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New 20-inch iMac Better in Almost Every Way

This column first appeared in the Houston Chronicle on 08.21.07

Dr. Mac

By Bob LeVitus

I've been using a new 20-inch iMac for a week and it's better than the 20-inch iMac it replaces in almost every way and costs $300 less.

Its beautiful anodized aluminum frame is thinner than its predecessor and it's truly gorgeous. The new glossy scratch-resistant glass front, with its elegant black border, is stunning as well. The photos on Apple's Web site don't do it justice; go see it in person and I'm sure you'll agree.

While its appearance is completely updated, its technology is quite similar to the white iMac it replaces.

Features that remained the same include:

• 1GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM
• 8x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
• built-in iSight video camera
• built-in AirPort Extreme wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.0+EDR
• 250GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 7200 rpm
• mini-DVI video port (adapters for DVI, VGA and Composite/S-Video sold separately)
• built-in stereo speakers and microphone
• infrared Apple Remote control and Mighty Mouse

While features that have changed include:

• SDRAM expandable to 4GB (formerly 3GB)
• 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo (formerly 2.16GHz Intel Core 2 Duo)
• ATI Radeon HD 2400 XT  (formerly ATI Radeon X1600)
• new thin Apple Keyboard
• iLife '08 digital lifestyle software suite (formerly iLife '06)
• Big Bang Board Games, Comic Life, and Omni Outliner no longer bundled

As always, setup was drop-dead simple--5 minutes from box opening to booting up. And using it was always a pleasure; it was fast and responsive throughout my testing.

I was concerned that glare on its glossy display would bother me but it didn't. In fact I like its rich, saturated colors and deep, dark blacks better than the old "matte" finish displays. If you have bright lights behind you it could be vexing, but I don't so it wasn't.

I only have one gripe but it's a biggie: The beautiful new ultra-thin aluminum Apple keyboard, less than 1/3 of an inch thick at its front edge with super low-profile keys similar to the MacBook, just doesn't work for me. I like it even less than I liked the previous model, and I wasn't crazy about that one, either. Key travel is too short and tactile feedback is almost non-existent, so my typing speed and accuracy plummeted.

Aside from the keyboard downgrade I found every other aspect of the new 20-inch iMac totally first-rate. I recommend it without hesitation as long as you hang on to your old keyboard for a while, just in case.

20-inch iMac from $1,199

24-inch iMac from $1,799.

  Apple, Inc. www.apple.com.

Copyright (c) 2007 Bob LeVitus