iMac 24" Still A Good Buy?

[VeganHipster]

The 24" iMacs go for relatively cheap on craigslist in my area, around 800-1000 USD. I don't need the sandybridge iMac, and while it would be nice, 27" Screen is to big for me IMO and I only need to be running iMovie, Garageband, and FCP.

To anyone who owns a 24" iMac, can you tell me how it performs playing Starcraft II? It is the only video game I play on PC, so if it can even run on low I'll be fine. Thank you!

 

[Vantage Point]

Personally I would consider a 21.5" refurb iMac instead. They start out at $929 for a 2010 model and include free shipping with a 1 year, same as new warranty. The base model iMacs with a i3 processor will be faster than than a C2D CPU, it includes a 256 graphics card. The next model up, 2011, goes for $1,019 and includes a 512 graphics card and a second generation i5 CPU which is even better.

See refurbs here http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/specialdeals/mac/imac/21?mco=MjEwNzM4MjE

Apple refurbs often look and perform like brand new. I had a 2009 refurb iMac and aside from the box it was impossible to tell the difference.

Also, these models include a wireless keyboard and magic mouse which is a step up from the 24" models. 21.5" models have a 1920 x 1080 resolution while the 24" are 1920 x 1200 - a would prefer the 1920 x 1200 ratio but the newer backlit models have better screens and more control if too bright

 

[VeganHipster]

While I would prefer to buy that, after sales tax and shipping it goes over 1000 and I am looking to spend around 800 and buy something local. Again, I Don't need sandy bridge, just need a computer run the software I need. So do you think the 24 will work?

 

[Vantage Point]

Shipping is free on the refurbs but I see your point. You should be fine with the 24" just try to get a good price. Personally, I prefer the 24" size over either the 21 or 27". I had a 27" iMac and the higher resolution 110 ppi was hard on my eyes and I sold it. The 24" has a resolution of 94 ppi which is perfect and much easier on the eyes - this can be very important if you are older like I am. Good luck

 

[Brian33]

The 24" iMacs go for relatively cheap on craigslist in my area, around 800-1000 USD. I don't need the sandybridge iMac, and while it would be nice, 27" Screen is to big for me IMO and I only need to be running iMovie, Garageband, and FCP.

To anyone who owns a 24" iMac, can you tell me how it performs playing Starcraft II? It is the only video game I play on PC, so if it can even run on low I'll be fine. Thank you!

Hi -- I've got an iMac8,1 "early 2008" 24" iMac I bought in May 2008. Intel Core 2 Duo 2.8 GHz processor, upgraded the RAM myself to 4 GB (the max), original Hitachi 320 GB hard drive.

I have been and continue to be very happy with this machine and have no plans to replace it anytime soon. (However, I tend to hold onto machines as long as I can.) The only application you specifically mention that I use is iMovie, and I've been happy with its performance there. I'm strictly a beginner but I've made several movies from my MiniDV tapes using iMovie '08, and authored a few DVDs with iDVD '08 and Toast. Of course the render times can take a couple hours, but everything works out OK. I have not had any problems with UI lag or anything like that in iMovie. I've just gotten iMovie '11 and it seems to work just fine but I haven't actually made a movie in that, yet.

I'm still on iPhoto '08 and have 5,500 photos in the library. Never had any performance issues there, either.

I'm not much of a gamer, but here's what I've played, all with no problem:

Age of Empires II and III (for Mac -- these seem to run fine but I never really got into it so my games did not have huge numbers of units),
Asphalt6, Osmos (lightweight game but neat!), Portal (the first one, via Steam for Mac, although I never could get past room 16 or some such), The Sims 3 (plays just great), Pinball HD and War Pinball (from the Mac App store), World of Goo.

The most demanding and the only 3D game I play is a soaring (glider) flight simulator that is Windows only so I use Boot Camp and an XP partition. Condor: The Competition Soaring Simulator. It runs perfectly, even with some pretty heavy-duty sceneries loaded.

Surely someone else can tell you about performance of Starcraft II...

Regards,
Brian33

 

[pac1687]

I recently bought a 24" Mid-2007 Aluminum iMac with the Core 2 Extreme 2.8ghz processor, 4GB RAM and 2600 Pro graphics for $700. This machine is for my girlfriend as she wanted a larger screen to work on when she goes back to school. I did decide to load up Starcraft II and it actually performs pretty admirably considering its age. I typically see around 20-25 FPS on Medium settings at 1280x800 and looks pretty decent. This is playing the last mission which has tons of units on screen. Overall, it was a great purchase and it's still a beautiful screen (better than my 27" iMac in many respects)!