Next-Generation iMacs Already in Production?

[MacRumors]

http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com/2009/09/24/next-generation-imacs-already-in-production/)

AppleInsider claims (http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/09/09/24/apple_ready_and_waiting_with_redesigned_imac_line.html) that Apple has begun production of the next-generation iMac and may be set to introduce the revamped product line sometime between now and mid-October.The new all-in-one, dual-core desktops were finalized earlier in September and have been rolling off the Mac maker's Taiwanese product lines for roughly two weeks, according to two people familiar with the matter.

In addition to more affordable pricing, the systems are expected to come clad in a thinner industrial design, one of those people added. Though details are admittedly limited, it's likely these new enclosures will also take design cues from the Cupertino-based company's relatively new LED-lit Cinema Display offerings.The report echoes a report (http://www.macrumors.com/2009/09/15/analyst-imac-and-macbook-updates-coming-within-weeks/) issued last week by research firm Wedge Partners that new iMacs could make an appearance within the next several weeks. Today's report also reiterates claims (http://www.macrumors.com/2009/08/07/next-generation-imac-to-offer-two-compelling-new-features/) that the new iMac will sport a redesigned enclosure and several new features, possibly to include a Blu-ray drive option.

Article Link: Next-Generation iMacs Already in Production? (http://www.macrumors.com/2009/09/24/next-generation-imacs-already-in-production/)

[clayj]

If they include a Blu-ray option on the new iMacs, I would like to have a Blu-ray option with burning for Mac Pros, as well, so that I can start backing up 50 GB of data to a single disc. It's sort of lame that this option is available on PCs but not on the Mac.

[danielwsmithee]

This better have Clarksfield or my next computer might just be a hackintosh.

[joemama]

Great news! Lower prices and faster machines means Santa-wifey might drop one under tree this year....

...That is, if a firewire port is included! :)

[flottenheimer]

Yes! I'm really hungry for some new Mac hardware releases/progress.

Wonder if there's going to be a special keynote for this... (a la when the unibodys were introduced).

[mrklaw]

thinner means no quad core then? disappointed if true, as even Dell studio laptops have options for quad core processors

[the-oz-man]

The Blu-ray option would sell me too, especially if there are some noticeable under the hood upgrades beyond a mobile cpu platform.

[MattyP30]

hmmmm i will be moving countries in jan and was gonna sell my imac at the end of the year as I can't really take it with me

should i sell now hmmm

[gmeddles]

I love my iMac, but the old mouse needs to be replaced with a multitouch interface. I'd rather have the small footprint and large screen real estate of the iMac with a multitouch capable trackpad somehow.

[Cougarcat]

It is already thin enough, Apple. Nobody cares if it's any thinner. Nobody would care if it was a bit fatter. We do care about quad-core, blu-ray, and non-pathetic graphics.

[RebootD]

Could this be the Death of the Chin if they redesign it to look like the LED CD?

[bagelche]

I like the idea of minimizing the face-view, making it a more sleek, professional looking monitor--or, dare I say, more TV-like (like that analysts conjecture that apple was going to make actual TV :apple:TVs).

I'm curious about that "audio related" feature (which a previous report stated was "expected to cater to the semi-professional audio/video crowd"). eSATA was my original guess, but that's not directly audio-related. HDMI port? 5.1 output? something completely different?

What "features previously unavailable to Mac buyers" might there be? BR is an obvious choice, but what else? specifying mac buyers suggests it's already available over on the other side of the PC aisle.

Also, what does "extend the capabilities of at least one technology introduced on the Mac platform as recently as last fall" refer to? It's not iMac specific, but I'm not breaking out my newly-introduced feature timeline well enough.

[Gregintosh]

I hope this means that the regular macbooks get an update too, since I remember those rumors stating that both would be released in the same timeframe!

Perhaps if these are good enough, my 2007 aluminum iMac will get an upgrade come the new year (right after they bump up the specs and fix any problems on these new gen iMacs).

[old-wiz]

I love my iMac, but the old mouse needs to be replaced with a multitouch interface. I'd rather have the small footprint and large screen real estate of the iMac with a multitouch capable trackpad somehow.

I'd love to see a multitouch keyboard for the iMac. If they offer blu-ray, then there would have to be an OSx update to allow it to play blu-ray discs. If it would work with older iMacs like from an external blu-ray drive it would be nice.

[RMo]

Every time they make it thinner, I wonder how--and I still wonder.

Pretty soon these are going to be a little sheet of paper hanging in the air... :D

[derek1984]

Want a cookie?

I'm excited to see what apple does with the iMac. Design wise, it's already a great machine


Yes, Choc. Chip

[amt2002]

Wow! I'm really surprised by this announcement as I didn't expect a design refresh for at least another 1-2 years!

Looking forward to seeing it! I don't think my 2009 model is quite past it yet though :)

[Tyr.]

I just sold my 24" after yet another screen replacement and got a mini, maybe I should have held out a little longer. Then again after the last time I don't think I'm going to the first one rushing into the store but wait a bit this time to see if there are any issues.

[tofagerl]

Says dualcore right there in the first sentence of the quote. That's not Clarksfield, that's Core 2 Duo... We already have C2D, how about a freaking upgrade!?

[sbgirling]

Blue ray sounds great! Except I don't have the $600 it will cost to upgrade the drive from Apple...

[Barbie]

http://i33.tinypic.com/izyw5k.jpg

you saw it here first

^_^

[crackbookpro]

I think they are going to be a huge step-up of what is already a great machine...

I am buying fo' sho'! :cool:

[bagelche]

I still think people are getting thrown off by thinner. I don't think that means the depth--front to back--of the casing, but more to do with the bezel and other area around the display itself (think chin).

or, at least, that what I hope it means. to obsess over making it thinner the other way is dumb. ;)

[colormetal]

end of chin, plz
i dont think they gonna include the blu-ray driver, if so, we need to buy the software to play or burn blu-ray disk for extra:confused:

[viper002060]

I would like to see LED displays put in them. Blu-ray would be nice too but I think optical drives are on their way out.:apple:

[RebootD]

http://i33.tinypic.com/izyw5k.jpg

you saw it here first

^_^

Not bad! I would assume they would add a little black on each side as well to even it out but whatever they do to reduce the Leno effect I'd be happy.

[danielwsmithee]

Unfortunately the rumors have it that Apple will wait until they release the 32nm chips next year. (Let's hope they are wrong) I think they are wrong the Clarkfield is the ideal chip for the high end iMacs.

[TheBritishBloke]

I'm really glad to hear that one new feature is the LED backlit display. I'm glad I've waited to get an iMac now, as what I was really wanting was an LED display, I couldn't care less about blu-ray or anything else, as people have said, most people don't even use quad cores. Heck, you can run Photoshop CS4 on a single-core computer.

[jellomizer]

http://i33.tinypic.com/izyw5k.jpg

you saw it here first

^_^

Nice Photoshop job. However you need to cleanup the reflection on the display.

[Velorium]

Could this be the Death of the Chin if they redesign it to look like the LED CD?

God, I hope so. I can't believe it was still included in the last revision.

[danielwsmithee]

I just found a great mockup.

http://a248.e.akamai.net/7/248/2041/1590/as-images.apple.com/is/image/AppleInc/MB382?wid=326&hei=326&fmt=jpeg&qlt=95&op_sharpen=0&resMode=bicub&op_usm=0.5,0.5,0,0&iccEmbed=0&layer=comp

[Bigabouli]

I just found a great mockup.

http://a248.e.akamai.net/7/248/2041/1590/as-images.apple.com/is/image/AppleInc/MB382?wid=326&hei=326&fmt=jpeg&qlt=95&op_sharpen=0&resMode=bicub&op_usm=0.5,0.5,0,0&iccEmbed=0&layer=comp

I'd buy an iMac if it looked like that :P

[jav6454]

I just found a great mockup.

... snip ...

I like this one better. Also, bring on faster Core 2 Duos...

[TheBritishBloke]

Says dualcore right there in the first sentence of the quote. That's not Clarksfield, that's Core 2 Duo... We already have C2D, how about a freaking upgrade!?

You can't really complain about higher clock speed C2D, and a lower price. Heck, I doubt you'd even use a C2D at constant load.

[dubhe]

if they make a 20" LED iMac then I want a 20" LED display for my mini :)

[Target362]

I would like to see LED displays put in them. Blu-ray would be nice too but I think optical drives are on their way out.:apple:

True, but not anytime soon.

let the blu-ray/optical media vs digital media discussion begin :rolleyes:

[NeverhadaPC]

hmmmm i will be moving countries in jan and was gonna sell my imac at the end of the year as I can't really take it with me

should i sell now hmmm

If you give me your iMac specs and price, I may give you an offer. The wife is looking to upgrade here 2GHz G5 for an Intel iMac.

