Aluminum iMac Disassembled and First Impressions

[MacRumors]

Kodawarisan posted a set of disassembly photos of the new aluminum iMac released yesterday:





Meanwhile, Gizmodo has posted some first impressions about the new iMac. Some highlights are provided:

- The keyboard cable is just high enough that it won't bump into the metal base of the iMac if you push them together on your desk.
- The iMac's aluminum chassis is stamped from a single piece of aluminum.
- The speakers are on the bottom, pointing down at the desk, where the sound bounces off nicely. (They're loud.)
- Can't wall mount the 20". The 24" has an optional VESA mount.
- Screen is extremely glossy

MacRumors readers are discussing the iMac in our iMac forum.



Article Link

[kitki83]

Let the science BEGIN!!!!

I love the design of the new imac, the black trim is good for movie viewing. Also seems you can paint the black area.

[Eidorian]

Kodawarisan is the best.

[Zwhaler]

"Screen is extremely glossy"

[Daniel75]

At least now we know which panel is hidden there:

Model Name LM201WE3(TN)
Active Area [mm] 433.4 x 270.9
Outline Dimension [mm] 459.4 x 296.4
Thickness [mm] 16.5
Resolution 1680 x 1050
Aspect Ratio 16:10
Pixel Pitch [mm] 0.258
Number of Colors 16.7 M, 8bit(FRC)
Luminance [cd/?] 300
Color Saturation (%) 72%
Weight [g] 2500
Contrast Ratio 1000:1
Interface LVDS
Viewing Angle [?,U/D/L/R] 160/160
Color Temperature [K] 6500
Response Time [ms] 5


I wonder if that means that 24'' is using LM240WU3?
Specs

[jsfried]

Does the back panel come off like the last gen imac to gain access to the hard drive?

[Rocketman]

So if people can disassemble them, how long will it be until people run external eSata and PCIe cables to attach RAIDS and external PCI boxes?

"Hack your iMac"

Rocketman

[mkrishnan]

^^ How is that any different than the previous iMac?

Mmm, I still won't be able to see one till Tuesday at least, but I dunno. As more photos, the back continues to look ugly to me. The front, on the other hand, is slowly growing on me.

[Eidorian]

Originally Posted by mkrishnan

^^ How is that any different than the previous iMac?

Mmm, I still won't be able to see one till Tuesday at least, but I dunno. As more photos, the back continues to look ugly to me. The front, on the other hand, is slowly growing on me.

The internals look the same to me.

[chr1s60]

The screen looks fantastic. I really wanna try one out.

[mklos]

Originally Posted by jsfried

Does the back panel come off like the last gen imac to gain access to the hard drive?

The last gen iMacs didn't have the feature either. You're thinking of the first gen iMac G5 where the entire back came off to get to the RAM, AirPort Card, Hard Drive, etc. The last gen iMacs you could only take a couple of screws off and get access to the RAM slots under the display, similar to the this new iMac.

I'm wondering how they got that glass out. Does it just pull out with the proper tools? If so I see a potential issue with the glass falling out of the enclosure without any warning.

[twoodcc]

dang, i wouldn't do that to my imac

i'm thinking that 2.8 ghz extreme processor in the 24" iMac would be one nice machine

[illicium]

I saw in the presentation that there is only one screw to remove to get to the RAM. I am planning on buying a new 24" iMac when Leopard comes out and I would like it to be outfitted with 2 Gigs of RAM but it is $135 in the Apple Store on-line to upgrade to 2 Gigs. What is anyone's experience with buying cheap 3rd party RAM for their iMacs? Currently on newegg there are prices as low as $35 for TechWorks and as low as $45 for Corsair 1 Gig modules. Should it send up a red flag that there is THAT much of a price difference? OR should I be completely safe going with one of those sticks for my upgrade to 2 Gigs?

[jsfried]

Originally Posted by mklos

The last gen iMacs didn't have the feature either. You're thinking of the first gen iMac G5 where the entire back came off to get to the RAM, AirPort Card, Hard Drive, etc. The last gen iMacs you could only take a couple of screws off and get access to the RAM slots under the display, similar to the this new iMac.

I'm wondering how they got that glass out. Does it just pull out with the proper tools? If so I see a potential issue with the glass falling out of the enclosure without any warning.

You sure about there? The store I work at has the last gen 24inch on demo and the back comes off to access the hard drive.

[Eidorian]

Originally Posted by jsfried

You sure about there? The store I work at has the last gen 24inch on demo and the back comes off to access the hard drive.

I've never seen that feature.

[bennyboi]

Originally Posted by illicium

What is anyone's experience with buying cheap 3rd party RAM for their iMacs? Currently on newegg there are prices as low as $35 for TechWorks and as low as $45 for Corsair 1 Gig modules. Should it send up a red flag that there is THAT much of a price difference? OR should I be completely safe going with one of those sticks for my upgrade to 2 Gigs?

