Perfect imac 27 received!

[old john]

Oh is he happy to hear that. It's that seed of doubt that he lives for. He doesn't even own a 27" iMac and never has. His sole purpose is to troll these groups and try to dissuade others. WHY he, and others like him, do this is anyone's guess.

Hey man, please cool it! I find posts such those by IndustrialSpace useful and I'd find it sad if your flaming keeps people from contributing their views in the way that rymack reports "I got flamed so bad I never posted again." Your view of the yellow tinge issue, etc, is also worth reading, but not to the exclusion of those that differ. I believe both sides of this argument believe they are being helpful and if we can read both sides we can come to our own decisions.

I got a great iMac on the first delivery and so did the vast majority of others out there. Do yourself a favor and believe your own eyes and not anything you read in user forums.

On the one hand you have these horror stories of people with multiple returns, some percentage of whom are squeaky wheels with unrealistic expectations of absolute perfect color uniformity and yellow-tinged eyes. On the other you have record sales of iMacs.

From what I've read and seen on various forums, the lack of colour uniformity problem seems to vary a lot from one currently available iMac to another (though it seems none is completely perfect if tested sensitively), and people vary in their perception of it, their tolerance and their requirements, just as they do with the quality of a stereo system, as I pointed out before.

It's difficult to tell from the restricted info one gets from forums, but the impression I get is that there are now fewer extreme examples of the yellow tinge and unless you have a strong need for near perfect uniformity, you've a good chance now of getting a satisfactory iMac. (...Unless owners of bad examples are now being frightened off by the flaming that's around!)

The flickering that was reported in earlier examples of the current generation of iMacs seems to have been fixed some time ago and the very few more recent reports clearly represent a miniscule proportion of models now being delivered and it shouldn't put people off buying an iMac.

As regards the problem of scratched DVDs, the frequency of the problem seems low in comparison and I haven't formed a view on whether that has needed to be taken into consideration, nor whether the situation has improved on more recent machines.

If my current view of the risks had formed two or three months ago, we'd have probably bought a new iMac. However, I've only reached that view more recently and we're not that pressed to upgrade to a new iMac. So, with it now being over 6 months since these models became available, we shall probably wait to get whatever the next generation brings.

 

[alanwong]

I think I will apply that logice to my upcoming Mac purchase, because I will lose my mind over-thinking this yellow screen thing. If I get a yellow screen, I will deal with it. If I don't, I will enjoy the crap outta my new iMac!

Do let us know how you go, whether it ends up as a positive experience or negative experience, people need to hear BOTH sides of the story and make up their own minds!

 

[lefse]

Do let us know how you go, whether it ends up as a positive experience or negative experience, people need to hear BOTH sides of the story and make up their own minds!

Millions of mac-users already have made up their own minds.

There is no one stopping anyone from hearing both sides of the story.
The problem seems to be that some people find it hard to swallow that perception of quality differs. Thus profusely attacking and throwing insults at people not deemed worthy of an opinion.

I could easily live with a yellow tinged display, if its only use was writing emails/surfing the web. But for that one doesn't need a 27" i7.
I welcome people to disagree, but the fact that many people have received multiple replacements (myself included) before ending up with a refund, so clearly shows that the tinge-problem is something to be taken for granted - until proven otherwise.

This thread's title and the photo posted by the OP speaks for itself.

 

[Stealthipad]

My 27" arrived a few days ago and is now attached to the pivot arm that gets it off my desk and is perfect!

The screen is a LOT of real-estate! I can have several windows up at the same time and still have plenty of room. Glad I got the 8gb of ram!

 

[rymack]

My 27" arrived a few days ago and is now attached to the pivot arm that gets it off my desk and is perfect!

The screen is a LOT of real-estate! I can have several windows up at the same time and still have plenty of room. Glad I got the 8gb of ram!

Good to hear! I'm thinking I want to upgrade the RAM from 4 to 8 as well, just not sure if I should do it through Apple or myself. A lot of people tell me to just do it myself, and that it is cheaper that way, but honestly, $210 Canadian with my Ed discount doesn't seem too bad to me, and in most cases another 4gb or RAM is not THAT much cheaper...

