[Macworld]

Post your comments for Review: 27-inch iMac mixes advancements, compromises here

[dfs]

I think I'll stick to my late-2009 27" iMac until I can replace it with a Retina unit. In the meantime, the only feature of these new models that sounds attractive is the Fusion Drive. And I have a strong hunch that over the next few months we'll start hearing about third-party equivalents that can be used to retrofit older models. I wouldn't mind living without an optical drive, but that bay that contains it can be used for other purposes so that older models are more upgradeable than the new one, a definite plus. If the optical drive was eliminated to achieve a thinner model, that's a case of bad design. This is Apple's current obsession but I don't see how thinness is necessarily a desireble design attribute: some users probably think Apple's current line of portables harder to hold, and when you'e sitting at a iMac the thing could be any thickness you care to name and you'd never notice it. This seems like an unexciting, routine incremental upgrade.

[brilor]

Good review. I''m wondering if these Macs run hotter ( as measured with something basic like smcfancontrol ) than my mid 2011 27" iMac.

[valviro]

I use every day a 27 inch late 2009 iMac (2.8 GHz Intel Core i7 16 GB 1067 MHz DDR3)

I could upgrade to the new one, but there's really no reason to do it.
it seems an extraordinary machine, but the iMac I'm currently using is doing just fine, I really have never had the feeling of working on an outdated machine.

ah! I think I used the optical drive twice in three years

[rottenberries]

have to agree that apple went too far in their pursuit of digital anorexia. dropping the optical drive in a laptop makes enough sense but on a desktop machine: why? it adds little in the way of weight and is useful enough that and external device is just an annoyance. also locating the sd card slot on the back - great ergonomics, that. the new imac is a complete failure in my book. they changed entirely the wrong things and completely lost the plot.

full disclosure: the above rant was typed on a 27-inch, late 2009 imac which is close to the ideal desktop (the usb ports on the back are its only failing).

[icerabbit]

Could we get a photo of the reduced glare panel? Possibly a side-by-side with the old model

I'm interested primarily as that should be the direction Apple will take with their next display.

I was all set to buy the next iMac a few months ago, until they released this anorexic model without optical drive, sc card slot on the back, etc. So, I now have a new mini with peripherals and an old display with less pixels.

[jhorvatic]

Doing a custom configuration order through the online Apple store on the high end iMac will get you a faster i7 processor option that's not available on the low end iMac. Also you can order the faster 2gig video card also not available on the low end which combined with the much faster fusion drive make up for a slightly slower spinning hard drive and more. I use an LG external Blu-ray writer for my optical drive needs at $149 on sale at Best Buy would make up for the lack of the internal optical drive. Plus able to read and write blu-ray media. There are instructions for creating your own fusion drive if you google it for your older Macs. The trick is getting a SSD drive installed in your old Mac first.

[BrianFromBoston]

A thunderbolt connected ssd should work for a home made fusion drive.
Little more expensive but no assembly required

[rloyola]

Quote

Could we get a photo of the reduced glare panel? Possibly a side-by-side with the old model...

Added a photo. Hope it helps.

[glj]

I'd love to get a 27-inch iMac with a fusion drive. The thing that's keeping me from getting it is concern about repairs.

After the 3-year AppleCare warranty expires, what if the iMac needs to be repaired? If the iMac is so hard to take apart, will Apple or any other company fix it for a reasonable price?

If Apple offered a 5-year warranty, I'd order an iMac today.

Has anyone taken their new iMac to get fixed for something? If so, was the entire iMac replaced, or did they open the iMac and repair it?

[Meetzel]

I too prefer truck-like functionality to my desktop rather than paper-thinness. And don't tell anyone, but I must admit I'm reluctant to upgrade from Snow Leopard or upgrade to the new iMac hardware. External drives are not so expensive, but most of us need one. Is thinness on a desktop "insanely great?"- or a nuisance.

[Tonyfantastico]

Great review! In the end you recommend the lower end 27" Mac with fusion drive - advising this offers better bang for buck than opting for the CPU/GPU upgrade in the 3.2GHz model. It would be great if you guys got a 2.9GHz/fusion drive model in for speedmark testing so we can see how it performs (and where upgrade money is best spent). Do you have plans to test this configuration?

[Beni]

Does the new iMac still work with the infrared remote control...?

[rloyola]

Quote

Does the new iMac still work with the infrared remote control...?

Apple no longer includes infrared, so the hardware remote won't work. We tried it. The Remote app for iOS worked when we tried it on an iPhone with the 27-inch iMac.