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Apple Releases New Sandy Bridge Quad-Core iMacs with Thunderbolt

I need some help deciding which new imac to purchase. I am upgrading from a Dual 1.8 PowerMac G5. It has lasted me a long time, but it is time to upgrade.

I mainly use my computer for recreational uses such as checking websites, downloading lots of music, watching porn, and looking to start up playing World of Warcraft again. I have some interest in music production using garageband and possibly getting some other programs as well, but that's about all I use it for.

All I have decided on is that I want the 27" screen. Thanks for your suggestions.
 
Altohombre said:
I need some help deciding which new imac to purchase. I am upgrading from a Dual 1.8 PowerMac G5. It has lasted me a long time, but it is time to upgrade.

I mainly use my computer for recreational uses such as checking websites, downloading lots of music, watching porn, and looking to start up playing World of Warcraft again. I have some interest in music production using garageband and possibly getting some other programs as well, but that's about all I use it for.

All I have decided on is that I want the 27" screen. Thanks for your suggestions.
Click to expand...
base specs are fine for those things
 
I must say that overall I am very impressed with the updates. I had a feeling they would be adding a port for Thunderbolt but two? Wow! That is neat. The upgraded processor and graphics card as well was very nice and unexpected. I really thought Thunderbolt would be the main upgrade.

I am a bit puzzled and upset as to why they did not go ahead and update the four USB 2.0 ports to four USB 3.0 ports. I just bought a brand new WD 3TB External HD this past Sunday at Best Buy that features USB 3.0 and when I get my new iMac I will be stuck with the old USB 2.0 while the USB 3.0 functionality just stares at the iMac and shakes it head.

I sure hope WD and other external HDs add Thunderbolt to some if not all of their products.
 
Well told story there! It is a shame that the lack of USB3 in the current peripherals market could be seen as a deterrent. With luck come March (going on the buyer's guide average) the modern tech switch will be complete ... for now ><.
 
6-7 week leadtime for new build-to-order iMac...

Build-to-order new iMac taking 6 weeks!

I ordered mine yesterday evening (3.4MHz, 27", 2Tb/256SSD, 16Gb) and delivery is expected in the 3rd week of june.... :(

See below, taken from my order confirmation:

"Quanto tempo demorará a minha encomenda?

Expedição: 14 Jun, 2011.

A sua encomenda deverá ser entregue no endereço de expedição que indicou até ao 20 Jun, 2011."

Looking forward to it, but will have to look forward for another while....
 
I still haven't got my answer T_T

ANY one have idea about apple fixing the original problem

of SOME of the monitors getting dirts or foggy monitor from inside?
 
New to the mac world....and just purchased the new imac 27". However was wondering if i can use handbrake on it (even with the drm on the sandy bridge?) If any one has advice on how i can rip my dvd collection on this new beast, it would be greatly appreciated.
 
andrewbecks said:
Sorry, I should have clarified. I just pre-ordered. No idea on shipping times, but in looking at and talking to some of the other Apple Resellers out there (PowerMax, MacMall, JR, etc.) + my local Apple store, it sounds like everyone's expecting them in the next few days. I'm taking a gamble that I won't have to wait too long. Hopefully for the sake of my COMMAND + R keys, I won't have to too. :D
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info! I think I'm gonna do the same and pre-order from Amazon tomorrow. No sales tax = $186 savings where I'm at, which basically means free upgrade to 16GB of RAM.

Still deliberating whether to upgrade the i5 to i7, but I'm sure a lot of people are in the same boat, and as far as I can tell, Amazon doesn't have the i7, so looks like that makes the decision a bit easier for me.

One last question for you, if you happen to know. When ordering through Amazon, is it possible to switch the Magic Mouse for the Trackpad, like you can through Apple? I called MacMall and they can't do it, so I'm guessing other sellers like Amazon can't either.

I've had a Magic Mouse and wasn't a huge fan (apart from Web Surfing where I thought it was great), and I'd like to swap for the trackpad, but I guess I can't skimp out on the sales tax and have it all. :)
 
BennyBlanco CTP said:
New to the mac world....and just purchased the new imac 27". However was wondering if i can use handbrake on it (even with the drm on the sandy bridge?) If any one has advice on how i can rip my dvd collection on this new beast, it would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...

Simply DL and install the 64bit versions of Handbrake and VLC.

VLC just has to be installed, not even open, to do the RIPing.

Insert the DVD and open Handbrake, browse to and select the VIDEO folder on the DVD and take it from there.

The new iMacs should make it a breeze to RIP.
 
bpaluzzi said:
I doubt you'll see either. Maybe USB3, but I'd place money on never seeing Blu-Ray on an Apple device.
Click to expand...

Nothing stopping you attaching it as an external drive.

USB 3.0 will run via an adaptor on Thunderbolt, as will just about everything.
 
