The iMac is potentially one of the most well - lie with all - in - one desktops and probably establish the whole concept of suffer a full background tower contain in a petite little thin gadget . Of course , the number with going with an iMac is that you have to be in the Apple ecosystem , or you ’ll have to pay off a pretty centime to get one of the newer iMacs . fortuitously , the all - in - one market has boomed in the last few years , and there are a pot of great alternatives out of doors of Apple that you may pick from . To that end , we ’ve gone out and scour all the major manufacturers out there and found our favorite all - in - one pick for you below to hold open you a bit of exertion , although if you do n’t find what you ’re bet for below , you may require to check out some of these other excellentdesktop computer dealsas well .
The Best iMac Alternatives in 2024
Lenovo Yoga AIO 9i
Best overall iMac alternative
If you ’re looking for the best all - in - one you could grab that has a good balance of glasses and price , thenLenovo ’s Yoga AIO 9iis the way to go , and Digital Trend ’s Jacob Roach even name it the iMac killer , so it ’s one of the near alternatives you ’ll find out there . depend at it , it ’s hard not to appreciate the thought put into it , with its sleek and minimalist design , and much like the iMac , will add a set of aesthetic effective looks to any elbow room you put it in . It also has a massive 32 - inch screen that runs a 4k declaration , and it ’s absolutely gorgeous to use , although it is n’t pinch - enabled , deplorably , which would have made it complete .
Even so , it does have some unbelievable specs under the hood , starting with the Intel Core i9 - 13900H , one of the best processor in the market right now . It will well handle most undertaking you hold at it , whether it ’s productivity , editing , graphical aim , and even some video redaction work , although the lack of a GPU does n’t make it perfect for some creative chore that rely heavily on GPU RAM . While the merged Intel Iris Xe Graphics is n’t too bad , and you may get out with some stuff and nonsense , even potentially some indie gaming , it ’s a disgrace that there ’s no GPU for the Mary Leontyne Price you ’re paying for it .
Besides that , the only other cock-a-hoop downside is the 1 TB SSD , which might not be enough for some folks who are doing creative job , so you ’ll likely have to append it with one of these external severe drive deals . as luck would have it , you do get a pretty solid 16 GB of DDR5 RAM , so you ’ll be able to open apps and tabs without an issue , and the inclusion of Wi - Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.1 is very forward - veneer . Also , while Lenovo throw in a keyboard and mouse , they are rather generic , so you may need to grab something a bit high - end for yourself .
Dell Inspiron 27 All-in-One
Best 27-inch iMac alternative
If you do n’t really need a monumental 32 - inch filmdom , then you might require to go for this smaller Dell Inspiron 27 All - in - One , specially since its pocket-size size does n’t mean that you ’re missing out on a set of hearty specs . For example , the Intel Core i7 - 1355U is a solid mid - to - high - conclusion CPU that ’s great for productiveness work and a few other things , such as music edit and streaming content . As such , it lines up with the distinctive iMac carrying out you might look , at least for intel - base versions and some of the earlier M - Chips like the M1 .
More impressively , it come with 32 GB of RAM , which is more than you might regularly see on an all - in - one and makes it a gross choice if you incline to do a lot of programming or use computer-aided design regularly since they both rely on RAM quite heavy . As for the CRT screen , while it ’s a modest 27 - inch one that campaign an FHD firmness of purpose , it is touch sensation - enabled , so you do n’t have to rely on a mouse and keyboard which is great for those who are more used to a lozenge or telephone experience when navigate . You ’ll also be happy to know that you get an NVIDIA GeForce MX550 GPU under the hood , which is n’t that powerful , but it ’s a nice addition to have and will certainly help with things like graphics production and television editing .
That said , the Dell Inspiron 27 is a small bit pricey for what you get , specially since the blind is smaller and go a lower resolution than something like the Lenovo Yoga AIO 9i , which is n’t much more expensive . Still , it ’s a good option if you need something with a smaller screen door , and if you could find it on sales agreement , it ’s a really good option to snaffle .
IdeaCentre AIO I
Best small business iMac alternative
If you ’re dealing with sizing constraint or need something less expensive , you ’ll be felicitous to recognize that Lenovo has a more budget - friendly alternative that ’s just as good : the IdeaCentre AIO I. It ’s also a great option if you draw a humble clientele and need something canonical , although it is a bit frustrative that you only get it with Windows 11 Home rather than Windows 11 Pro . Even so , that ’s not necessarily a dealbreaker , and you could always grab an upgrade down the line ; after all , most office productivity apps work just delicately on the Home version .
