iMac

[andrewdayphoto]

I am looking at the line of iMacs for all the post processing, editing and management for my photography business. I have a PowerBook G4 that is still kicking like the day I first got it and is working great for mobility. Is the memory easy to upgrade in the iMacs? I am thinking of buying it with the least amount of memory and then upgrading it myself. If it is the same as installing into a PowerBook or MacBook, I can do it. Any comments, suggestions as to the best bang for my buck or other thoughts?

http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/shop_mac/family/imac?mco=MTE2NjM

Feel free to browse my website and blog to get a feel for my workflow and know that I do fine art and alternative processes as well as work with clients that have a nationwide base in the furniture and home improvement industries.

[Tony-S]

Upgrading RAM is easy. Make sure you go with the 24" model since it has an H-IPS panel (glossy only). The 20" has a TN panel. Also be sure to pick up an external drive for backup with Time Machine or some other software app. Its capacity should be larger than your internal drive. Finally, there's really no need to get the faster cpu; that money would be better spent on a larger internal hard drive.

There's also a rumor that the iMacs will be updated in a few weeks.

[andrewdayphoto]

Nice, I can wait it out a few weeks for some newer kicks.

I'm reading up on the panels you mentioned. What is the difference between the H-IPS and the TN and how the gloss will effect my image editing. I believe I'd rather have a less glossy screen for color correction and reproduction.

My clients in the furniture industry are very concerned towards the replication and colors portrayed in their products.

[Tony-S]

The TN panels are 6-bit (hundreds of thousands of colors) and have narrower viewing angles. The H-IPS panels are 8-bit (true millions of colors) and have wider viewing angles. If you can control your lighting environment, the glossies are fine; otherwise, mattes are better. If you need matte, then you could buy the 20" and connect a 24" matte display to it as a second monitor. Color correction is not an issue, provided you have a hardware calibrator and the software to go with it. I use a Spyder2 for my setup.

[Dean Humphrey]

Upgrading RAM is easy. Make sure you go with the 24" model since it has an H-IPS panel (glossy only). The 20" has a TN panel. Also be sure to pick up an external drive for backup with Time Machine or some other software app. Its capacity should be larger than your internal drive. Finally, there's really no need to get the faster cpu; that money would be better spent on a larger internal hard drive.

There's also a rumor that the iMacs will be updated in a few weeks.

Tony, Don't mean to but in on your exchange, I was wondering if you can explain the H-IPS panel (glossy only) and TN panel. I'm trying to learn all I can about MACs, I plan on buying one about March time if not before.

[Tony-S]

All iMacs now ship with a piece of glass covering them. This is referred to as a "glossy" display. They increase color saturation and contrast, which is great for watching movies and other things, but something photographers don't want as it can negatively impact the final print because they can fool the human eye (prints come out flat and without much contrast). Thus, it's essential that if you get one (Mac or Windows) that you have a display calibrator for mitigating these phenomena.

There are others on the forums more qualified to address your question on panels, but here are a few of the highlights:

TN panels are pretty cheap to manufacture, but their viewing angles are usually 160 to 170 degrees. The are characterized by visible blocking across gradients (e.g., a clear blue sky) and often use dithering in an attempt to get around their 6-bit limitation (2^6 green, 2^6 red and 2^6 blue = 2^18 = 262,144 colors).

H-IPS, S-IPS, and PVA displays are 8-bit panels (2^24 = 16,777,216 colors) usually have viewing angles of 178 degrees or more and do not have the gradient issue that 6-bit panels use. They are more expensive to manufacture, but are the best to use for critical image work.

[Dean Humphrey]

All iMacs now ship with a piece of glass covering them. This is referred to as a "glossy" display. They increase color saturation and contrast, which is great for watching movies and other things, but something photographers don't want as it can negatively impact the final print because they can fool the human eye (prints come out flat and without much contrast). Thus, it's essential that if you get one (Mac or Windows) that you have a display calibrator for mitigating these phenomena.

There are others on the forums more qualified to address your question on panels, but here are a few of the highlights:

TN panels are pretty cheap to manufacture, but their viewing angles are usually 160 to 170 degrees. The are characterized by visible blocking across gradients (e.g., a clear blue sky) and often use dithering in an attempt to get around their 6-bit limitation (2^6 green, 2^6 red and 2^6 blue = 2^18 = 262,144 colors).

H-IPS, S-IPS, and PVA displays are 8-bit panels (2^24 = 16,777,216 colors) usually have viewing angles of 178 degrees or more and do not have the gradient issue that 6-bit panels use. They are more expensive to manufacture, but are the best to use for critical image work.

My Wife and I both noticed how beautiful the color was, when we were in the Apple Store. The sample photos were highly saturated, but very gorgeous so I can see how that would impact printing. Thanks for the info.

[grego]

H-IPS, S-IPS, and PVA displays are 8-bit panels (2^24 = 16,777,216 colors) usually have viewing angles of 178 degrees or more and do not have the gradient issue that 6-bit panels use. They are more expensive to manufacture, but are the best to use for critical image work.

Most PVA panels out there are S-PVA now.

If anyone is interested, a good simple starting point:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TFT_LCD

[OdiN1701]

I would stay away from an iMac. If you ever want to upgrade to something better down the road - you have to get a whole new monitor too, unless you just get another iMac. All-in-one systems in general I recommend people stay away from.

It is unfortunate that Apple has no midrange desktop

[stevo8]

It really is unfortunate. Thank goodness they have the best resale in the industry. If a iMac fits the bill go for it. It's a shame that no one offers a quality all in one pc.

[Joony]

I went with the older 'white' iMac 20", which had the S-IPS panel vs the new ALU ones with the TN panel

Got it refurb for $750 @ http://www.mac-resource.com/store.php?cat=intelimacs

Not a bad deal for S-IPS! The 24" isn't too bad either.

[Tony-S]

I went with the older 'white' iMac 20", which had the S-IPS panel

My understanding that the last 20" iMac with an S-IPS panel was the G5-based iMac prior to the introduction of the 24" model. With the Intel cpus, I thought the 20" panels were TN.

[sam casey]

Color correction is not an issue, provided you have a hardware calibrator and the software to go with it. I use a Spyder2 for my setup.

Tony,

I've seen complaints in various forums (POTN included) that the glossy screens can't be calibrated. You indicate you use Spyder2. I can't tell from your exchange if you've used a calibrator on the iMac screens. If so, how "hard" was it to calibrate?

Sam

[Tony-S]

My iMac is the previous generation with the white chassis. It has a 24" matte display, thus calibration is easy. Some of the calibrators have problems with glossy displays, but the Spyders are immune to this provided you do your display calibration in the dark.

[Moppie]

My iMac is the previous generation with the white chassis. It has a 24" matte display, thus calibration is easy. Some of the calibrators have problems with glossy displays, but the Spyders are immune to this provided you do your display calibration in the dark.


If you have to do it in the dark, how do they handle setting screen brightness and getting the correct colour allowing for ambient light on the screen?

Or are LCD's so different in nature to a CRT that isn't an issue?

[Tony-S]

I don't know - I have a matte display. I'm only relaying what I've heard from others who have glossy.

[sam casey]

That should be easy, since I'm usually in the dark on most things I do...