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iMac 20", is it really so bad?

rajalot

rajalot

macrumors member
Original poster
May 27, 2008
95
0
What exactly is wrong with the display of 20" model vs. 24"? As a casual broswer of this forum, it seems like LCD of 20" model is the worst thing that has happened in Apple's history.. It's pretty much the most important factor since after I buy an iMac, I'm stuck with its screen for a long time. Money is not a problem, I could pick either one, but coming from almost 4 years of using mostly just the 12" iBook, I honestly don't see a huge screen as a must have. Would seem like stupid waste of money, really. However, a vastly better screen is entirely different matter.

Also, was the graph card in 24" model upgradeable? I recall seeing such a rumor somewhere. If so, then this choosing problem is solved for me.
 
To me, either one would work.
But the 24in is higher resolution, and faster.

If you go to the Apple store, you will hear the heavenly sounds when you look at the 24in model.
But that's just me.
:p

I'm personally debating on which iMac to get myself.
I'm trying to figure out if it's worth the money.
 
I have a 20" aluminum iMac.

The 20" screen is ample for most purposes. The only problem is that there is light-bleeding around the edges. This has never really bothered me, but it is noticeable when there is something dark on the screen.

Personally, I feel that buying a 20" iMac and a second monitor provides you with more flexibility than buying a 24" iMac.
 
I wouldn't call the 24" screen vastly better but either screen looks fine for normal use.

Most users here will tell you that if you have the money, get the 24" model.

I personally have the 20" model and it works fine for my purposes.
 
Ok but I wasn't asking for opinions. What exactly makes LCD in 20" iMac inferior to 24" aside resolution?
 
I went to the store, put the same photo up on each (from the iphoto on each), and looked at them across the aisle (side by side not possible). I honestly did not detect significant differences. Of course, one is bigger, by a good chunk. But the picture to me looked the same. I'm no graphic artist, and I'm sure with time in a darker environment I could tell the difference, but it's not something that's obvious on first glance.
 
For me it was a matter of $$$. I couldn't justify going from 1199 to 1799 for a bigger screen. We do web surfing, email, word processing, etc. and its fine...

Save the $600 and use it for something useful.
 
Chris Blount said:
I wouldn't call the 24" screen vastly better but either screen looks fine for normal use.

Most users here will tell you that if you have the money, get the 24" model.

I personally have the 20" model and it works fine for my purposes.
Click to expand...

and for your desk limitations:D
 
Le Big Mac said:
Different screen technology. The issue has been well described in other threads here.
Click to expand...
Can I have a brief recap, please? I'm browsing this forum rarely. :) Apple's site tells that 24" is brighter and has better viewing angles, but worse contrast ratio than 20". What else? And was the graph card in 24" model upgradeable?
 
I guess I need to go and see for myself at the nearest Mac retailer. Right now I'm trying to figure out if HD 2600 XT is useless in comparison to that GeForce.
 
It's all matters of opinion and horses-for-courses.

I have a 20" alu iMac and I find the screen gorgeous to look at. The glossy screen, supposed screen gradient etc don't bother me one jot.

In hindsight I could've saved for a couple more months and bought a 24" but the times I've thought I need more power or screen real-estate have been few and far between- plus I can always add a second screen one day.

You may find the 20" screen a horror to end all horrors. An indecent, harrowing assault on your visual senses. Or, like me, you might find the screen not just "acceptable" or "OK" but very good and pleasant to use.

Try before you buy.

EDIT:
rajalot said:
I guess I need to go and see for myself at the nearest Mac retailer.
Click to expand...

This is the best idea, Chief- I went to the Apple store and played on the iMacs three times before I took the plunge. Reviews and pics on the Net will only tell you so much.
 
tmelvin said:
For me it was a matter of $$$. I couldn't justify going from 1199 to 1799 for a bigger screen. We do web surfing, email, word processing, etc. and its fine...

Save the $600 and use it for something useful.
Click to expand...

I agree. I spent my $600 on boosting RAM to 4GB and purchasing Adobe CS3.