The screen is a substantial 23.8 inches and run an FHD resolution . although more surprisingly , it ’s also touch - enabled , which we would n’t expect on something at this price full stop . That say , it only peaks at 250nits of light , so you might struggle to see it in very bright agency spaces or if there ’s direct sun . Even so , the solid Intel Core i5 - 13420H more than take up for any issue by giving you pretty solid overall carrying into action , and while it might sputter with more complex project , it will handle productivity work without any issues at all .
Lenovo also care to hold in 16 GB of DDR5 , so if you require to open a massive database , Excel sheet , or the similar , it wo n’t immediately crash , which is gracious for a more budget - friendly option . You also get a wireless shiner and keyboard , which are n’t excellent , but they ’re good enough for business use , and the one - twelvemonth warranty is another cherry on top . Also , the base is a wireless charger , which is a nice trivial addition for those who need to have their phones charge all the time and do n’t want to dish out with extra cables .
Microsoft Surface Studio 2+
Best touchscreen iMac alternative
If you ’re the type of person who bank on a touch - based computing experience , such as a graphical artist who use a capacitive penitentiary , then you might want to view theMicrosoft Surface Studio 2 + , a unique take on all - in - ones and a great iMac choice . What really sets it apart is its massive 28 - column inch cover with PixelSense , an innovative touch modality - sensitive panel that ’s one of Microsoft ’s greatest , and the flexible joint that allow you to dislodge the sieve right in front of you , so you’re able to use it as a big drawing airfoil . It runs an impressive 4500 x 3000 and has a wide insurance coverage of the people of color gamut , so it ’s vivid and vivid and perfect for high-pitched - end graphical employment .
Under the hood , it runs an RTX 3060 laptop GPU , which is great for graphical rending and manipulation apps , with the 6 GB of RAM being a fairly right amount for a mid - to - gamey - end PC . It ’s also a dandy background for video rendering since it comes with a similar mid - to - high-pitched - last Intel Core i7 - 11370H processor that can handle video and in writing editing , productiveness , streaming , and pretty much whatever you cast at it short of complex simulations . as luck would have it , you also get 32 GB of RAM , which will give you a bland overall experience and supply more mental ability for programming or CAD app .
All that said , it ’s a very pricy spell of technical school for what you ’re getting , especially given the older multiplication central processor , which does n’t really match up with the MSRP cost . As such , the Studio 2 + is a pretty niche product that ’s mostly travel to interest artists and creative types who want an iMac alternative that specifically provide to a touch - base experience . That ’s not necessarily a bad thing , but if you do n’t plan to utilise the hinged touchscreen , you ’re unspoiled off extend for one of the other options on this list .
HP Envy Move 24
Best budget iMac alternative
Interestingly enough , there are some all - in - one computer that are made to be go around on a regular basis , such as theHP Envy Move 24 , which even has it in the name . How does it deal that ? Well , for starters , it do with a rechargeable battery like you would receive on a laptop computer , although realistically , it is n’t going to last you more than about four to five hours , bet on your usage . So , while it also let in a grip for you to carry it around like you would a briefcase , it ’s still run short to need to be plug in rather regularly , so it might be good if you ’re move from office to authority .
regrettably , the decision to make it run on battery way that it does n’t have very powerful specs , with an Intel Core i3 - 1315U processor under the bonnet , which is an entry - level processor and is really only run to be good for basic daylight - to - day and productiveness tasks . That said , you may promote it to a more mid - range Intel Core i5 - 1335U for an extra $ 100 , and that may very much be worth it if you necessitate a snatch more performance , although you ’ll still not get any originative work out of it . Similarly , the base contour only gives you 8 GB of RAM , which is fine for light use , but ideally , you ’d want to grab the 16Gb rising slope for an superfluous $ 50 , which is well deserving it . you’re able to in reality snap up both the CPU and RAM rise for an special $ 150 , which will slenderly take it out of the budget orbit , but it ’s deserving it if you’re able to swing it and the Envy Move 24 is on cut-rate sale .
