Q: iMac 27" Space Requirement

I have a new iMac 27" and the air inlets are at the bottom and the outlet is in the middle of the back of the case, hidden behind the support arm.  If you search for pics of the inside of a new iMac you can see that they did some awesome air flow design inside to pump the heat out without it sifting up through all of the non-heat generating components which could shorten their life.

You can see the outlet vent in the picture already posted.

I do see it now, very cool.....no pun intended ;)

Thanks

Mike Sombrio wrote:

 

The exhaust vents are at the top, they can get very hot. I'd be sure to leave plenty of space so as not to restrict airflow.

I'm relatively new to the Mac platform having owned only a 2009 24" and 2010 27" prior to my current late-2012 27" both of which vented out the top which became very warm in normal everyday use. 

This 2012, the "iMac13,2", is the coolest I have ever been around.  The top of the computer, after having been on for weeks, is still at room temperature.  Touching various areas around the back doesn't reveal any area that is more than very (very) slightly warm. I don't see how any space with any venting at all could be inadequate.

Thanks. When I posted that I was not aware of the new cooling designs. Do you run any kind of temperature monitoring utility like iStatPro? I'd be interested to find out exactly what kind of temps you're running compared to my late 2009 27". That's very mressive that yours stays practically cool to the touch.

Thanks for that crh24, very helpful. One question though your ambient temp is only 15c? That's one cold room!

Mike Sombrio wrote:

 

Thanks for that crh24, very helpful. One question though your ambient temp is only 15c? That's one cold room!

I suspect the temp sensor for ambient isn't all that realistic as my room temp is currently nearly 72f (22c) and my Nest thermostat says 71 in the hallway outside of my room.

Jeez.....you've got a Nest thermostat too? now I AM jealous!

I have a 24 inch at home, a 2011 27 inch at work, and a new 27 inch now with me at home. I am astonished at how cool this thing is. My work i7 27 inch gets VERY HOT on the left upper corner... freakes me out. This thing is just barely warm in spots.

And yes... the Nest is also cool I dont regret dropping the $$ on it one bit (had to throw that in).

Mike Sombrio wrote:

 

Jeez.....you've got a Nest thermostat too? now I AM jealous!

Like Sandman says, the Nest is cool-No buyer's remorse here!  

That's awesome! Thanks for posting back and letting us know, and remember if you have questions in the future there's always help here!