Is the 21" better than the 27"?

[hdsalinas]

Hi,

I use a 24" inch Imac at work and I have really got used to the big screen. I have a 15" MBP at home and I find working on it a bit cluttered. I am a designer so I work with all the adobe apps. I dont do much video, only the occasional home video editing on imovie. What I do need is a BIG HDD (1 TB) and lots of ram, and well something faster than my aging 3 year old MBP.

First thing I thought was getting a 27" imac, but after visiting apple website I get the impression that the 21" has better performance.

My budget its pretty tight, so I am trying to get as much as I can for my money. SO I would go with either base model of the two imacs. Hey, If I go with the 21" I could add an iPad for the price of a 27".

I am concerned that the 21" would be too small. I wish Apple would have offered a 23" instead of the 21".

I will appreciate your insight about this two imacs.

BTW, I remember hearing about issues with the new imacs, have these been corrected? Should I expect revised Imac this year?

 

[Hellhammer]

For Adobe apps, definitely get the 27" as the extra screen estate is worth it. Update is expected to come soon but as it's Apple, nothing is sure. The update would likely add i3 and i5 to 21.5" and low-end 27", so you would get better performance.

Issues have mainly been solved but I'd still wait for new one to see what's available

BTW, 21.5" is not faster

P.S. Check refurb store for good deals

 

[Badger^2]

Hi,
First thing I thought was getting a 27" imac, but after visiting apple website I get the impression that the 21" has better performance.

I am concerned that the 21" would be too small. I wish Apple would have offered a 23" instead of the 21".

Umm, are we looking at 2 different Apple web sites?

27" has faster video and faster processors, so how could it be slower?


A 23" screen @ 1920 X 1080 pixels shows the exact same thing as a 23" screen @ 1920 X 1080 pixels.

You could add a larger screen to your MBP for a fraction of the cost of a new iMac. What are its specs? Maybe all it needs is a newer faster drive and more ram -- again, far less than a new iMac.

 

[Hellhammer]

A 23" screen @ 1920 X 1080 pixels shows the exact same thing as a 23" screen @ 1920 X 1080 pixels.

Sure it does as they are identical I think you meant 23" and 21.5" but yea, the amount of pixels matter, not the size, so 17" 1920x1200 can actually display more than 60" 1920x1080

You could add a larger screen to your MBP for a fraction of the cost of a new iMac. What are its specs? Maybe all it needs is a newer faster drive and more ram -- again, far less than a new iMac.

Good idea, his MBP can take 4GB I think

 

[hdsalinas]

About my current mac, Well ever since my wife's compaq laptop died a few months ago, she has taken over my mac. I had to split the HDD and install windows for her since she needs it for her work, although she uses and loves the mac os for everything else. That extra partition is using up my hdd.

I guess I could replace the hdd with a bigger one and get a big monitor but I have not found here in Honduras a monitor as great as the screen in the imacs. Heck, my MBP's display still better than most lcds on the market here.

And besides, lets be honest... I want a new mac!

 

[lasuther]

If you go with the 27", go with the i5 chip. If you can't afford that, go with the 21" which has 1920x1080 res. About the same as your 24" at 1920x1200.

 

[MythicFrost]

IMO The best value is the Core i7 27" iMac w/ 8GB RAM.