Introduced 10 months ago, Apple's original 27-inch iMac would arguably still be competitive today because of the continued absence of a Windows all-in-one computer with a screen larger than 24 inches. Apple has also kept the performance of its 27-inch, $1,999 iMac competitive by adopting a quad-core Intel Core i5 CPU and a fast AMD graphics chip.In the new 21.5-inch iMac, Apple bypassed several opportunities to improve the 27-inch model as a home entertainment hub. I can easily recommend this new iMac to anyone looking for a large screen all-in-one for productivity or gaming. For Apple's loyalty to DisplayPort adds some annoying hurdles to using the iMac as a digital-media hub, the 27-inch screen is big and beautiful enough to make up for the extra hassle.
The chief change Apple made across the iMac line is its move away from Intel's Core 2 Duo CPUs, replacing them with Intel's Core i3, Core i5, and Core i7 CPUs exclusively. While the previous $1,999 iMac already had a quad-core 2.66GHz Core i5 CPU, the new model comes with a 2.8GHz version with four distinct CPU cores but i think its still too expensive.
In addition to a marginally faster CPU, Apple gave the $1,999 iMac a few other hardware changes. The company switched to using 1,333MHz DDR3 RAM, an upgrade from the 1,066MHz DDR3 the previous model had. It also upgraded the SD card slot to support the SDXC format, which supports cards up to 2TB in capacity. The biggest change comes by way of the new graphics card, the 1GB ATI Radeon HD 5750. An improvement over the generation-old 512MB Radeon HD 4850 used in the previous model, the new 3D card has big implications for gaming on this new iMac.
The 27-inch, LED-backlit display remains just as impressive as before, not least because of its 2,560x1,440-pixel resolution. Apple has also retained the glossy screen coating that turns some people off. Apple includes 802.11n wireless networking, an iSight Webcam, the wireless Apple Magic Mouse and Apple Wireless Keyboard, and a DVD burner with the system as well.
Apple resists adding a particular feature, it still has to face competition from vendors that have embraced it. We use the term "competition" loosely here as no Windows vendor sells an all-in-one desktop with a 27-inch display. Instead it competes against an assortment of 24-inch models with varying features and prices.
Apple adding an HDMI port would be a far simpler solution, but given the iMac's large screen and fast performance, we imagine more than a few people in the market for an all-in-one media hub would be willing to pay extra for the iMac-and-adapter combination. If Apple added HDMI to the 27-inch iMac, we would have a difficult time arguing for any other high-end all-in-one. For now, we still think highly of this system, but its dependence on an adapter for home entertainment sticks out like a blemish.
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My Rating: 3.7/5
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