Apple today released four new iMacs with the usual slew of processor/graphics upgrades, including new Intel Sandy Bridge quad-core processors, AMD Radeon HD graphics processors, FaceTime HD camera, and a new port around back (two of them, in fact) that should be a boon for video editors: Thunderbolt. Marking the first time Thunderbolt ports are available on a desktop computer, the new 10Gbps standard is up to 12 times faster than Firewire 800, making for faster video transfers from compatible devices. The new iMacs start at $1199 and claim to be up to 70% faster than the previous generation.

Here are the four models:


21.5-inch iMac - 21.5-inch (viewable) LED-backlit glossy widescreen display with support for millions of colors. Resolution: 1920 by 1080 pixels

  • $1,119:
  • 2.5Ghz quad-core Intel Core i5 with 6MB on-chip shared L3 cache
  • 4GB 1333MHz DDR3 RAM (configurable to 16GB)
  • 500GB hard drive
  • AMD Radeon HD 6750M graphics processor with 512MB of GDDR5 memory
  • $1,499:
  • 2.7GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with 6MB on-chip shared L3 cache (configurable to 2.8GHz quad-core Intel Core i7)
  • 4GB 1333MHz DDR3 memory (configurable to 16GB)
  • 1TB 7200rpm hard drive (configurable to 2TB hard drive or 256GB solid-state second drive)
  • AMD Radeon HD 6770M graphics processor with 512MB of GDDR5 memory

27-inch iMac - 27-inch (viewable) LED-backlit glossy widescreen TFT display with support for millions of colors. Resolution: 2560 by 1440 pixels

  • $1,699:
  • 2.7GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with 6MB on-chip shared L3 cache
  • 4GB 1333MHz DDR3 memory (configurable to 16GB)
  • 1TB 7200rpm hard drive (configurable to 2TB hard drive or 256 solid-state second drive)
  • AMD Radeon HD 6770M graphics processor with 512MB of GDDR5 memory
  • $1,999:
  • 3.1Ghz quad-core Intel Core i5 with 6MB on-chip shared L3 cache (configurable to 3.4Ghz quad-core Intel Core i7)
  • 4GB 1333MHz DDR3 RAM (configurable to 16GB)
  • 1TB hard drive (configurable to 2TB hard drive or 256GB solid-state second drive)
  • AMD Radeon HD 6970M graphics processor with 1GB of GDDR5 memory (configurable to AMD Radeon HD 6970M with 2GB DDR5)

[via AppleInsider]