iMac, therefore I am - iMac DV
Written: Apr 08 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: 5 color choices, low price, tons of software, great features
Cons: speaker sound problem
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| eyestar's Full Review: Apple iMac DV Indigo 15 in. (M7639LL/A) Mac Deskto... |
When I was younger, my computer experience came from school and home. At school we'd get to go down to the Mac lab and play games like Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego and Oregon Trail. My class would get to type reports and make cool pictures. It was always fun and exciting whenever our class got a day to go down to the computer labs. My parents owned an old Tandy computer at home which I would use to play quite a few text based games and type stories on. Once I got into high school, most of my classes using computers were taught on PC's. I got used to the idea that I hated Macs and never wanted to use them again until I met my future husband.
His parents raised him on Macs because his mom was a teacher and was familiar using them. His parents kept buying new Macs as they were released and soon got him hooked. Right when I met him in my senior year of high school, he was quickly becoming a master Mac geek obsessed and amazed by Apple computers. Soon he became a Mac computer whiz and convinced me to switch.
My first Mac was his old Performa 5200. This was the first computer that I ever owned myself. Whenever he upgraded to a new system I ended up with his old computer. The last Mac I owned was a Starmax 3000/200. After awhile I got fed up with always being the one with the old slow computer, so I decided to purchase a Grape iMac DV.
There are quite a few reasons I chose to buy the iMac DV:
The Look
Call me crazy but I'm one of the few people in the world who thinks a computer should look fun. I don't like beige, it's ugly and boring. Since I sit in front of a computer most of the day, I want to look at something that looks nice. Apple offers the iMac DV in your choice of 5 different colors (or flavors): Blueberry, Grape, Strawberry, Tangerine, and Lime. Since purple is my favorite color, I chose Grape.
The Design
The compact all-in-one design is very convenient. With my older Mac I didn't have much desk space left as the tower and monitor took up 90%. With the iMac the space problem is solved. Now I can place the computer and my scanner on the desk and still have room to put papers. The compact design and the handle in the top of the computer also make it very easy to move around.
Features
The iMac DV comes with a 400Mhz processor, 15-inch monitor, ATI Rage 128 VR 2D/3D graphics accelerator, 64MB RAM, 10GB hard drive, two firewire ports, two USB ports, 56K modem, 10/100 Base-T Ethernet, a DVD drive and more.
I love the 10GB hard drive. My old Mac had a 2.5GB hard drive, which I thought was huge at the time. 10GB allows for large amounts of storage, enabling me to install hundreds of my favorite games and programs.
The display is very nice and shows clear, crisp images but I do wish that the system came with a 17-inch monitor rather than a 15-inch.
The firewire ports allow you to connect high speed video cameras and scanners to your computer.
The iMac DV is also a quiet machine. The hard drive does make soft clicking sounds when the hard drive is accessed, but compared to most machines I have used it is very quiet.
The built-in speakers included are the integrated high-performance Odyssey audio system from Harman Kardon. These speakers are very nice but I noticed that the volume is preset on the system - and it's much too loud. It does not have fine control over audio levels. I have my volume set to the lowest it can possibly be set at before being shut off - and it's still too loud for normal use.
There are two headphone jacks set in the front of the iMac. This allows for two people to listen to the same music or if you are playing a DVD movie, you can use the headphones for surround sound enjoyment.
Software
The iMac DV comes bundled with a wide variety of software to use with the computer. Included with the model I purchased was: Mac OS, Internet Explorer, Netscape, Outlook, Internet Safety Kit, PageMill, Quicken, FAXstf, World Book Encyclopedia, Bugdom, Nanosaur, Kid Pix Studio Deluxe, Palm Desktop, iMovie, and A Bug's Life on DVD.
I especially like the iMovie software. My husband rented a digital video camera which we used to make our own home video. After we were done filming our video, we hooked the camera up to my iMac through the firewire port and made a home video with iMovie. Imovie was fun and very simple to use. I could easily add text, make the picture fade in and out, and add music.
World Book Encyclopedia is a huge encyclopedia collection that was very useful for helping me look up information on my college papers. PageMill is a simple program that allows you to design and create your own web page with ease. Quicken is a great program for taxes and online banking. Kid Pix Studio Deluxe is a very fun program that allows kids a place to create their own movies and pictures. Both Nanosaur and Bugdom are 3D games.
A Bug's Life on DVD is a great way for you to try out your new DVD player built right into your computer. A Bug's Life is a wonderful movie for the whole family that was made by Disney and Pixar - the same people who made Toy Story.
Price
You can purchase an iMac DV for the low price of $1249. For a stylish computer loaded with software and speed - you can't beat it.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
eyestar
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Location: USA
Reviews written: 135
Trusted by: 115 members
About Me:
"Still talking to myself and nobody's home..." -Guns N' Roses
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