It was a no-brainer for me. Couldn't be happier with my 20in Intel iMac :D
 
I had a 20" white iMac and now have a 24" aluminum iMac and I can tell you there was nothing 'wrong' with the 20" when I had it, but I like my 24" iMac way better! BIGGER SCREEN :)
 
I just got a 20" Alu iMac about 3-4 weeks ago and I am loving every moment of it. Honestly I had the $$$ to dish out on a maxed out 24" 3.06ghz 1tb HD, 4GB ram, etc, but I took the 20" 2.66 ghz stock machine because for me the real estate was more than enough because I only use my iMac for browsing, watching movies, e-mail, chat, word processing. It looks gorgous and for me the 24" is just too big and monsterous!

After reading all the posts on this forum about everyone saying to get the 24" I went to the local Apple store, pulled up 2 of the same pics in iPhoto and noticed the sharper images on the 24" but I have no regrets whatsoever because I wouldn't have noticed the difference until I pulled it up side by side. Differences to a non-professional, like I, is not siginificant at all. I am loving every moment of my iMac and am putting the saved money into other Apple products :)

So to answer your question, for me personally the 20" is not really so bad and for the average user its more than one could ask for!
 
rajalot said:
Can I have a brief recap, please? I'm browsing this forum rarely. :) Apple's site tells that 24" is brighter and has better viewing angles, but worse contrast ratio than 20". What else?
Click to expand...

20" = TN+Film = Excellent response times, 6-bit native color (8-bit simulated via dithering), excellent contrast/good brightness, lower power consumption, limited viewing angles, less potential for backlight bleed. Used in virtually all laptops and many of the less expensive LCD monitors aimed at consumers.

24" = H-IPS = Good response times, 8-bit native color, good contrast/excellent brightness, higher power consumption, excellent viewing angles, greater potential for backlight bleed. Used in a few of the more expensive LCD monitors aimed at designers/professionals.

NOTE: All current LCD technologies have trade-offs, so don't consider specs alone. More information may be found here.
 
You would need to compare and decide what you prefer. My 20" iMac screen seems great - I have no issues with it.

The screen is much brighter and more viewable from different angles compared to the 17" G5 iMac that it replaced.

So you need to decide what you want versus what you need with some measure of what you can afford!
 
I bought the 20" iMac Alum 2.4Ghz about a month ago and loved the way it looked. I did notice the difference in the 24" to 20", but the price was too high for that little difference. I did return my iMac mostly because it wasn't as fast as i thought it would be and i am not a big fan of all in one computers. Now i just purchased a 22" LG wide screen, and it lacks the sharpness and color of the iMac 20" Alum. Also from what i have heard the new 10.5 update fixes the 20" Alum screen problems. Now this is not 100% test, but i have heard that it is true and it looks almost as good a the 24". So if you are thinking of buying a 20" over a 24", I think it is up to your needs and Price.
 
^What did you get instead of the iMac?

Also, can you update the video card in an iMac
 
I went to retailer and in my eyes 24" model has better brightness and that's it. I'm not going to buy it. 4" extra space and a bit brightness is not worth 300€ and Radeon 2600 Pro runs HL2 & CivIV just fine. Sure, 20" model looks tiny in comparison against 24" but when I put my 12" iBook there, it looked like a giant. I also noticed that if you hide dock, you can easily fit two A4's side by side on 20" model and see everything at once, just like in 24" model. Tried that with OpenOffice 3 Beta.

Thanks for the info, Alloye! :)

READ THIS:
I can't believe how so many folks around here can get stuck on such a small differences in practical use. This reminds me exactly about the time when I was looking for info about possible defectiness of my current iBook prior to buying it, including this place. I had never seen it live and waited in fear after placing my order wether my unit would have awful screen, flimsy keyboard, problems with sleep etc etc... now in retrospective yes it has slightly uneven backlightnig and "j" tends to repeat itself since it's a bit slack, but issues are so minor and have never even once bothered me. Over here people reported about those things like they made whole device total piece of crap which it definately isn't. Seems like people around here are sickeningly obsessed with perfection.
 
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