imac

24-inch, 2.66GHz Apple iMac reviewed

Phew.

First review done. Click here for the details. The video should be up soon if it's not already.

The short of it is that we like the new iMac, and we think most of you will, too. We love the price for the 24-inch display, and Apple's multitasking performance continues to make Vista look bad. We were surprised by the chopped down keyboard, which we didn't hate, but we're glad the full-sized version is still an option. We also find it interesting that Apple hasn't really responded to the Sony's and the HP'… Read more

As mobile future looms, Apple milks iMac margins

Apple's long-awaited Mac desktop refresh Tuesday is evidence of the company's determination to preserve its margins in a category that's fast going out of style.

Three Mac desktop categories were updated Tuesday, but only one really matters: the Mac Mini and Mac Pro aren't nearly as popular as the all-in-one iMac. Apple did improve the specifications of the iMac at the same price points, lowering the cost of acquiring a 24-inch version to $1,499. But it made few significant changes to a design that hasn't been updated since September 2007 and resisted calls to … Read more

The 404 290: Where both Natali and Justin are suspiciously absent

Dr. Michael Breus, the Sleep Doctor, gets snowed out of New York today, and Justin Yu and Natali Del Conte are both suspiciously absent. We thought they were joking about the whole getting married thing. We didn't actually think they would hook up. Anyway, Heavy fills in today and does an admirable job of explaining why people get migraines. Essentially, Justin needs to take some Midol.

So what the hell is this Facebook ad suppose to mean? Jeff can't figure it out, but Heavy is heavy on the case. As usual, Jeff has a hater opinion on the … Read more

The 404 290: Where both Natali and Justin are suspiciously absent

So what the hell is this Facebook ad supposed to mean? Jeff can't figure it out, but Heavy is heavy on the case. As usual, Jeff has a hater opinion on the … Read more

Apple overhauls iMacs, 24-inch models more affordable

Editors' Note: As of October 20, 2009, the iMac reviewed here has been replaced by 27-inch iMac models.

In addition to updating its Mac Minis this morning, Apple has new iMacs. Each of the four default models received an update, so we'll break them out below list-style for convenience, with new specs in bold.

$1,199 iMac

2.6GHz Intel Core 2 Duo 2GB 1,066MHz DDR3 SDRAM 320GB hard drive

256MB (shared) Nvidia GeForce 9400M graphics chip 20-inch LCD

$1,499 iMac

2.6GHz Intel Core 2 Duo 4GB 1,066MHz DDR3 SDRAM 640GB hard drive

256MB (shared) … Read more

Apple polishes its desktop line

Updated 8:25 a.m. PST with analyst note.

As expected, Apple announced desktop updates on Tuesday with a focus on energy efficiency.

There are new Mac Pro high-end desktops powered by Intel's Nehalem-based Xeon processors, new and more graphics-intensive Mac Mini machines, and updated iMacs that offer the lowest price yet on these consumer desktops.

All the new machines meet the requirements for Energy Star 5.0 certification, which kicks in this summer.

The new Mac Pro is priced at $2,… Read more

Apple finally refreshes Mac Mini with updated specs

Looks like the rumors were true. This morning Apple updated both the iMac and the Mac Mini. The Mac Mini in particular was long overdue for a refresh, having relied on the same specs since August 2007.

The updated Mac Mini has new default configurations, although the prices remain the same, at $599 for the low-end model and $799 for the step-up version. The $599 system gets a new 2GHz Core 2 Duo processor, the same 1GB of RAM, and a larger 120GB hard drive. The $799 model also retains its 2GB of RAM and the same 2.0GHz Core … Read more

Signs building toward March iMac launch

It's as clear as it gets in the Apple rumor business that if you're in the market for one of the company's iMacs, it's probably worth waiting a few weeks.

Several rumors flew across the Internet over the weekend and Monday, hurled by World of Apple and others, that Apple is finally gearing up for the long-awaited refresh of its all-in-one iMac desktop sometime later this month. Such an overhaul is long overdue in the minds of many Apple watchers, who have been hearing about a potential iMac refresh since last November.

Surprisingly, few details are available about what changes Apple is planning to make to the iMac, which could suggest that the changes will be under the hood rather than design-related. The Nvidia integrated graphics chipsets used in last October's MacBook refresh are a decent bet, perhaps combined with the 9600M discrete graphics card as Apple did with the MacBook Pro.

Maynard Um of UBS put out a research note Monday saying that one sure bet for the new systems are Intel's Nehalem processors. The server version of those chips is scheduled to be out relatively soon, which means Apple will probably also have a new high-end Mac Pro soon, as OSX86 contributor Netkas (via Ars Technica) has uncovered.… Read more

Survey: Demand for Apple notebooks declining

Apple's Mac division was able to withstand recessionary pressures last quarter by neutralizing a decline in desktop sales with a sharp rise in notebook sales. Will it continue?

A new survey released by ChangeWave Wednesday makes it clear that despite a relatively strong first quarter, Apple is not out of the woods yet. Of respondents planning to buy a notebook in the next 90 days, the percentage of those planning to buy an Apple notebook fell six percentage points to 28 percent, as compared with November's survey.

The overall percentage of respondents planning to buy a notebook fell from 8 percent in November to 6 percent, so it's not just Apple that's feeling the pinch. And consumer electronics spending is on the wane as well, with the percentage of those planning to spend more on consumer tech over the next 90 days falling to a two-and-a-half-year low.

But Changewave says that decline is being partially offset by an increase in demand for Netbooks, a category where Apple is taking a wait-and-see approach. The research firm concludes its report by opining that Apple could be in trouble without a Netbook, because the PC market is growing increasingly price-sensitive as the recession takes hold.… Read more

Apple planning dual-core and quad-core iMacs?

Rather than choosing between dual-core or quad-core processors for an expected revision to the iMac, Apple may have decided to use both.

Shaw Wu of Kaufman Brothers, who just last week opined that an iMac refresh was around the corner, thinks Apple has resolved its dilemma over using quad-core or dual-core processors for the new systems by creating two tiers in the iMac line: a high-end version with a quad-core chip, and a low-end version with a dual-core chip. Apple currently offers two different screen sizes (20-inch and 24-inch) for the all-in-one iMac, and offers two different configurations for each … Read more