[roski11]

I dont care what they look like if they have quad i'm buying no matter what the price.

[thegoldenmackid]

It's hard to imagine placing Blu-Ray on an iMac before they put it on the Mac Pro.

[mr_matalino]

Dual core? Wha? C'mon Apple! Quad core for at least on model...

[Man-Droid]

quad please. everything else is fluff.

[azentropy]

For me there are two must haves:

Quad Core Option
Matte Display Option

[Target362]

For got to add some images:

Fake, I know but still funny.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/77/184187922_2eb11bdac7_b.jpg

maybe not
http://fc02.deviantart.com/fs23/f/2007/361/c/5/iMac_G7_concept_by_program1357.png

nope
http://www.techshout.com/images/iview-imac-nuno.jpg

maybe... who knows
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2634/3773499384_31cc2e1788_o.png'

[themoonisdown09]

It would be nice if it had a Blu-ray drive. I don't care about using Blu-ray for backups, I just want to be able to rip my Blu-ray movies to iTunes.

[danjferguson]

Sadly, my Windows side of me is going to prevent me from getting any new machine until DX11 comes out, and they ship with a supported video card. Why can't Steam run on Mac?

[TheBritishBloke]

Sadly, my Windows side of me is going to prevent me from getting any new machine until DX11 comes out, and they ship with a supported video card. Why can't Steam run on Mac?

Because Steam hasn't written the files for a mac, just for Windows...

[tofagerl]

Actually, I run two VMWare machines constantly. I'm what you might call a "heavy duty multitasker" ;p

Edit: meant to quote http://forums.macrumors.com/showpost.php?p=8539132&postcount=34

[Veinticinco]

I love my iMac, but the old mouse needs to be replaced with a multitouch interface. I'd rather have the small footprint and large screen real estate of the iMac with a multitouch capable trackpad somehow.

I really do expect to see the new 'mouse' bundled or optional with this new iMac to be essentially an enlarged MBP silver-coloured 'glass' multi-touch trackpad. It will be wired rather than BT.

[MadMacxxx]

I like the idea of minimizing the face-view, making it a more sleek, professional looking monitor--or, dare I say, more TV-like (like that analysts conjecture that apple was going to make actual TV :apple:TVs).

I'm curious about that "audio related" feature (which a previous report stated was "expected to cater to the semi-professional audio/video crowd"). eSATA was my original guess, but that's not directly audio-related. HDMI port? 5.1 output? something completely different?

What "features previously unavailable to Mac buyers" might there be? BR is an obvious choice, but what else? specifying mac buyers suggests it's already available over on the other side of the PC aisle.

Also, what does "extend the capabilities of at least one technology introduced on the Mac platform as recently as last fall" refer to? It's not iMac specific, but I'm not breaking out my newly-introduced feature timeline well enough.
I'm wondering the same

[crackbookpro]

It's hard to imagine placing Blu-Ray on an iMac before they put it on the Mac Pro.

...just as hard for Apple to introduce FM radio on a Nano. :p

[gr81mgbgt]

Does Anyone think these are just rumors?????

[TheBritishBloke]

Actually, I run two VMWare machines constantly. I'm what you might call a "heavy duty multitasker" ;p

Edit: meant to quote http://forums.macrumors.com/showpost.php?p=8539132&postcount=34

So do I lol. I constantly have :

Windows 7 x64
Windows XP Pro
Ubuntu 8.04.

I admit, quad would be useful for that. But Apple really isn't looking to stick quad cores in from what I can tell.

[nagromme]

It already has the design of the new Cinema Display. I was picturing something more like the iPod Touch instead (round-edged but maybe not chrome).

But looking at the current MacBooks I think it will stay hard-edged and just be a variation on the current design--only thinner and with less chin.

I wouldn't mind seeing the back change from black to metal, though.

And for the love of Pete, BLACK KEYS AND MOUSE already! The white does not match :)

[iMJustAGuy]

FINALLY! I refuse to buy my first iMac (or any mac for that matter) until a brand new one is released.

[alent1234]

Blue ray sounds great! Except I don't have the $600 it will cost to upgrade the drive from Apple...

blu-ray drive upgrades are cheap today

[bearcatrp]

I still have my 24 inch (1st Gen) 2.16 running tiger. Awesome machine. The only way I would upgrade is if they have the following:
30 inch display
Dual core w/hyperthreading (4 total cores)
8Gb max ram

Don't really care for blu ray. As long as apple includes blu ray support in iMovie/FCE/FCS (100% editable), I can always buy an external if needed. Prefer to keep my media on a hard drive and stream it.

[alent1234]

Does Anyone think these are just rumors?????

intel just released new CPU's

[gr81mgbgt]

I just dont want to get my hopes up and come the next couple of weeks, nothing happens....

[danielwsmithee]

The things I want to see in an iMac.

Quad Core i7.
At least 4 memory slots.
LED displays.
Same form factor as LED Cinema Display (even if it is 4" thick). I wan't to run dual displays side by side that match.

[iMJustAGuy]

It is already thin enough, Apple. Nobody cares if it's any thinner. Nobody would care if it was a bit fatter. We do care about quad-core, blu-ray, and non-pathetic graphics.

Maybe their goal wasn't to get thinner and they found a new more efficient way to build them and it just so happened to be thinner.

[SwiftLives]

Pure inconsequential speculation here, but I wonder if they will use the same process for molding the aluminum MBPs to mold the new iMac casing. Perhaps this will be a factor in the rumored price reduction?

[sishaw]

It is already thin enough, Apple. Nobody cares if it's any thinner. Nobody would care if it was a bit fatter. We do care about quad-core, blu-ray, and non-pathetic graphics.

I wouldn't say "nobody"--I'd like to be thinner! Although the rest of the list would be nice too.

People who are into the style of the computer and who use it in a public area like their living room may indeed respond well to a thinner, sleeker model.

[macswitcha2]

Thinner? Why? I don't mind thicker if thicker means better, but if thinner can out do the current iMacs, then so be it....

[MadMacxxx]

...just as hard for Apple to introduce FM radio on a Nano. :p

http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x88/itsnemo101/lol.gif
yea I couldn't believe they were highlighting the FM radio of the new nano...its like, uhhh it took you this long to add that? http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x88/itsnemo101/bonk.gif

[RazHyena]

For got to add some images:

Fake, I know but still funny.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/77/184187922_2eb11bdac7_b.jpg

maybe not
http://fc02.deviantart.com/fs23/f/2007/361/c/5/iMac_G7_concept_by_program1357.png

nope
http://www.techshout.com/images/iview-imac-nuno.jpg

maybe... who knows
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2634/3773499384_31cc2e1788_o.png'

I'd buy an iMac that looked like the first image in a second! :eek:

[danjferguson]

Because Steam hasn't written the files for a mac, just for Windows...

That's because devs aren't writing games for Mac, so Steam has little reason to have a port of their software.

EDIT: That wasn't a serious question. I know why games aren't programmed for Mac, and I know why Steam isn't on Mac either. My point still stands, DX11 coming out means putting on hold any computer purchases until they come with a supported video card.

[*LTD*]

http://i33.tinypic.com/izyw5k.jpg

you saw it here first

^_^

That looks pretty hawt.

Or just base it on this:

http://www.apple.com/displays/

http://images.apple.com/displays/images/home_hero20090828.png

[iSamurai]

hmmmm i will be moving countries in jan and was gonna sell my imac at the end of the year as I can't really take it with me

should i sell now hmmm

Sell now. Like me. :D

[Eidorian]

Penryn is a dead end and so is any MCM off of it.

[Target362]

To the british who edited my image, please edit the others. It only makes it fair to everyone.

It's hard to imagine placing Blu-Ray on an iMac before they put it on the Mac Pro.

No its not.

Does Anyone think these are just rumors?????

hence the site "Mac rumors"

[greatcaffeine]

I've been waiting for the next iMac update to retire my old MacBook Pro (Core Duo 2.16GHz), but if Apple is seriously going to continue using Core 2 Duos, it looks like I'll probably be waiting even longer to upgrade.

Why doesn't Apple understand that nobody cares about a marginally thinner desktop computer? I can understand it for laptops, but seriously, I want a desktop so I can have some power.

[*LTD*]

I still have my 24 inch (1st Gen) 2.16 running tiger. Awesome machine. The only way I would upgrade is if they have the following:
30 inch display
Dual core w/hyperthreading (4 total cores)
8Gb max ram

Don't really care for blu ray. As long as apple includes blu ray support in iMovie/FCE/FCS (100% editable), I can always buy an external if needed. Prefer to keep my media on a hard drive and stream it.

You won't see a 30-inch iMac. Overkill. You barely see any mainstream 30-inch displays.

Unless Apple is now all about the display and they make a Pro ed. of the iMac, and price it accordingly.

