More on the new iMac G5
Here's the scoop: it comes in both 17-inch and 20-inch widescreen versions, and it's an all-in-one with everything built-into the monitor. The 17-inch model comes with either a 1.6GHz or a 1.8GHz PowerPC G5 processor, and the 20-inch only comes with a 1.8GHz chip. All come standard with 256MB of RAM (which is expandable up to 2GB), and the 17-inch model comes with an 80GB hard drive and a DVD/CD-RW combination drive, while the 20-inch model comes with a 160GB hard drive and a DVD-R/CD-RW SuperDrive. Click to see some more pics.
[Thanks, AFB]
Filed under: Desktops
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
wirobro @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
It's not anything like the horrible designs that people have been obsessively posting around the internet since they announced that there'd be an update in September!
Thank God.
Good job, Apple, now just lend me the money to be able to afford one. Thank you.
Jody @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
I don't know about you kids but I want to see this thing in person before I judge it. At first I thought the renderings looked AWFUL (probably because of the enormous apple on the front and the 4 inches of space below the screen to accommodate the PSU) but as time goes by the design is growing on my. I think I approve... IT IS THIN AS CRAP! 2-INCHES!? Looks like a G5 Powerbook isn't "that" far off after all.
-Jody-
Timothy Johnson @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
I say this is a step backward from the previous iMac design. The monitor neck and flexibility of the last one were great compared to this year's new monitors. I wish they would have kept the old casing.
joe @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
Here's what's bothering me: t'ain't new. It's really just following the snow white rectangular iPod/iBook design. In fact, this thing looks like it was designed to look great next to your iPod in its dock. Now I'm not saying that's a bad thing. I bought an iBook because I love the cleanliness of this Apple design, but its not the design marvel we expect from Apple (Oh, whither the Cube?), though its innovative construction is quite impressive.
I guess I was hoping they would continue the evolution of computer design with this latest iMac. This just feels to me to be a laptop on a stand that you can't carry around with you. Now if you could only remove it from its stand and use it as a tablet PC!
Does anyone know if the standard peripherals will be wireless (keyboard, mouse, speakers, etc.)?
Sam Highley @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
As an avid user of the previous model iMac, I too thought it was a fantastic design, but unfortunately it was not a fantastic seller. Remember the Cube? Great product, and I still have one of those as well, but not a great seller, and thus canned.
Timothy Johnson @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
you hit the nail on the head with that one, this would be excellent with a battery and a touchscreen ala. the Wacom Cintiq.
Maikeru @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
I was thinking something along the lines of uprooting it and using it as a tablet as well (I mean the form factor just begs for something like that)
fishpatrol @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
Let's not forget that this whole square pie is VESA-compliant. Enter, you LCD display arms!
Someone needs to invent an IV-tree-like rolling stand with a UPS built into the base (added weight/stability, and you could move the iMac from room to room without shutting it down). Easy to imagine wheeling the iMac to the kitchen, read the news while you eat your bowl of cereal. Wheel it back to your desk to write a couple emails, or swivel it down by an easy chair and do your work there. Oh, don't forget a holster for that bluetooth mouse.
Okay, maybe this is a stretch, but it sure looks good in my head.
ben @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
I think it's cool looking, and would take up a lot less room than my computer now, but I doubt I could afford it at over 2 grand for one with a little extra memory and wireless installed. And does anyone know about the 5200 ultra graphic card. They tought it like it is great, but isn't that pretty old. I thought their latest greatest was the 6800 ultra?
Jason Rouse @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
The Nvidia 5200 Ultra they are using is a horrible card. It's from the last generation of cards and even when it was brand new it was one of the slowest they made (Don't believe me? Spend 5 minutes and Google it). I don't get it. This is Apple's consumer grade computer right? Well consumers play video games. Lots of them. You should not have to buy a wrokstation class computer like a Power Mac G5 to get half decent framerates. This graphic card is so bad it's going to criplle that nice G5 on any game made within the last two years.
j deakin @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
so when you send your base unit away for fixing you now have to send the whole damn thing? yeah, sounds like a good idea!...NOT!!
