $90

Abram, If I was in your situation, I'd spend the $2200 on a new mac pro, and use your current monitors. You would benefit from the ability to have multiple internal hard drives.