 

[xSPRINTERx]

Good to hear! I'm thinking I want to upgrade the RAM from 4 to 8 as well, just not sure if I should do it through Apple or myself. A lot of people tell me to just do it myself, and that it is cheaper that way, but honestly, $210 Canadian with my Ed discount doesn't seem too bad to me, and in most cases another 4gb or RAM is not THAT much cheaper...

Do it yourself its really easy. I did mine and I have no DIY skills at all.

 

[jerryobr]

How is the "Build Week" Figured?

After seeing the postings about the week in which one's iMac was built (week 14 (Apr), week 16 (Apr), etc) I was wondering how the build week is figured, since these new iMacs started production back in October or so?

Also, regarding the next iMac refresh, the iMac line was refreshed in March/Apr 2009 and then in October 2009. So, it would seem likely that another refresh would occur before October 2010, wouldn't it?

Jerry

 

[Jacob Wall]

After seeing the postings about the week in which one's iMac was built (week 14 (Apr), week 16 (Apr), etc) I was wondering how the build week is figured, since these new iMacs started production back in October or so?

Also, regarding the next iMac refresh, the iMac line was refreshed in March/Apr 2009 and then in October 2009. So, it would seem likely that another refresh would occur before October 2010, wouldn't it?

Jerry

My guess is more like August of 2010.

 

[BullyWoolly]

My i7's also perfect

I have been following the whole saga on these boards and others, and I was very apprehensive when I opened the box. However, it's perfect in every way. I have no dead pixels, no yellowing, no whining, no scratchy CD drive, no noisy hard drive. It's a week 17 build, and it runs like a dream. After reading so much negative stuff, I'm very happy to have been blessed with such a great machine. If you've been waiting to pull the trigger, it seems like now is a good time to do so...

 

[mrwonkers]

They are out there....

I have been following the whole saga on these boards and others, and I was very apprehensive when I opened the box. However, it's perfect in every way. I have no dead pixels, no yellowing, no whining, no scratchy CD drive, no noisy hard drive. It's a week 17 build, and it runs like a dream. After reading so much negative stuff, I'm very happy to have been blessed with such a great machine. If you've been waiting to pull the trigger, it seems like now is a good time to do so...

Exactly the same story here, except mine was on my second try. I purchased new 1st, no luck. So I thought try a refurbished unit and finally I am exceedingly happy here. Mine is the i5 version. No display yellowness, no clunky hard drives or disc scratching behavior present. So they are out there, maybe its luck or maybe its finally sorted out. Off to caress my iMac

Build Country: - Refurbished product, location unknown.

Build Year: - Your Mac was built in 2010.

Build Week - Your Mac was built in week 13 of that year (March).

Production Nr.: - Your Mac was number 512 to be built that week.

 

[mtkagan]

I just received my i7 from apple today. Guess I got some older stock because mine is a week 10. At first I swore I saw a yellow gradient towards the bottom third of the screen, but after taking pictures and boosting the saturation, I think my screen is okay. let me know what you guys think. First Image is the light bar test, second image is same but I boosted the saturation in adobe lightroom to 100 (double saturation). Third image is dark bar test and 4th is the same doubled saturation.

 

[nateomedia]

I just receive my 27" 2.8 iMac today. It's manufactured in the US, production week 19, #146.

I know everyone's hoping this problem is resolved, but my iMac has the yellow tinge. It's a uniform gradient of yellow affecting the bottom portion of the screen. I used my X-Rite Eye One Display 2 to measure the temperature difference after calibrating the middle of the screen to 65K and got 66K at the top and 63K at the bottom. 300K isn't a huge variance, but it is there.

I have a second, color calibrated monitor that I plan to hook up — I never intended to use the iMac monitor as my main monitor — so I may just keep the machine. It is disappointing, but considering that we're talking about a machine that rivals a $3k low end Mac Pro in speed tests and comes with a monitor that based on its size should alone cost $1k, a slight temperature variance seems like it might just be par the course for a consumer grade machine that offers so much for $2k.

