2 days ago I bought a base model 2011 iMac 21.5″ (2.5Ghz i5, 4Gb RAM, 500GB HD) and have been using the machine for a little over 24 hours. Here’s my Spaghetti Review.
The Good:
- Cableless. I think I’ve waited 14 years to achieve a cableless desk.
- Performance. This may be the base model, but it’s still 4 x 2.5Ghz Sandy Bridge i5 CPUs with a Geekbench score of 7300. Ripping a CD earlier took seconds, touching up photos in Aperture didn’t pause once. Bliss compared to my 4 year old MacBook-Desktop setup.
- RAM. I should read spec sheets more closely but these things have 4 RAM slots. Ships with 2x2GB but I ordered 2x4GB from Crucial. As this post goes live, this iMac is running on 12GB of RAM for only an extra £60!
- Screen resolution. I had my doubts about going from 24″ LCD to a 21.5″. I was wrong. Same horizontal resolution as before, much crisper and brighter IPS panel display.
- Speakers. I am actually going to sell my speakers to achieve cableless stardom. The built-in iMac speakers far exceeded my expectations and are perfect for the casual movie & music person that I am.
- FaceTime HD camera. Finally a proper resolution webcam on a Mac.
The Bad:
- Screen reflection. You don’t need to check your hair in Photo Booth any more, you can just sleep the display.
- Screen height. You can’t adjust the height of the screen, only the angle. Fortunately I can adjust the height of my chair…
- Ports. iMac users will be used to this already, but having ports on the back of a display is a tad annoying. I have to keep rotating the display at the moment. I’m sure I will get used to their position after a few weeks but this is a 24 hours review after all.
- Compact Flash slot. What Compact Flash slot? Exactly. Don’t a lot of DSLRs use CF?
The Ugly:
- SSD. SSD. SSD. This is a big one for me. I have an SSD from my previous machine and I would love to put it in this iMac. When you are used to applications opening instantly, going backwards hurts. Apple provide no way to get an SSD in the machine without voiding your warranty and even if you do want to risk it, you have to get suction pads from somewhere to remove the iMac’s glass screen. This is a painful example of The Apple Tax.
My advice? These new iMacs are powerful machines. Maybe too powerful considering their target market. But maybe the goal posts have changed over the last few years and your average family now buys a MacBook over a desktop. In which case the new iMac spec at least feels like it is targeting a slightly more pro market than ever before. Many pro bloggers have in fact started questioning whether to get an iMac over the Mac Pro. I can’t answer that question for people, but I would probably advocate at least trialling a new iMac first before making your decision.
After 24 hours I can’t say I have that special feeling you get with a machine like the MacBook Air. It’s a nice Mac, it works extremely well and copes with everything I throw at it. It’s great being able to open iPhoto and play with photos again or watch Flash content without all fans blazing. Would I have bought the 27″ iMac if I could have afforded it? Probably, but that would just be me being greedy. The base model 21.5″ iMac far exceeds my needs and has completed my transition to The Perfect Setup.
That’s your decision. I played Portal 2 on full everything right through and suffered no frame rate problems at all – it was beautiful. I’m not really a gamer so can’t make this claim with authority.
Funnily enough, the only spec there which would have made me upgrade would be the 1GB HD. I don’t need it, but if you do and dislike external hard drives, then get the 1GB. Upgrading HDs in the iMac is possible, but takes some nerve.
Thanks for your advice.
I went ahead and bought the base 21.5″ model.
What were your deciding factors between the two 21.5″ models?
Is the extra 0.2GHz, 500GB and HD 6770M worth the extra $300?
Thanks for the nice review. I am upgrading from the 2010 Mac Mini which I now find to be too slow since my mobile computer is the Macbook Air 11″ with the 1.4 old processor. I totally agree that a 27″ iMac would be awesome but not needed. Unless you really need the extra GPU, CPU, and screen size the 21.5″ ones are a much better value. I do love the idea of having a 27″ computer but I plan to dual screen the 21.5″ iMac with a 23″ Samsung display. I notice you went with the track pad, how come? How does this machine process heavy flash sites? I watch a lot of flash videos and my Mac Mini wasn’t cutting it. It kept randomly stuttering…
Flash is working really well on it. I know what you mean about random stutters, my MacBook did that a lot. Running Portal2 on high and all kinds of flash has been really refreshingly smooth.
You can have an external display with the 21.5″ remember too. I may connect up my old 24″ soon and have a play with that.
i was wondering when you purchase this mac would i have to also purchase a anti virus software, or does the mac come with protection already..
Many people have asked this question before. Macs generally have a far far less chance of contracting any kind of virus or malware than a Windows based PC.
If it makes you feel safer, then take a look at Anti Virus solutions on the market. A tidbit of information though: I know many many Mac users, none of whom use anti virus software.
You won’t break a “warranty void” sticker if you change your hard drive. At least for the 24″ and 27″. But you’ll definitely need the cleaning tool.
Greez from Muc!
I suppose I should man up. I will buy a 3.5? 6Gb/s drive later in the year and try then.
Good choice with the 21.5″ – I hated the 27″ as it is too much screen, you can’t take in the full screen without either sitting back or constantly scanning, inducing eyeball fatigue!
Apple jealousy has swamped me and I now want a Tragic MacPad too….