PC Mag: New iMac is Still the One to Beat

May 1st, 2008 at 3:00 PM - News by Jeff Gamet

PC Magazine took Appleis new 24-inch iMac out for a spin and found it to be a worthy successor to the models it replaces. Thanks to its faster Intel Core 2 Duo processor, the new iMac maintains "its place in the vanguard of all-in-one PCs."

The new 24-inch iMac sports a 2.8GHz Core 2 Duo processor, an ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO video card, a 320GB hard drive, 2GB of RAM, and a SuperDrive. PC Magazine called the new iMac "well equipped," and "bloatware free."

The performance boost from the faster processors and video cards found in the new iMacs is welcome, but may not be enough to warrant an upgrade unless your current computer is more than three years old.

On the down side, there arenit any built-in media card slots for downloading pictures, a feature many non-Mac PCs have; the included Mighty Mouse doesnit conform to the styling of standard PC mice; and a Blu-ray compatible drive isnit included.

Despite the perceived short comings, the new iMac is still one of the best all-in-one computer options available, and for some users has enough horse power to meet pro user needs without the Mac Prois price tag.

"Even though there are a slew of new competitors to the iMac, none of them have quite enough innovation or execution to dethrone the king of the all-in-one desktops," PC Magazine said.