“This new iMac is the most incredible desktop computer we’ve ever made,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO, in the press release. “Our new design features the innovative use of materials, including professional-grade aluminum and glass, that are highly recyclable.”
Redefining Apple’s signature all-in-one design, the new iMac integrates the entire computer system into a sleek aluminum enclosure for a striking, clutter-free desktop. An elegant glass cover joins precisely to the aluminum enclosure creating a virtually seamless front surface. The new iMac’s 20- and 24-inch glossy widescreen displays provide incredibly crisp images, ideal for photos and movies using the all new iLife ’08 suite of digital lifestyle applications that are included. The new ultra-thin aluminum Apple Keyboard is just 0.33 inches thin at its front edge. A new optional Apple Wireless Keyboard is a compact design that, with Apple’s wireless Mighty Mouse, offers a cable-free desktop.
Packing professional performance into the convenience of an all-in-one design, the new iMac includes the latest Intel Core 2 Duo processors running up to 2.8 GHz with 4MB of shared L2 cache and up to 4GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM memory. The iMac line features ATI’s next generation of graphics with the ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO with 256MB of GDDR3 memory and the ATI Radeon HD 2400 XT with 128MB of GDDR3 memory. The new iMac now offers up to 1TB of internal storage to accommodate a user’s growing library of digital photos, movies and music.
Providing the latest in high-performance connectivity options to quickly and conveniently transfer digital photos, music and video, the iMac includes built-in AirPort Extreme 802.11n Wi-Fi networking, delivering up to five times the performance and twice the range of 802.11g;* Gigabit Ethernet; a total of five USB 2.0 ports (including two on the new Apple Keyboard); and one FireWire(R) 400 and one FireWire 800 port.
The new iMac, with its stunning design, features highly recyclable and durable materials including scratch-resistant glass and professional grade aluminum. The power-efficient iMac also meets the stringent new Energy Star 4.0 requirements.
Every iMac also includes iLife ’08, the most significant update ever to Apple’s award-winning suite of digital lifestyle applications, featuring a major new version of iPhoto and a completely reinvented iMovie, both seamlessly integrated with the new .Mac Web Gallery for online photo and video sharing. The new iMac also comes with the world’s most advanced operating system, Mac OS X version 10.4.10 Tiger, including Safari, Mail, iCal, iChat AV, Front Row and Photo Booth.
The new iMac line is available immediately through the Apple Store, Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers. The new Apple Wireless Keyboard will ship by the end of August and will be available as a build-to-order option with the new iMac through the Apple Store for a suggested retail price of US$30 or $50 when purchased along with the wireless Mighty Mouse, and as a standalone purchase for a suggested retail price of $79 through the Apple Store, Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers.
The new 20-inch 2.0 GHz iMac, for a suggested retail price of $1,199, includes:
• 20-inch widescreen LCD display
• 2.0 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processo
• 1GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM expandable to 4GB
• a slot-load 8x SuperDrive(R) with double-layer support (DVD+/-R DL/DVD+/-RW/CD-RW
• ATI Radeon HD 2400 XT with 128MB GDDR3 memory
• built-in iSight video camera
• built-in AirPort Extreme 802.11n wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.0+EDR
• 250GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 7200 rp
• mini-DVI out (adapters for DVI, VGA and Composite/S-Video sold separately)
• built-in stereo speakers and microphone
• the new Apple Keyboard, Mighty Mouse and infrared Apple Remote
The new 20-inch 2.4 GHz iMac, for a suggested retail price of $1,499, includes:
• 20-inch widescreen LCD display
• 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor
• 1GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM expandable to 4GB
• a slot-load 8x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD+/-R DL/DVD+/-RW/CD-RW)
• ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO with 256MB GDDR3 memory
• built-in iSight video camera
• built-in AirPort Extreme 802.11n wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.0+EDR
• 320GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 7200 rp
• mini-DVI out (adapters for DVI, VGA and Composite/S-Video sold separately
• built-in stereo speakers and microphone
• the new Apple Keyboard, Mighty Mouse and infrared Apple Remote
The new 24-inch 2.4 GHz iMac, for a suggested retail price of $1,799, includes:
• 24-inch widescreen LCD display
• 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor
• 1GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM expandable to 4GB
• a slot-load 8x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD+/-R DL/DVD+/-RW/CD-RW)
• ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO with 256MB GDDR3 memory
• built-in iSight video camera
• built-in AirPort Extreme 802.11n wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.0+EDR
• 320GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 7200 rpm
• mini-DVI out (adapters for DVI, VGA and Composite/S-Video sold separately)
• built-in stereo speakers and microphone
• the new Apple Keyboard, Mighty Mouse and infrared Apple Remote
Build-to-order options and accessories include: a 2.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Extreme processor, up to 4GB DDR2 SDRAM and up to a 1TB Serial ATA hard drive on the 24-inch iMac; up to 4GB DDR2 SDRAM and up to 750GB Serial ATA hard drive on the 2.4 GHz 20-inch iMac; and up to 4GB of DDR2 SDRAM and up to 500GB Serial ATA hard drive on the 2.0 GHz 20-inch iMac.
