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I purchased my iMac because I wanted to switch to all Apple products - I also was able to make some money reselling stuff on Black Friday so I decided to treat myself to an iMac - was discounted several $100's - Its hard for me to refuse good deals.
 
After owning a Vic-20, C-128, and finally an Amiga 500... I was strongly against what was referred to as the IBM compatible platform, so when the A500's external Floppy failed I bought a Mac Performa 575... now after a beige g3/233 (over clocked) to a g4 mini to a C2D MBP... I am finally buying my first iMac... I have had 1 other iMac... A strawberry one my dad gave me that I used while I had the mini.. It was fun upgrading the VRAM, HDD, and putting a SuperDrive in that unit... Finally killed it with Yellow Dog Linux (but I that machine was just about experimenting with how far I could tweak it)
 
for me I wanted a Unix for desktop that has support, that's what OSX is essentially, because we all know the frustration some linux distros make you feel and stuff doesn't quite work and problems with hardware and what not. OSX solves that because it's backed by a company that works on it for profit, that makes things work better for the most part. Anyway I chose the iMac specifically the 2012 model because finally Apple decided to put in a GPU that's worth it, still its a mobile GPU but it will serve my needs, and the fact that I just moved to my own place and there's not a lot of space for my computer room and the iMac is a good solution only 1 wire, my desk looks cleaner and clutter free.
 
I'm going to uni in a few months and I needed a new pc desperately. I had some good savings, instead of wasting them on crap at uni I thought I'd invest them in something useful. My iMac is a great work station, I've found since I've had it I've felt more inclined to do my essays quicker etc haha.
 
OS stability and total cost of ownership. OS Stability: no freezes, no blue screens of death, no nothing. Rock solid. Total cost of ownership: while it's true that PC hardware is less expensive, it seems like the hardware is so obsolete as to be unusable within 18 -24 months. I'm at year 5 with my early 2008 iMac and it's still going strong.

System cost got me too - I ordered a 27" iMac, but I want an NLE, and the options for Mac are considerably cheaper than for Windows.
 
The desire to switch back to a desktop when our Windows laptop died and owning an iPod made me Mac-curious. It's been fantastic. However, I'm looking to replace my iMac with a 2012 Mac Mini, but part of me is worried I'll miss the AIO form factor with webcam, mic, etc all built in....
 
When my old laptop and stationary died, I bought a 13" MacBook Pro, back in 2010. And I loved it.

So when i needed a desktop with bigger screen and better gpu , but didn't have too much space, the solution was simple. 27" iMac, maxed out, and i still love it.

For me it's simply the best AIO on the market, nothing comes near it in my opinion.
 
20 years of lust after using my wife's roomate's Mac ( she was my girlfriend then). It was such a jump from my Apple llc.

Changed to make my Apple universe more complete.

The funky Windows business model (decent OS, crappy OS, repeat)

The final straw...Windows 8
 
Been using iMacs since the very first one (was an Orange thingie), then had a SE Graphite, then won the lamp/Pixar light version from a raffle (still have that G4 and still runs pretty well!). Had the 2nd rev flat screen iMac, got rid of that after a year or two then got a refurbished one which definitely didn't last much longer due to it sounding like you were at the airport, which I'm pretty positive planes are quieter than how loud that iMac was.

Gave that one away and got my 2007 iMac (one listed in sig). Hadn't planned to get another iMac since was sorta jealous of PC using friends being able to update their own computers, not to mention the pricing of them just weren't feasible at the time(s). Then got an Apple Gift Card and another thousand bucks for bday to use on whatever so got the late 2012 iMac. The fastest, quietest iMac to date and absolutely loving it. And that's the iMac history for meh. ;)
 
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I would say that the iPad and Iphone drove us to the iMac.

Wife and I were both service techs for a large Computer company working on Mainframes and terminals. After I retired and started to build my own PC's but it didn't take long to get tired of the Windows OS and the problems with building new hardware and software. When my last PC died instead of building a new one I just bought a laptop to use.

Then we bought a pair of iPads#2's When the #3's came out we gave the 2's to our daughters. Face time was a big part of that decision. Grandkids you know. Then came the Iphone 5. After having a BB and a SamSung I couldn't wait to get the iPhone. It was Great.