Yes, u can purchase cheap ram, but there are horror stories of doing so and people's macs get fried. The bad news, the warranty is voided because you installed 3rd party hardware. I don't know if it's u installing and/or the 3rd party ram that does it, the warranty does get x'd.
I'm a careless cowboy with my toys, and I install my own ram, but I at least try to purchase the same ram apple uses. memoryx.com will tell you which ram to get if u want to match ram and install yourself.
I could see an unethical person purchasing such ram, and if occuring any troubles, uninstalling such ram and taking it in for repairs? I think I'm just the same as you and would like to pinch some pennies when I don't necessarily have to spend a fortune

Good luck!

[maccompaq]

Originally Posted by illicium

I saw in the presentation that there is only one screw to remove to get to the RAM. I am planning on buying a new 24" iMac when Leopard comes out and I would like it to be outfitted with 2 Gigs of RAM but it is $135 in the Apple Store on-line to upgrade to 2 Gigs. What is anyone's experience with buying cheap 3rd party RAM for their iMacs? Currently on newegg there are prices as low as $35 for TechWorks and as low as $45 for Corsair 1 Gig modules. Should it send up a red flag that there is THAT much of a price difference? OR should I be completely safe going with one of those sticks for my upgrade to 2 Gigs?

Go to OWC to get a 2 Meg stick for $114. 1 meg is $50. Very reliable memory.

I want to take those components and put them in a mini tower with much better cooling to prolong the life of the logic board that seems to haunt iMacs. Anyone else?

[beer.coffee]

Originally Posted by illicium

I saw in the presentation that there is only one screw to remove to get to the RAM. I am planning on buying a new 24" iMac when Leopard comes out and I would like it to be outfitted with 2 Gigs of RAM but it is $135 in the Apple Store on-line to upgrade to 2 Gigs. What is anyone's experience with buying cheap 3rd party RAM for their iMacs? Currently on newegg there are prices as low as $35 for TechWorks and as low as $45 for Corsair 1 Gig modules. Should it send up a red flag that there is THAT much of a price difference? OR should I be completely safe going with one of those sticks for my upgrade to 2 Gigs?

Dont skimp on money when it comes to memory! You definitely get what you paid for. I've run numerous memory checks and the cheap stuff definitely has more errors. More errors, more more hang ups and crashes, especially if your doing a lot of video/photo editing or playing games.

My advice is that the extra 20 bucks is well worth it. Your talking about one of the most vital aspect in determining computer performance! Dont skimp!

[BIGIRON]

I want one of these so bad but the upgradeable nature of the mac pro is calling my name...whats a nerd to do.....

[yetanotherdave]

In other words:
You are NEVER upgrading that HDD yourself

[sluthy]

Hmm, don't like glossy screens...I'll have to see it in person.

24in, full HD, decent graphics, ability to dual boot Windows (when will Boot Camp allow Linux dual booting/triple booting? Will the 'final' BC have this?). This iMac's starting to sound pretty good, and good value compared to Macs of old. Still don't know if it's value enough compared to PCs though for my next computer.

[coumerelli]

Originally Posted by illicium

I saw in the presentation that there is only one screw to remove to get to the RAM. I am planning on buying a new 24" iMac when Leopard comes out and I would like it to be outfitted with 2 Gigs of RAM but it is $135 in the Apple Store on-line to upgrade to 2 Gigs. What is anyone's experience with buying cheap 3rd party RAM for their iMacs? Currently on newegg there are prices as low as $35 for TechWorks and as low as $45 for Corsair 1 Gig modules. Should it send up a red flag that there is THAT much of a price difference? OR should I be completely safe going with one of those sticks for my upgrade to 2 Gigs?

www.crucial.com - fantastic in my experience. They've got a nifty "Memory Advisor tool" to help you pick. This is inexpensive RAM as opposed to cheap RAM - there's a difference.

[nostaws]

www.crucial.com - fantastic in my experience. They've got a nifty "Memory Advisor tool" to help you pick. This is inexpensive RAM as opposed to cheap RAM - there's a difference.

Good Advice - I too really like crucial - very easy to find the exact ram you need for your mac. I have never had a problem with their RAM

I really like the new iMac - This is the first iMac (since the movable arm/desktop lamp version (I wish I could get that with an intel processor) that may cause me to get a desktop machine.

[autechre]

Any thoughts on Kingston? I want to upgrade to 4gb and thought about getting this stuff from my local computer store. I know Kingston is a reputable manufacturer. I would get Micron or Samsung from OWC, but I'm not sure yet, especially because I'm in Canada and have reservations about warranty/customs. And is the warranty really void if you buy third party? That doesn't make sense to me.

Honest thoughts, plz.

[macenforcer]

Looks better with the glass off.