For a person on a semi-limited budget, I wanted a computer that would give me the most bang for the buck. This was my first computer purchase. I knew (or at least I THOUGHT I knew) that I couldnt get a decent Windows PC for about a grand. All I heard was how powerful and easy Mac's are to use. So I decided on the iMac. I've had it a couple weeks, and after a few incidents that made me want to kick the thing out the window, I am now writing this review with a cool and logical head. i want to do an illusion and reality comparison of this computer...this is based on the research I did on the Mac before buying it, and the reality of the darn thing that Im living with.  
 
Illusion: the Mac is a powerful computer that is easy to setup and use.  
 
Fact: its not really all that powerful or easy to setup. the sales guy told me I'd be ready to go right out of the box. Yeah right. I know, Im naive...like I said i never bought a computer before. For something so powerful, it certainly does NOT like to do more than one application at once. IFor example, if you are using iTunes to import songs onto the hard drive and want to go on to the internet, forget it. its slow as molasses. As a matter of fact, the only application that works at regular speed with another application running is the stupid chess game. Its not even specifically with iTunes...try running any two applications and everything slows down to snail's pace.  
 
Illusion: the imac comes with a 56K modem for decent internet connection speed.  
 
Reality: it will never connect at higher than 32K. Calls to Earthlink and Apple Care Support say there's nothing really that can be done about it, unless i can eliminate all the supposed line noise in the phone system. I use to own a webtv unit, and to be honest, webtv was faster than the imac is for accessing internet pages from the same phone line. i dont know, I pick up the phone and I dont hear any noise whatsoever.  
 
Illusion: Mac OS X is the best OS thing to come along since sliced bread.  
 
Fact: This stupid OS X in incredibly slow and frustrating to use. I believe that the OS X is mostly responsible for the turtle like speed of the system, it does run better in 9.1. It also needs to switch freqently between X and 9.1 to run some applications. this also takes up more time and slows everything down. And Im sorry, I hate the friggin dock. It's too big and gets in the way of everything Im trying to do. I know you can reduce it in size, but then when I get it to the point where its not blocking scroll bars or Appleworks controls, its too small to read. It has a hiding function, and the dock pops up when the mouse is on the bottom of the screen. That seems to be the best option, though sometimes it doesnt respond properly.  
 
and for some reason, every time I restart ot shut down the computer, all of my icons are re-aranged on the desktop in weird locations. Whats up with that????  
 
illusion: iTunes is a revolutionary music program.  
 
fact: it would be great if you could just copy a CD straight up. But no...you have to import the whole CD to your hard drive, make a seperate playlist for it, burn it, than delete everything-one song at a time so you dont overcrowd the HD. What a drag. While im on the subject, the volume control for this thing sucks. its like there's 5 settings: Off, loud, louder, loudest, and deafening. Not good for late night listening in the house when all are asleep. Also, the CD eject button only seems to work when it feels like it. It malfunctions at least 1 out of every 3 attempts. and why? Well, because the manual says you have to quit all other applications first. HUH?!?!?!? Im no computer genious, but how much friggin memory is needed to eject a CD? Come on!!!!! Another example of the multi-tasking suckiness of this thing.  
 
Also on my list of complaints are not enough USB ports (2), and Apple Care Support. Why the support staff? Well, when you call them they give you the impression that you are an idiot if you dont know this stuff already. I had once person laugh at me. Not very professional, no matter how bad I screwed up. I didnt pay 150 bucks for a warranty to be made fun of. A-holes.  
 
 
I will probably update this review when the OS 10.1 update comes out. Supposedly it will speed up the system quite a bit...we'll see. As it stands, I would not recommend the iMac to anyone, especially if you need a computer that can do more than one thing at a time effectively. This thing just sucks at multi-tasking, theres no better way to put. it. For the money, I imagine you could get something WAY better than this overpriced-for-what-it-does machine. If I could do it again, I would have bought the iMac model for 999, and upgraded the memory later. This thing is not as fast as i was led to believe. I also was disappoined in the lack of a DVD-rom drive.  
 
 
I feel kind of ripped off and misguided in making this purchase. I guess theres a reason Windows PC's are so popular, they just seem to work better. Quite frankly, I think this iMac is a piece of junk. I'd take it back were it not for those stupid open-box fees. I'll live with it for the next 3 years, just not happily. please, do shop around before you consider buying this thing.  