Now the PC world is changing again and it's either turn the corner to a Windows 8 machine or turn the other corner and get a Mac.

Well a 27" I7 iMac is ordered and should be here after the Chinese New Year. I heard they take two weeks off to celebrate.

Now at 73 I am looking forward to learning something new again. There are so many reasons for a Mac none the least that my wife uses Photoshop at work and it would be great for her to do some of her work at home.

It all started with that darn iPad.

George:)
 
I switched to Mac when it came time to replace my Apple II+ back in Fall of 1987. :) We had a couple of Mac SEs in my graduate lab, and I got tired of carrying one home to write papers on in the evening. So, I purchased a Platinum MacPlus with and almost never looked back.

There was one weak moment 3 years ago, when my high schooler needed a small portable and we purchased an WinXP HP netbook ($300 was hard to pass up). He's been using a MacBook Air for about 2 years now, and the netbook collects dust.
 
i grew tired of the big ol tower box's that i had and since i move alot transporting them i grew tired of plus the wires and speakers and screens...and i came from windows vista that i grew absolutely tired of and messed around one day on a friends imac and the rest is history
 
I started with programming on an IBM mainframe in the early 80's, progressing to pc's, AS/400, Novell, managing a network on Banyan Vines, Windows NT to today where I work in an environment supporting hundred of servers for multiple clients throughout the US and abroad. We have clients using the latest versions of server software, VMware and Citrix environments.

When I went home at night and got on my Lenovo Thinkpad I felt like I was still at work. I have supported Apple products before but really never used one on a regular basis. About 2 years ago I decided I needed a change and bought an old Mac Mini a year ago just to try it out and was hooked.

My new iMac was delivered this past Christmas Eve and I can't believe I waited so long. There is practically nothing I need to do that I can't do on my Mac. I connect to work with VPN, access Citrix and support clients from home. I gave my wife my Lenovo and have not looked back.
 
Switched to Mac in late 2008 and Ive been hooked since. My first mac (macbook aluminium 2.4/2gb/250gb/9400m) died in july due to logic board failure. Coughed up £362 to repair it then on xmas day it stopped charging. Decided to just buy a new computer. Got the mid2012 air 1.8/8/128/4000 but went through 4 of them. Broken keys after a weeks usage, replacements arriving damaged. Returned the 4th one just last week and awaiting refund.

Yesterday i went down to my local apple store and bought the base model imac 2.7/8/1tb/640m but it also featured some dead pixels. Took it back down first thing this morning and got it replaced! Everything looks good so far!

I love the iMac! Ive been wanting one for a long time. I originally planned getting one when i still had my first macbook. Wish i didnt bothered with the air.

I like the imac mainly due to its screen. 21.5" is massive for me so i dont need to bother with the 27" model. Im only using it for internet browsing, light gaming (minecraft/chess/football manager), word processing, listening to music and watching movies. The 5400 hd doesnt bother me. Still feels pretty fast and ive just come from using an SSD for the last 6 months.

I never really took my macbook anywhere with me. Was always just sitting in the house. Sometimes id take it downstairs or lie in bed watching movies but doesnt bother me its sitting in the corner of the room now.

Also i like that you dont have to worry about adapters/keyboards and the mouse. With my macbook the adapter was acting up and sometimes wouldnt charge. The macbook air obviously has the keyboard/mouse built it so if anything goes wrong you need to replace the whole machine.

Again, hopefully nothing goes wrong with this imac.
 
I spent a number of years as director of IT at a newspaper. We used Windows machines on the business side of the house, Macs for graphics in the newsroom and ad make-up areas, and Sun (UNIX) workstations for the Raster Image Processing required to drive our output devices.

By far the most stable were the Sun workstations. They had to be since daily production was totally dependent upon them. Managing the Windows machines was an organizational nightmare since enough users had enough knowledge to be dangerous and insisted on loading non-sanctioned software, downloading from the internet, and opening any email that came their way. Every new release of Windows was a nightmare since we were compelled to update to maintain compatibility across the organization. The Macs were no prize either. It seemed the solution to every problem was to reload MAC OS.

Then came OS X. Finally and operating system with the underlying stability of UNIX.