I don't know. Should I expect better here? The machine is quiet and seems to work well otherwise. Am I being a pushover if I keep this computer?

 

[mystikjoe]

I just receive my 27" 2.8 iMac today. It's manufactured in the US, production week 19, #146.

I know everyone's hoping this problem is resolved, but my iMac has the yellow tinge. It's a uniform gradient of yellow affecting the bottom portion of the screen. I used my X-Rite Eye One Display 2 to measure the temperature difference after calibrating the middle of the screen to 65K and got 66K at the top and 63K at the bottom. 300K isn't a huge variance, but it is there.

I have a second, color calibrated monitor that I plan to hook up — I never intended to use the iMac monitor as my main monitor — so I may just keep the machine. It is disappointing, but considering that we're talking about a machine that rivals a $3k low end Mac Pro in speed tests and comes with a monitor that based on its size should alone cost $1k, a slight temperature variance seems like it might just be par the course for a consumer grade machine that offers so much for $2k.

I don't know. Should I expect better here? The machine is quiet and seems to work well otherwise. Am I being a pushover if I keep this computer?

6500 vs 6300 isn't a huge difference. i would say some of it can be contributed to some backlight bleeding and the other to a little of the tinge. ask yourself if you never read these forums would you ever have seen it in the first place. if you can see it in your daily task then i would say try for another one. i got a perfect one in my eyes. i thought my other one was good till i set it up next to my new one. this one was hand picked by engineers at apples at least that's what apple executive relations told me. it's awesome so i believe them. good luck!

 

[Btom]

.....
I know everyone's hoping this problem is resolved, but my iMac has the yellow tinge. It's a uniform gradient of yellow affecting the bottom portion of the screen. I used my X-Rite Eye One Display 2 to measure the temperature difference after calibrating the middle of the screen to 65K and got 66K at the top and 63K at the bottom. 300K isn't a huge variance, but it is there.

.........

Did you check corners as well, or was it simple top to the bottom in the middle of the screen?
What are the corresponding numbers for your other monitor? Just curious...

Tom B.

 

[dwarnecke11]

The tinge on my Week 45 i5 was so apparent that the dock icons were very "warm". Opening a large white Safari page showed the tinge easily. I never even bothered running the grey bar test. If you have to run the test to see the problem I would be happy with it. My iMac also had the flickering problem and a grumbly Seagate HD. Otherwise, it was a rocket and a joy to use. I returned it after ten days for a full refund.

So now I'm patiently waiting for the updated model. I'll get the top end store model with my student discount as before. I'm hoping for an i7, 2TB HD (quiet!), 8 GB RAM, ATI 5870, maybe some other perks. Until then, I'm using my five-year-old Mac mini G4 running 10.3. So painful.

 

[nateomedia]

ask yourself if you never read these forums would you ever have seen it in the first place.

You make a good point here. Yes, I would have noticed, but I don't know if I would have paid any attention to the problem. I know some people have had real problems with these iMacs — I've read of 1000k temperature differences and yellow splotches and, of course, the flickering. This is pretty minor in comparison. On a neutral background, I can easily tell that the monitor is more yellow at the bottom than the top. However, looking at full screen video? You'd never know there was an issue.

Did you check corners as well, or was it simple top to the bottom in the middle of the screen?
What are the corresponding numbers for your other monitor? Just curious...

Well, when I checked the luminosity, it defaulted to the upper left corner, so that's where I got the 6600K reading. For the second run through, I did the lower left corner and got 6300K. That was enough for me to know that my eyes weren't playing tricks on me. The coloration looks the same across the length of the monitor, so I don't see taking the time to test the entire thing. My second monitor is an NEC and I have the Spectraview II software for it. That software works a little differently — I suppose I could take the time to run the NEC through the same testing but just looking at the monitors side by side I can see the yellow in the iMac and not in the NEC. Again, this isn't the strong yellow tinge that was reported months ago, nor is this splotching or flickering. Just a slight unevenness, which I'm starting to feel is probably within reason for a machine of this price with these specifications.