Jason Rouse @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
The Nvidia 5200 Ultra they are using is a horrible card. It's from the last generation of cards and even when it was brand new it was one of the slowest they made (Don't believe me? Spend 5 minutes and Google it). I don't get it. This is Apple's consumer grade computer right? Well consumers play video games. Lots of them. You should not have to buy a wrokstation class computer like a Power Mac G5 to get half decent framerates. This graphic card is so bad it's going to criplle that nice G5 on any game made within the last two years.
Jonathan @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
This may be apples play in the digital hub market. It has a optical out for conntecting to your 5.1 systome. And it is only about twice what you would pay for a HDTV of the same size.
coolgoose @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
The new IMac just looks like a tablet PC on a docking station.
Chadvavra @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
It's a G5, it's supposed to be fast and stuff. Shouldn't this thing be a Williamsburg LAN partiers cream-dream or something?
haydur @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
You are forgetting that most decent games never make it to the Mac, so for them it's ok to have a 5200. And, to a strictly non-Mac person like myself, this new shell seems like a lame ripoff of the many PC-in-LCD desktops available for years from manufacturers like Gateway etc. and more recently from Sony. But before you start flaming me, I DID like the last iMac design a lot.
kpc @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
"so when you send your base unit away for fixing you now have to send the whole damn thing? yeah, sounds like a good idea!...NOT!!"
Uh, fool, iMacs have always been all-in-one units. Nice detective work!...NOT!!!
Chadvavra @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
and they will be all over the refurbed 'outlet' store.
c123 @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
I'm glad I'm not the only one (although we seem ot be a minority) who sees this as a step backwards. To me the re-design looks ugly, and may well be less practical (seems you can move/tilt the screen less than with the old model).
Greg Smith @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
"You are forgetting that most decent games never make it to the Mac, so for them it's ok to have a 5200." Actually, it's the other way around. All the decent games come to the Mac, the crappy ones don't. Then people complain about how lame they are because of the crappy video card Apple includes in their systems.
Chris Chant @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
Hey that's cool a laptop on a stand - dont you just love it - nearly bought the last Mac...this one i so dont think so
Conrad @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
Yeah, okay, I'll admit. At first I didn't like the design. But its growing on me...
The best part about the new iMac is the price! Wow! $1700 for a 20" 1.8GHz G5!
I'm satisfied. It'd go well with my iPod =)
Steve Mast @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
The new i-mac looks terrible. It looks like a bad combination of that clunky e-mac and a the new display line. It lacks the graceful lines and details that we've been seeing in mac notebooks, ipods, and screens. There is minimalism, and then there is boring. I love that they were able cram the computer into that space, but I hoped for more. Ives is slipping. I'll stick to their pro products.
Mathieu Blache @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
I'm not so sure when the design of my MAC became a kind of LCD TV, what happen to my old and favorite CRT? Maybe Apple going to fast for that kind of field! Beware Sony always got the sharping edge design and the magical touch for that kind of field!
a2daj @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
"most decent games never make it to the Mac,"
Not true. Most decent games do make it to the Mac. Most crap games don't plus a few good ones. But for the most part, most of the decent games for the more popular genres make it.
rueyeet @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
I've heard that the major reason Apple dumped the iLamp design was that the base had to keep getting heavier to support the progressively larger screens. That's why Apple's new iMac page touts that the new 20-incher is a full 15 pounds lighter than its G4 predecessor...that 15 extra pounds was just deadweight to keep the thing from falling over.
I find the design of the G5 iMac not so much iPod-esque as it is reminiscent of the original Macintosh, actually. Imagine the first Mac, widen it a bit, and get rid of the drive slot, and you've got the face of the G5 iMac.
For the person who inquired whether wireless keyboard and mouse come standard: No, they don't. You have to buy the optional Bluetooth module and the wireless keyboard and mouse.
