New IMac v old Imac

My 10+ year old PC has finally bitten the dust and I fancy a go on one of these IMac thingys.

What great timing a brand new Imac is in the shops so now I can buy an old 2011/12 27 inch Imac or maybe a 21.5 new Imac

So Macnerds what would you recommend?

It will be mainly used for music/photos/film and surfing and yes I know thats not going to dent its capabilities, but it is very shiny!

Oh and I have a work laptop for sofa surfing so no I won't get an ipad or macbook instead.

The 11/12 imac is great. I have a 27"i7 and its solid. The new one really isn't a huge improvement so if you can score a deal, i say go for it.

Get the 27. Its really big and that makes it really good.

Whatever you buy, get their AppleCare warranty. I had to spend $700 fixing my 2 year old 27" iMac, and if you search the web you'll find a lot of chronic issues with them. Still better than constant spyware and virus BS with windows though.

Norton Internet Security and Windows 7 = virus/spyware is not an issue on either of my boxes.

I'd go online to the Apple store and look at the refurbished ones. They have the same warranty as new and you save a bit. The 2011 27 inch would be the one. It has an optical drive and you can add memory should you desire. The new 21.5 is pretty much untouchable. The memory is soldered in and you can't add any and there's no optical drive because the edge is so thin. The 27" is a much better deal. And shiny!

And so that you can represent yourself as having properly drunk the Kool-aid, it's "iMac".

Norton can lick my sweaty, unwiped ass! Turned my computer into a fuckin' boat anchor with all of its overhead.. It found zero viruses that the free crap later scanned and dumped promptly. "Money back guarantee!" Took it back LITERALLY the next day (Best Buy).

"I'd like my money back."
"Oh, I'm sorry, that offer is from Symantec. You have to contact them directly."

Call Symantec. Try to get their customer service fucks. Finally get through after like 30 minutes. They tell me they have to send me a form or some bullshit. It never shows up. Call them again. Nothing. 30 days goes by. I have zero proof I contacted them (well, maybe a phone bill but, what am I going to do, sue them?). Fuck them. NEVER again.

I run sweeps with other apps every once in awhile and nothing pops up either, what comp were you running that it turned into a boat anchor? Even my shitty last laptop was running alright for basic tasks and I never expected more out of it. My 2 current comps are still fast as hell. I'm on the laptop and the processor is between 0-2% and RAM is @ about 2GB in use, since this one has 8GB and the workstation has 12 it's not an issue.

On the theory that bigger is better go with the 27". Either buy the "old" one now or order a new one that will be delivered in about 4 weeks. If you have to have a CD drive get the old one. In either case order with the smallest amount of memory that apple offers and buy the maximum amount somewhere else I've used OWC (macsales) with good results. Note that the 21.5" memory is not (easily) user upgradable in the newest model.

That's an understatement, you need to completely disassemble the whole computer to get to it:

http://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/iMac+Intel+21.5-Inch+EMC+2544+Teardown/11936/1

So for the 21.5 get the most you can because you're realistically not going to be changing it. But the 27" is easy to change so if you get that follow the "buy the least possible RAM" advice.

Hackintosh

I have a pretty new (5 month old) 27" iMac. In fact I'm on it right now. i7 Quad core, 16gb ram, and dual internal SSD drives with thunderbolt ports for drive and display expansion, but above all else it's the screen that really makes this machine. Alternatively, you can get an equally powerful PC with a nice 27" ips screen for much less, but I just happen to be more comfortable on the mac platform.

Editing photos on this has been extremely enjoyable

Thanks I wouldn't want to make a gaff at the next club meeting

Or get a Mac Mini and buy the screen from someone else.

.

If availability of the outgoing models is an issue, check the Apple website for deals on factory refurbished units. A friend just bought the 27" iMac a month ago and I helped her set it up and transfer all of her PC files on to it. It looked exactly like a new computer. If she hadn't told me it was a refurb, I would have had no idea as it was no different from mine that I unboxed and set up almost a year ago.

+1 on the Applecare warranty and +1 on buying the One to One training if you have an Apple store nearby and are not already Mac saavy.

We also get most of our stuff from the Apple refurb store, but picked up a 24" iMac and iPad from Best Buy when they had a small sale.

And I am in the minority......we've never spent a dime on AppleCare in 15 years. Maybe if we had a laptop, but all the phones and computers we've had have been trouble-free.

Best Buy doesn't advertise this, but they will honor their internet price in the store if asked. Saved me a ton of money on a GPS unit recently and I was able exchange it at the store when I had a problem.

Just got me one, iMac 27. This is my second sip, gulp, of the cool-aid. Iphone was the first. Also my first desk top. Three previous laptops, IBM Dell Gateway, lasted me about 7 years each. Got it sitting on an end table next to the recliner. Aaaah life is good. Hope this big f'er lasts for a while. Was thinking of getting the 21 and probably would have, but Best buy was out of stock. The 27 is the perfect size for arms length viewing. There is no text sizing, but you can zoom.

gotta learn to speak Mac now

Congratulations on the IMac 27. I bought an IMac24 about three years ago, absolutely trouble free. The learning curve was a little tough at my old age, but now, if this IMac were to blow up today, then would run out and buy another in a heartbeat. You'll grow to love that IMac, no doubt!!

Bought our first 12" ppc in 2005. New. Dumb. Then two more older 15" ppc used off cl. Then a mini intel. Now a hackintosh quad core with 8gb of ram.

I get emails from the guy I sold the 12" to now and then, links to photos/videos/whatever. It still works fine after having dropped off a 5' window sill, and water poured on the keyboard (same day, son was born wahoooooo).

This is how computing should be.