[Macworld]

Post your comments for Apple slims down iMac in latest update here

[pt44]

Hmm. Apple, I love you on one hand and hate you on the other. Yes, new iMac looks uber cool with that ultra thin edge. However, do I really need it that ultra thin? Its a desktop machine, I'm not walking around with it. I have the May 2011 version and was looking to replace it simply for more speed and probably to put in an SSD drive. If you have merely halved the thickness, you could probably have kept the DVD drive - which I use regularly to burn DVD's for clients and also kept the SD slot on the side - where I use it regularly to download cards.

Sure I can buy an external DVD. But that's more clutter for my desk. I appreciate that the new screen may be less reflective, one of my worries when buying the last one, but in reality, in my own office, the current one never gives me issues with reflections. So, overall, so far the only thing that has excited me is the 4x USB3 ports. Great - yippee

Maybe the new processor (top of the range) will be Ivy and up the speed of mine, which I presume is a sandy. I do hope there's some good news in there somewhere.

[skazzyskills]

Come on..who uses DVD's anymore...way old.

[cyberdoc]

I definitely need to upgrade my iMac and for my work I use a CD drive regularly. I guess now I'll have to velcro or glue a USB SuperDrive to the back of the iMac. Well, not that I "have" to, but I don't like anything on my desk under the iMac except my wireless keyboard and mouse. Won't be pretty, but, the iMac sits in the corner and nobody sees the back of it anyway...

[soxyfoxy]

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Come on..who uses DVD's anymore...way old.

Some people still want to rip CDs to their iTunes library. Or watch DVDs - yes, actual physical DVDs - on their iMac. I know the computer world is moving away from optical drives, but not everybody is ready to follow that path yet.

[ariellauthentic]

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Come on..who uses DVD's anymore...way old.

-Ripping CDs
-Browsing 8GB discs of media shared by clients and/or family
-Windows 7/Ubuntu installation(s) in Bootcamp
-Watching DVDs (21.5" display is gorgeous for it)
-Games for Mac and Windows purchased in the past 5 years
-Applecare Hardware Test disc
-Loops libraries for music production

You wouldn't happen to be a kid without an existing physical media library who lives on facebook and youtube by any chance? Many of us are mature prosumers with rich media and dual-boot workflows that optical media still has a strong foothold in.

[maydupp]

I have had very bad luck with internal DVD burners. They die after a couple of years. I wish all my mac's had come with external drives.

Does anyone know if the RAM is user upgradable? The article says "slots", so it probably isn't soldered in. But I don't see any access panel.

[JMZawodny]

I wonder who at Apple thought placing the SDXC card slot on the back side of the new iMac was a good, user-friendly idea.

[maydupp]

Another question. Can the new iMac be used as a monitor? Some older models can.

[gideon428]

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Come on..who uses DVD's anymore...way old. -Ripping CDs -Browsing 8GB discs of media shared by clients and/or family -Windows 7/Ubuntu installation(s) in Bootcamp -Watching DVDs (21.5" display is gorgeous for it) -Games for Mac and Windows purchased in the past 5 years -Applecare Hardware Test disc -Loops libraries for music production You wouldn't happen to be a kid without an existing physical media library who lives on facebook and youtube by any chance? Many of us are mature prosumers with rich media and dual-boot workflows that optical media still has a strong foothold in.

You have a good point with most of the items in your list. However, there are workarounds for some of them:

Windows 7/Ubuntu installations are both available via downloads.

If you bought AppleCare with one of these, I'd be surprised if Apple didn't offer some sort of download option for their hardware test (Otherwise, that would be quite an oversight on their part).

Loop libraries are typically also available via download.

Unfortunately, for the rest of the items on your list, it looks as though Apple expects users to rely on connecting to another computer to transfer anything that you need from traditional media or purchasing an external combo drive. I see (and can appreciate) where they're going, but the transition isn't always easy.

[ingus]

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Come on..who uses DVD's anymore...way old.

People who choose to....

This post has been edited by ingus: 23 October 2012 - 12:14 PM

[Timhz3n]

This is way more than I expected. I've been in the market for an upgrade to my iMac and I knew there would be a speed bump to the next Intel processor. But the new Fusion Drive thing was totally out of the blue.

And it looks as though that could give me a huge speed boost for my photo processing work. This drive puts the OS and the photo software onto the flash portion of the drive. I'm not sure of the ultimate speed boost but Apple says this new hybrid drive is almost as fast a full SSD and that would be a huge benefit for my photo workflow.

I also like the other upgrades: better monitor, better speakers, faster ports, easy memory upgrade and as much as 32 GB. The skinny design isn't a big thing for me professionally. But there's nothing wrong with having a home computer that you can show off.

As far as the optical drive issue, I totally get people's concerns on that. I still use that functionality. But I also have an external optical so it's not a concern for me. And I like the fact that folks who don't need one any more don't have to pay the extra bucks.

It would have been nice to see a retina display but that would have been a major cost on the 27" form factor. So overall, the new iMac is a big upgrade and my only frustration is having to wait until December.

[hwgray]

I'm disappointed. Looking beautiful really ought not to be allowed to outweigh being useful to so great an extent. This continuing iPad-ification of the iMac and this continuing iOS-ification of OS X needs to stop. All the extra hardware that I'd have to buy to make this new iMac as useful as my current iMac 7,1 would weigh more than four pounds. And I can't see thinness from the front.

WTF, Apple?!

[himbo]

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Does anyone know if the RAM is user upgradable? The article says "slots", so it probably isn't soldered in. But I don't see any access panel.

On the iMac's Tech Specs page, only the 27" model is specified as having user-accessible RAM slots, so I think it will not be so for the 21.5" model. I think it is likely that the RAM that comes pre-installed will in fact be soldered.