AidenShaw said:
I disable HyperThreading (HT) on almost all of my systems with HT. (Effectively turning Core i7 CPUs into Core i5 CPUs.)

Unless you're building a render-farm for seriously multi-core aware jobs, IMO disabling HT is a good thing.

Go for GHz and cache, not virtual cores.
Click to expand...

How do you disable hyper threading on the mac?
 
I think essentially the new iMacs are machines that support the new Sandy Bridge CPU's and adds Thunderbolt I/O support--otherwise, they're not much different than the previous-generation iMacs.

I still think Apple should work with a company like Logitech to create more ergonomic keyboards and mouse pointers as an option for the iMac and Mac Pro, though.
 
SactoGuy18 said:
I still think Apple should work with a company like Logitech to create more ergonomic keyboards and mouse pointers as an option for the iMac and Mac Pro, though.
Click to expand...
The keyboards are already very ergonomic for non-split keyboards and you can always attach a Logitech mouse to your Mac.
 
SactoGuy18 said:
I think essentially the new iMacs are machines that support the new Sandy Bridge CPU's and adds Thunderbolt I/O support--otherwise, they're not much different than the previous-generation iMacs.

I still think Apple should work with a company like Logitech to create more ergonomic keyboards and mouse pointers as an option for the iMac and Mac Pro, though.
Click to expand...

True, but I hope no one would've thought they were getting otherwise. Blu-Ray and USB3.0 shouldn't have been in anyone's train of thought.

CPU, GPU bump, and minor additions to add consistency to the entire lineup is all that one should ever hope for with these quiet bumps.

The next Macbook Airs will do the same thing. TBolt port, CPU bump, GPU bump and maybe one other minor thing that sweetens the deal . . . like the return of the backlit keyboard.

I agree with you about the mice. The current lineup is FANTASTIC, but once you put your hand on a mouse that put ergonomics ahead of sleek multitouch design you'll never want to go back.

I don't think any mouse Apple has ever made has come close to the ergonomics of the original Apple Pro Mouse.
 
Newbie here undecided between the base 21.5" and base 27".
Is the difference in processor and graphics (2.5GHz and 2.7 GHz/ HD6750 and HD6770) significant? I'll can deal with the small hard disk space with an external hard disk.
Certainly would prefer the bigger screen but does it justify to pay the price difference of $500 for bigger screen and minor spec bump?
 
Chiming in

wassamattaboy said:
I'm about to put my order in for one of these "wonderful toys", the 2.7 quadcore i5 21.5 inch imac, :D I'm maxxing it out to 16 gb of ram, and I'm wondering if I should upgrade to the 2.8 quadcore i7.... it's primarily a music recording machine, and I'm using tons of real time amp modeling and effects, running Digital Performer, Reason, and Amplitube almost full time... does anyone know if that upgrade would make a difference and how much the upgrades are?
thanks!
Click to expand...

I'm running a 27" Corei7 from 2009 with 12 gigs of ram and it's working great as a music machine. Many of the music software apps make use of the extra threading on this processor and I highly recommend it if you're doing a lot of "heavy lifting" with your cpu for music.
 
candyapplekid said:
Thanks for the info! I think I'm gonna do the same and pre-order from Amazon tomorrow. No sales tax = $186 savings where I'm at, which basically means free upgrade to 16GB of RAM.

Still deliberating whether to upgrade the i5 to i7, but I'm sure a lot of people are in the same boat, and as far as I can tell, Amazon doesn't have the i7, so looks like that makes the decision a bit easier for me.

One last question for you, if you happen to know. When ordering through Amazon, is it possible to switch the Magic Mouse for the Trackpad, like you can through Apple? I called MacMall and they can't do it, so I'm guessing other sellers like Amazon can't either.

I've had a Magic Mouse and wasn't a huge fan (apart from Web Surfing where I thought it was great), and I'd like to swap for the trackpad, but I guess I can't skimp out on the sales tax and have it all. :)
Click to expand...

Swapping the Magic Mouse (which I already have) for a Trackpad was one of the reasons I was thinking about buying it from Apple, since I didn't see the option to do so on Amazon.

However, even with my company's EPP discount through Apple.com, it was still cheaper (because of the sales tax savings on Amazon) to just add the Trackpad on as an extra with the iMac. I figured I could just sell the Magic Mouse on eBay when it arrives--it seems that they have a pretty decent resale value.

PS--Your sales tax sounds about as high as mine here in Tennessee. Where are you located?
 
New 21 or old 27?

Just pulled the trigger on a new 21 (500GB/TB/MTP)... then spotted the last-gen 27 on sale on the refurb page for a similar price (1TB/Mini Display Port/MM). I was happy enough with the 21, but now I'm getting buyers remorse.

Is having the new processor and TB worth more than the bigger HD and screen? Any thoughts?
 
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