Expert’s Rating
Pros
Cons
Our Verdict
Some of the col between the Mac Pro and iMac lines close with this model , which total equipped not only with a 2.16GHz Core 2 twosome fleck ( upgradeable to 2.33GHz as a build - to - order of magnitude selection ) but a FireWire 800 port in improver to a FireWire 400 . ( Other Core 2 Duo iMacs feature two FireWire 400 ports . ) The firmness of purpose on this iMac ’s 24 - inch display is the same as what you ’d get with a 23 - inch Apple Cinema HD Display . With the exception of the Nvidia GeForce 7300GT graphics add-in , other specs gibe the 20 - in 2.16GHz iMac .
The iMac was primitively conceived as a relatively heavyset all - in - one data processor , and that was a large part of its appeal . Compact , however , is not Book most people would use to key out the 24 - inch iMac , which features the latest Apple technology packed behind a massive flat - control panel exhibit . But for people who want a fairly professional system without make the jump to a Mac Pro , the unexampled orotund - concealment iMac fills a tempting midway ground . It give you telling performance , but without the expansion options of a pro pillar .
The (really) big picture
Sitting on a desk , the 24 - column inch iMac is massive . Its large , widescreen display offers a resolution of 1920 - by-1200 pixels , the same as Apple ’s $ 999 23 - inch Cinema HD Display ( ) . And as with Apple ’s 23 - column inch showing , the iMac has enough resolution to show off many windows , palettes , and every pixel of full 1080 high - definition television ( with some perpendicular pixels leave over for in effect measure ) . equate to the previous largest iMac , the 20 - column inch model , this one has 30 pct more pel .
But as with most of Apple ’s new display , the 24 - inch iMac is n’t just about gather more screen real landed estate . Its show is roughly 43 percent bright than the young 20 - in simulation , with the same 400 candelas per square m ( also callednits ) as Apple ’s 23 - column inch and 30 - column inch ( ) displays . The brightness of this screen is very pleasing .
Even with the gigantic display , however , the iMac feels sturdy and well balanced . With its thin design , the iMac weighs only 24.7 pounds , just 2.7 pounds more than the 20 - column inch mannequin .
What’s inside
The 24 - inch iMac has a 64 - bite , 2.16GHz Intel Core 2 Duo central processing unit with 4 MB of shared L2 cache ( twice the hoard of the Core Duo iMacs ) , connected to the system with a 667MHz frontside bus . It comes standard with 1 GB of 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM , although that RAM is split between two 512 MB DIMMs . This means any subsequent upgrade will require cast away at least one of the DIMMs to make elbow room , making upgrades more expensive . Also , the Intel chipset that Apple uses in the iMac think the operating system can address only 3 GB of RAM , even if you were to put two 2 GB DIMMs inside .
The iMac also comes with a 250 GB Serial ATA surd campaign , an 8x double - stratum SuperDrive , and Nvidia GeForce 7300 GT graphic with 128 mebibyte of GDDR3 memory . It includes built - in AirPort Extreme and Bluetooth 2.0 wireless networking , mini - DVI video output , an iSight photographic camera , an Apple Remote , three USB 2.0 ports , ( plus two USB 1.1 ports on the keyboard ) one FireWire 400 port wine , one FireWire 800 port ( good for swift connection to storage equipment ) , Gigabit Ethernet , and combo porthole for analog and digital audio input and output ( previous iMacs had analog - only audio input ) .
Performance
To see how well the top - of - the - line iMac performs , the Macworld Lab put it through our received retinue of tests . The 24 - column inch iMac garnered an impressive Speedmark grudge of 245 , only nine breaker point below the 2GHz Mac Pro ( not surprisingly , the 24 - inch iMac garner the same Speedmark score as the new 20 - in model , which has the same processor ) .
judge from the test scores , the 24 - inch iMac seems to bridge the carrying into action break between standard iMacs and Mac Pros . Compared to the previous high - end iMac — the 20 - inch 2.0GHz Core Duo model — the 24 - inch iMac shew a almost 17 percent overall Speedmark improvement . Most impressively , our MPEG-2 encoding test using Apple ’s Compressor was 28 percent faster than the old 20 - in model , and the Cinema 4D Render tryout showed a 14 percent parachuting — expert numbers for pro - level use .
