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iMac to Air...back to iMac?

bembol

bembol

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Jul 29, 2006
1,077
66
Except for the limited space, I'm loving my new Air (Mid 2012, 1.8GHz, 128GB, 4GB RAM). I sold my Mid-2007 24" iMac for it.

I've mentioned it several how this is just a temporary until Apple releases the next iMac but after a few days owning it, I wondering why go back to iMac especially since I'm planning to buy an External Monitor (24" Dell UltraSharp U2412M).

Sure the next iMac will be much better but do I really need it? Again, except for Handbrake & FrostWire, I pretty much do what I do on my Samsung Galaxy S3.

Having the Air is best of both worlds, just last night I took my Air to work ust so I didn't have to wait until I get home to download the latest episodes of Awkward & Suits. LOL I have LTE (4G) speeds and on my lunch break it took 20 minute to download both episodes, roughly 2GB.



Did you go back, why or why not?
 
I made the same move - 2006 iMac to 2012 MacBook Air - and haven't looked back. I've posted before that I believe the Air has replaced the iMac as Apple's consumer Mac. We need to wean ourselves off desktops. For most folk they're finished.
 
It is a reality that desktops will be just for really heavy use, like cience use for seeing how the big bang would explode and things like that, and for gaming... For everything else, you have macbook air... and other laptops... but the point is that each year is less the people that uses a desktop, it shurely is the preference for a lot of people but that number is clearly going down...

I would keep the air and make it a "desktop" while you are home...
 
Wow, I've done the same.... 20" "in" mid 2007 iMac.........SOLD.. 64GB Ipad2.......sold....... New 2012 MBA 11".... 1TB ext HDD.......... I dont for one min miss either of the Items sold........ I will but an External Screen (apple, of course) in the near future...... ML installed and is working like a dream........ Very happy........... :) Just please, Apple, bring on the New iPhone ........(or why ever you want to call it...) iOS6........ iCloud integration....... Pig in ****...........:apple:
 
Why is the Air being here considered as the iMac replacement rather than the Pro? I think that if you'd normally be after a desktop machine, then (besides the screen real estate) you'd be after higher levels of storage, memory, and power.

Of course, there are instances where you'd only need a more basic machine, but when you're comparing against an iMac, the Air falls short spec-wise.

So, people who would normally be looking at an iMac based on their requirements would be compromising by settling for an Air where an updated iMac is not forthcoming.
 
I use my iMac at home for when I want to play games (bootcamp), feel like multitasking (movie and browse the web side by side), photo/video editing.

When I am around the house, in the living room I prefer to use the Air if I want to game while watching TV outside, need to make use of the keyboard to type/edit documents or anything that requires the use of a keyboard. Otherwise I'll use my iPad for simple browsing.

If I am out of town I'd like to have both the iPad and the Air, since they're both so convenient to use.

As for having an Air as my main computer, no, not with a 11" anyways.
 
Back in 2008, I bought the 24-inch 3.06Ghz iMac. It was fantastic until I figured how troublesome for getting inside. Although I repaired iMacs successfully at work, I sold it before AppleCare runs out in 2010.

At that time, I also have a Mac mini server (mid-2010)

After selling the iMac, I got myself a late-2010 1.6Ghz 11-inch MBA with 128GB of storage. I stored music/video/data on the Mac mini server.

In 2011, I got the Apple 27-inch LED display and put the MBA in closed-lid mode. Last month, I sold the Mac mini server (in prepared for the new Ivy-bridge model), but there's no new model after all.

So far, all my data are stored in external hard drives and running through the Time Capsule. It is slow and not ideal.

I still like my MBA as a main computer, but storage can be a real pain. Will I go back to the iMac? I don't think so until Apple changes the design in a big way.
 
Out of curiousity, is there any reason you are going with the Dell monitor rather than the Apple Thunderbolt Display?
 
Angelis said:
Why is the Air being here considered as the iMac replacement rather than the Pro? I think that if you'd normally be after a desktop machine, then (besides the screen real estate) you'd be after higher levels of storage, memory, and power. Of course, there are instances where you'd only need a more basic machine, but when you're comparing against an iMac, the Air falls short spec-wise. So, people who would normally be looking at an iMac based on their requirements would be compromising by settling for an Air where an updated iMac is not forthcoming.
Click to expand...

The iMac was Apple's consumer Mac. The Air now fills that niche. The reason the Pro range isn't being considered as an iMac replacement is because most iMac buyers aren't pros. The Air does not "fall short spec wise" for most consumers. And it hits a sweet spot on price. If you're not convinced, just compare the sales volumes. This argument has already been won.
 
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For those have you who pair the MBA with an external monitor, what percentage of the time do you actually hook it up to the monitor? 50%? 75? And do you find it a hassle having to plug it in everytime? The laptop + external monitor just isn't as elegant as an iMac, although it's certainly much more portable.
 
Seamaster said:
The iMac was Apple's consumer Mac. The Air now fills that niche. The reason the Pro range isn't being considered as an iMac replacement is because most iMac buyers aren't pros. The Air does not "fall short spec wise" for most consumers. And it hits a sweet spot on price. If you're not convinced, just compare the sales volumes. This argument has already been won.
Click to expand...

I was speaking from a usage requirements perspective. Sales volumes tell us how much of any given unit type has been sold. They don't however tell us the user's intended purposes for the product, and whether and what percentage of buyers "settled" (for example), due to unavailability of an updated iMac. As such, neither can these figures accurately indicate what volume of updated iMacs would have been sold if available.

The Air does fall short on specs relative to a theoretical updated iMac alternative, which is the comparison we're making here.

Admittedly I'm not a Mac user, but it occurs to me (and please correct me if I'm wrong), that given roughly equivalent specifications, the iMac and MacBook Pro are equally capable of performing the same tasks, be it professional or otherwise. On this basis, distinguishing between a Pro or non-Pro user for the purpose of comparison between these two products, becomes largely inconsequential.

This takes us back to the reasoning that a prospective buyer will select a product with specifications that will meet their usage requirements. As I've mentioned, in some cases the Air will be at least sufficient for many users. But when considering users who needed or wanted an OSX system with iMac level specifications, the MacBook Pro seems a closer match.
 
Fattytail said:
For those have you who pair the MBA with an external monitor, what percentage of the time do you actually hook it up to the monitor? 50%? 75? And do you find it a hassle having to plug it in everytime? The laptop + external monitor just isn't as elegant as an iMac, although it's certainly much more portable.
Click to expand...

100% connects to the display and I have a twelvesouth BookArc. If I want portability around the house, the iPad/iPhone fits my bill.
 
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