Apple iMac 2GHz Intel Core Duo 20" Desktop

iMac 2 GHz Dual Core 20

Posted Jul 7, 2006 - Overall, this is an excellent purchase for anyone looking for a desktop computer. The thing just looks good on your desk (you'll get plenty of complements about the look of the unit). Beyond its looks, the dual core processor has more than enough processing power to run all your programs without lag. One caution to consider is that the included Radeon X1600 graphics card is not the best for graphics intensive games. You will need to turn the settings down on games like FEAR, Half-Life 2, etc. in order to get decent framerates (if they run at all). If your looking for a gaming machine, this is not for you. However, the computer excels at everything else. The included software package is very robust, although appleworks is no longer included. As usual, OS X rocks. If you are in need of a new desktop computer for your everyday computing needs, this computer will not disappoint you. For all you longtime PC users, now you can make the switch to a Mac and still be able to run windows using the free download of Boot Camp. It's like having your cake and eating it too!! Go ahead, make the switch!

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Computing nirvana!

Posted Jun 23, 2006 - I've been using a Mac since middle school and have gone through several generations of Macs from the 80's to today. This iMac has to be the best one I've ever owned! I usually NEVER buy first gen systems, but I was aching for a new one. I'm glad I took the plunge! I use PCs too and had no issues installing WinXP under BootCamp. Other than the video card, WinXP runs just as fast as my 3GHz P4 desktop system! This is a great way to have the best of both worlds in one desktop to reclaim space in the office. The Universal apps, such as iLife '06, which Apple supplies simply scream on this machine. The implementation of Rosetta is very decent, but I can't wait for more and more software to come out as Universal binary. Go Apple!!

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New Intel iMac

Posted Feb 10, 2006 - I have been a dedicated MS Windows user for the past 20 years and have never owned an Apple computer. When Intel chips were introduced in the new iMac, I felt it might be time to try the Apple and see what everybody has been talking about. While I am still fumbling my way around the operating system and get frustrated trying to do things like I'm operating a PC - such as using the "right click" menu - I am amazed at how straight forward and easy the software is to use. I purchased the "Missing Manual" for the Tiger operating system and that has been very helpful in my attempts to maneuver around the system. I downloaded some home video from my digital camcorder and the iMac recognized the camera and had no trouble downloading the video into the iMovie HD program where I have begun to edit my videos. The editing program is intuitive and easy to use. While I will never give up my PC, I can think of many projects I will do on my iMac. I recommend this machine highly for ease of use, pre-loaded software and speed of the machine / operating system.

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Pinnacle of Simplicity

Posted Jun 30, 2006 - I started out on Macs back in the days before System 6 (Mac Plus, SE, and the uber-cool color Mac II), moved on to Windows due to software availability, and have come full circle back to the iMac Core Duo. The beauty of Boot Camp is that you can now have the best of both worlds, being able to run both MacOS and Windows on the same machine. Not having used MacOS since System 7, I had over 15 years worth of catching up to do on the OS. In some ways it's just like the old days, but in other ways MacOS is drastically different (obviously under the hood are where you'd find the truly revolutionary changes). But I quickly got back up to speed. Networking the imac with the rest of my equipment was refreshingly easy. My ethernet-based printers were detected automatically, and I had no problems file sharing between other Windows PCs and the iMac. As for software, I haven't done a ton of exploring with the ILife suite, but it does look like a great bundle and certainly opens up many avenues for the amateur artist, filmmaker, musician, or podcaster. I was dissapointed to find that most software titles aren't yet available in the Universal Binary format (which will run at full-speed on the Intel-based Macs). In particular, Microsoft's Office suite is still at the 2004 version, which relies on a piece of Apple middleware (Rosetta Stone) in order to run on the Intel iMac. It works fine... just a bit slower than I know the machine is capable of. I recommend going for the Gig of RAM for the machine, especially if you will be relying on Rosetta Stone for commonly-used apps like Office. I love how Apple is going for the "wireless" brass ring, in that you can configure the iMac such that there is only one cable used in the entire setup--the power cable. With the optional bluetooth keyboard and mouse, using WiFi for your network and either wireless or network printers, you can attain this nirvana. To have such a capable machine packed into a deceptively simple package is what Apple does best. The Apple wireless kb and mouse work great except for that the mouse is still the old 1-button design (that Apple FINALLY dumped for its new corded mouse). I've used Windows so long I have really gotten used to not only multiple buttons, but also some kind of scrolling mechanism (whether it be wheel, button, or whatever). How Apple could sell its flagship mouse without a scroll feature is bewildering. You're left to either purchase a 3rd party mouse (which inevitably doesn't match the Apple design of everything else), deal with another cable and use the Apple corded mouse, or suck it up and live without advanced mouse functionality (I chose the second option until Apple gets a decent wireless mouse released). Other than those nitpicks, I have no other complaints about this computer. I'm glad Apple hung in there through the 90s, because they are back in a big way and getting bigger all the time. They've done many things right over the years and the 20" iMac Duo is one of 'em.

