Apple iMac 20-inch Review

After a great deal of speculation on the latest update to the iMac, it turns out that the rumour mongers were correct.

Brushed aluminium and glass it is, and it’s a bit thinner – doesn’t sound like much on paper. Even once the announcement was made and pictures flooded the internet, it didn’t look as though Apple had done a great deal this time round. So it’s a bit thinner, they’ve used new materials and given the keyboard an eating disorder – big deal, you’re probably thinking. Until you see it all in the flesh, that is.The new iMac is really streamlined and the materials give the whole setup a new feel, to the point where you’re looking at your white iMac and thinking that it actually looks somewhat fat and tacky. Unbelievable, but true. Environmental friendliness has been integrated with cutting-edge design this time around; the casing is cut from one piece of aluminium, making it truly seamless and very green.

The screen is now encased in glass, another environmental consideration, but one that also works in a design sense as it adds to the overall quality. The display is noticeably glossy when turned off, and once it’s running you really notice how much richer the colours get. Blacks look especially gorgeous, being given extra weight by the new black screen surround.

The iMac keyboard has also undergone a major revamp, being almost identical in feel to the keyboards on Apple’s MacBook models. It gives the sensation of being light-fingered and a faster typist, and rudimentary tests have proved it actually can help you type faster and more accurately.

Using information from TypingTest. com and comparing results using the new and old iMac keyboards, we found a 4WPM increase and four per cent accuracy increase on average when using the latest model. The new function keys admittedly take a bit of getting used to but controlling iTunes from the keyboard is handy, as is the ability to access the Dashboard.

In terms of performance, the dual core processors hardly broke a sweat in the many tests we gave them. With a gigabyte of Ram as standard, the new iMac looks equipped to deal with the average user’s needs straight off the bat.

The new Ram upgrade capabilities are a bonus for serious users who want a bit more bite in their Mac. This silver beauty can have a maximum of 4GB for memory and, although ours came with an ample 320GB hard drive, they can be built to order with up to 750GB for the 20-inch and 1TB for the 24-inch. Serious stuff. Processors range from 2.0 dual core to 2.8 dual core, offering enough speed for most people. Our test model had a 2.4GHz processor, and was more than quick enough.

Apart from that, the iMac comes with all the same great features we’re used to: iSight camera, internal mic, plenty of USB ports, FireWire, Front Row and, of course, iLife ’08. The other particularly impressive aspect of the update is the change in price; it’s now cheaper than ever to buy a 20-inch iMac. At £949 you not only get a fast, reliable machine with a host of amazing features and an impressive new creative suite, you also get a good-sized LCD display with a sumptuous glossy look that makes colours jump out at you, all encased in a remarkably small unit.

The overall look for the iMac has changed. It seems as though the shift has been to make the new model pair up more with the iPhone, whereas older iMacs were paired with the iPod. A brilliant ploy by Apple, backed up by a brilliant machine – it’s difficult to see how anyone could fail to be impressed by this computer.