Brian

Here is what I'd purchase if I was in your shoes. Pick the middle one A$ 2999.00 and upgrade the HD to 2TB Fusion. That's it. Keep it simple. You will be surprised on just how much faster a 27" iMac is over a 21.5". Even if it's not the top-of-the-line version will all the extras added. Then upgrade the RAM using a 3rd party source that has a good track-record. I recommend Crucial.com. Purchase a 16GB kit (two 8GB sticks) kit to take it from 8GB to 24GB. You could always add more RAM later and there isn't THAT much of difference in terms of performance between 24GB and 32GB of RAM. I feel that this will be the "Best-Bang-for-your Buck" model. It's a little faster than the stock A$2699 27" iMac and doesn't break the wallet, even though it's more than you want to spend.

Mac Pro? It's tempting, but there isn't an Access Panel to upgrade the RAM yourself. So you have to purchase the extra RAM from Apple, which is WAY overpriced. I did a quick search for the cost of a iMac Pro, upgraded, and it's around $5000-$7000+, which coverts to around AU$6500-AU$9000+ after you figure in the Tax. You aren't editing TV Commercials or producing movies. You are looking into using a Drone and record some video and editing photos. You do not need a iMac Pro. Believe it or not, Photoshop will run slower on a iMac Pro than a tricked out iMac!! It's not programmed to take advantage of the horsepower of a Mac Pro / iMac Pro. I'd rather you have a tricked out 27" iMac (have racing / go-faster stripes painted on the side,) with 64GB of RAM and a RAID 0 Thunderbolt EHD (for your video cache files) and a RAID 1 Thunderbolt EHD for storage of your files. That will cost you around the same price as a iMac Pro. As much as it would be cool to have bragging rights to own a iMac Pro, I'd rather purchase a Nikon D5 or D5s in a few years, maybe a few more fancy / exotic lenses instead of buying a iMac Pro. Heck, I'll get 10-20 years out of fancy lenses for $6000+ than a computer that will last around 7-8 years or so. Even a Super-fast iMac Pro. Components do wear out over time. Case in point, I have a friend who used to work for Nickelodeon Studios in New York. She has done lots of logos for them, both on TV and for things like the graphics on the packaging for the kid's toys. She complained to me that Nickelodeon will only accept work done on a Mac, as silly as it sounds. She used to bitch that after 4 years, her $500 Windows 7 computer ran circles around her aging Mac Pro. (This was years ago, mind you so my info could be a bit dated.) Bottom Line: Skip a iMac Pro. Go buy yourself a nice Drone instead. LOL!! Or take a course to invest in yourself / improve your craft. Hell, take a trip instead of buying a iMac Pro to photograph something different.

OH!!! You are in Australia!! Practically EVERYTHING costs WAY more in Australia. So, yes, you are going to pay a lot more and a $1799 (US Dollars) iMac is your A$2699.00, which also includes the GST. Here are the same choices as my screenshot above, only in AU$. The iMac that I configured that cost US $2829, when I configure it using AU $ it's A$4289, which is a bit expensive for your budget from what you are telling me. AppleCare is one of the few things that I purchase along with my Apple products. I've used it once on my iMac, for when the internal HD started dying on me and I just recently replaced my iPhone 6S via AppleCare. Since Apple is really the only ones that repair their items, except for Apple Authorized Repair Centers, who still get their parts from Apple, I would say yes...AppleCare is worth getting. Yes, you can purchase AppleCare within the warranty period of your Apple device, at least here in the US, Australia might be different, though I will warn you...if you decide to skip it to save a little money, you will most likely never purchase AppleCare. Then you'll kick yourself if something goes wrong in the 2nd year of ownership. Remember, Apple buys their stuff from other vendors, just like everyone else. RAM, Motherboard Components, Hard Drives, etc., are all purchased from different vendors. That said, I normally avoid purchasing the extended warranties from big-box-store retailers, as they are a huge profit maker for the store. The thing with those contracts, is if you purchase them and never use it, the store keeps your money. With Apple, since it's an Apple Product that is being repaired by Apple, it's worth getting AppleCare. Like I've said, I've used AppleCare twice for myself, and about 6-7 times for my oldest's iPad Touch, in which he kept destroying or having it die on him. Bottom Line: Get AppleCare. It's an insurance policy with no deductible, and gets you longer Apple Phone Support in addition to the hardware stuff.

I would NEVER-EVER tell you to purchase a current 21.5" iMac. Apple has crippled them in terms of performance. Slow HD, slow video card, slower motherboard, and you can not upgrade the RAM yourself since there isn't an access panel like on the 27". Simply head to Apple.com, then click Mac up at the top. Select iMac, NOT iMac Pro. Click the blue Buy box and select 27" or click this link: https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/imac/27-inch This is what you should see when you click the above URL: Look at the column on the left, select the $1799 iMac. Now, this model doesn't have a lot of upgrade options, so if you want a little more customization, choose the $1999 iMac and tweak things. If you really want to go for broke without paying the iMac Pro Price-Point, select the $2299.00 version and tweak things. That's the model that I start with, the $2299 unit and then upgrade things.