[KindredMAC]

My wish list:
#1- Quad Core
#2- Thinner chin to look more like a display, or as others have mocked up like an iPhone that has been stretched out left to right with black on top and bottom.
#3- Extended Keyboard standard again. Not that crap thing with a wire coming out the back.
#4- Swiveling display aka rotation. Nice for designers and such.

Don't think the iMac should get Blu-Ray first. That's a PRO thing, not a "General Audience" thing.

[gr81mgbgt]

When do you think we will hear an event scheduled? I say October 20th.

[AAPLaday]

For got to add some images:

Fake, I know but still funny.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/77/184187922_2eb11bdac7_b.jpg

maybe not


The iMac in 5-10 years :cool:

[Arcadie]

i was just about to buy a new mac anyway

[mgridgaway]

It is already thin enough, Apple. Nobody cares if it's any thinner. Nobody would care if it was a bit fatter. We do care about quad-core, blu-ray, and non-pathetic graphics.

Here here. Integrated graphics on a $1200 computer? You've got to be kidding me.

[tha80sbrat]

FINALLY! I refuse to buy my first iMac (or any mac for that matter) until a brand new one is released.

My thoughts exactly. Every time I buy an Apple product, a redesigned version ends up coming out three months later. If and when I get a new iMac, it will be when the new model comes out.

For me, I would really like the iMac to be more upgrade friendly just like the MacBooks. Easy way to upgrade hard drive and RAM would be nice.

[conradzoo]

Please Apple, don't continue to treat the 20" as the simple little brother of the 24". Give me the 'options' of its big brother.

And matte, please.

[iSamurai]

To the british who edited my image, please edit the others. It only makes it fair to everyone.

hence the site "Mac rumors"

Yes, please do!!! Haha... imagine doing that... naaat!

...it could also be a Canadian who edited it lol.

In the end it doesn't matter I guess, though I use British spelling. It's kinda like reading between the lines. I can get to know you're an American. :P

Anyway the iMac... gosh... I'm predicting 20 October. (http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?p=8515222)



OH - edit: I wonder how much they will drop the price by, in Australia, seeing the Aussie dollar is so strong at the moment.

[*LTD*]

My wish list:
#1- Quad Core
#2- Thinner chin to look more like a display, or as others have mocked up like an iPhone that has been stretched out left to right with black on top and bottom.
#3- Extended Keyboard standard again. Not that crap thing with a wire coming out the back.
#4- Swiveling display aka rotation. Nice for designers and such.

Don't think the iMac should get Blu-Ray first. That's a PRO thing, not a "General Audience" thing.

1) Doubt it. Maybe on their top model, though.
2) I can totally see this happening.
3) Again, this is a good possibility.
4) I wish. But I wouldn't bet on it. At all.

[mZex]

This kinda news does make me reach at my bank balance with a slight semi in tow but ...

I dear god hope if this is true Apple got some preview of the new i7 processors - I sense a processor flop if its been 2 weeks in the making :(

Ill probs still get one :D

[litopine]

I'll be in line for one of those and hopefully sometime an apple tablet as well.
:apple::D:apple::D:apple::D:apple::D:apple::D:apple::D:apple::D:apple::D

[jaw04005]

It is already thin enough, Apple. Nobody cares if it's any thinner. Nobody would care if it was a bit fatter. We do care about quad-core, blu-ray, and non-pathetic graphics.

Hey, maybe next time they'll use an Intel Atom processor so it can be even thinner. :rolleyes:

I'm tired of Apple's approach to the iMac also.

I purchased a Core 2 Duo iMac in late 2006. Apple has essentially made no advancements to this product other than minor processor speed bumps and a minor design revision since then.

It's become an upright notebook.

[iSamurai]

When do you think we will hear an event scheduled? I say October 20th.

Hey, someone's with me. (http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?p=8515222)

[zedsdead]

Hey, maybe next time they'll use an Intel Atom processor so it can be even thinner. :rolleyes:

I'm tired of Apple's approach to the iMac also.

I purchased a Core 2 Duo iMac in late 2006. Apple has essentially made no advancements to this product other than minor processor speed bumps and a minor design revision since then.

It's become an upright notebook.

I jumped onboard in 2007 with the Aluminum design, and do not plan on upgrading until a quad-core iMac is introduced.

[danielwsmithee]

I'm tired of Apple's approach to the iMac also.

I purchased a Core 2 Duo iMac in late 2006. Apple has essentially made no advancements to this product other than minor processor speed bumps and a minor design revision since then.

It's become an upright notebook.I agree it needs clarksfield, at least 4 memory slots, user upgradeable hard drive, they can do it on the MacBook why not the iMac?

[greatcaffeine]

My wish list:
#1- Quad Core
#2- Thinner chin to look more like a display, or as others have mocked up like an iPhone that has been stretched out left to right with black on top and bottom.
#3- Extended Keyboard standard again. Not that crap thing with a wire coming out the back.
#4- Swiveling display aka rotation. Nice for designers and such.

Don't think the iMac should get Blu-Ray first. That's a PRO thing, not a "General Audience" thing.

#1- Agreed!
#2- That would be cool, but even if they don't change the design, I'll be happy.
#3- That's not standard? Wow... what do they think this is, a 13" notebook?
#4- I don't know if I'd like that or not, but maybe they should have an alternate stand that you can buy to mount your iMac. Just a thought. :)

[gr81mgbgt]

Its a Tuesday also.......

[swissmann]

It is already thin enough, Apple. Nobody cares if it's any thinner. Nobody would care if it was a bit fatter. We do care about quad-core, blu-ray, and non-pathetic graphics.

I agree if it has to be fatter to include these things. Of course if it could include these things and be thinner too even better.

By the way everyone here who thinks Blu-Ray needs to be an option in all/any macs and have full support for it in the OS have you submitted your feelings to Apple?

I have please show your support:
http://www.apple.com/feedback/

[gr81mgbgt]

I would like to see a aluminum unibody, No Black Plastic Cheap Looking Back.

[mac.rumors]

It is already thin enough, Apple. Nobody cares if it's any thinner. Nobody would care if it was a bit fatter. We do care about quad-core, blu-ray, and non-pathetic graphics.

Agree 100%. I just need an affordable mac with decent features.

[macnerd77]

I kind of hope they don't put Blu-Ray drives in the iMacs. People say that PC'S have been doing this for quite some time now. I agree with that. But remember Apple is always about being innovative and not following the heard. Optical disk storage is a very old technology. Hard Drive space is so cheep now and Flash memory prices are coming down everyday. I believe that these are the technologies to work with and i think that apple is thinking this way too.

The only place that i could see Blu-Ray making sense is in a mac used as a HTPC

Just my 2 Cents. :apple:

[Alfuh]

As long as the update isn't a complete bust (doubt it will be) I will pick one up soon to use for my business! New iMac AND a write-off? :)

[infiniteentropy]

I would like them to go back to the desktop-class video cards like the GeForce 8800GS they used to use. I would also like the LED display like on the LED Cinema Display I have. They do both of those things, and that'd be enough for me, I'd sell my old 17" pro and replace it with a 24" iMac in a heartbeat.

[Sabon]

nope
http://www.techshout.com/images/iview-imac-nuno.jpg

Too bad because this one is my favorite.

[*LTD*]

It is already thin enough, Apple. Nobody cares if it's any thinner. Nobody would care if it was a bit fatter. We do care about quad-core, blu-ray, and non-pathetic graphics.

Thinness is actually a big draw for the bulk of Apple's market.

[TuffLuffJimmy]

I kind of hope they don't put blu-ray drives in the iMacs. People say that PC'S have been doing this for quite some time now. I agree with that. But remember Apple is always about being innovative and not following the heard. Optical disk storage is a very old technology. Hard Drive space is so cheep now and Flash memory prices are coming down everyday. I believe that these are the technologies to work with and i think that apple is thinking this way too.


Just my 2 Cents. :apple:

Except bluray movies are way better quality than downloaded movies and they can be 50GB in size. So what moron is going to fill up their hard disk with 50GB movie files?

I hope they do put bluray in, it's pitiful that it isn't there already.

[depulse]

...just as hard for Apple to introduce FM radio on a Nano. :p

OT: Something i had on my mp3 player back in 2002 and that Apple manages to sell as news 2009. Just shows what image and marketing can do.

When will we be able to edit the playlist without using iTunes? The big news of 2010?

Regarding the new iMac, bring in the quadcores, I couldn't care less about Blueray. For offsite backups large USB sticks are so cheap I can't be bothered anymore to burn discs. And timemachine takes care of the day to day backups.

[dernhelm]

It is already thin enough, Apple. Nobody cares if it's any thinner. Nobody would care if it was a bit fatter. We do care about quad-core, blu-ray, and non-pathetic graphics.

