I think the new 24" display marks the end of the iMac

[dubhe]

Looking through the Buyer's Guide (http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/) and this (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/11/03/apple-no-new-products-before-holidays/) makes me think the new 24" LED Cinema Display (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/10/14/apple-introduces-24-led-cinema-display-with-built-in-isight/) might actually be the start of a replacement for the iMac and Mac mini as we know it.

Imagine there was a new Mac mini with the new mini display port, if you plugged it in to this screen then you have an iMac, OK with lower spec.

Now imagine apple released a higher spec Mac mini, with the new graphics, 3.5" drive etc, mini display port. Well, that would be an iMac right?

I have always disliked the iMac because you pay a lot for a screen that will be fine in a few years time when your computer isn't. Do you think apple might agree?

Just an idea, but thought I would throw it out there :D

[forgottensoft]

The All-In-One has been Apples bread and butter hardware since the very beginning (way before the iMac, Like the lisa and mac plus etc.). The iMac will ALWAYS have a place in the Mac line-up. Apple has had cinema displays for a while, and there sales have been mediocre. Nothing will change. The Cinema display + Mini will never replace the iMac.

[QCassidy352]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/525.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.1.1 Mobile/5F136 Safari/525.20)

this is just a new stlye of display. Why would it mean the end of the iMac?

[themoonisdown09]

Imagine there was a new Mac mini with the new mini display port, if you plugged it in to this screen then you have an iMac, OK with lower spec.

Now imagine apple released a higher spec Mac mini, with the new graphics, 3.5" drive etc, mini display port. Well, that would be an iMac right?

No, that wouldn't be an iMac. iMacs are all-in-one machines. If the monitor is separate from the machine, than it's not an all-in-one.

[dubhe]

Ok, Ok, maybe I was wrong about the iMac. But, I hope there will be a new mini that can utilise it, with better graphics.

[nick9191]

Steve Jobs cannot emphasise enough that he believes all in ones are the way forward for consumers, he states it every time he mentions the iMac, and I 100% agree with him. All in ones for consumers, mini towers for pros.

[ditzy]

Not a chance. Apple will never make a mid range tower plus display while Steve Jobs and Jony Ives have anything to do with Apple.

[x86isslow]

The all-in-one design has certain advantages: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctjNrCThQNc http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHzM4avGrKI&feature=related

It's hard to make a computer easier to use than that.

[SnowLeopard2008]

The main reason for AIOs is to eliminate cable clutter. Save the keyboard/mice, but there are BT versions available. I'd imagine that to be a great setup, it's what I'm planning to do should Apple make the mini with better specs, like better graphics (it's worse than my MB, which is already getting it's butt kicked), user upgradeable memory/HDD and a faster processor. Just keep the aluminum design and make the Apple logo glow (not sure if it does already).