Because it's Apple. They want you to go big or go home. Also, you are upgrading from a 21.5" iMac to a 27" model! That 27" iMac is in a different class. That said, they have ALWAYS been expensive, ever since the original Apple Macintosh in 1984. The original Mac in 1984 was $2495 when it was first released. Adjusted for inflation, and using US Dollars, today that cost would be around $5845. So in essence, Mac has actually gotten cheaper over the years! Now are you editing video? If not, you do not need a 8GB video card. All of the specs that you have listed are what I'd buy and that cost is going to end up around $3200 or so. LOL!! If you want to save money, for editing photos the $1799 iMac will work just fine. In fact, Adobe Photoshop isn't programmed to take advantage of what makes a i7 so fast, you are only going to get a small percentage of a performance boost with this fancy iMac over the stock $1799 version. (Say around 5-7%.) So why would I buy a fancy and expensive iMac? Answer: 'Cause... I also purchase my computers with a 7 year time frame, give or take. I'm still using my iMac from 2009 as I type this. Late next year, I will probably purchase a new iMac. So in essence you could get one of the lower-end models, then replace it in 3-4 years, then turn around and buy another Mac again. Either way, you are spending about $3400 over the same period of time. Bottom Line: The specs you listed are fine. In case your curious, I just configured my 27" iMac and it sells for $2829, plus tax, shipping and the cost of AppleCare. I'd get extra RAM from Crucial.com and install it myself. Why 16GB? Because I'm trying not to throw away RAM. I'm hoping Apple will install two 8GB sticks and leave me with open slots. I also have a tendency to create large Panorama Photos and need that horsepower to crunch that data. So that's why I opted for the faster CPU chip and Video RAM. In reality, I could just configure it with a 1TB drive, I still have 700GB free on my current computer so 3TB is complete overkill. Why not SSD? It's because of the cost and I don't do a lot of hard drive data transferring. Sure it's awesome to brag that your computer boots in 15 seconds, but guess what? In a few weeks, that will become your "Normal." Photoshop opens just fine on my current 2009 iMac, and so does Firefox. I'd rather put the money into a 4GB-8GB External Thunderbolt G-Drive instead of having a SSD drive inside my iMac. But that's just me.

This one still is decent: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1304023-REG/asus_gl553ve_ds74_15_6_republic_of_gamers.html Also the two threads Damien provided are still viable, especially the first link.

I like the LG one the most out of the three. It has the Anti-Glare 3H coating so it's not glossy. I also like how the monitor software allows you to tweak things via Windows and your mouse. This way if you need to adjust something while calibrating, you don't have to go through the monitor's external menu buttons.

Oh, even though it stinks that you had to nuke your HD, at least it didn't get into the firmware which would have resulted in your HD being re-infected.

If there are any "Jailbroken" devices, it could have gotten in via a rogue app. Also, Apple's servers are routinely hacked, just ask all the actors and their naked photos posted online from their iCloud accounts. My advice... Make sure your password for iCloud is strong and ONLY use that password for iCould.

Any updates? Hopefully I was wrong about the Doom-and-Gloom.

I've also seen this as a Thunderbolt issue with no real solution.

UN-INSTALL IT!! Worthless program. Waste of money. It's probably how this Ransomware got in. Well, if your HD does need to be nuked, then just don't re-install MacKeeper, period. Just Google "MacKeeper Scam" and lots of websites pop-up. Honestly, I don't use any "security" software other than CleanMyMac 3 weekly, and Malwarebytes for the Mac once a month. I also am very skeptical of e-mail with links and make sure my Adobe Flash and Java are up to date. I use Microsoft Outlook for my e-mail program and turn off the automatic preview function. Even though you don't click on anything in the email, if you have preview turned on so it opens the email in a window automatically, "boom!!" you just opened the e-mail. I also make sure my browsers are up-to-date and avoid using Safari; I prefer Firefox and to a degree, Chrome. I never use Safari on my Mac. It takes Apple a really long time to push out security updates. In reality, Ransomware is the new kid on the block and is pretty viscous. Just ask all those banks in Europe who were infected. LOL!! If you are looking for an Antivirus software, I'm liking Webroot these days. There is a Windows Version and a Mac Version.

It's really hard to say. We won't know how bad it is until they take a look at things. Honestly, the Genius Bar isn't setup to retrieve your data, only to get your Mac working again. You might have lost everything if you don't have a backup or a time machine backup. What comcerns me is which one infected your Mac. Hopefully it's not as bad as I'm thinking.