Naturally, my home systems were always Windows machines since most of my "homework" centered around the business side of the house -- budgets, spreadsheets, Word documents, etc.

After leaving the newspaper business - and IT management as well - I could pick the platform for personal use that I wanted. It was a 2008 iMac Core 2 Duo that I just sold to a friend to make room for my new 2012 27". There's been no looking back. We now have an entire Apple ecosystem running -- my iMac, a pair of MacBook Airs, a pair of iPhones, two first gen iPads, and iPad mini, and an Airport Extreme. The total integration is remarkable and refreshing. The stuff just works! Not to say there aren't a few glitches here and there - I've been having a problem with Safari crashes on my iMac of late.

But gone are the Windows frustrations: the need to upgrade machines with each new release (my 2008 iMac started at Leopard and now runs Mountain Lion smoothly), DLL hell, registry corruption, performance degradation over time (due to some of the above) and inordinate numbers of system crashes.

I read some of the whining and moaning on these threads and chuckle. I started my career on IBM PC/XTs with 640k of memory and a 10 mb hard disk, DOS 2.0 (eventually Windows 3.1, but that come later along with more powerful hardware). My first PC/XT cost almost $5000 with an Epson dot matrix printer.
 
I've been involved with Apple products since the IIe and have worked with most of the Mac range. But, until about 5 years ago, we had Windows in the house because it ran the software we needed. Then, when my daughter went to study media at Uni, a Mac laptop was the logical choice. So, I'd have to have an iMac so that I could continue to provide tech support. After that, we haven't looked back. My role as CIO in the household has pretty much disappeared as everything just works. I still have a Windows7 laptop for work, but it only reminds me how clunky it is compared to the iMac next to it.
 
Insanity.

I was stuck with a piece of **** windows vista machine from Dell and I just couldn't stand it anymore so I kinda took a leap of faith (ok I got screwed by the ads) and bought a 24" iMac in 2008. That and the fact that I already loved my iPhone so I figured if Apple can make smartphones this good, their Macs should be at least as good.

I was right and I've been a Mac user since 2008 and I have no reason whatsoever to go back to windows.

I didn't need the mobility so the iMac was the best choice for me. I loved the design and it was a computer that I didn't have to feel ashamed for having it in my living room.
 
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For me, it was simply a case of fancying a change and being in a position to financially afford to do so. A treat for myself. I am never going to regret this decision. Once I've bootcamped my new iMac and see windows run on this hardware as well (mainly for windows only games) I will probably stick to Apple for computers.

This machine shall last me about 4 years + though so, long time yet!

What I like most of all about my new iMac would be the brilliant design but also how they got so much power into this thing, a PC version would cost similar and be bulky/ugly.

:apple:
 
Well before getting my iMac, or rather before I ordered my iMac. I am still waiting for it, although I have a stock iMac that I might return if my BTO arrives in 29 days.

Either way before I ordered my iMac, I was using a MBA along with an ATD.
Alot of the time my MBA was being used as a stationary. Seeing as I didn´t need its portability, I sold it and the ATD and ordered an iMac.

So now I have a stationary that doesn´t sound like a tornado as soon as it does something beside working with documents, or browsing the net.
 
I was a Windows user for 10 years and I was sick of having to run anti virus, anti spyware programs, endless Windows updates to fix an insecure OS, and also the slowdowns in a relatively short space of time after re-installing the OS, and also the level of maintenance to keep it running smooth.

With the iMac/Mac I have none of that, the iMac maintains itself well on its own without any help from me.

My first introduction with Apple was in 2009 when I got my first iPhone (3GS) and I was impressed at how easy and reliably it worked. From then I got an iPad a year later. And now having my iPad, iPhone integrate with certain applications I have on my iMac is excellent for me.

From around last August I had been researching Mac and the applications I used to see what applications I could get on Mac (which I was currently using on Windows) and also asking various questions I had on the various forums.

In early January I placed my order for my iMac and in under 3 weeks from then I received my iMac. So far I've had my iMac for 3 weeks and I absolutely love it. Quiet, reliable, smooth and stable OS, tidier desk, and the design of the iMac I really like too. I can honestly say I have not missed Windows at all.
 
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