Another big improvement is that the new iMac pump out more than 25 extra frames per second in our Unreal Tournament test , a nearly 47 percent boost in skeletal frame rate over the 20 - inch Core Duo simulation . The included Nvidia graphics scrap is ripe news for anyone who likes to play game . ( user concerned in the best operation can supplant the 7300 GT with the GeForce 7600 GT with 256 M of video memory for an extra $ 125 , reach this the first iMac with an option to advance to a different computer graphic CPU . )
As with all current Macs , software system that has n’t been updated to run natively on Intel central processing unit runs more slowly than it would on a PowerPC chip . But the new iMac completed our retinue of 14 tasks using Adobe Photoshop CS2 in 24 pct less prison term than the old 20 - inch model — a respectable jump .
Quick operations
For general operation , the 24 - column inch iMac ’s overall reactivity was excellent . hatchway , dragging , and resizing windows was very quick . HD picture playback was unruffled , and working in Intel - native program such as Final Cut Pro ( ) , Motion ( ) , iMovie ( ) , and iWeb ( ) was snappy . ( you could custom configure a 24 - inch model with a 2.33GHz Core 2 Duo processor for an extra $ 250 . Our benchmark chart exhibit the performance advance you ’ll see with this fast buffalo chip . )
The 24 - inch iMac also has an upgraded sound arrangement , with a 24 - watt digital amplifier ( doubly that of the other model ) to power the built - in stereophonic speakers . The phone was much loud than on any other iMac I ’ve used — useful for , say , watch out a motion picture from across the room — and it had fairly good quality . ( Audiophiles will still probably require a separate set of powered computer speakers or desire to connect the iMac ’s digital audio output to a good home - theater arrangement . )
Core 2 Duo iMac Benchmarks
Best results inbold . Reference organization initalics . * denotes build - to - ordering example with upgraded video recording card
Speedmark 4.5 scores are comparative to those of a 1.25GHz Mac miniskirt , which is assigned a grade of 100 . Adobe Photoshop , Cinema 4D XL , iMovie , iTunes , and Finder score are in minutes : moment . All systems were function Mac OS X 10.4.7 with 1 GB of RAM , with processor performance fructify to Highest in the Energy Saver preference pane when applicable . The Photoshop Suite examination is a set of 14 scripted tasks using a 50 MiB file . Photoshop ’s memory board was set to 70 percentage and History was mark to Minimum . We record how long it took to render a scenery in Cinema 4D XL . We used Compressor to encode a 6minute:26second DV file using the videodisk : Fastest Encode 120 minutes – 4:3 setting . In iMovie , we applied the Aged telecasting effect to a 1 - second movie . We exchange 45 minute of arc of AAC audio files to MP3 using iTunes ’ High Quality setting . We used Unreal Tournament 2004 ’s Antalus Botmatch average - frames - per - second score ; we tested at a resolution of 1,024 - by-768 pixels at the Maximum setting with both audio and art enabled . We created a Zip archive in the Finder from a 1 GB folder.—Macworld science lab examination by James Galbraith and Jerry Jung
Macworld’s buying advice
The 24 - inch iMac occupies the huge stint between the smaller iMacs and the Mac Pro ( ) . Since it scores essentially the same as the 20 - column inch iMac , the $ 500 difference contribute you a large and brighter show , a FireWire 800 port , and a better graphics system . compare to the Mac Pro , you gain ground a progress - in display and a degree of portability , but you sacrifice the Mac Pro ’s quadruplet processing and significant internal expansion options . If you ’re look for the ultimate iMac with a sense of taste of the pro - level feature the Mac Pro provide , you ’ll find the 24 - inch iMac to be the perfect middle ground .
[ Jonathan Seff isMacworld ’s senior tidings editor program . ]
