Apple iMac (21.5-inch, 2017) vs Apple iMac (27-inch, Late 2009)

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iMac (21.5-inch, 2017) compared with iMac (27-inch, Late 2009)

	AppleiMac (21.5-inch, 2017)	AppleiMac (27-inch, Late 2009)
Overview
Released
Released	June 2017	October 2009
Performance
Processor
Processor	Intel Core i5-7360U	Intel Core 2 Duo E7600, Intel Core 2 Duo E8600, Intel Core i5-750 or Intel Core i7-860
CPU cores
CPU cores	2	2 or 4
CPU threads
CPU threads	4	–
Graphics
Graphics	Intel Iris Plus Graphics 640	ATI Radeon HD 4670 (256 MB GDDR3) or ATI Radeon HD 4850 (512 MB GDDR3)
Memory
Memory	8 GB or 16 GB	4 GB, 8 GB or 16 GB
Storage
Storage	256 GB to 1 TB	1 TB to 2 TB (better)
CPU
CPU	2.3 GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost up to 3.6 GHz; Geekbench identifies the exact processor as Core i5-7360U	3.06 GHz Core 2 Duo E7600 with 3 MB L2 or optional 3.33 GHz E8600 with 6 MB L2. Quad-core Core i5-750 runs at 2.66 GHz with up to 3.2 GHz Turbo Boost; optional Core i7-860 runs at 2.8 GHz with up to 3.46 GHz Turbo Boost and eight threads through Hyper-Threading. Both quad-core chips have 8 MB L3. Exact identities cross-checked with EveryMac; Core 2 Duo models shipped on 20 October 2009, while maker stated quad-core models would ship in November 2009.
GPU
GPU	Intel Iris Plus Graphics 640; no discrete graphics option	Core 2 Duo models have ATI Radeon HD 4670 with 256 MB GDDR3 or optional HD 4850 with 512 MB GDDR3; quad-core models have HD 4850 with 512 MB GDDR3
Memory type
Memory type	8 GB of 2133 MHz DDR4, configurable to 16 GB	4 GB standard as two 2 GB modules, with four user-accessible SO-DIMM slots supporting up to 16 GB of 1066 MHz DDR3. Macworld reports 8 and 16 GB factory upgrades for the 27-inch Core 2 Duo model; support sheet gives the same 16 GB maximum across the model.
Storage type
Storage type	1 TB 5400-rpm hard drive, configurable to 1 TB Fusion Drive or 256 GB SSD	1 TB 7200 rpm Serial ATA hard drive, configurable to 2 TB; slot-loading 8x SuperDrive with 4x double-layer DVD burning
Display
Screen size
Screen size	21.5″	27″
Resolution
Resolution	1920 × 1080	2560 × 1440 (better)
Panel
Panel	–	IPS LCD
Brightness
Brightness	–	375 nits
Display type
Display type	21.5-inch LED-backlit display; 1920 × 1080 with support for millions of colours. Apple does not identify the panel technology, native refresh rate or brightness in its specification sheet; Retina model display figures do not apply.	Glossy LED-backlit IPS widescreen LCD, millions of colours, 178° horizontal/vertical viewing angle and maker typical brightness 375 cd/m²; refresh rate unpublished and omitted. Optional VESA mounting adapter.
Connections
Ports
Ports	2 × Thunderbolt 3, 4 × USB-A, SD card slot, Ethernet, headphone jack	DisplayPort, 4 × USB-A, Ethernet, SD card slot, headphone jack
Ethernet
Ethernet	1 Gb/s	1 Gb/s
External displays
External displays	Up to 2 (better)	Up to 1
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi	802.11ac	802.11n
Bluetooth
Bluetooth	4.2	2.1 + EDR
Camera
Camera	FaceTime HD	iSight camera
Back ports
Back ports	Four USB-A ports, two Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) ports, SDXC card slot, Gigabit Ethernet, 3.5 mm headphone jack and Kensington lock slot. Thunderbolt 3 supports DisplayPort, up to 40 Gb/s Thunderbolt and up to 10 Gb/s USB 3.1 Gen 2; Thunderbolt 2, HDMI, DVI and VGA require adapters.	Mini DisplayPort video input/output, four USB 2.0 ports, FireWire 800 at 7 W, Gigabit Ethernet, SD card slot, headphone/optical digital output and line-in/optical digital input. FireWire and audio input described here; the SD slot is not labelled SDXC.
External displays
External displays	Built-in display at native resolution alongside one 5120 × 2880 display at 60 Hz with one billion colours, two 3840 × 2160 displays at 60 Hz with one billion colours, or two 4096 × 2304 displays at 60 Hz with millions of colours	Full built-in resolution and one external display up to 2560 × 1600 simultaneously. Mini DisplayPort input supports external DisplayPort sources; HDMI input is not implied. Extended desktop and mirroring, optional DVI/VGA/dual-link DVI output adapters.
Speakers
Speakers	Stereo speakers; supports Apple iPhone headset with microphone	Built-in stereo speakers with two internal 17 W amplifiers, microphone and support for Apple Stereo Headset microphones
Microphones
Microphones	Built-in microphone	–
Keyboard and mouse
Keyboard and mouse	Magic Keyboard, Magic Mouse, Lightning to USB cable and polishing cloth; configurable with Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keypad or Magic Trackpad	Apple Wireless Keyboard and Magic Mouse
Design and power
Type
Type	All-in-one	All-in-one
Weight
Weight	5.44 kg (better)	13.8 kg
Width × depth × height
Width × depth × height	528 × 175 × 450 mm	650 × 207 × 517 mm
Operating system
Operating system	macOS	macOS
Size and weight detail
Size and weight detail	Dimensions include the stand; weight varies by configuration and manufacturing process. A built-in VESA mount version was available.	–
Power supply
Power supply	100–240 V AC, 50–60 Hz, single phase	Maximum continuous power 365 W; 100–240 V AC, 50–60 Hz single phase
Noise
Noise	Apple reports operator-position sound pressure of 11 dB at idle and during wireless web, and 12 dB during hard-drive seek, tested on the Core i5 with 8 GB memory and 1 TB hard drive	–
Materials
Materials	Aluminium enclosure; arsenic-free display glass; mercury-, BFR- and beryllium-free with regional exceptions for PVC-free power leads	Aluminium and glass enclosure, arsenic-free display glass and mercury-free LED backlight; BFR-free and PVC-free components, with PVC-free external cables in North America only
In the box
In the box	iMac, Magic Keyboard, Magic Mouse, Lightning to USB cable, polishing cloth and power lead. Apple's current support page describes the later macOS Big Sur release.	iMac, Apple Wireless Keyboard, Magic Mouse, cleaning cloth, power cord, install/restore DVDs and documentation; Mac OS X Snow Leopard and iLife '09