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brendel95

macrumors regular
Original poster
May 23, 2005
109
0
Hi

I am trying to decide between Current Rev. B iMac 2.0Ghz 17" at $1399 and Refurbished Rev A. iMac 1.8Ghz 20" at $1399.

Good things about the current model are faster processor(0.2Ghz faster) and fsb, better video card(I don't do that much video work) and more ram, wirless (desktop don't need wireless and wired network is much faster), and double layer super drive(media is still expensive) and iPod rebate.

Do I have to go for the refurbished 20" for more screen space or do I have to go for the rev B. 17" for more features that I don't use very often?

Is Rev A. iMac that bad (I heard lots of complain about that)

Thank a million in advances
 

wwooden

macrumors 68020
Jul 26, 2004
2,028
187
Burlington, VT
gwuMACaddict said:
get a rev B 20inch. i loooooove mine. the screen is beautiful.

and from what i hear also, the rev A sucked

That's not really one of the options he listed, it is between the rev A 20" and the rev B 17", at the same price.

For the original poster, it sounds like the 20" might be better for you. Most of the things on the iMac you can upgrade later, except the video chip. You can always add more ram, bigger harddrive, wireless networking, better disc drive. But you can't make the display bigger.
 

Le Big Mac

macrumors 68030
Jan 7, 2003
2,809
378
Washington, DC
gwuMACaddict said:
get a rev B 20inch. i loooooove mine. the screen is beautiful.

and from what i hear also, the rev A sucked

And you'll given him the $$ to do that?

Personally I think the 17" monitor is sufficient, especially if you're not doing a lot at once and need multiple windows open. Extra memory and HD space is always welcome (although an external drive takes care of part of that). Seems like other than the larger screen, you're getting a lot more by going new. If the refurb price were another $150-200 lower, it would be a harder call, since it would allow you to add memory and other tidbits and stay within your budget. Keep in mind that prices of everything will come down, and it's nice to have greater flexibility going forward.
 

Naimfan

Suspended
Jan 15, 2003
4,669
2,017
I just went through this dilemma--sort of. I was torn between the 17" and 20" Rev. B's, and then saw a refurbed 20." Although this may not help much, I went with a new 20" because of the bigger screen, bigger hard drive, and better resolution on the screen.

I did think about the 20" Rev. A but decided that the improvements on the Rev. B (better graphics card, HD, AEX, BT 2, etc.) made it worth the extra.

If I HAD to pick one, I'd probably get the Rev. B 17". I know the poster said he doesn't do much video work, but coming from a 15" Powerbook with 128 MB of VRAM to the (apparently much better) GPU in the iMac was stunning--the iMac is MUCH better at video. (I know a good chunk of that was the more limited resolution of the PB screen.)

Best,

Bob
 

devilot

Moderator emeritus
May 1, 2005
15,584
1
As a proud owner of a Rev. B 20" iMac, I'll echo the other posters-- if at all possible, save up the price difference to get the rev. B 20" but if it really isn't an option (totally understandable) then I would still recommend getting the 17" rev. B.

Not only because of the standard AE and BT, but I believe that the BT technology in this one is slightly faster/better and well, as others have mentioned, the graphics card, larger HD space... etc.
 

brendel95

macrumors regular
Original poster
May 23, 2005
109
0
I am kind of going toward new 17". But more inputs are welcome for my decision

Thanks
 

gwuMACaddict

macrumors 68040
Apr 21, 2003
3,124
0
washington dc
sheesh... read that first post wrong and got pounced on. sorry guys- i thought he was looking at the 2.o 20inch...

anyway... i'd still go rev b over rev a anyway, they've got all the kinks worked out now.
 

wordmunger

macrumors 603
Sep 3, 2003
5,124
3
North Carolina
My wife has a rev A iMac 20-incher and loves it. The screen is beautiful and HUGE. You can fit two full pages of text side by side, edit giant photos, just about anything you want.