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Save the smug indie kid routine

Posted May 15, 2006 - I took the plunge and bought a 20" intel iMac 2 months ago. My experiences range from the really good, to the really bad. The really good. The iMac is fast to set up right out of the box. It boots really quickly. The monitor is brilliant! The widgets are the coolest, especially the bouncing ball. The compatability issues between Macs and PC's are over-blown. In short, it's a tight little package. Now the bad. I came to my Mac a week ago to find that it had a Kernal panic, or to the results oriented, it didn't boot. Long story short, the hard drive took a dive. To top it off hopefully the Apple kids would be able to pull my memories from the hard drive and if they could not, I didn't have the option of taking the hard drive to a data recovery service as it would then be Apple's defective property, a point I went round and round with to an indefferent Genius. When I picked up the computer and asked what was wrong with it and was told it was only the hard drive, and I replied that they were only my memories the Apple employee said he'd look in the back to see if I had the iMac from which they couldn't recover the data. Apparently there was an 'exact same' computer in the same boat. Well, if the Intel iMacs have only been on the market for about 3 months, then are there defective hard drives in them? Maybe just a coincidence, but even though I would recommend an iMac, save the smug indie kid routine, and yes, iMacs die too.

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I'm very, very impressed!!!

Posted Apr 24, 2006 - As a user of Microsoft for the past 30 years and a tolerator of Microsoft since I started using Linux 11 years ago, I had never given Macs a serious look, since I already had one vastly superior OS (linux) that was under appreciated and under used by the everyday user and the mainstream office crowd. With the advent of the Intel Duo Core Macs, I decided to go to a retailer and see what all the buzz was about. It was love at first sight! The iMac is an eye catching, brilliantly designed machine of superior craftsmanship -- it's the computer industries equivalent of the Japanese Automobile. To put it bluntly, this is the first "DESKTOP" computer I have purchased in over seven years and I would say to the Linix/Open Source community "I think our horse has come in with MacIntosh and OS X." For the non-unix people out there, Apple has done a fantastic job in developing thier Operating System "OS X," it's ease of use and ease of setup is way beyond anything Microsoft has to offer. You would never know it's a UNIX under the hood and, more importantly, you don't need to know!! I think we're going to see a lot of software being ported over to Apple's new Intel platforms.

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The Luxury Home Computer

Posted Mar 24, 2006 - I have always been a Mac user. Never touched a PC , other than dinking around with friend's machines and hearing them all the time complain of viruses, crashing, complaining about the money spent to get it up and running again, etc. I never had computer experiences like that so I was never able to relate. But of course I always heard things like "You should get a PC, and be more compatible", "When are you going to join the rest of the world?" "Don't you feel like you're on an island?" "Leave the Mac at work." and when it was time to send my old mac to where ever old macs go (I like to think they end up in the hands of someone who likes to tinker because they rarely ever actually die they just get old) and by a new machine for my home, I was actually seriously considering buying a PC. I researched and read reviews. Went to places that help you build your own machine. Talked to everyone, for advice and opinions. Then, I went online and found the computer I wanted at that old familiar apple website. Within 15 minutes of shopping around, I was hooked, and admitted to myself and the world that I am a mac addict and I don't want help nor do I need it. If owning a mac is like being on an island then it's a beautiful all inclusive island that has everything you could ever need or want. Why would anyone in their right mind want to leave?! From the time I opened my iMac and took it from it's beautiful packaging I was in love. I literally lost my breath even before it was plugged in, and I have been elated every since with it's performance. Not only is it beautiful, it's a powerhouse!!!! (I did opt for the largest HD, souped up the RAM, and maxed out the video card.) My family has happily accepted the fact that we aren't ever going to own what everyone else owns, we have something better. While everyone else is driving gas guzzling money hungry SUVs. We have a Porsche that can reliably take us anywhere, and in style. The luxury home computer. Every home should have one

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Get an iMac and never look back

Posted Feb 21, 2006 - I have been using PC's for 25+ years, I started using the IBM model 25 and then purchased a Compaq 286e etc. I may also include the fact that Iam also a MCSE "Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer" Comp Tia Certified and have built over 1000 PC'S from the ground up. Over time using a PC you become acustom to the thousands of viruses, windows vulnerablility issues and hundreds of popup,virus and other software the windows users now find that they need. Also you have slowly been acustome to the lag that windows provides from start to finish. Windows is nothing more than a DOS prompt with a pretty face. Instead of Windows XP, They should have just cut to the chase and named it "Windows XPoo". In short I have had it with windows , I evan threw away my certifications from Microsoft. I just went to CompUSA and bought the new Imac with Intel chips and will never look at windows again!!!! Any one want to buy a PC? REAL CHEAP! well thats the story and I can guarantee that once you go with a MAC you'll never go back!

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20 inch iMac (2 gHz Intel Core Duo cpu)

Posted Apr 3, 2006 - What a wonderful machine! I've only owned it for about a week and am still learning the new operating system, but it is one beautifully integrated complete computer system. Machine is very quiet, though not silent (will probably seem silent, though, if there is any amount of ambient room noise). I think photo and video editing on this machine will be a joy.

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iMac 20-inch 2GHz (Intel) Desktop

Posted Mar 11, 2006 - I am very pleased with the speed and capability of this machine. It is a replacement to my 15" iMac Flat Panel. Transfer of data from my old iMac to this new model was a 'piece of cake.' Having owned several Win PCs over the years (currently a Dell 8300, 3GHz machine), I'm glad to see Apple 'embrace' the Intel chip. The 20" screen is a real 'plus!'

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