No No No. I want it so thin that when I turn it sideways it disappears...
:D

[RMo]

I still think people are getting thrown off by thinner. I don't think that means the depth--front to back--of the casing, but more to do with the bezel and other area around the display itself (think chin).

or, at least, that what I hope it means. to obsess over making it thinner the other way is dumb. ;)

Agreed (I'm not really clamoring for an extra 0.1" of space taken up my by iMac...well, I have a MacBook now, but when I did have an iMac, still....).

But in that case, wouldn't it make sense to say "shorter" or something instead of "thinner"?

[depulse]

Except bluray movies are way better quality than downloaded movies and they can be 50GB in size. So what moron is going to fill up their hard disk with 50GB movie files?


You don't need 50 GB for a decent rip/download. Ripping from DVDs is good enough unless you have a >50" HDTV screen and are sitting very close to the screen.

[freddiecable]

regarding wishlists:

1. CPU - apple could have released a quad for some time now. Why now when thay have waited for so long? I guess they think dual core is enough?

2. Memory - obviously they will stick with 2 slots. This enables 8GB ram...which is more than sufficient no?

3. Screen size - I would not mind a 30"-option.

4. The chin - I don't have the same problem with the chin like many others. Without it - it would not be "a desktop" - simply a screen.

5. Blue-ray - especially if they release a 30".

6. If they release a 30" - please let me connect my console to it!

7. Graphics - always nice with options right :) But - the formfactor is probably more important for Apple.

8. Form - apple will probably try to make it thinner and slimmer. Probably making it suffer from expandability etc

[Sabon]

- Cinema (wide screen) displays!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
- Two optical audio ports (use one for input and one for output)
- two FW800 ports
- Room for 8 gb of RAM but preferably room for 12 or 16gb of RAM
- USB 3
- BlueRay (waffling on this one)
- wireless bluetooth keyboard WITH number pad!!!
- new design of mouse. One that is basically the trackpad of the laptops but is also comfortably moveable so you can move it and use it and not just use it as a trackpad.

[Fastshutter]

Mid October huh? Methinks Apple wants to upstage the release of Windows 7. Microsoft steals Apple's employees, Apple steals Microsoft's spotlight. Fair is fair I guess. :D

I won't betting get any new mac, but I hope you guys get your quad core i7's and blueray.

[jpefjr]

I kind of hope they don't put Blu-Ray drives in the iMacs. People say that PC'S have been doing this for quite some time now. I agree with that. But remember Apple is always about being innovative and not following the heard. Optical disk storage is a very old technology. Hard Drive space is so cheep now and Flash memory prices are coming down everyday. I believe that these are the technologies to work with and i think that apple is thinking this way too.

The only place that i could see Blu-Ray making sense is in a mac used as a HTPC

Just my 2 Cents. :apple:

And I hope they DO put Blu-Ray drives in Macs. I have a library of Blu-Ray movies and it's getting larger every day. I would like nothing more than to play these disks on my Mac.

I guess what I'd like to see move than the addition of BD drives to the new iMac is support for playing/ripping/burning Blu-Ray in the upcoming version of iLife 10, FC Studio/Express, and QT 10.

[polaris20]

So do I lol. I constantly have :

Windows 7 x64
Windows XP Pro
Ubuntu 8.04.

I admit, quad would be useful for that. But Apple really isn't looking to stick quad cores in from what I can tell.

That's almost exactly what I run on my MBP's, 'cept I run U9.04 and soon 9.10.

[danielwsmithee]

regarding wishlists:

1. CPU - apple could have released a quad for some time now. Why now when thay have waited for so long? I guess they think dual core is enough?I think the decision actually made sense with the Core 2 Duo vs. Core 2 Quads - now we are talking about Core 2 Duo vs. Core i7 Quad. That is a pretty big jump, Turbo boost, Hyper Threading, and and increased IO bandwidth of the i7 blow away the Core 2.

2. Memory - obviously they will stick with 2 slots. This enables 8GB ram...which is more than sufficient no?Yeah at an outrageous markup for 4GB memory sticks. I want 4 slots so I can put 4 2GB sticks in. That is 8GB for $200 instead of 8GB for $800.

3. Screen size - I would not mind a 30"-option.I wouldn't mind it either, but at that size screen I think I would rather get a separate display. The display would be half the cost of the machine.

4. The chin - I don't have the same problem with the chin like many others. Without it - it would not be "a desktop" - simply a screen. I just wan't it to line up with the LED Cinema Display so you can have two 24" displays side by side.

5. Blue-ray - especially if they release a 30".I don't care about blueray at all. I would prefer it not be included.

7. Graphics - always nice with options right :) But - the formfactor is probably more important for Apple.I agree.

8. Form - apple will probably try to make it thinner and slimmer. Probably making it suffer from expandability etc I think right now it is pretty ideal as far as thickness.

[Cletus989]

matte option please

[TheBritishBloke]

And I hope they DO put Blu-Ray drives in Macs. I have a library of Blu-Ray movies and it's getting larger every day. I would like nothing more than to play these disks on my Mac.

I guess what I'd like to see move than the addition of BD drives to the new iMac is support for playing/ripping/burning Blu-Ray in the upcoming version of iLife 10, FC Studio/Express, and QT 10.

Do you need Blu-Ray for the quality on the iMac, or because you already own them? As for quality, you wouldn't see much if anything different to a DVD on a small display..

[AidenShaw]

- Cinema (wide screen) displays!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.

Why do you want smaller displays?

(or do you mean 1.85 to 2.35 ratio displays or wider?)

[RHatton]

I'd settle for getting keyboards with numeric keypads on them again...

[beginnersview]

"...thin..."

We do not need the iMac to be any thinner.

Dear Apple -NOTHING- is gained by making the iMac case thinner, it just reduces space for desktop level components, and makes everything run hotter, and thus wear out faster.
(then again, maybe that is the idea??)

Please put design effort into faster components, more thoughput.

P.S. I do not care if it has a "chin" or not. I mean really, what is the big deal about that? The computer components have to go somewhere... all the peeps griping about how sad it is that iMac has a chin space are just putting design before function... an error (IMO) Apple has made too many times of late.
Last I checked, my computer is used to do things, not to be stared at while off for artistic contemplation.
Yes, fine, make them look good -- but functionality should always trump artsy design. in my book anyway. just my opinion.

P.P.S. ditto on the wide keyboard option... having worked on a client's new iMac with micro keyboard I find it woefully too small and I do miss the numeric keypad...

And DOUBLE ditto on bringing back the anti-glare, anti-reflective, matte screen option. I have installed an anti-reflective film onto a couple of Macs now (one from Photodon, other i do not recall), and while it definitely cuts reflection down, it would be so much better to have anti-refletion as a build/buy option directly.

[gkoop]

As far as I know, to date iMacs have not allowed an extension display.

Maybe now they'll make it so that the iMac mates up nicely with an almost identical looking LED Cinema display.

Or maybe they'll make it so that you can use the iMac as a display for your laptop.

Either, or both, could be handy.

[seashellz]

Im not sure we should put more into BR movie discs or players
according to Endgaget and VIDEOBUSINESS Q1,2 sales of BR to July 1 are abysmal;
despite being pushed like crazy BR's share of the pie is still 13% BR and DVD 87% market share

Even VOD/DDL are leaving BR WAY behind

1. DVD sales to date..........................$5 Billion
2. Video on Demand/DDL sales to date: $968 million (!)
3. BR sales to date.............................$410 million

[B]A truer pie graph would show:

1. DVD sales.........85%
2. VOD/DDL sales..11% (and this is really only just getting off the ground)
3. BR sales............4%

a ROUGH figure
Since a VOD/DDL purchase is generally a LOT less expensive that buying a BR-that means it took a MASSIVE number MORE buyers to hit that near to one billion sales figure
Now ALL optical media sales are down at about 4%
But that doesnt hurt DVD much-but it kill BR-even if sales are rising(......?)
They must be rising a LOT slower than if the economy where OK
But I think it may be too little too late

With this XMas expected to be the worst ever, and the economy dropping still
BR, already being heavily subsidized by a deeply ailing SONY, could bite the dust

When things get tougher in discretionary spending, DVD has the cushion of near a Billion already familiar-and installed players-no need for all-new equipment;
Not sure what BR share has but its probably miniscule and the nations wallets are pretty much locked shut on entertainment electronics

But the REAL death knell for BR is that the young upstart VOD sales are closing in on one billion in sales-which really came into its won in just this year;
And everyone and their brother are jumping into the VOD/DDL Market Google UToob Vuze Stars
DVD/VOD rentals far outstrip BR rentals by a lopsided 90-10%

http://a330.g.akamai.net/7/330/2540/20090728172111/www.videobusiness.com/contents/images/2009MidYearOverallPie.jpg

Maybe this is why APPLE has held off on BR-then again-it would still make for excellent storage-unless an even better format is on the horizon-
or THE CLOUD

I tracked BR marketshare on Endgaget until they took that chart down March 7, for obvious reasons as BR could never hold and defend more than 13% sales per week average,
in a pie graph of only DVD and BR

http://www.videobusiness.com/info/CA6673480.html

[danielwsmithee]

As far as I know, to date iMacs have not allowed an extension display. They have allowed it ever since the G5 iMac I believe. I know the current ones do, but I think the old G4s didn't.

