iMac 2012

[SR20DETDOG]

There' a lot of talk on this board about iMacs overheating, but I wonder if this really is a problem for many people. None of the people I know mention this, and neither does any of the dozens of reviews I've read.

Am I wrong in thinking that this isn't really a big problem?

TheSeb pretty much hit the nail on the head. I will add though, while overheating isn't a problem, iMacs do run hotter than most tower computers due to their form (from what I've seen anyway). I think some people incorrectly refer to these slightly higher temperatures as "overheating".

I have done some design work on a 27" iMac and I have to say I find it a bit too large to work with. Sure it's cool to watch a movie or football game on a larger screen, but it's a bit tiring to the eye and neck to work intensively in front of one of those..

I've seen a number of people say how they get headaches, eye strain or neck strain from the 27" screens. I'm the complete opposite, before buying my iMac I was using a 19" 1440x900 monitor and it's low resolution is what gave me eyestrain and headaches. I have pretty good eyesight which meant I could see all the individual pixels as I used the computer, but now with the high dpi of the 27" everything is so crisp I have no problems what-so-ever.

Not to mention it's a great excuse for justifying such a screen

 

[onthecouchagain]

I have iStat installed, and I've seen my temps rise well over 70s when running games like Starcraft II. SMCFan control helps keep it under control, but prior to installing that, my iMac has shut down from running SCII due to overheating.

 

[Skippern]

Thank you for your replies. onthecouchagain, might I ask what model iMac you have?

 

[theSeb]

Don't you have to take into account that the gauges only show what temperature immediately around the sensor, and not necessarily the temperature of the die/disk/whatever? And that the die/disk/whatever temperature might in fact be lower than the sensor's? And that Apple's engineers might have taken this into account?

The CPU is safe up to a certain limit. The engineers have clearly taken this into account since the fans spin up to cool down the CPU as it warms up. Intel has also designed the CPU to protect itself by throttling. The exact location of the sensor is irrelevant, since when you're watching the temps on a typical app, it's not quite the same as what is happening in your computer and how the system management console is responding to these events. Going back to the car analogy - it's exactly the same. The actual temperature in a cylinder is irrelevant. What is important is the temperature where the sensor is in my cooling system.

 

[boy-better-know]

But you seriously would not buy an iMac just because they dont redisign it? That just sound crazy to me.. :S Do you really think the esthetics of the current iMac are that bad, that you prefer not having none, against having the current desing? :O

You are wrong. I think the current iMac is beautiful, I really, really like how it looks. I wouldn't consider any other desktop. But if I am going to buy a £1500 computer, I want it to be the latest design for a few years atleast. You are kidding yourself if you think the iMac isn't coming up to a design refresh so I am going to hang on for a while if thats ok with you?
You call it crazy. I call it being a smart consumer. Each to their own I suppose.

 

[onthecouchagain]

@Skippern, 2011 21" base.

 

[henrikrox]

Don't know what you guys are really on about.

The iMac doesnt have a heating problem. You can even overclock the hell out of the gpu with voltage tweak to get a 10-15% boost i performance.

As for the cpu, its got a thermal limit around 100 C. And i have never seen anything near that.

That being said, the alu does get warm fast, but thats a good thing, as it draws heat away from the MB. And alu is great for dissipating heat. Like my macbook air, when im on vacation i use it to play swtor, that keeps the temp at 95, high yes, but nothing to be worried about. It reduces to the lifespan of the CPU yes, but its not like im going to have the notebook for 10 years anyway.

Also if you are worried about heat, you should always now that the computer turns itself off when it gets past a certain limit. Which has never happend to me on my air, or my voltage tweaked imac.

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You are wrong. I think the current iMac is beautiful, I really, really like how it looks. I wouldn't consider any other desktop. But if I am going to buy a £1500 computer, I want it to be the latest design for a few years atleast. You are kidding yourself if you think the iMac isn't coming up to a design refresh so I am going to hang on for a while if thats ok with you?
You call it crazy. I call it being a smart consumer. Each to their own I suppose.

I would just be super happy if they removed the chin at the bottom, and matched the height of the thunderbolt displays.

Im quite puzzled why they didn't think of this. Looks so much better when its the same height.

 

[boy-better-know]

I would just be super happy if they removed the chin at the bottom, and matched the height of the thunderbolt displays.

Im quite puzzled why they didn't think of this. Looks so much better when its the same height.

Maybe a hint to the height of the next iMac?

 

[onthecouchagain]

A chinless full screen iMac, like the TB display would be beautiful, indeed.

 

[boy-better-know]

A chinless full screen iMac, like the TB display would be beautiful, indeed.

I kind of like the chin, for me it differentiates the iMac from a monitor. I think I am in a minority though, most seem to want to get rid of it.

 

[onthecouchagain]

I kind of like the chin, for me it differentiates the iMac from a monitor.

I don't disagree with this, per se, and I believe this is the reason why Apple will never make them look the same.

 

[doktordoris]

TheSeb pretty much hit the nail on the head. I will add though, while overheating isn't a problem, iMacs do run hotter than most tower computers due to their form (from what I've seen anyway). I think some people incorrectly refer to these slightly higher temperatures as "overheating".


I've seen a number of people say how they get headaches, eye strain or neck strain from the 27" screens. I'm the complete opposite, before buying my iMac I was using a 19" 1440x900 monitor and it's low resolution is what gave me eyestrain and headaches. I have pretty good eyesight which meant I could see all the individual pixels as I used the computer, but now with the high dpi of the 27" everything is so crisp I have no problems what-so-ever.

Not to mention it's a great excuse for justifying such a screen

quite right. if you can touch a PC it isn't overheating. by a long way.

 

[ctdonath]

am I the only person who doesn't hope to see an increase to 30" on iMacs??

Bigger the better. I've dual 19" screens, which together amount to a good start on size. Here's hoping Apple introduces the iDesk, measured in feet. Real software development requires LOTS of space; I'd start feeling comfortable with a quad-HD display.

It's pretty annoying that the "best" hardware is usually available only in the largest machines (desktop and laptop alike), but I guess they have to justify the price tag.

More a matter of having enough space to put the stuff. High-end graphics cards are HUGE; latest I saw used the Thunderbolt interface to drive an external graphics...well I guess "card" is a misnomer at this point...unit the size of a toaster. Likewise seriously high-speed high-capacity storage and other hardware tends toward biggishness.

 

[tjlala]

Overheating.

Like everyone else is saying... the iMac is meant to feel hot. The aluminum works like a giant heatsink!
I'm just hoping that they bring this update out soon...I need to buy a new desktop. I'm playing the new Star Wars Old Republic MMORPG and it runs really sloppy on my Macbook Pro, however runs superb on my Brothers 2011 iMac
grr!