I see on the Mac Rumors Buyers Guide that it says DON’T BUY under the iMac. Does that mean it’s not a good computer or that a new model is right around the corner??? I don’t want to buy a new one if that’s the case! Any ideas why they would label it as DON’T BUY??
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Don’t buy an iMac now???
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It's a good machine, but the speculation is that it might get an update this year, maybe "M2" chip.
If you need one now, I wouldn't hesitate to get one. Unless you are a very light user, suggest get 16GB RAM rather than 8GB.
I assume you are talking about the 24" iMac. The 27" iMac is currently discontinued.
If you need one now, I wouldn't hesitate to get one. Unless you are a very light user, suggest get 16GB RAM rather than 8GB.
I assume you are talking about the 24" iMac. The 27" iMac is currently discontinued.
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As far as I can tell, the "Don't Buy" flag appears on a product when the time since the last update is approaching the average time between updates for that over the last 10 years or so... It certainly has nothing to do with the quality of the product.
That's presumably why the Mac Mini, which is almost 18 months old (and which has been the subject of specific M2 rumours) is only "caution" yet the 24" iMac is "Don't Buy" after less than 12 months and no replacement rumours... It's just that the Mac Mini once went for a marathon 4 years between updates which drives up the average time....
Not really a good measure, especially since (as far as I'm aware) no Apple Silicon machine has yet been updated and we've no idea whether that is going to make the update cycles longer,, shorter or the same.
Personal opinion: ignore the "Don't Buy" label - it's simplistic and sensational - but do look at the time since the last update & the rumour summary. Anything getting on for a year old might be updated in the next six months or so. Also - perspective: if you really really must have the latest version of something and will be devastated if a new version appears too soon, your only option is to buy something shortly after it has been launched - and remember that the second mouse gets the cheese, so get ready to enjoy discovering all those entertaining little teething troubles
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I got mine 2 months ago and very happy with it.
I did get the mid range model and upgraded to 16 GB ram. It runs like a dream and features such as the TouchID are really great. Webcam is amazing too, speakers are ok/good (nothing amazing though) and the screen is as good as it gets for an LCD at this price point. it also looks great
I also highly recommend the trackpad. I can't stand trackpads on windows devices but this one is really enjoyable and MacOS is well suited for it.
This machine, along with my iPad Pro M1 are my favourite apple devices I've ever owned
I did get the mid range model and upgraded to 16 GB ram. It runs like a dream and features such as the TouchID are really great. Webcam is amazing too, speakers are ok/good (nothing amazing though) and the screen is as good as it gets for an LCD at this price point. it also looks great
I also highly recommend the trackpad. I can't stand trackpads on windows devices but this one is really enjoyable and MacOS is well suited for it.
This machine, along with my iPad Pro M1 are my favourite apple devices I've ever owned
If you like it and it does what you want, that will still be the case even if a new version comes out later this year that is faster (etc.). For my usage, a faster iMac (M2 or whatever they call it) would make zero difference because I don't do anything really intensive and the CPU is usually 90% idle or something like that. I do recommend the 16GB RAM option, though, because all the non-intensive tasks (e.g. big web pages) can add up, RAM-wise.
Not sure if you've used the Magic Mouse for comparison or not. But if you have, how would you rate the Trackpad against it? I've been using a Magic Mouse for years, but the Trackpad looks like it might be more comfortable.
OK, so this is "general" mouse vs. trackpad, because I don't like the Magic Mouse and use a Logitech MX Master instead, but I do have a trackpad.
I quite like the Magic Trackpad and have happily used it for extended periods for general use... However, there are a few things for which I find a mouse is just that little bit better - such as precise graphics, Logic Pro (for some reason) - and the trackpad is pretty useless for games. So what tends to happen is that I use the trackpad until one of those jobs come up, switch to the mouse, then never quite bother to switch back.
Certainly, when I was using a Macbook regularly rather than an iMac, the introduction of the Magic-style trackpad on MacBooks cured me from needing to carry a mouse around.
One thing I've found that makes the trackpad work better for me is enabling "three finger drag" which - for some reason - Apple have now buried under "accessibility options".
If you were buying a new iMac I'd suggest taking the opportunity to get a discounted trackpad, because it is well worth giving it a go. If you've already got a mouse then you can get the trackpad instead of another Magic Mouse for $50, and if you hate it you can probably sell it and get your money back.
...and if you find the Magic Mouse uncomfortable, you might want to take the opportunity to try some alternative mice (I'm resisting the temptation of launching into a Magic Mouse hate fest here...)
The Magic Mouse is a mediocre mouse, 5/10.
The Magic Trackpad is the best trackpad in the world, 10/10.
It’s very personal though, I like the magic mouse and dislike the trackpad.
Agreed on the “don’t buy” issue… there have been no rumours of updated 24” iMacs, and the 27” is discontinued, so there is very little reason not to buy one now. As always, there will be something good just around the corner which you’ll end up not getting, so might as well buy what you need when you need it.
Agreed on the “don’t buy” issue… there have been no rumours of updated 24” iMacs, and the 27” is discontinued, so there is very little reason not to buy one now. As always, there will be something good just around the corner which you’ll end up not getting, so might as well buy what you need when you need it.
I have used both and the mouse is ok but there are much better mice out there from Logitech and such. I don't like the scrolling with it and it's too flat.
I like the trackpad a lot because it works very well with MacOS (and it's nice to use with my iPad Pro too)
on windows machines I hate the trackpads but Apple makes the best one out there (whereas it does not make the best mouse)
More and more rumours are pointing at delays with the chips and everything due to Covid lockdowns in China and other supply chain issues. So it may very well be that the M2 chip won't come anytime soon. (I read a rumour that the redesigned MacBook Air will just get an M1) in which case the current 24" M1 iMac will not be updated soon since it already got it's redesign.