[Moonjumper]

Do you need Blu-Ray for the quality on the iMac, or because you already own them? As for quality, you wouldn't see much if anything different to a DVD on a small display..

I can see a massive improvement in quality with a 1080P download compared to a DVD, part because it is displaying at it's native resolution on my 24" iMac. The fact that I cannot view my latest film purchases on any of my Macs is also a consideration.

I have a white iMac because I don't want to upgrade until there is a matt option.

So I would like LED backlit matt display, Blu-Ray, more power (it can get very slow when running Illustrator, even on the latest Macs), and a replacement mouse, preferably in the form of a large multitouch trackpad (could this be the Mac technology they are talking about in the original post?).

[Jimmetry]

Quad Core... Apple has a customer.
Dual Core... I'll stick with my old one.

[hayesk]

If they include a Blu-ray option on the new iMacs, I would like to have a Blu-ray option with burning for Mac Pros, as well, so that I can start backing up 50 GB of data to a single disc. It's sort of lame that this option is available on PCs but not on the Mac.

Uhm... you can go out an buy a Blu-ray drive today and use it on a Mac for data-burning purposes.

Blu-ray movies is the only part that's missing. I never watch movies on my Mac, so I don't really care.

[jpefjr]

Do you need Blu-Ray for the quality on the iMac, or because you already own them? As for quality, you wouldn't see much if anything different to a DVD on a small display..

Correct, I don't want it for the quality. I want it to watch Watchmen or Wall-E on my Macs because the only media I have for those movies is Blu-Ray.

[hayesk]

It is already thin enough, Apple. Nobody cares if it's any thinner. Nobody would care if it was a bit fatter. We do care about quad-core, blu-ray, and non-pathetic graphics.

I don't buy that. Many an iMac has been sold on the basis of "you mean that's the entire computer?"

Who is this "we" you are talking about? "We" is a small handful of geeks in a forum. While if you asked anyone, sure they'd say they want a faster computer, but the general public doesn't watch HD movies on their Macs, so blue-ray is out. The general public doesn't know what "quad-core" means so it doesn't matter as long as the computer is fast enough to do what they want.

[Jayomat]

It is already thin enough, Apple. Nobody cares if it's any thinner. Nobody would care if it was a bit fatter. We do care about quad-core, blu-ray, and non-pathetic graphics.

word! (although i wouldn't buy an imac anyway) but don't forget that most "consumers" don't do heavy work on their imacs (in regard of needed ressources) => apple doesn't need to speed them up....

[jaw04005]

They have allowed it ever since the G5 iMac I believe. I know the current ones do, but I think the old G4s didn't.

Yeah ... The second generation iMac G4's graphics card supported it. However, Apple blocked "extended desktop support" in firmware to force professionals to purchase the Power Mac. You could reenable it with a shareware hack.

[*LTD*]

I don't buy that. Many an iMac has been sold on the basis of "you mean that's the entire computer?"

Who is this "we" you are talking about? "We" is a small handful of geeks in a forum. While if you asked anyone, sure they'd say they want a faster computer, but the general public doesn't watch HD movies on their Macs, so blue-ray is out. The general public doesn't know what "quad-core" means so it doesn't matter as long as the computer is fast enough to do what they want.

This. Nice to see someone thinking *outside* of themselves and the little MR bubble.

[trip1ex]

Sweetness. Can't wait to see what it is the new one.

[bagelche]

They have allowed it ever since the G5 iMac I believe. I know the current ones do, but I think the old G4s didn't.

I'm using a G4 at work (public access TV) as a teleprompting machine. I have the VGA output running mirrored display to 15" LCDs mounted on the studio cameras.

3 years ago it was in one of our FCP edit bays. boy did that thing drag!

[Alfuh]

What am I missing with people wanting a Blu-Ray movie player? I watch movies on my TV ... do that many people really use their Mac to watch movies? And if you do how is the screen anywhere big enough to have a noticeable difference between DVD and BR? I never got that.
If they do come out with this upgrade soon and BR is included I hope there is a cheaper version w/o BR as I don't want it on my computer and I certainly don't want to pay for it.

[MattSepeta]

Speed! Power!

I use my iMac to do some pretty hefty graphic design work. At work. I also use it to do some pretty hefty video/photo editing. At home.

I bought an iMac because I wanted to be able to move it with ease between work/home on the weekends. It does awesome in this aspect, but I would really like to be able to cram 8GB in there so that it can run FCP, PSCS4, iTunes, and whatever else I may be trying to do at the same time with ease.

I would also like to see more ports on the back. 2 firewires would be nice so I could actually capture DV footage directly onto my firewire editing drive.


-Black-keyed keyboard. When i am using this stupid white keyboard for 60+ hours a week, I get pretty sick of seeing the keys slowly turn yellow and require a good cleaning.

-Matte screen would be sooo nice. The light from my office windows cause near-unbearable glares.

-Get rid of that freakin chin thing!

-Why so much bezel?

-unintegrated video!

-More USB ports! I currently have all full with an extra 4-splitter occupying one of them, and that is all full! I really hate using the keyboard ports.

PS- WHY do people want BD so bad? Like the above poster said, you would be hard-pressed to tell a difference on a 20" or 24" screen.

Why not do your computing on the Mac, and watch your Blu-Rays on your real TV, that is DEDICATED to playing movies?

[TuffLuffJimmy]

You don't need 50 GB for a decent rip/download. Ripping from DVDs is good enough unless you have a >50" HDTV screen and are sitting very close to the screen.

Why should I settle for something of inferior quality just because Apple doesn't want to provide a premium product?

[trip1ex]

yeah not sure I need thin. But it definitely will look cooler if it is thinner and they remove the chin.

Still a hard drive that pops out would be a nice feature.

[Bubba Satori]

Great news. Hope this is the beginning of a lot of new computers from Apple.

[iLunar]

Thinner is fine, as long as the hard-drive and RAM are user-replaceable (without voiding the warranty and needing a plunger to remove the glass).

[Takuta-Nui]

When do you think we will hear an event scheduled? I say October 20th.

My birthday. 0.0

Family iMac is gonna last at least a decade. That's our intention. So it'll be lovely to see the new design. I do hope the chin goes away. That has bothered me a bit ever since I started watching anime online.

[trip1ex]

Ability to use the screen as a monitor would be nice too.

10-minute battery so you can move your iMac to another outlet around the house.

HDMI or enable displayport compatibility with HDMI.

[dernhelm]

I want to know why they are spending their time working on a new iMac when all anybody really wants anyway is the new tablet computer!

Come on, apple!
:p

Thinner is fine, as long as the hard-drive and RAM are user-replaceable (without voiding the warranty and needing a plunger to remove the glass).

Amen.

RAM has always been a piece of cake. But recently I thought I might need to replace the HDD (thinking it was failing). I take apart windows systems all the time, and have all the tools, but getting into the internals of the imac to replace the HDD was just about more than I was willing to do. When part of the instructions are "grab a putty knife and work it around near the air vent until you unhook the latch - it might take you 5 or 10 minutes, don't give up, and don't force it or the case will hang funny for the rest of forever", you know they really don't want you replacing the HDD.

I don't expect to be able to replace the graphics, or plug new PCI Express boards into an all-in-1 computer, but it sure does feel like Apple could do SOMETHING to make HDD replacement a little simpler on these machines. A prosumer should be able to do it without voiding warranty, or causing permanent damage to the casing.

[mrkgoo]

What am I missing with people wanting a Blu-Ray movie player? I watch movies on my TV ... do that many people really use their Mac to watch movies? And if you do how is the screen anywhere big enough to have a noticeable difference between DVD and BR? I never got that.
If they do come out with this upgrade soon and BR is included I hope there is a cheaper version w/o BR as I don't want it on my computer and I certainly don't want to pay for it.

HD is about viewing distance. Monitors have a much higher pixel per inch resolution that televisions, so they can be viewed much closer up.

You're typically foot or two away from your monitor. You can easily see the difference at that distance.

Switch your mac to a 640x480 resolution and see if you notice a difference. Really though, you can't tell the difference between a 640x480 video or image vs a 1920x1080 video or image?

[Target362]

I want to know why they are spending their time working on a new iMac when all anybody really wants anyway is the new tablet computer!

