Apple iMac

The new iMac is clad in metal, but is it a cast iron classic?

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The build quality, slick and tasteful aluminium finish, huge screen and jaw-dropping keyboard make this a winner

at a glance

RATING	PRICE	AWARD
	£1150

WE LOVE

Looks
Beefy processor
High end graphic chip
Price

WE HATE

Not much to be honest

WE SAY

Apple has fine-tuned its all-in-one desktop to create a metal-clad masterpiece.

We weren't too keen on the previous iMac - sure, it was fine if the sterile whiteness of a doctor's surgery is your idea of stylish - but unpacking this 24-inch screen, metallic monolith, it's clear things have changed. The aluminium shell looks incredibly smart, while inside there's a slightly beefier Core 2 Duo processor and a tad more memory (1GB instead of 512MB).

Keyboard of the Rings

The most welcome change is to the keyboard. Admittedly, it takes a little getting used to, but it's comfy, responsive and festooned with shortcut keys that make a real difference. Best of all, the media playback buttons along the top mean zero application switching to change a track in iTunes, and ultra-easy control of iPhoto slideshows.

Carry on screening

As with the previous iMac, the stand-out feature is the screen. The smallest available is a desk-dwarfing 20-incher. Combined with a 256MB ATI graphics card, it serves up slick, stutter-free video and graphics that cast a shadow over rival desktops. Even full-screen HD content looks smooth - shame the iMac doesn't boast a HD disc drive.

Get an iLife

Adding to the iMac's undoubted hardware charms is the iLife '08 suite of programmes. These are hard to beat for keeping your media - from tunes to photos to video footage - in check.

Overall, the build quality, slick and tasteful aluminium finish, huge screen and jaw-dropping keyboard make this a winner. Paired with OS X and iLife '08, this is simply the finest all-in-one your money can muster. We're iMac converts, and we couldn't be happier.