iMacs 21.5" vs 27"

Looking for feedback on which iMac to purchase.

I currently have a 27" iMac which I enjoy. Sometimes I find the screen almost too big and find myself looking a lot from side to side.
My desk allows me to only sit about 24" away from the screen.

I am retired, and sit at my computer as much as 4-6 hours some days.

My main uses are Web Surfing (multiple tabs in Safari), Email, Contacts & Calendar. I usually have Safari and Email open all the time, the rest of the apps I open when I need them.
I do use iPhoto once or twice a week to view and manage my photos (about 6,000 of them). I do like photography but am not a Professional.

Since I have only a few apps open at one time, and given that I do not mind using Full Screen mode with them and I use Track Pad gestures to move between them, I am thinking that the 27" is overkill for me.

It is not necessarily a money issue, and I could "max out" the 21.5" when ordered (RAM, HD and Processor).
Lately I do feel like the screen is too big given the distance I am from it and given how I use the computer.
I am thinking the 27" iMac is more designed as a work station for Power Users and Professionals.


Have I missed anything in my thinking process?
Given my usage will the 21.5" iMac do the job for me?

DavidH

Usually the large real estate and massive amount of pixels are for pro type apps. Many applications at the pro level have many windows you have to interact with - Adobe Creative Suite for example has many subwindows for their programs. Having a large screen with a lot of pixels allows users to keep many of the windows open without overlapping. That being said 1920x1080 is still a lot of pixels and 21.5" is a pretty big screen still.

If you like running windows side by side - or in quadrants - then having more pixels could also help. Tools like better snap tool and such can help you manage windows for such a large screen
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/bettersnaptool/id417375580?mt=12

2 foot is a pretty short distance for such a large screen. That may cause a lot of head swiveling - which isn't very ergonomic.

For precisely your reasons, opted for the 21.5" model iMac in June and it is ideal. Went from a Quad Core Mac Pro with a 27" BenQ screen and find viewing a lot less of a strain.

The 21.5" iMac was ideal for me also, however, I've seen the 27" model on counters and desktops and could certainly learn to live with it. Since my executive desk is large I would just move it back a bit farther from my eyes.

harryb2448 said:

For precisely your reasons, opted for the 21.5" model iMac in June and it is ideal. Went from a Quad Core Mac Pro with a 27" BenQ screen and find viewing a lot less of a strain.

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Wow Harry…I don't know why I thought that you had gotten a 27" iMac. Since you got a 21.5" iMac…are you using that 27" BenQ monitor as an external monitor with your iMac?

- Nick

No Nick it went with the Mac Pro via eBay Australia.

harryb2448 said:

No Nick it went with the Mac Pro via eBay Australia.

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Ahh…that's a popular way to do it…sold it as a package.

- Nick

Well sold as a Mac Pro and not wanting to trust a carrier after the wrecking of my G5 Dual Core in transit, offered the BenQ free for pickup only...

Well, I went to the Apple Store today to touch and feel the new iMacs, and I have pulled the trigger today on a pretty maxed out 21.5" iMac.
2.9 GHz Processor
16 GB RAM
1 TB Fusion Drive
The strategy being that I wanted to get the best performance out of the 5,400 RPM Drive, so I maxed out the RAM to reduce disk caching and added the Fusion Drive to improve Drive performance.
After using and seeing the screen in action I am sure that it will be fine for my purposes.

Thanks for all the feedback.
DavidH

DavidHH said:

Well, I went to the Apple Store today to touch and feel the new iMacs, and I have pulled the trigger today on a pretty maxed out 21.5" iMac.

Click to expand...

Congrats on the new setup!

I noticed that in your profile you mention having a 27" iMac. Since your new iMac is a 21.5" model…do you feel like you will be losing anything by not getting another 27" iMac?

- Nick

p.s. Are you keeping the 27" iMac…or selling it to cover some of the costs of the new iMac?

Trading In 27"

pigoo3 said:

Congrats on the new setup!

I noticed that in your profile you mention having a 27" iMac. Since your new iMac is a 21.5" model…do you feel like you will be losing anything by not getting another 27" iMac?

- Nick

p.s. Are you keeping the 27" iMac…or selling it to cover some of the costs of the new iMac?

Click to expand...

I am trading in the 27" iMac thru an authorized Apple Reseller.
I do not think I will miss the large screen because for the activities that I do with my computer I am not using all that screen real estate anyway. I am finding that my 27" is "too big" and that I am moving my head a lot from side to side to see it all. Unfortunately my desk puts me only 20" to 24" away from the screen, and given that I short and use multifocal glasses I find that I am getting a sore neck sometimes.
Even when I first got my 27" I felt it was too big and really liked my 24" better.
I kind of feel the 27" model was designed for professionals e.g. photographers and videographers that need a lot of screen real estate, or for people that like to watch movies on their computer.

I feel that I have checked it out as much as I can and really the only thing left is for me to use it for a few months, but I have have high confidence.

DavidH

DavidHH said:

I do not think I will miss the large screen because for the activities that I do with my computer I am not using all that screen real estate anyway. I am finding that my 27" is "too big" and that I am moving my head a lot from side to side to see it all. Unfortunately my desk puts me only 20" to 24" away from the screen, and given that I short and use multifocal glasses I find that I am getting a sore neck sometimes.

Click to expand...

Sorry for the question! I reread your 1st post in the thread where you mentioned not liking the 27"!

For what it's worth. About a week ago I purchased a used Apple 30" Cinema Display. It's really a "monster" and I'm loving it. But I do know what you mean about having to do some "head-swiveling"!

- Nick

I received my new 21.5" iMac and have finsihed transfering Data and Applications.

Wow, with the Fusion Drive does this thing Power Up fast, and with 16 GB RAM I am not caching out memory onto the drive.
So far I am very happy with the Performance but most of all I am happy with the size. I was wondering if I would miss my 27" screen but I am not.
Two computers ago I owned a 24" and I really like that size. I bought a 27" after than but have found the size "too big" for me and how I use it.

So far so good, really happy.

DavidH

Two perfect companions for your new iMac:-

An iBox uninterrupted power supply. Do not know about Canada but Apple used to sell them.

An i360º Rain swivel base.