Come on, apple!
:p

are you everyone :rolleyes:

[Man-Droid]

not everybody wants a tablet. I'm sure Apple will fulfill this desire soon enough for those that want it.

[Target362]

HD is about viewing distance. Monitors have a much higher pixel per inch resolution that televisions, so they can be viewed much closer up.

You're typically foot or two away from your monitor. You can easily see the difference at that distance.

Switch your mac to a 640x480 resolution and see if you notice a difference. Really though, you can't tell the difference between a 640x480 video or image vs a 1920x1080 video or image?

remember HD can be at any size, as long as the resolution is 1920x1080 you got HD. doesnt matter if its a small 16" screen

[djellison]

duplicate post

[CountBrass]

you saw it here first
^_^

Nah seen plenty of crappy photo-shopped images before.

[djellison]

PS- WHY do people want BD so bad? Like the above poster said, you would be hard-pressed to tell a difference on a 20" or 24" screen.

Why not do your computing on the Mac, and watch your Blu-Rays on your real TV, that is DEDICATED to playing movies?

Reason 1 - Data backup. Tell me another way to backup 50 gig in a non-magnetic medium?

Reason 2 - Movie duplicity - I want to buy/rent ONE disk. Not a DVD for a laptop or desktop, and then BR for the TV.

Reason 3 - Quality - I've watched BR on a 24inch Dell display. Utterly awesome.

Reason 4 - Authoring - What's the point in having apps like Encore that can publish to to BR format and FC / Premiere than can edit HD - without the means to throw it to disk?

Reason 5 - Choice. I want it. You don't? That's fine. Don't buy it. When Acer can sell you a laptop with BR reading for <£500. I added a BR writer to my PC desktop for <£150. It's about damn time Apple pulled their finger out and offered its customers this as an option.

And please - enough of the 'optical media is dead' nonsense. Bandwidth simply can not offer the quality of BR mastered footage via the internet. It needs an order of magnitude improvement without any increase in cost before we're there. That's a decade away.

[BAK]

can you say core i5

[Target362]

PS- WHY do people want BD so bad? Like the above poster said, you would be hard-pressed to tell a difference on a 20" or 24" screen.

Why not do your computing on the Mac, and watch your Blu-Rays on your real TV, that is DEDICATED to playing movies?

where have you been the last 10 years? Computers have been capable of playing DVD movies for over 10 years now. My familys first computer, that we got back in 1999 that had Windows 98 Second edition had a DVD drive bulit in.

plus what if your on a plane or in your hotel room and want to watch a movie instead of the crappy cable networks.

Reason 1 - Data backup. Tell me another way to backup 50 gig in a non-magnetic medium?

Reason 2 - Movie duplicity - I want to buy/rent ONE disk. Not a DVD for a laptop or desktop, and then BR for the TV.

Reason 3 - Quality - I've watched BR on a 24inch Dell display. Utterly awesome.

Reason 4 - Authoring - What's the point in having apps like Encore that can publish to to BR format and FC / Premiere than can edit HD - without the means to throw it to disk?

Reason 5 - Choice. I want it. You don't? That's fine. Don't buy it. When Acer can sell you a laptop with BR reading for <£500. I added a BR writer to my PC desktop for <£150. It's about damn time Apple pulled their finger out and offered its customers this as an option.

And please - enough of the 'optical media is dead' nonsense. Bandwidth simply can not offer the quality of BR mastered footage via the internet. It needs an order of magnitude improvement without any increase in cost before we're there. That's a decade away.

+1

couldn't agree more.

[yg17]

I kind of hope they don't put Blu-Ray drives in the iMacs. People say that PC'S have been doing this for quite some time now. I agree with that. But remember Apple is always about being innovative and not following the heard. Optical disk storage is a very old technology. Hard Drive space is so cheep now and Flash memory prices are coming down everyday. I believe that these are the technologies to work with and i think that apple is thinking this way too.

The only place that i could see Blu-Ray making sense is in a mac used as a HTPC

Just my 2 Cents. :apple:

There is probably nothing out there more reliable and durable than an optical disc. Hard drives can die on their own even if you handle them properly, and while flash is more reliable, it's sometimes prone to problems. But optical discs? As long as you don't play frisbee with them, with rare exceptions, your data will be there when you need it. They're not going away anytime soon.

[jeznav]

Except bluray movies are way better quality than downloaded movies and they can be 50GB in size. So what moron is going to fill up their hard disk with 50GB movie files?

I hope they do put bluray in, it's pitiful that it isn't there already.


I noticed a lot of people commented, "I hope they don't put the blu-ray in or VOD is better or optical discs is old technology or they will come up with a better format better than blu-ray....", whine, etc.

As for other mac users, "I need blu-ray to back up, to watch, author, etc." And yes there are people who need them.

Thus, hoping that they put or not put blu-ray into macs does not make any compromises to users needs. Therefore, whats likely to happen if Apple decides to implement this drive, is that it will be an OPTION.

The only problem Apple has is DRM,HDCP,licensing, etc. Therefore you cannot playback blu-ray movies on the mac. It doesn't mean the drive is useless. Snow Leopard and even Leopard has drivers to read/write to blu-ray disc. Final Cut pro users, Adobe encore users can author BD disc. Whats is cumbersome is there is no dedicated BD player on osx, giving you the only option is to Bootcamp to windows to playback the content.

[jaw04005]

I don't buy that. Many an iMac has been sold on the basis of "you mean that's the entire computer?"

Who is this "we" you are talking about? "We" is a small handful of geeks in a forum. While if you asked anyone, sure they'd say they want a faster computer, but the general public doesn't watch HD movies on their Macs, so blue-ray is out. The general public doesn't know what "quad-core" means so it doesn't matter as long as the computer is fast enough to do what they want.

You could make that argument for every high-end feature Apple rolls out across their products.

How many consumers need Firewire 800, Bluetooth, 802.11n wireless or DisplayPort? Yet all those features are still included.

[sam10685]

Does Anyone think these are just rumors?????

Of course. That's why this site is called MacRUMORS. :rolleyes:

[Cheffy Dave]

Ok,OK
Blue Ray Burner, QUAD CORE CLARKSFIELD, and a 27" LED to hide it all.
all in the High end one of course, and I'll take 2 please:eek:
This doesn't mean I am forgetting about the Mac book Air, does it honey?, (you have to call them Honey after 40 years of marriage)

[djellison]

can you say core i5

You can SAY it. But i5 is quad core, not dual core.

[Siemova]

Since a number of people have stated theirs, here's my fairly-reasonable-but-probably-not-gonna-happen wishlist:

Quad-core i7
Current, mid-range, discrete GPU
LED-backlit display with matte option
Extended keyboard with black, backlit keys
USB 3

My aging iMac G5's logic board fried a few months ago. With Nehalem around the corner, instead of settling for currently-available technology, I decided to make do with sharing my wife's PC, hoping something close to the above would be released by the end of the year. Guess we'll see...

[iMacmatician]

So... who thinks Clarksfield? Who thinks (yet another) Penryn update? Both? Anything else?

[sushi]

Reason 1 - Data backup. Tell me another way to backup 50 gig in a non-magnetic medium?
Understand your point.

However, I would not want to take the time to burn the BluRay disks needed back up a 500GB HD let alone a 1TB HD. Especially if I did this on a regular basis such as weekly.

It's much easier, cheaper and faster to back up to an external HD.

[Target362]

Understand your point.

However, I would not want to take the time to burn the BluRay disks needed back up a 500GB HD let alone a 1TB HD. Especially if I did this on a regular basis such as weekly.

It's much easier, cheaper and faster to back up to an external HD.

who backs up an entire HD on a disc.

[jaw04005]

Aesthetic revisions aside, the late 2009 iMac line should also debut several features previously unavailable to Mac buyers.

...

Meanwhile, a pair of other associated enhancements -- one believed to be related to audio -- should see this new generation of iMacs become the most versatile ever, according to another group of people who declined to elaborate because they were not authorized to discuss matter in detail.

AppleInsider is generally on the money. What are the two new features? Other than HDMI, the only two features I can think of that aren't available to consumer Mac buyers are quad-core and Blu-ray.

The audio-related feature is interesting though. I say Apple will hold an event somewhere near the Windows 7 launch of Oct. 22.

[cvcc13]

Does Gizmodo have a mock up picture for this?

[MacApple21]

Yes! I'm really hungry for some new Mac hardware releases/progress.

Wonder if there's going to be a special keynote for this... (a la when the unibodys were introduced).

I'm absolutely starving for some refreshes in the Mac department. Yes new iPhones and iPods are fine, so are tweaking and renaming the MacBook's also. But there is not much meat on it.

The last substantial launch was the Unibody MacBooks, but it's a year ago now, so a iMac refresh now would be appropriate, considering we are getting closer to Christmas. And a Keynote where Jobs actually presents something substantial is very welcome.

