The most significant change to the £1,199 (inc. VAT) iMac is its 24in. display. As well as providing more desktop real estate, the screen can also scale up to its native resolution of 1,920 by 1,080 pixels (also known in home entertainment parlance as 1080p). Apple has not added a Blu-ray drive to the iMac, so you can't take advantage of its HD resolution that way (Apple CEO Steve Jobs famously referred to Blu-ray as 'a bag of hurt'). Still, it opens the door for watching and editing other HD video content at its proper resolution.
Cosmetically, little else has changed with the iMac. Its industrial design remains the best in the PC industry, with no excessive branding, case detail or other visual distractions. Indeed, the only changes to the outside of the case come to the row of ports on the back of the iMac. Apple has added an additional USB 2.0 port, and also replaced the Mini DVI output with a Mini DisplayPort jack.
Apple has added an extra USB port and a Mini DisplayPort to the back of its new iMacs.
Apple is currently the only vendor selling Mini DisplayPort hardware, both on its new iMacs and Mac Minis and Mac Pro desktops, as well as on its new LED Cinema Display. As you might imagine, you can connect the desktops to the Cinema Displays via a Mini DisplayPort cable. You can also purchase an adapter for either VGA (£20), single-link DVI (£20), or dual-link DVI (£68) outputs if you want to connect an older monitor. Thankfully VESA, the computer display standards body, has plans to incorporate Mini DisplayPort into its future specifications, so we don't anticipate that it will be unique to Apple for long. Still, anyone with an existing DVI-based 30in. monitor will probably resent having to pay an additional £68 for the necessary dual-link adapter.
Although the outside of the iMac is relatively unchanged, Apple has given the internal hardware a fairly extensive overhaul. The 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor is actually the same as in the previous model, but the default hard drive, the graphics chip and the memory have all been upgraded. With 4GB of RAM and a 640GB hard drive, especially, the iMac's specs are now more or less in line with Windows-based all-in-ones in the same price range.
However, you'd be right to be concerned that although the iMac's core features have improved, Apple hasn't evolved the iMac to match other all-in-ones, particularly Sony's 24in. VAIO LV line. Those living room-oriented systems are wall-mountable and have a dedicated button that lets you switch between the desktop and an HDMI video input signal (perfect for connecting a game console or an HD camcorder). The iMac also has no touch screen, as with HP's TouchSmart series; we've already mentioned Apple's feelings towards Blu-ray, while even the most expensive of the new iMacs lacks a quad-core CPU option.
As useful as we find some of those features on other all-in-ones, the new iMac is also most definitely a computer first, as opposed to a walk-up household kiosk, like HP's TouchSmarts, or a dedicated digital entertainment system, like Sony's VAIO LV series. With the iTunes ecosystem of connected and networked devices, the iMac can certainly serve up digital media as well, but it's perhaps indicative of Apple's vision for the iMac's role in your home or office that Apple hasn't implemented any features that might significantly alter the way you actually use an iMac.
We won't make too much of the fact that the iMac falls behind the more expensive Sony all-in-one and two sub-£1000 Windows desktops on some of our performance tests. We say this because the iMac's performance is acceptable all-around, and also because it beat the competition on our multitasking test. The older iMacs impressed us on that test, and by outpacing two systems with Intel's quad-core flagship Core i7 CPUs, this new dual-core iMac sets itself apart as well. Pound-for-pound, the iMac is among the best complete PCs (meaning the system plus the display) for the way most people actually work from day-to-day.
In addition to its multitasking capability, one of the hallmarks of the new iMac is an improved integrated GeForce 9400M graphics chip from Nvidia. Apple actually made a bigger fuss about this chip in the Mac Mini, which is now finally a semi-capable gaming system. For the iMac, we got it to run Quake 4 at 1,920 by 1,080 with all of the detail settings turned on, including 4x anti-aliasing. The results weren't 100-percent smooth, but it was certainly playable. You can expect to sacrifice image quality on more recent games like Call of Duty 4.
The iMac's new default keyboard lacks a number pad.
Among the few other changes to the iMac, Apple has also truncated the default wired keyboard by lopping off the right-hand number pad. If you truly want to minimise the iMac's desktop footprint we can see how this option might have some appeal. Thankfully, you can configure the old, pad-equipped model for no extra charge. That's also one of the few hardware customisations you can make to the iMac. Apple offers an upgrade to 8GB of RAM for a startling £800, a 1TB hard drive for a more reasonable £80 extra, and wireless versions of the mouse (£14) and keyboard (£20). Sadly, the once standard Apple Remote will also cost you an extra £15.
Otherwise, most of the iMac's core capabilities are intact. You still get an iSight webcam along the top edge, a slot-loading DVD burner on the right side of the case, plus FireWire 800, Gigabit Ethernet and audio output/input jacks next to the new ports mentioned earlier around back. Airport Extreme 802.11n wireless networking and Bluetooth 2.1 still come as standard. Apple's iLife 09 digital media suite also comes in the box — and that remains a distinct advantage for Apple, as many Windows desktops come with few software extras.
Apple's service and support policies remain one of its disadvantages, however. The one-year parts and labour policy fits in line with the rest of the industry. The 90-day phone support limit, as always, is subpar. At least Apple's online support site is far ranging and comprehensive, and the active user forums may very well be able to solve any of your problems. You can also purchase various support upgrades, including extended phone support, and assuming you live near one, you can always drag your system into one of Apple's stores.
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