 

[Btom]

..... Just a slight unevenness, which I'm starting to feel is probably within reason for a machine of this price with these specifications.

Just in case you missed it, have a look at post #2467 from the other thread . This is what I have also seen on a few occasions in stores.

Tom B.

 

[nateomedia]

Just in case you missed it, have a look at post #2467 from the other thread . This is what I have also seen on a few occasions in stores.

Tom B.

That's a bit stronger than what I'm seeing, but it's a similar kind of discoloration. There's a little bit of leakage around all edges and the bottom of the screen has the slight hint of a sunrise.

I don't want to come off as an Apple apologist — I certainly believe they should strive for perfection — but the iMac should probably be judged for what it is: consumer grade electronics. The professional equivalent of this machine — a Mac Pro and a wide color gamut monitor of similar size — are going to cost together around $4k-$7k. I think it's ridiculous to expect Apple to include a professional grade monitor in a $2k all-in-one computer (as much as we'd all love to have one). Was there a problem with the iMac monitors? No doubt. The splotching, flickering and high temperature color shifts I've read about were not acceptable. But I'm not sure its fair to say that the monitor I received is not quite good for what it is. I think most consumers who are looking to surf the web, watch movies, play games, write papers, etc. would be quite happy with this machine. Heck, I was watching Hulu full screen last night and I was blown away by it.

Anyone complaining that the iMac isn't good enough for color critical tasks like photo editing, digital art, or design are right. And it probably never will be. Take a look at the NEC PA271W-BK — it's a 27" monitor that is able to display 97.1% of the AdobeRGB color space. That's what a professional should be using. The monitor costs $1,400. Apple can't put that in a $2k computer.

I guess the question is: How does the 27" iMac screen stack up against other low end 27" monitors? Is the quality really that inferior? I'm inclined to think that minor flaws in color might be expected (again, as opposed to the major problems experienced early on in the production run). But maybe I'm being dumb.

 

[Btom]

.....
I don't want to come off as an Apple apologist — I certainly believe they should strive for perfection — but the iMac should probably be judged for what it is: consumer grade electronics.
....

LCD screen technology is quite mature - just have a look at all the consumer grade LCD HDTVs at Best Buy. I didn't notice any yellow tinge on much bigger (and often brighter) screens.

Is it really too much to expect the same screen quality from Apple?

Tom B.

 

[nateomedia]

LCD screen technology is quite mature - just have a look at all the consumer grade LCD HDTVs at Best Buy. I didn't notice any yellow tinge on much bigger (and often brighter) screens.

Is it really too much to expect the same screen quality from Apple?

Tom B.

Is that a fair comparison? Did you get to see still images on the HDTVs? Because when video runs on this iMac, you can't see the color cast at all.

Also, are we talking apples to apples for price and specs? This monitor is 27" at 2560x1440 — what would you say is a fair market value for just the monitor? $700? Can you get an issue-free 27" IPS LCD monitor for $700 from competitors?

I'm not asking these questions rhetorically, by the way. I really am still wondering if I should keep this machine or not. It's pretty amazing otherwise.

 

[Btom]

Is that a fair comparison? Did you get to see still images on the HDTVs? Because when video runs on this iMac, you can't see the color cast at all.

Yes, guys at Best Buy were kind enough to let me watch my own slideshow (a set of still pictures) on a 55" Samsung LED screen (using a built-in USB port). I can attest that the Samsung screen is awesome (as was my slideshow) and there was no sign of yellow, even on the most white of my winter images.

Also, are we talking apples to apples for price and specs? This monitor is 27" at 2560x1440 — what would you say is a fair market value for just the monitor? $700? Can you get an issue-free 27" IPS LCD monitor for $700 from competitors?

I'm not asking these questions rhetorically, by the way. I really am still wondering if I should keep this machine or not. It's pretty amazing otherwise.