[daveinbuffalo09]

I am sorry but I can't get excited for Blue Ray which is already an old technology. In fact, some laptops are now being released without optical drives. Thinner is great for a notebook, but I'd rather have a thicker imac with a new quad core in it. At least then a $600.00 Dell would not out perform it.Dell has just released the new intel i7 mobile quads in it's Alienware notebook.

[johnrs]

About a week ago I was ready to order my first iMac when I read the rumors about a new iMac that might be due in the next few weeks so am holding off till the end of oct. If one comes out this is what I would like to see

1. New GFX (was looking at the ATI 4850 card) Seeing as GFX cards have moved on leaps and bounds it would be nice to see a better gfx card to make the iMac compete better
2. i5 or i7
3. LED display would be nice
4. Great if the put one in. No big loss if not

I guess time will tell

[sushi]

who backs up an entire HD on a disc.
Personally, I clone on a weekly basis. Complete not incremental.

It takes a few hours as it is over FW800. I would not consider backing up to Blu-Ray discs.

My point is that I don't see Blu-Ray being used to backup data. I do see it useful for watching or creating movies for those who desire that capability.

[Shake 'n' Bake]

I want:

Core i7 or Core i5; not mobile, the real thing.

New form factor; something as radical as the iMac G3 and G4. You could probably get a Core i7 in an iMac G4-esque enclosure.

Larger displays; keep the 20'' and its specs, but put in 4 GB RAM and a larger HDD. Add either 26'', 28'', or 30'' models.

Lower price; if what I described above comes true, the 20'' will be $799 or less, 24'' starting at $1000.

LED display.

BD-RW drive.

What I think we'll get:

New form factor.

Prices starting at $999.

LED display.

BD-RW on highest model, option on second highest.

[old-wiz]

It is already thin enough, Apple. Nobody cares if it's any thinner. Nobody would care if it was a bit fatter. We do care about quad-core, blu-ray, and non-pathetic graphics.

My thought exactly! let it be a bit thicker and give us better components instead!

[Fastshutter]

It's too bad Apple isn't the type of company that offers its customers decent choices, so that you all can pick what you want. It's insanse that everyone argues about which features should be included when every other hardware vendor offers what you want/need (except the OS).

Why do apple fan boys clamour all over a company where the only constant is disappointment?

[TsMkLg068426]

That looks pretty hawt.

Or just base it on this:

http://www.apple.com/displays/

http://images.apple.com/displays/images/home_hero20090828.png



I am bit confused, is this going to replace the iMac? Plus apple site does not say what other features it comes with (like DVD or Blu-Ray which I doubt Blu-Ray is added to soon to know. Plus how many USB connections, firewire and if it has HDMI). I am guessing this was just put up on apple and there will be more info on it. I am bit shocked the price is only $899 DAMN! Never expected that price from Apple. I still got a iMac 5,1 which I upgraded from 10.4.11 Tiger to Snow Leopard 10.6.1 but serious a lot of memory hog like iTunes and safari which Safari I switched to 32 Bit and still a lot of memory is being used. Yes sadly its only 1 Gig of memory with a ATI Radeon X1600 Graphics card, EFI 32 Bit, Intel Core 2 Duo and Pioneer DVD Burner Superdrive.

I am guessing that there will be updates to fix the issue with the memory hogging or not.

I probably misread the info on the Led Cinemas so I will go back to Apple site and reread again.

[guitarlord]

As with most peoples posts I would like to see quad core for the price an apple system usually is.

However I would say as software gets more efficient in its coding and performance (think Snow Leopard and Windows 7 compared to Vista) is it really that important - dual core is probably fine for a long time?

Typically a quad core would be used for gaming or video editing. If you are a serious gamer I doubt you would buy an iMac and while there are many people editing videos on apples not everyone seriously needs the power, again if you did a mac pro would probably be being used.

Im not saying a quad core is a bad idea - I would like it, but I know my dual core system doesn't have any problems doing complex audio production although most of the work is done by the soundcard.

[yg17]

I am bit confused, is this going to replace the iMac? Plus apple site does not say what other features it comes with (like DVD or Blu-Ray which I doubt Blu-Ray is added to soon to know. Plus how many USB connections, firewire and if it has HDMI). I am guessing this was just put up on apple and there will be more info on it. I am bit shocked the price is only $899 DAMN! Never expected that price from Apple. I still got a iMac 5,1 which I upgraded from 10.4.11 Tiger to Snow Leopard 10.6.1 but serious a lot of memory hog like iTunes and safari which Safari I switched to 32 Bit and still a lot of memory is being used. Yes sadly its only 1 Gig of memory with a ATI Radeon X1600 Graphics card, EFI 32 Bit, Intel Core 2 Duo and Pioneer DVD Burner Superdrive.

I am guessing that there will be updates to fix the issue with the memory hogging or not.

I probably misread the info on the Led Cinemas so I will go back to Apple site and reread again.
Err...that's just the Cinema Display. There's no computer in that thing.

[dernhelm]

are you everyone :rolleyes:

It was a joke (hence the :p).

It was meant to be funny.

[Hamsterz]

Not bad! I would assume they would add a little black on each side as well to even it out but whatever they do to reduce the Leno effect I'd be happy.

I have been diagnosed with the swine flu for the 3rd time this year, so lets make this a quick one!
I think it will look almost just like that and I think they should keep the chin but maybe add some functions: volume control, lightning, etc.

Heres what I think the specs may be: (Notice Im skipping between several socket kinds, IE they would have too have different motherboards)

$999 (around) 20 inch
Core 2 Duo 2.93/3.06
4 or 8 GB of DDR3
LED Backlit display
2 x16 PCI slots for SLI graphics (Yeah, I want a mac gaming machine baddly. Dual 295s please.)

$1199 24 inch
Core 2 Duo 3.o6
12 GB ddr3
2 x16 pci
backlight...


$1499
Core 2 Quad 3.06 (E6500 is it?)
12 gb of DDR3 or 24 GB...
Same specs of the rest

$1899 ( know, weird price point)
Core 2 Wensldale or whateve the new i7s are
3 way SLI option with dedicatd sound card
24 GB DDR3
30 inch screen

$2499 (highest model) 30 inch screen LED
Intel i7 920 -- thicker design because desktop components
3 way SLI
Option to water cool and factory overclock
32GB ddr3 option
Dedicated sound



Oh yeah, that was a dream, sorry.:apple::apple::apple::apple::apple:

I would spend all my savings to get the 2500 buck model though

[old-wiz]

Ability to use the screen as a monitor would be nice too. ...
HDMI or enable displayport compatibility with HDMI.

Surprised no one else has thought of that yet. Not just use the screen as monitor, but treat video in as just any other input, then we could do lots of things.

[jeznav]

Even VOD/DDL are leaving BR WAY behind

1. DVD sales to date..........................$5 Billion
2. Video on Demand/DDL sales to date: $968 million (!)
3. BR sales to date.............................$410 million
...



Hmm, Thats interesting...

Well I do like the convenience of VOD/DDL, but where I live(Canada), we have the worst ISP. Not only that, its the only nationwide that has monopolized all services(cable,internet,mobile) and virtually there is no better competition. So as citizens we are stuck. As for internet, we have 4 computers, 2 are bandwidth hogs (mostly to watch video sites). My connection is 3Mbps and an allowable 60GB per month U/D. Thats 2GB per day. On average we use 1.7 GB per day, occasionally 8.3 GB. A typical recompressed BD quality download is around 7GB which I watch on my home theatre.

This month, I've been uploading a lot of HD movies, downloading royalty free HD video backgrounds for a project that I'm doing, and as a result I got to my 60 GB cap in less than two weeks in. So now I have to wait until this month is over to finish my uploads. My family is now depending on my iPhone(ironically from the same carrier as my ISP) which I tethered to my mac mini to share its 6GB of internet. No joke!

Now as for our family movie night on fridays, I have an unfinished download. We just went old fashioned, rent a movie just a few blocks away, and still is convenient. :)

[MattSepeta]

where have you been the last 10 years? Computers have been capable of playing DVD movies for over 10 years now. My familys first computer, that we got back in 1999 that had Windows 98 Second edition had a DVD drive bulit in.

plus what if your on a plane or in your hotel room and want to watch a movie instead of the crappy cable networks.



+1

couldn't agree more.


If I am in a plane or in a hotel room, I would certainly NOT have my iMac (topic of conversation) with me.... putting it in a laptop is an ENTIRELY different story.

I do understand that BD would be nice for data backup. That guy made a rock solid point. But correct me if I'm wrong, one could buy an external BD r/w for far cheaper than I'm sure Apple would deem appropriate to charge for the optional BD drive inside the iMac.

