Down to 2 choices (I think)

[u2gator]

Ready to jump into the Mac pool and have narrowed down my choices. Going to go the refurb route to save a little cash and would like suggestions between these two. Thanks in advance for your help.

Refurbished iMac 21.5-inch 3.2GHz Intel Core i3 processor - $1,269

21.5-inch LED-backlit glossy widescreen display
4GB memory
1TB hard drive
8x SuperDrive (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
ATI Radeon HD 5670 graphics with 512MB memory
Built-in iSight camera

or

Refurbished iMac 24-inch 3.06GHz Intel Core 2 Duo - $1,349

24-inch glossy widescreen display
4GB memory
1TB hard drive
8x SuperDrive (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
NVIDIA GeForce GT 130 with 512MB memory
Built-in iSight camera

Thanks again,
u2gator

 

[DarthMoops]

Unless you've got to have the bigger screen I would go with option 1 by a mile.

 

[hoopster]

Unless you REALLY want the 24 inch screen size Definitely the 21.5".

 

[mulo]

21.5"

 

[MacFanUK]

As others have said, the i3 would be far better than the Core 2 Duo.

What will you be using the computer for?

 

[u2gator]

Mostly standard home use. Would like to also get into making some home movies with photos and family videos. May also record some power point based lectures to post for school. I looked closer at the specs and the 21 does look better. Was mostly attracted to the 24 because of the size. Played with the 27 this weekend and think it is just too big and not worth the extra price.

 

[C. Alan]

If you are going to do video editing, Id go with the 21.5 for the extra horse power. Rendering video can be a very cpu/gpu intensive activity.

 

[MacFanUK]

I know what you mean about the screen sizes though. I think the 21.5" is too small and the 27" is too big but the fact is, the 21.5" is now more powerful than the 24" so it's a no brainer really.