A teardown of the updated 20-inch iMac reveals some notable facts, according to iFixit. The main processor for instance is socketed, meaning that it can in theory be easily switched out for a replacement or upgrade; a sticker, however, warns that interfering with the CPU voids a person's warranty. The system's hard drive, now sized at 320GB instead of 250GB, is meanwhile removable without disconnecting any screws, but the process of actually gaining access to the drive in fact requires removing 21.

Only one Phillips screw is said to be present on the iMac's casing though, which is also used to gain access to the RAM compartment. Those ordering the lowest-end iMac will additionally find space for an extra heat sink, likely an accommodation for superior graphics hardware in the next step up. The LCD in the computer continues to use a CCFL backlight instead of modern LED technology, but Apple has finally upgraded the optical drive to a SATA-based SuperDrive model. The drive is also slightly larger than those used in unibody MacBooks, measuring 12.7mm rather than 9.5mm.