Doug @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
Why all the gloom and doom? I am not a Mac user, but even I find myself wanting one of these! As for the graphics card, I don't believe the iMac's core target audience would even know any different -- hardcore gamers are surely more likely to go for an all-around beefier system with more room for expansion. A computer like this could go anywhere in the home and look good doing it, which leads me to think there is great potential here for the Mac's user base to grow -- assuming it is marketed strongly enough.
Andy @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
I'm very disappointed in Apple using an old video card in such a nice new machine. Upgrading RAM to an acceptable level is ok, getting stuck with a two-year old not so great video card is not.
I'll pass on this beauty. Too bad, it could have been a good buy.
Ellen Hawley @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
So, here I was... all set to get a Powerbook4 and along comes the iMacG5. Which to get?? aghhhh! I'd appreciate your feedback. My budget is around $2,5000. I don't need the portablity of the notebook. I'll use it for heavy Photoshop, Indesign, and web design (GoLive). Monitor clarity is very important as I do major photo retouching.
Todd Russell @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
it's not for everyone, but it's for me.
just ordered one-what a perfect all-in-one for the price!
i plan on getting a new powerbook next march, this will keep me happy- i don't need a laptop right now and this thing will kick the hell out of the current powerbooks & it has a 20" Screen!
Curtis @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
I just ordered one today...17". After reading the above, I am developing some doubts about the graphics card and if I should spend the extra $400 for the 20" model? I have already paid for Bluetooth, and ram upgrade. I believe I can still cancel, but I am very tired of my worn Power Mac 7200/90. All comments regarding the relative merits of a large screen, versus upgrading the video card (if available?) would be greatly appreciated. I don't want to pay to do both. Thanks.
John @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
The small foot print is cool, so I ordered one, just what I could use in my living room. Now what to do with my G5...
John @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
The small foot print is cool, so I ordered one, just what I could use in my living room. Now what to do with my G5...
Curtis @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
I was confused, but had a revelation while in the shower, and jumped in with both feet. Upgraded to 20 inch, 1gig ram, APX...kept all the BT wireless stuff...about an $800 shower.
Now I'll have to wait until October ..tick tock tick tock
The Apple rep acknowledged that the video card is being reconsidered? Whatever that means...
jason @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
i too kinda hated it at first, but its actually a major step over the previous generation.
+ easy to move round the house
+ customisation with VESA mounts, wall hanging
+ new generations can be bigger, thinner, tablety
+ so much faster, cheaper!
Mike D @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
Put a real video card in it and I'm all in.
Dominic @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
Hey all! Interesting comments! Well I WANT a Mac, and I could not wait for the iMac g5 to reach our shelves, now here, I aint so happy! I mean visually I reckon its stunning, and value for money near excellent (on Mac standards). But that damn blasted graphics card, as if that has been placed on a g5! I mean what is going on!?!? Where are the options for a 128 or a 256 huh!? I mean the g5 uses the graphics card to a great advantage, so why oh why! While on the subject, how expensive are the power Macs!? I could justify the price if I didnt have to pay a grand on top for the monitor! As if they have no entry level monitors. For an extra 350 quid you get an imac with your monitor, why is it so damn expensive for the power Mac!? If it had an upgrade option for the graphics card I would have bought an iMac last month! Now Im just lost, stuck and sick of waiting for an upgrade, maybe I should stick to a PC!? (I wont) but am tired of waiting! The new iPod is cool though!
Wil Drover @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
I just bought a 20in model with 1G of RAM and wireless keyboard/mouse.
It is very kool. I used to have a g4 and it's way better. It's for home use and I figured i don't need to operate the space shuttle from my home so the graphic card in it is just fine, way better than the one i had in my old G4 (whatever it was). I am a gamer and I can't get slowdown in Warcraft 3 on this thing no matter what I do.
Nice big screen, looks good no matter where I put it and being able to burn cd and dvd's is just great. I bought it because I didn't want to have to buy a new monitor and computer and it had everything i needed and it is has OS X on it.
The batteries that came with my keyboard were dead though.
Wil Drover @ Dec 19th 2005 12:04AM
Just wanted to add that I agree the video card should have been top of the line, but so far I haven't had a problem with it. I would definately like it to be upgradeable though.