Additional options include: new Apple Wireless Keyboard and wireless Mighty Mouse; AirPort Express and AirPort Extreme Base Station (now with Gigabit Ethernet); the AppleCare Protection Plan; and pre-installed copies of iWork ’08, Logic Express 7, Final Cut Express HD 3.5 and Aperture 1.5.
See the new iMacs here.
I like the new design of the iMac, it looks very iPhone-ish. I am worry about the thickness of the unit in regards to heat; surely things will begin to warp once the gets hot.
I hate the new design of the keyboard; that will be replaced more or less straight away. Why is it that Apple can get the machine design right, but are absolutely useless when it comes to designing keyboard and mouse?
I can’t believe that Apple are selling the 24″ for $1799! That’s £900 here in the UK, but you can bet it won’t be.
(Haven’t checked yet as Apple Store is offline)
I was hoping that chin would go away. Pretty much the same machine with different materials. Who cares if it’s a little thinner to look at from the side.
Want one.
The new keyboard design is sick! I love it! WAY Better than the last.
If you like the old keyboard, you have issues.
Want one too.
MW: “Waiting”. I am waiting for my paycheck!
BTW,
The mini was also updated….
I think the black bezel is pretty ugly.
As a professional photographer, I’m disappointed. First, the glossy displays seem like a bad idea. The glossy screens on Macbook Pros seem less color-accurate, and the reflections are very distracting. Second, when Steve said, “We think it is an all-in-one world,” he clearly did not have advanced amateur and professional photographers in mind. Photo pros place a higher priority on display quality than horsepower. We buy the very best displays we can afford, and we’re not about to trade them in for an all-in-one solution, no matter how attractive. Many, though, cannot justify spending $3,000 on a Mac Pro. A lot of pros who have $1,500 displays are still limping along with G4s and G5s. For us, there’s no affordable upgrade path. Apple would reverse the erosion of its dominance of the photo market if it would just produce a headless iMac or a Mac Pro Jr. for under $1,500.
Nice upgrade, although I HATE glossy displays. The black border should help eliminate glare, but still, I won’t buy a glossy display.
I’d still wait for Leopard before buying one, heh…
MW: why
Yeah, why?
I sure hope they have more BTO graphics card options… (specifically Nvidia)
I agree with you about Apple mice MacUserUK, but let’s give the keyboard a chance. We won’t know whether it’s any good until we use it.
Does anyone have opinion on the video cards? Is the 2600 Pro a decent card for gaming? I’m not up to speed on these.
IT’S NOT AN ALL-IN-ONE WORLD.
Steve’s RDF is in full effect. And I’m jumping ship. This is a joke. All these years and what is to show for it? An aluminum/glass iMac. WOW. Bye Bye.
Apple is content to rake in the money and little else.
OH cool! A new keyboard!! Please.
As a pro you may take your laptop outside, or sit with it in the sun’s view but with a Desktop with a glossy screen you can avoid glare with your permanent placement (a desktop vs laptop). Most pro’s I have talked to or read about say that the glossy screen is more color accurate, better saturation, etc.
Just my .02
I hope that they figured out the problems the imac was having with the firewire 800 ports not working. Damn shame. Its gorgeous but a glossy screen? Ill pass.
The chin is smaller and less Jay Leno-ish than the previous iMacs.
Nevertheless, whenever these announcements are made, there are always people who have to complain, “I wanted this, I wanted that, I want, I want, I want!”. Apple should release a computer that meets the exact specifications of every single person on the face of the planet. They could call it the iWant.
The ATI 2400 is a $50 video card for a PC.
Screw iMacs and screw Apple if the Mac Pro is not updated with price drop soon. Although, I may eventually buy an iPhone to hook up to my WindowsPC I’ve been forced to switch to.
Somewhat disappointed. I thought they said this was to be a transitional product. If this had an led based lcd screen, I may seriously consider it.
I like the black bezel. What I don’t like now is the white underneath. Looks a little weird. Wish it was all black.
TROLL ALERT….
Nothing on this or other threads can be relied on today. they are out like a plague of rats…
Come back in a day to see real Mac reviews.
My ‘new’ baby is officially obsolete.
🙁
The Apple Store is currently down, but It was up for about 90 seconds about 5 minutes after the event. Curious.
MDN, I was disappointed in the server performance. I thought that was to be fixed now.
Nice package of upgrades but the elephant in the room is the mandatory glossy screen. If the glass cover or some other aspect of the implementation prevents it from being reflective, then not much to complain about. But if it reflects like the screen on the Macbook, a lot of hard core users won’t be happy. No-choice glossy seems inconsistent with the “professionalization” of the iMac in so many other respects (aluminum, firewire 800, etc.)
Back to the same reasons…every time Apple comes up with something new, people always have a gripe about how Apple missed this and how Apple missed that.
For those whiners, you need to just STFU. You are either going to buy it or you’re not. Plain and simple. Leave it at that. If you can do it better, fine, go right ahead and show us what you got. Otherwise, STFU.
What are you talking about? If you’re a pro photographer, why on earth do you care what the latest iMac looks like??? Buy a dual-quad Mac Pro with a pair of 30″ Cinema displays. This isn’t supposed to be targeted toward your market segment.