On the bright side , the screen is touch - enabled , which is groovy for a budget - oriented option , and it runs a higher 2560 x 1440 resolution , which some of the more powerful options above do n’t . It can also hit a solid 300 nit of peak brightness , although be mindful that ’s going to eat quite heavily into battery lifespan if you crank it to its upper limit . As for storehouse , you only get 256 GB , which is n’t a luck , but it ’s ok for basic use , and you may always opt to upgrade it in the cart with up to 1 TB of storage if you feel you need it . Overall , while there are quite a few compromise here and there , if you need something basic and portable with a big screen than a laptop computer , this option is jolly unspoilt .
How We Chose These iMac Alternatives
Compactness
One of the best things about the iMac is that it manages to take what would commonly be a full tugboat desktop and pack it up into a tiny little distance while give in a pretty effective sieve in the process . It does an excellent job of make an all - in - one PC , and to that goal , a lot of our picks are ground on the construct of a humble yet powerful all - in - one computer . That said , one thing we ca n’t really reanimate is the fact that the iMac runs on MacOS , so all of our pick here are run on Windows , which is perfectly hunky-dory if you ’re look for something outside the Apple ecosystem anyway .
On a similar banker’s bill , we did our good to pluck all - in - ones that also search pretty good since the esthetics of the iMac trifle a bountiful part in its note value and selling great power . That say , you generally give a agiotage when live on with an iMac , meaning Apple can take the extra time and effort to project something gorgeous , which is n’t always the case with all the choice . Even so , we think you ’ll be surprised with most of these picks when it occur to esthetics .
Performance
The iMac is in the main known for having quite good execution , specially for creative types who rely on Apple devices to get their work done . While a pile of that performance addition is due to very well - optimize applications made for Apple hardware , you may still find some really powerful all - in - one options . To that last , we did our best to pick desktop that have better - performing ironware , which mostly mean Intel Core i7 CPU or best , since they have the best performance - to - cost proportion out there .
In a similar vein , there is a lot of trust on GPU power in the iMacs , at least for those who need to do things like image manipulation or graphics genesis , and that gets a little bit more complicated . You see , while modern iMacs come with the M series chip that admit both CPU and GPU nucleus , non - Apple all - in - one do n’t . That means that brands want to rely on the two principal GPU company , AMD and NVIDIA , and , lamentably , neither have really excellent small GPUs available other than their laptop - based GPUs . Those are still quite squatty , so it ’s rare to obtain a in high spirits - end GPU on an all - in - one , and if you do , it ’s still going to be relatively underpowered since it will have to be thermally throttled so as not to cauterize a hollow through the blind .
Basically , all of that is to say that there are n’t a circle of non - Apple choice that can vie on the in writing front , and those that do are probably going to cost you as much as an iMac , such as Microsoft ’s Studio 2 + . That ’s not necessarily a regretful thing , mind you , especially if you need an all - in - one for professional originative body of work ; it ’s just authoritative to be aware of what you ’re pick and what expectation you should have proceed into this .
One last thing to note is that RAM is much prosperous to come by on non - Apple devices , so we generally take aim for all - in - ones that amount with at least 16 GB of RAM because that ’s really the ideal patch for most mod devices and needs , peculiarly since Windows takes a nice clump out of the RAM , so 8 GB is n’t a lot . The only exception to all the RAM and general performance is the budget alternative because you do have to make a luck of compromise to get something budget - friendly .
Screen
Luckily , one place where an all - in - one background can smooth bright than an iMac is on their cover , and there are a surprising phone number of good alternative . One of the big examples is that you could find a fortune of all - in - one that are touchscreens , which earmark you to use a penitentiary gadget on them straight . For example , not only is the screen on the Studio 2 + an excellent touch screen , it also has a hinge that set aside you to place it in front of you like a draw aerofoil , making it an arguably dependable gadget for creatives than the iMac .
Another affair is that iMacs are only available in 24 - in sizing , intend if you involve a bragging all - in - one in the Apple ecosystem , you ’re out of fortune . On the other hand , there are a gross ton of projection screen sizes you could pick from when it comes to other brands , with some all - in - ones being as large as 32 inches , which is jolly monolithic . you may also find a huge range of resolving , and while it ’s uncommon to find something that know up to the 4.5k resolution of the iMac , going for something lower - end can actually be skillful , especially when it comes to GPU performance and smoothness .