What "security" are you using? I hope it's not MacKeeper. That program is worthless and EVIL. This stuff gets in via an infected e-mail, a compromised iCloud account, a infected browser plug-in, even from an advertisement from an infected server that is in a radio/music player. I've even seen this type of thing get into a iPhone when the user watches porn from an infected server, jump to iCloud then attack a iMac when iCloud syncs things. It doesn't have to be a porn site either. If anyone in your household downloads illegal music, software and movies via a torrent, it can most certainly get into your computer that way.

That's a tricky subject as with many of the entry-level cameras, they are meant to be outgrown. I feel that your best bet will be some sort of DSLR instead of a Point & Shoot camera. With a DSLR, you are not only buying a camera, but are buying into a Lens System. The two top manufactures are still Canon and Nikon. Sony has made great progress, and so has Fuji...but Canon & Nikon are still the top two brands with the most choices when it comes to lenses. I'm glad you let me know your budget, because that's the first question that I usually ask. I found this pretty good deal with a Nikon D3400. It comes with a 18-55 kit lens and a 70-300 DX lens, plus it comes with a memory card for $596.95. I would also seriously purchase a Nikon 35mm f/1.8G DX lens at some point, as the two kit lenses are the variable aperture type, meaning as you zoom out, your aperture automatically stops down to a smaller value. The 35mm f/1.8G DX lens will allow you to explore and learn apertures from f/1.8 to f/22. For the Canon brand, here is an equivalent kit that I linked to above: Canon EOS Rebel T6 that also comes with a 18-55 lens and 75-300mm lens. As for which one? That's a personal choice. It boils down to how it feels in your hands, how easy the menu system is to work with. Some people like myself are Nikon shooters, others shoot Canon. Personally, I can not stand Canon's menu system of symbols and the way they label things; I prefer the way Nikon translates Japanese to English. The next step I would take is to see if a local camera shop has both models and give each of them a test drive. See which one fits better in your hands.

@Roleen - Hold Up!!! It's Ransomware!! I took a look at your screenshot on my Mac instead of my phone and noticed the "Apple.pass@mail.com." That's not an Apple address and do not email them. They will want $50 in Bitcoin. As Apple's products become more popular, the chances of this type of crap increase. Do you use Time Machine? If so, when was your last backup? From what I've read on the internet, this sucker gets into the firmware on the motherboard, so even resetting the Mac doesn't do much. I would still call Apple, but in reality, setup an appointment with the Genius Bar.

You must have somehow turned on two-factor authentication or your password is messed up. There is nothing that I can help you with. You are going to need to call Apple on this one. I'm curious, did you do any major OS updates recently?

Because they are Apple. Also, there is a program called MacKeeper, which is pure EVIL. Never-Ever-Ever install or purchase MacKeeper! I run CleanMyMac 3 weekly and have been for years.

You might want to purchase and run this program: CleanMyMac 3 from MacPaw.com Right now there seems to be running a 20% off sale on it for a limited time. As far as the screensaver, if the MacOS did some sort of update, like go from 10.12.5 to 10.12.6, it's plausible the screensaver could have been turned on. That said, in reality, who knows?

Hmm... I'd first head to System Preferences >> Click Displays >> Uncheck / Turn Off "Automatically adjust brightness as ambient light changes." Let us know if that helps or not.

It's so much better over here. The classes are better and you truly get one on one attention!! Damien moved your thread, which alerted me and I logged on and answered your question. Boom! Done-and-done. Notice how your thread isn't clogged with others' comments & questions with people telling me that I'm wrong and don't know what I'm talking about? I get that FB is convenient. Believe me, I miss it sometimes too. Then I post something on FB in a group and immediately realize why this website was needed, not only for Damien's sanity but my own.

Yep. Yep. Windows 7 & Windows 10 are really good at detecting monitors. Even the built-in Windows generic driver for monitors works well these days. All that driver disk does is correctly lists the monitor make & model correctly in the Device Manager. Doesn't do anything when it comes to a display profile. That is created by your calibration software. Speaking of calibration, you'll want to pull out your calibrator and test prints with your new monitor and go through the routine.

DO YOU KNOW HOW RARE A 1920 X 1080 DISPLAY IS THESE DAYS?!?! Everything is freakin' 4000k and 5000k. That model is IPS based and has a anti-glare hard coating. BUY IT!!

If you really want PS to run faster, have more RAM available, like 32GB+ and have a beefy video card that has lots of its own video memory 4GB+. Adobe's current products are tapping into the video card's processor and memory for a performance boost these days. It's not so much based on the processor and hard drive, though they do play a role. I'm also wondering if the M.2 stick and the way it writes/organizes data may cause issues with PS. It's just a thought and no real evidence to base this idea on. I still say try using a traditional hard drive for the PS scratch disk and see if things work better.

Looks good.