However, if you can't afford at least an upgrade to the RAM, I'd say you should probably get the 17-incher. 256 MB is not enough. My recommendation would be to get the 20-incher plus a 512 MB stick for $71.06 from Crucial. That should do you just fine.

Another question: does the refurb come with Tiger? If not, then the 17-incher is definitely the better deal.
 

brendel95

macrumors regular
Original poster
May 23, 2005
109
0
wordmunger said:
My wife has a rev A iMac 20-incher and loves it. The screen is beautiful and HUGE. You can fit two full pages of text side by side, edit giant photos, just about anything you want.

However, if you can't afford at least an upgrade to the RAM, I'd say you should probably get the 17-incher. 256 MB is not enough. My recommendation would be to get the 20-incher plus a 512 MB stick for $71.06 from Crucial. That should do you just fine.

Another question: does the refurb come with Tiger? If not, then the 17-incher is definitely the better deal.

I thought that every mac comes with tiger now
 

djkny

macrumors 6502
Sep 30, 2003
460
0
Rev A iMac 20" for $1099 brand new at uni store. Pretty good closeout deal, eh? Get iPod mini, sell it on ebay, get rebate and total comes to $950 or so.
 

SteveG4Cube

macrumors 6502
Jul 22, 2002
347
0
MontCo., PA
i was in the same boat - until I used them both. The 20" screen is the only way to go. Incidentally, my refurb. Rev. A 20" 1.8 iMac came with a 250gb HD and 512mb of RAM (maybe they're not really "refurbished", but rather just stuffing leftover Rev. A boards into Rev B units). ;)
 

FlyNolJ

macrumors member
Apr 14, 2005
81
0
Hellpot Az
Same situation.

I am thinking about getting a Rev. B 17" or a Rev. B 20" but with the extra money I save from the 20" I could get an iPod with some acessories. Also, the macrumors Buyer's Guide says that an update should come within 2 months. But what is there to update besides disk space, and more ram? Should I wait or no? I'm willing to wait, but not for more hard disk space. :confused:
 

yoak

macrumors 68000
Oct 4, 2004
1,672
203
Oslo, Norway
FlyNolJ said:
I am thinking about getting a Rev. B 17" or a Rev. B 20" but with the extra money I save from the 20" I could get an iPod with some acessories. Also, the macrumors Buyer's Guide says that an update should come within 2 months. But what is there to update besides disk space, and more ram? Should I wait or no? I'm willing to wait, but not for more hard disk space. :confused:

But for Intel? ;)
 

wwooden

macrumors 68020
Jul 26, 2004
2,028
187
Burlington, VT
I highly doubt the iMacs will be updated in the next two months. There is not much room there between the iMac an the PowerMac for them to play with. They have really built a great computer in the latest iMac, adding pretty much everything that people complained about with the first one. If they update the PowerMacs in the next month, we might have a shot at seeing a new iMac in 3 to 4 months, but not 2 months. I have a feeling the PowerBooks will be updated in January, while the iMacs will wait until the spring.
 

djkny

macrumors 6502
Sep 30, 2003
460
0
wwooden said:
I highly doubt the iMacs will be updated in the next two months. There is not much room there between the iMac an the PowerMac for them to play with. They have really built a great computer in the latest iMac, adding pretty much everything that people complained about with the first one. If they update the PowerMacs in the next month, we might have a shot at seeing a new iMac in 3 to 4 months, but not 2 months. I have a feeling the PowerBooks will be updated in January, while the iMacs will wait until the spring.

What in the world is Apple gonna do for Paris? No PB's, no PM's, nano introduced. Oh, I think i got it -- iWork '06 for professionals.

Go Steve.
 

brendel95

macrumors regular
Original poster
May 23, 2005
109
0
djkny said:
Rev A iMac 20" for $1099 brand new at uni store. Pretty good closeout deal, eh? Get iPod mini, sell it on ebay, get rebate and total comes to $950 or so.

Can I know which school is it?

Thanks
 
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