Why can't iMac use real desktop parts?

[Mr. MacBook]

I'm just wondering why the iMac must use Intel Core 2 Duo notebook processors.

Wouldn't desktop processors make it a higher FSB, higher speeds, higher L2, and less price for just a little iMac thickness?

I would love to buy a 24-inch iMac @ 2.4 GHz for like $100-250 less than the previous model...

 

[Eraserhead]

Because Apple thinks that Looks>Performance for the iMac.

 

[Scarlet Fever]

i think its just an issue of space and heat.

 

[polishmacuser]

would it even fit lol

 

[Queso]

That lovely cheaper iMac would have to be about three inches thick to disperse the heat, that's why

 

[Mr. MacBook]

3 inches thick?

I think 1.5x as fast is more important than "3 inches thick"

 

[pianoman]

3 inches thick?

I think 1.5x as fast is more important than "3 inches thick"

maybe for you. but remember the iMac is a consumer model and most people who buy it are satisfied with its performance.

FWIW, i think Apple is missing something between iMac and Mac Pro.

 

[Queso]

3 inches thick?

I think 1.5x as fast is more important than "3 inches thick"

I'd like the iMac to get thinner and more like the Apple screens. For that it needs laptop parts. What you need is a different model entirely.

 

[panoz7]

3 inches thick?

I think 1.5x as fast is more important than "3 inches thick"

They're more then fast enough for most people.

If I was buying an iMac (which is a consumer computer) I'd rather give up some speed for the space saving design and increased energy efficiency that the mobile processors allow for.

EDIT: multiple tabs made my response late... I swear I wasn't copying the posts before me.

 

[Marble]

Apple's design revisions usually have a practical as well as an aesthetic purpose to them. I keep wondering if Apple are taking the opportunity to redesign their product for new guts, such as desktop components. It simply seems strange to me that Intel has a whole processor class (Conroe and descendants) that Apple has chosen not to take advantage of.

Then again, from a market audience perspective, there's not a very compelling reason to do this.

 

[furious]

i think it is more to do with how loud the iMac is. If apple used desktop parts the would need to use 9 cm fans or even 12 cm fans. That is because more air would be needed to cool the CPU down. Not impossible in a design like the iMac.

With the chin you could have a bank of large fans. Say 4 12 cm with ducting so the air gets to the right places. This would be much louder. Imagine 4 12 cm fans running at 1800 or even 2000 rpm. It is a shame it could not be done within Apples tight design parameters.

 

[blaster_boy]

I quite like the imac for what it is : a quiet computer that is more than fast enough for me.

Actually, coming from a pbook G4 at 867Mhz, that's an understatement - it blazes, both in windows and in mac mode !!

I really, REALLY like it for it's quietness - this, for me, is the absolute requirement for any new mac or pc (naaa) that I buy in the future.