iMac for prepress

[meddington]

The iMacs do not have the abilty to change RGB levels nor contrast using a 3rd party calibrators. i.e eye-one you can only change brightness which isn't much use if you are trying to run to ISO.]

No sure this is much different from stand alone Apple Cinema Displays in this regard. I don't have an iMac, but have heard tell that they are on par with ACDs as far as color accuracy, for what that's worth. As far as the ability to change RGB levels, on a typical LCD, the only element for true adjustment is the backlight (via brightness) as they are digital and have no electron guns as in a CRT monitor. Any RGB control is essentially "augmenting" the RGB values sent to the monitor.

[gtgraphics]

I am in charge of a small prepress dept. and just traded in our PowerMac G5 for a new iMac 27" this past December. I am running Snow Leopard and it has 8GB of RAM. I can't express enough how this computer is the best computer I have ever used. It is absolutely incredible. I have used both Macs and PCs over the past 15+ years. I don't even think about the performance, it's just fast. Runs all Adobe software perfectly, even Photoshop. I also have Parallels running Windows XP, so I am able to open Word and Publisher files to convert them to PDFs. The screen is actually very accurate to our Canon color copiers and our Ryobi press, no complaints. Upgrading iMac..... we never upgraded the PowerMacs, not sure what the fuss is about. 27" display, 8GB RAM and 2TB of storage should be plenty and the best part is all cost just under $2,500, a lot cheaper than a Mac Pro! Probably the only complaint is that the wireless mouse drains about two AA batteries a month!

[Shawn]

Hi all, Just stumbled upon this forum and thought I would put my 2 pence in. I would not get an iMac if you are looking to get good colour accuracy from the monitor.

The iMacs do not have the abilty to change RGB levels nor contrast using a 3rd party calibrators. i.e eye-one you can only change brightness which isn't much use if you are trying to run to ISO. The main problem is the monitors are far to vibrant and glossy and even using 3rd party software such as shades just doesn't cut it. You can go through the Macs own calibrator application but this is all by eye and obviously isn't accurate.

The latest iMacs use the same type of S-IPS screen that the current ACDs use. Earlier versions used cheaper TN panels that didn't give the greatest color accuracy.

These screens also work fine with any modern hardware and software calibration package. I've calibrated a bunch with ColorEyes Display, and while they don't stack up to an Eizo they can get pretty close if the glossy screen doesn't bother you. Granted that can be a big issue, though. When calibrating these, does help a lot to turn down the room lighting, since there's an extra layer of glass between the sensor and the panel, which can introduce error.

As meddington mentioned the controls on this or any other DDC monitor are handled digitally, so you don't need to adjust any manual settings.

Shawn

[frailer]

Hi all, Just stumbled upon this forum and thought I would put my 2 pence in. I would not get an iMac if you are looking to get good colour accuracy from the monitor.

The iMacs do not have the abilty to change RGB levels nor contrast using a 3rd party calibrators. i.e eye-one you can only change brightness which isn't much use if you are trying to run to ISO. The main problem is the monitors are far to vibrant and glossy and even using 3rd party software such as shades just doesn't cut it. You can go through the Macs own calibrator application but this is all by eye and obviously isn't accurate.

iMac screens are great for watching movies or viewing your holiday snaps but not colour accuracy for print



If I was in your position I would invest the the Mac Mini and get external monitors.

Erb Digital

jrpoole, bang on! I just put my 2c worth (LOL...$2), in here:

what is the best color accurate monitor out there

Nothing gets me wound up more than people saying what's in an ACD, or an iMac, display-wise. They are, I take it, depending on tear-down info. they've gleaned from the 'net somewhere. Certainly haven't got that info from Apple! And if it were true, Apple could change it on the production line tomorrow...and not have to tell anyone....because they didn't tell any one in the 1st place. Meh.

Get the latest Mini...and a DELL U2410. Get minimum RAM, pec it up to 8GB from OWC, make sure the HDD is 500GB. Spec the CPU up to the faster one when ordering. Period. Or full-stop, as we say here.

[Amer]

We replaced 2 G4s with Mac minis a couple months ago.
No problems running full CS4 suite, just make sure you get at least 4GB RAM.

[wonderings]

We replaced 2 G4s with Mac minis a couple months ago.
No problems running full CS4 suite, just make sure you get at least 4GB RAM.

I wish they would make a Mac Mini Pro. an i5 chip at least and dedicated video would be a huge hit in my opinion. There is a real gap that needs to be filled between the Mac Pro and the Mini. I currently just us a MacBook pro and plug into an external screen. I dont need a portable laptop as I have an iPad for all that. The price point is better for me with a MacBook pro with the specs I want, the Mac Pro is much to expensive leaving no in between options other then an iMac. I love the iMac, but I have a very nice screen already and dont want that huge thing on my desk. Use a 27 inch i5 iMac at home, just wish the same specs could be had without the screen.

[pmkprog]

I love working on the iMac. I have been using the white 20" model for at least the last five years (2 different companies). I haven't had any issues as far as the software. The only issue I have had is the DVD drive crapped out in the model I am on now. It happens. Other than that, great machine and I really beat it up too.