The “French-born” iMac G5

Don't ask why but at the moment I am using two G5 iMacs. The 1.6 and a 1.8 17 inch. They are both great value for money and perform at the same level or better than my dual 1.25 G4. In sharpening a CMYK tiff the G5 was 10 time faster in fact. I don't know why. This machine is a viable portable for connection to a data projector in a client display or whatever. It would be a blast for kids who are into music and have a guitar or keyboard. It would also do most things that a graphic designer or desktop video editor would want to do... easy. It is a pleasure to use and looks great in an office or home. This could be the only machine you need. If I could get more of them I could have sold a heap to those who have walked in to my studio.

David: I work as a Graphic Designer and rely on my computer working in order to meet deadlines on a daily basis. The great thing about a Mac is that it just works. If you enjoy tearing your hair out everytime you install new software, or add a new hardware device, or when the next wave of viruses hits, by all means, stick with the PC platform. If you want to get some work done and enjoy the experience, buy a Mac. If you want to play games, you can get a dual processor G5 that will really scream, or do the financially intelligent thing and buy an XBox or a Playstation. No doubt, the iMac needs more RAM, but I plan to get 512MB on a single chip and buy an extra GIG from a third party. If you look at the software that comes with a new Mac, and figure out what it would cost you to get a PC to do the same thing, you will see that the Mac is a bargain. Not to mention easy to use and solid as a rock.

yes the stand is removable and the computer is VESA compatible, meaning you can flat-mount it or put it on an articulated arm mounted to the wall. They weigh between 25 and 28 pounds and I can imagine lugging them around like a giant laptop. I'm sure that a third-party company will produce a carrying case before too long.

I'm curious? Is the stand removable? Is it easily removable? And how feasible is it to treat this machine a laptop. Is there a cover to protect the screen in transit. Are its dimensions similar to a laptops. Is its weight similar to a laptops. Any answers appreciated.

Is is just me or does every major iteration of iMac get canned on release then praised a few months later??? I remember the Bondi iMac release.."why is Apple going back to an All-In-One design??", "RAM is too low", "Don't like the colours" then the Lampshade "Too expensive" (I have to agree with that one), "not expandable", "Graphics Card is old" and now...again complaints about the lack of expandability, lack of bluetooth or airport as standard, too little RAM.... Apple HAVE got it right, they will sell a crap-load of G5 iMacs if they can get the processors cause its a Mac that looks great, is "Completely Different" and is reasonably priced. RAM, Bluetooth and Airport is self installable if you need it and if you want to play games, Go buy a PS2 or X-Box!!! As for the iMac/PC question, a PC is cheaper because they are not specially designed to fit inside a 2 inch case....in 2 years time when a PC maker finally works out how to cram in all the components behind a LCD screen, and figured out how to blow out the heat from the Processor it too will be overly expensive, yet INCREDIBLY LOUD!!! Cause they won't bother thinking about making it quiet, the quietness factor is almost priceless, problem is you don;t notice how noisy a PC is until you get something quiet.

This is a pretty slim little machine. Put a battery in it and it's a laptop. Does anyone know how far off a G5 Powerbook is? I am about to buy a new top-line G4. Should I wait for a G5?

I guess for every home run you have to have a couple of strikes outs. This new design is a boring to say the least. So the sound from the speakers are going to bounce off the desktop hit the keyboard? With all the real estate they waste at the bottom of the machine why not just put some kick @$$ speakers there where they belong? I also agree they should have put the wires in the base or at least near the power cord. It just doesn't make sense to me. I wonder if you can play a mini cd in this thing. Again, if this is it... why even bother with the change? To me this is Apple's next cube, and we all know what happened to it. Just my opinion, -Gene

I have never owned or used an iMac, however, this G5 looks very nice and thought i would look into this in more detail. Having studied the specs of this machine, it is nowhere near the specifications of even an average windows PC. Why is this ? I was maybe thinking of changing to Mac to see what its all about and as i play games online a lot, i need a high specification machine with an extreme graphics card, something that the imac does not have (as far as the specs that i have seen).... Why do you Mac guys love these machines ?...... I am not having a grumble, just want to understand the major differences (dont say coz windows isnt perfect and has problems.....all software, no matter who makes it, has problems) Thanks in advance and look forward to your replies David

I'm sure it was quite a acomplishment getting a G5 into that small a place. But the design really doesn't excite me, it really doesn't look all that special when you consider most people have flat pannel displays on their desks these days. Granted there is a computer stuffed under the desk somewhere, but no one really sees that any way. My first impression is Apple didn't really "think differnt" on this one.

The rear of the machine is set up the same way as the new Cinema Displays, where there is a hole in the stand to thread all the cables through. I'm sure that will be the suggested method of cable management.