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BadgerMac

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jan 6, 2003
122
1
So everyone's talkin' about the 20 and 24" iMacs. Would have love to have gotten one but couldnt' justify the 300 bucks since I own a MBP. Anyone else got the 17" out there and happy? I'm feelin' a bit of buyers' remorse even though I know I did the right thing and saved the 300 smackers.
 

Queso

Suspended
Mar 4, 2006
11,821
8
I'm retro. 17" iMac G5 :)

Love it to bits though. No way do I want to change it.
 

ero87

macrumors 65816
Jan 17, 2006
1,196
1
New York City
I love my 17-inch iMac G5. I could see how it might get small if i were constantly video-editing, itunes-ing, ichatting, and worddocument-ing simultaneously. The screen always seems nice and roomy to me.
 

Sobering

macrumors regular
Aug 27, 2006
233
0
Canada
I love my 17-inch C2D. I tried 20-inch models in stores but I find that they just look SO massive and chunky and just un-usably big. But owners of it tend to disagree.
 

Cider

macrumors newbie
Sep 10, 2006
16
0
Liverpool
I'm very happy with my 17" screen.

I tend to only have one application visible at a time, and I've never felt lacking in terms of real-estate. Admittedly I'm a casual user - casual video editing, web browsing, email and the odd game. I'm struggling at the moment to decide what to upgrade my 17" G5 PPC iMac too, but in all probablility whilst I'd love the 7600GT upgrade that the 24" allows, I'll probably go for the 17" model again.

The screen size just suits me.
 

storage

macrumors 6502
Jun 4, 2005
275
0
Sorry for hijacking, but I may be buying a 17" iMac and have some questions. How would it drive my 24" Dell display? Would it play World of Warcraft at native resolution (1920x1200) with at least decent graphics? I'm planning on running with either 2GB or 3GB memory.

Thanks!
 

Cider

macrumors newbie
Sep 10, 2006
16
0
Liverpool
storage said:
Sorry for hijacking, but I may be buying a 17" iMac and have some questions. How would it drive my 24" Dell display? Would it play World of Warcraft at native resolution (1920x1200) with at least decent graphics? I'm planning on running with either 2GB or 3GB memory.

I think a X1600 GPU would have a lot of trouble handling that sort of resolution. It's a middle of the range graphics card, and only the upper end of GPU's can give good framerate when you get that high. On the other hand I'm very impressed how well my PPC iMac handles WoW at 1440x900 so maybe I'm completely off target there.

On the first question though I can point you at some solid information. http://www.apple.com/uk/imac/specs.html shows the hardware spec of the iMacs, and advises:

Apple said:
Mini-DVI output port with support for DVI, VGA, S-video and composite video connections via adaptor (Requires adaptor, sold separately.)

Looking at the Apple Store (UK) those cables sell for 15 UKP.
 

Philgr

macrumors regular
Jul 27, 2005
183
0
Lakes - UK
My girl says size does matter so i got her the 20'' one, when she has got used to that ill think about the 24'' a bit later on,

it will give her someting to look forward too

:D
 

mkrishnan

Moderator emeritus
Jan 9, 2004
29,776
15
Grand Rapids, MI, USA
I really love my iMac G5 17"... I haven't really felt any "inadequacy." ;) But then to be honest with OS X I also find 1024x768 on my iBook very usable. In contrast to Windows, where, for whatever reason, it doesn't feel like enough real estate.

I don't really wish I had a 20"-er, although the next iMac I get might be a 20 or 24. I'm very happy with this as is for a few years (I bought it used at the beginning of this year), but the thing I wish it had most was built-in iSight.
 

nchu429

macrumors newbie
Aug 14, 2006
29
0
i saw the 17" iMac at the apple store and compared it to the 20" iMac. the 17 was nice, but i had to go with the 20" :D
 

mrgreen4242

macrumors 601
Feb 10, 2004
4,377
9
Cider said:
I think a X1600 GPU would have a lot of trouble handling that sort of resolution. It's a middle of the range graphics card, and only the upper end of GPU's can give good framerate when you get that high. On the other hand I'm very impressed how well my PPC iMac handles WoW at 1440x900 so maybe I'm completely off target there.

On the first question though I can point you at some solid information. http://www.apple.com/uk/imac/specs.html shows the hardware spec of the iMacs, and advises:

Looking at the Apple Store (UK) those cables sell for 15 UKP.


Ya, it'll DRIVE the display fine for desktop work and video, but full screen gaming at native resolution is going to be pushing the card pretty hard. The built in 17" display will give you much better framerates and ability to crank up some settings, so matching that with the 24" for desktop work would be pretty nice...
 

MisterEd

macrumors 6502
Jan 2, 2006
306
8
Well having moved from my old 12" PB (1024x768), when I got my 17" iMac and set it up I was like "woooah, its heowge!"
But now I'm craving a 20" or 24"... :)
 

Willis

macrumors 68020
Apr 23, 2006
2,293
54
Beds, UK
I felt the same from going from 15 -> 17 inch. I love the 20" though, so gonna get one around August 07.

I really wanna see the 24" in person. my nearest apple store didnt have them in yet when I went :(
 

leidendude

macrumors newbie
Oct 14, 2005
18
0
I have a 17'' iMac and I love it. But then again, I'd probably love a 20'' or a 24'' as well. I guess I'm just not picky.
 

emptyCup

macrumors 65816
Jan 5, 2005
1,482
1
Willis said:
I really wanna see the 24" in person.

The 17" iMac looks tiny next to the 24", but unless you really need the space (and you know if you do), the 17" is fine. I have had mine for 2 years and it is wonderful. A perfect size for the desk. The 24" is like sitting in the front row of a movie theater.
 

chentegt

macrumors newbie
Aug 29, 2006
7
0
I'm in love with my "17.

For what I do (music, videos, surfing, chat, writing), it is more than enough. Most people should first analyze for what kinds of applications are they going to use the machine, then buy according to it, not just get carried by the 'bigger, better' wave.
 

BrutX

macrumors newbie
Sep 17, 2006
10
0
emptyCup said:
The 24" is like sitting in the front row of a movie theater.

if only i could get the nVidia GPU in the 20", i wouldn't have to consider the 24" :cool:
 

nagromme

macrumors G5
May 2, 2002
12,546
1,196
For 90% of computer shoppers out there (not the same population as these forums!) I think the bottom-most 17" C2D iMac is perfect, and would serve for a long time.

There are gamers who want more than a console, and there are SOME pro users who need more speed or screen space. But for the vast, silent masses who neither know nor care about the subjects we tech-heads endlessly discuss--not to mention most non-creative business users AND many creative pros too--a $999 iMac is ideal.
 
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