I can't really comment on the fair market value, but it is slightly disturbing to see a wall of $400- to $3000+ HDTVs with totally uniform screen (when white), next to some of the "posh" 27" iMacs.

Tom B.

 

[BehindTimes]

Is that a fair comparison? Did you get to see still images on the HDTVs? Because when video runs on this iMac, you can't see the color cast at all.

Also, are we talking apples to apples for price and specs? This monitor is 27" at 2560x1440 — what would you say is a fair market value for just the monitor? $700? Can you get an issue-free 27" IPS LCD monitor for $700 from competitors?

I'm not asking these questions rhetorically, by the way. I really am still wondering if I should keep this machine or not. It's pretty amazing otherwise.

The problem that I had is that Apple only gives you one choice often. I could either get an underpowered (for what I do) Mac Mini, or an out of budget Mac Pro. So all I am really offered is the iMac, which just happens to have a really poor monitor. Now, I already have decent monitors (the good thing about monitors is that they don't need to be replaced nearly as often as the computers), but the iMac already takes up a decent amount of desk space.

I already knew from the price of the iMac that the monitor was going to be fairly bad, it's just that I didn't expect it to be this poor quality.

 

[Stonefly]

Until the frequency of postings on https://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?p=9773226#post9773226 goes down I would not get an iMac.

If I had of read some of the posts on this forum I wouldn't have bought mine in December. I am certainly glad I got it before finding this forum as I would have missed out on the best computer I have ever had.

 

[nateomedia]

Yes, guys at Best Buy were kind enough to let me watch my own slideshow (a set of still pictures) on a 55" Samsung LED screen (using a built-in USB port). I can attest that the Samsung screen is awesome (as was my slideshow) and there was no sign of yellow, even on the most white of my winter images.

I just did a 2 second google search for 55" Samsung LCDs. They retail for ~$1,300. They are also only 1920x1080.

While LCDs are a mature technology, I think it might be fair to say that cheap, high pixel density LCDs on par with what Apple is attempting to do with the iMac are a rarity. Maybe Apple shouldn't have made the attempt if they couldn't get it right?

The problem that I had is that Apple only gives you one choice often. I could either get an underpowered (for what I do) Mac Mini, or an out of budget Mac Pro. So all I am really offered is the iMac, which just happens to have a really poor monitor. Now, I already have decent monitors (the good thing about monitors is that they don't need to be replaced nearly as often as the computers), but the iMac already takes up a decent amount of desk space.

I already knew from the price of the iMac that the monitor was going to be fairly bad, it's just that I didn't expect it to be this poor quality.

I can't comment on your monitor. I know some of them have been really bad. Mine isn't that bad. And I agree, if Apple sold the same computer without a monitor built in, I would have bought that too.

 

[lefse]

While LCDs are a mature technology, I think it might be fair to say that cheap, high pixel density LCDs on par with what Apple is attempting to do with the iMac are a rarity. Maybe Apple shouldn't have made the attempt if they couldn't get it right?

Also, are we talking apples to apples for price and specs? This monitor is 27" at 2560x1440 — what would you say is a fair market value for just the monitor? $700? Can you get an issue-free 27" IPS LCD monitor for $700 from competitors?

As you know very well, Apple does also sells a 21.5" iMac with a 1920x1080 IPS display. Yes, it has the same problem.
The 27" has 108.8 DPI.
The 21.5" has 102.5 DPI.

I am sorry, but pretending that this is a high pixel density issue is laughable.
Apple has delivered many IPS displays in the past within this DPI-range, without the total lack of colour uniformity we see in the late '09 iMac models.
Most likely they use an inferior backlighting technique that saves them money, but produces awful results for anyone who are close to caring about colour.

Also, no one is expecting this display to achieve almost the whole Adobe RBG-spectrum. People are simply expecting a screen that can handle the sRGB colour space without showing considerable temperature blotches.
Just like any other _cheap_ IPS display that's been out there for the last 6 years(!)...

Apple advertises these displays like this:

Whether you’re sitting in front of the display or standing off to the side, you’ll get a perfect picture with superb color consistency and no loss of detail.