Apple iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2011) vs Apple iMac (21.5-inch, Mid 2011)

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iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2011) compared with iMac (21.5-inch, Mid 2011)

	AppleiMac (21.5-inch, Late 2011)	AppleiMac (21.5-inch, Mid 2011)
Overview
Released
Released	August 2011	May 2011
Performance
Processor
Processor	Intel Core i3 3.1 GHz (iMac Late 2011)	Intel Core i5-2400S, Intel Core i5-2500S or Intel Core i7-2600S
CPU cores
CPU cores	2	4
Graphics
Graphics	AMD Radeon HD 6750M (256 MB GDDR5)	AMD Radeon HD 6750M (512 MB GDDR5) or AMD Radeon HD 6770M (512 MB GDDR5)
Memory
Memory	2 GB, 4 GB or 8 GB	4 GB, 8 GB or 16 GB (better)
Storage
Storage	250 GB	500 GB to 2 TB (better)
CPU
CPU	3.1 GHz dual-core Intel Core i3 with 3 MB shared L3 cache. The English specification and maker education price list confirm dual-core i3; conflicting translated regional processor descriptions are not used. Exact Intel SKU unestablished.	2.5 GHz quad-core Core i5-2400S or 2.7 GHz quad-core Core i5-2500S; the higher model offers a 2.8 GHz quad-core Core i7-2600S upgrade. Exact model identities cross-checked with EveryMac; the i5 has 6 MB shared L3 cache. Intel confirms the i7 has eight threads and up to 3.8 GHz Turbo Boost.
GPU
GPU	AMD Radeon HD 6750M with 256 MB GDDR5.	2.5 GHz model has AMD Radeon HD 6750M with 512 MB GDDR5; 2.7 GHz and optional i7 models have Radeon HD 6770M with 512 MB GDDR5
Memory type
Memory type	1333 MHz DDR3; 2 GB standard in one module, configurable to 4 GB (two 2 GB) or 8 GB (two 4 GB).	Four SO-DIMM slots, 1333 MHz DDR3; 4 GB standard as two 2 GB modules. Base model offers an 8 GB factory upgrade; higher model offers 8 or 16 GB. Memory is user accessible.
Storage type
Storage type	250 GB 7200 rpm Serial ATA hard drive; slot-loading 8x SuperDrive with 4x double-layer burning.	Base model has a 500 GB 7200 rpm hard drive. Higher model has a 1 TB 7200 rpm drive, configurable to 2 TB and a 256 GB solid-state second drive. Mixed hard-drive-plus-SSD options are described here rather than labelled Fusion Drive or presented as a single SSD; no standalone 256 GB row is inferred from the support sheet's second-drive wording. Slot-loading 8x SuperDrive with 4x double-layer DVD burning.
Display
Screen size
Screen size	21.5″	21.5″
Resolution
Resolution	1920 × 1080	1920 × 1080
Panel
Panel	–	IPS LCD
Display type
Display type	LED-backlit glossy TFT active-matrix LCD with millions of colours. Panel technology, brightness and refresh rate are not published.	Glossy LED-backlit IPS widescreen display, millions of colours; optional unpublished refresh rate and brightness omitted
Connections
Ports
Ports	4 × USB-A, SD card slot, Ethernet, headphone jack	Thunderbolt, 4 × USB-A, Ethernet, SD card slot, headphone jack
Ethernet
Ethernet	1 Gb/s	1 Gb/s
External displays
External displays	Up to 1	Up to 1
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi	802.11n	802.11n
Bluetooth
Bluetooth	–	2.1 + EDR
Camera
Camera	FaceTime HD camera	FaceTime HD camera
Back ports
Back ports	Four USB 2.0 ports on the computer, plus two on the wired keyboard; Mini DisplayPort, FireWire 800 at 7 W, SDXC card slot, Gigabit Ethernet, headphone/optical output and audio line-in/optical input. This education model has no published Thunderbolt or Bluetooth specification.	One Thunderbolt port also provides Mini DisplayPort video output; four USB 2.0 ports, FireWire 800 at 7 W, Gigabit Ethernet, SDXC slot, headphone/optical digital output and line-in/optical digital input. FireWire and audio input are described here because the main port list has no fields for them; IR receiver built in.
External displays
External displays	Built-in display and one external display up to 2560 × 1600 simultaneously; extended desktop or mirroring.	Full built-in resolution and one external display up to 2560 × 1600 simultaneously; extended desktop and mirroring, optional DVI/VGA/dual-link DVI adapters
Speakers
Speakers	Stereo speakers with two internal 20 W amplifiers; microphone and support for Apple iPhone headset microphone.	Stereo speakers with two internal 17 W amplifiers, built-in microphone and support for iPhone headset microphones
Keyboard and mouse
Keyboard and mouse	Wired Apple Keyboard with Numeric Keypad and Apple Mouse with scroll ball.	Apple Wireless Keyboard and Magic Mouse, with Magic Trackpad substitution available from the online store
Design and power
Type
Type	All-in-one	All-in-one
Weight
Weight	8.8 kg (better)	9.3 kg
Width × depth × height
Width × depth × height	528 × 188.5 × 451 mm	528 × 188.5 × 451 mm
Operating system
Operating system	macOS	macOS
Size and weight detail
Size and weight detail	Maker reference weight; actual weight varies with configuration and manufacturing process.	–
Power supply
Power supply	Maximum continuous power 205 W; 100–240 V AC, 50–60 Hz.	Maximum continuous power 205 W; 100–240 V AC, 50–60 Hz single phase
Materials
Materials	–	Aluminium and glass enclosure, arsenic-free display glass and mercury-free LED backlight; BFR-free and PVC-free components, with PVC-free AC cord availability limited to named regions
In the box
In the box	Education institution model with Mac OS X Lion and iLife. August 2011 month precision follows contemporary MacRumors ordering coverage and 9to5Mac shipment scheduling, corroborated by the maker price list dated 8 August; that price date is not treated as a first delivery day.	iMac, Apple Wireless Keyboard, Magic Mouse, power cord, install/restore DVDs and documentation. Launch press specifies Mac OS X Snow Leopard and iLife '11; the later support sheet lists OS X Lion, reflecting the software update rather than launch software.