it's a technical issue that will be resolved. not that i'd jump on buying one knowing of this, but it will be resolved. it is terrible for those who have purchased because they will have to put up with it until it is resolved but not for you because you don't own one.
at least with a you build PC you can resolve the issue. with an Imac its a shop job no matter what it is short of a memory or external cable issue. you also control every aspect of what is in your box. this does though become completely your responsibility. i build my own. i learn a thing or two as i do.
if what computerworld says is true and the firmware UD was to slow down the card clock rate thats looking more like a hardware issue related to temp (they always tend to go a bridge too far when it comes to cooling more like the lack there of and then try to pull back on performance). its them trying to kluge a fix. this might cost them a little
It is admirable that Apple recognized this problem so quickly (think Canon 1 D Mark III). In doing so they pretty much assure all owners that they will, in the end , fix the problem. Still the new owners are going to have to struggle a bit to attain a final solution since early results indicate that Apple's first update does Not fix the issue. I had intended to buy two of the i7 machines but now I'll just wait a bit. From the Apple forum posts it seems to be a graphic card issue so perhaps Apple will change graphic cards for the new iMac's? One thing for certain is that this is a universal problem, and their are now reports from owners of all models of iMac and from all over the world. Apple has far too much at stake to risk tarnishing a stellar reputation by ignoring the problem.
The initial setup now asks you if you want to update the display driver. It was probably a s/w bug in the driver. Its the best apple display to date I just converted a die hard Win2K user with 20+ years of software development experience. She couldn't be happier
iceeemn360 wrote:
No problems to speak of from my 27"imac. im typing on it right now. I love it for viewing all of the incredible photos here on the forum
well if it is a simple driver issue then why would apple do a firmware update right off to slow down the video clock? i mean apple engineering is smarter then most right? its rather draconian to hobble the video chip right off the bat right?
This stuff happens even at the chip level -- Intel has had its fair share of them including timing signals. If you've ever written software with some level of complexity at the chip level you've run into these issues. Nvidia has them and so does ATI. I'll dig up the Intel ones I've experienced over the years.... First its the firmware and then the driver layer. Who knows where....
sjms wrote:
well if it is a simple driver issue then why would apple do a firmware update right off to slow down the video clock? i mean apple engineering is smarter then most right? its rather draconian to hobble the video chip right off the bat right?
I'm in the same mode as chesapeake. I'll wait awhile until the issue is resolved before placing an order. I did read that Adobe has considered a recall to replace graphics cards, so apparently they have tied to problem to a hardware device. Right now they have a two week shipping delay, so being in a hurry isn't going to change anything. I'll post something up once I hear of a fix and would appreciate others doing the same if they learn of a fix.
Dave R. wrote:
I'm in the same mode as chesapeake. I'll wait awhile until the issue is resolved before placing an order. I did read that Adobe has considered a recall to replace graphics cards, so apparently they have tied to problem to a hardware device. Right now they have a two week shipping delay, so being in a hurry isn't going to change anything. I'll post something up once I hear of a fix and would appreciate others doing the same if they learn of a fix.
So far so good. The system has been running 24x7 since last morning. No observable flickering -- will burn it in all week.
all reasons why I bought the last version imac 24, 3.06 ghz, 1tb disk and 512 mb g-force.... about 1000 dollars cheaper than the beginning of this year.... with the pressure on marketshare, one should know by now not to jump too fast and become a beta tester.......
chesapeake wrote:
It is admirable that Apple recognized this problem so quickly (think Canon 1 D Mark III). In doing so they pretty much assure all owners that they will, in the end , fix the problem. Still the new owners are going to have to struggle a bit to attain a final solution since early results indicate that Apple's first update does Not fix the issue. I had intended to buy two of the i7 machines but now I'll just wait a bit. From the Apple forum posts it seems to be a graphic card issue so perhaps Apple will change graphic cards for the new iMac's? One thing for certain is that this is a universal problem, and their are now reports from owners of all models of iMac and from all over the world. Apple has far too much at stake to risk tarnishing a stellar reputation by ignoring the problem....Show more →
Below is a link that explains the current state of the IMac complaint issue. Apple has just (1/21/2010) announced a 3 week shipping delay for the new IMac. Evidently the fact that several Apple resellers have old stock suggests that unfixed computers will continue to ship. Seems prudent to wait a bit.
The warranty is worth it in the long run. I had a 24" prior version that was 2.1/2 years old. It developed an issue with the video card. It probably was the system board but after them trying for a week told me to come in a pick up a new unit. They even gave me a refund on the balance of the warranty.
I just converted a die hard Win2K user with 20+ years of software development experience. She couldn't be happier