I will be pretty pissed if Apple DOES decide to include the mandatory BD drive in the iMacs, charging a ridiculous premium for a feature that tons of people do not want or need.

The standard consumer does not want blu-ray. In 2008 only 4% of Americans had BD players. This year, i THINK it was at 7%. At this rate, by the time Blu-Rays are viable, I HOPE that there is a new option (STREAMING. FLASH. etc...) that cannot get scratched into oblivion if not babied, rendering the DRM heavy Blu-Rays obsolete.

If it were an option, I would have no problem with it. I sure would not get that option.

[KindredMAC]

Blu-Ray....

... no I'm not clamoring for Blu-Ray in the new iMac....

I just wanted to make sure that people can see HOW TO SPELL IT CORRECTLY!!!!!!!!!

[Brien]

I've actually gotten used to the chin, but it'd be nice if they finally got rid of it. Blu-ray would be nice, and I'd assume that the Mac Pro would get it around the same time.

thinner means no quad core then? disappointed if true, as even Dell studio laptops have options for quad core processors

I'm starting to get sick of Apple's obsession with "thin". It's a desktop. It really doesn't matter, IMO, how thick it is.

I think i5/i7 chips are a given, as are larger HDD/RAM configs.

[TsMkLg068426]

Err...that's just the Cinema Display. There's no computer in that thing.


Sorry, I was just bit confused but thank you for answering so fast. So I am guessing the new iMac will still cost $2000 LOL! Damn! Oh well we will wait and just see how good this iMac is going to be. Plus the people who want Blu-Ray added or don't, well the reason I believe Apple did not add it like previously said, because the Blu-Ray DVD sales are not high as much as DVDs plus they probably were waiting to see improvements in Blu-ray. I asked Bose company if they are going to ever release a Blu-Ray system and they said not until its 100% good or whatever. I wonder what is going to happen once Blu-Ray players come out with 3D playback. What is Apple going to do than, you know what I mean.

[Gmaster]

It is already thin enough, Apple. Nobody cares if it's any thinner. Nobody would care if it was a bit fatter. We do care about quad-core, blu-ray, and non-pathetic graphics.

Amen!

[Shake 'n' Bake]

I've actually gotten used to the chin, but it'd be nice if they finally got rid of it. Blu-ray would be nice, and I'd assume that the Mac Pro would get it around the same time.



I'm starting to get sick of Apple's obsession with "thin". It's a desktop. It really doesn't matter, IMO, how thick it is.

I think i5/i7 chips are a given, as are larger HDD/RAM configs.

I totally agree.

I think the "new form factor" is going to be just getting rid of the chin.

[Brien]

Yeah, and hopefully they get user-accessible again.

Honestly, I think I'm going to be stuck buying Mac Pros from now on (or Xserves).

[abhimat.gautam]

I hope that the keyboard with the numeric keypad doesn't go away.

[ppnkg]

right

can we please have a new mighty mouse as well?

[rkusa]

I'm on the verge of having to buy a Mac Pro and 30" monitor in about a week or so. I hope they announce a 30" LED with matte display option and a good graphics processor. If they announce an iMac like that in the next 7-10 days, I'd buy it. Quad Core, more RAM & more FireWire would be nice, but not essential. I really don't want to buy a behemoth like the Mac Pro, but I can't work in my studio with the glare of the glossy iMac--I've tried. And I'd miss the built-in iSight if I got the 30" display.

I'd love a backlighted keyboard, too, even if it was an upgrade option.

[EagerDragon]

I love my iMac, but the old mouse needs to be replaced with a multitouch interface. I'd rather have the small footprint and large screen real estate of the iMac with a multitouch capable trackpad somehow.

I think I read somewhere that one of the makers of pen tablets was accepting now finger gestures.

[lanceh5]

I wonder if this will be a Nehalam processor? An i5 or i7 would be great.

[corinhorn]

I want to know why they are spending their time working on a new iMac when all anybody really wants anyway is the new tablet computer! I sure as hell don't want a tablet.

[InfoTime]

Blu-Ray....

... no I'm not clamoring for Blu-Ray in the new iMac....

I just wanted to make sure that people can see HOW TO SPELL IT CORRECTLY!!!!!!!!!umm, actually it's:

Blu-ray

[shawnathan]

They have allowed it ever since the G5 iMac I believe. I know the current ones do, but I think the old G4s didn't.

If you run Screen Spanning Doctor (http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/15401), you can extend the desktop on the G4.

[Lesser Evets]

PLEASE get rid of the chin.
PLEASE make the hard drive swappable.
PLEASE lower the price.

That's all.

That thin stuff bugs me too. If this thing is a screen with 4" behind it, that's fine. It's not going anywhere.

[Sabon]

As far as I know, to date iMacs have not allowed an extension display.


Then I better stop using it on my Nov '06 24" white iMac. :)

[djellison]

one could buy an external BD r/w for far cheaper than I'm sure Apple would deem appropriate to charge for the optional BD drive inside the iMac.

But one could not use it to play BR media - as long as Apple continues to pay out the 'world of hurt' crap. Furthermore - not much point in mastering BR media, if you can't pop it straight back in again to actually test it.

[RazHyena]

I want to know why they are spending their time working on a new iMac when all anybody really wants anyway is the new tablet computer!



No thanks. We need faster macs, not useless toys. :D

[corinhorn]

right

can we please have a new mighty mouse as well?
+1. I love the current mighty mouse when it works, but the scroll ball always craps out after 3 weeks of use and the mouse needs replaced. I've gone through 4 in the past year.

[MattSepeta]

But one could not use it to play BR media - as long as Apple continues to pay out the 'world of hurt' crap. Furthermore - not much point in mastering BR media, if you can't pop it straight back in again to actually test it.

Again, If one is at their iMac, they are no more than a stones throw away from a REAL TV. Probably twice as big as their mac, considering the mac crowds techno-infatuation. With a couch. And a coffee table to boot, so you don't need to worry about spilling your beer on your iMac ;)

Sure, BD drive would be NICE, but is it NEEDED? Not for most consumers, I imagine. It would be another whistle. Or bell. Whatever.

I realize that I cannot speak for ALL potential customers, I just feel that most of them (people who have never been to macrumors, or even heard of it) would have no use for this EXPENSIVE gizmo to be added on.

Another thing, I would hope apple would incorporate it into the Mac Pro before it puts it into an iMac.

My own two cents.

edit*
You can get a blu-ray player at walmart for ballpark $150. I would take that any day over being able to sit at my desk chair by myself and watch a blu-ray.

[magicbumone]

blu-ray drive upgrades are cheap today

If Apple sells it as an option it won't be!

[gmcalpin]

I'd love to see a multitouch keyboard for the iMac. If they offer blu-ray, then there would have to be an OSx update to allow it to play blu-ray discs. If it would work with older iMacs like from an external blu-ray drive it would be nice.

Why not just get a Bamboo?

http://www.wacom.com/bamboo/bamboo_pen_touch.php

Except for three- and four-finger gestures (which I personally don't use often), this seems like a terrific option.

Besides, wouldn't you want the touchpad to be in front of your keyboard without making the whole thing a foot long? A Bamboo seems like a better option than a keyboard with a touchpad built in, at least to me.

Again, If one is at their iMac, they are no more than a stones throw away from a REAL TV. Probably twice as big as their mac, considering the mac crowds techno-infatuation. With a couch. And a coffee table to boot, so you don't need to worry about spilling your beer on your iMac ;)

The 24" iMac is higher resolution than any 1080p TV... Bigger isn't necessarily better.

[msmith2112]

+1. I love the current mighty mouse when it works, but the scroll ball always craps out after 3 weeks of use and the mouse needs replaced. I've gone through 4 in the past year.

I agree! I finally got fed up and ordered this (http://www.gulker.com/hidden-from-pages-sidebar-list/review-the-targus-mac-line/) today.

[shanmugam]

1)
Intel Core 2 Quad processor Low Power Desktop (LGA 775)
Q9550S (12M L2 cache, 4 Cores, 4 Threads, 2.83 GHz 1333 MHz FSB 45nm) $320
Q9505S (6M L2 cache, 4 Cores, 4 Threads, 2.83 GHz 1333 MHz FSB 45nm) $277
Q9400S (6M L2 cache, 4 Cores, 4 Threads, 2.66 GHz 1333 MHz FSB 45nm)$245
Q8400S (4M L2 cache, 4 Cores, 4 Threads, 2.66 GHz 1333 MHz FSB 45nm)$213

this line of CPUs better in Watts/Heat and $$$
but LGA775 is going to EOL soon

2)
Intel Core i5 processor Desktop (LGA 1156)
i5-750 (8M L3 cache, 4 Cores,4 Threads, 2.66 GHz 45nm) $196 - 95W

Custom Core i5 CPUs - 65 Watts - socket 1156 just started has another 3 to 5 years

3)
Intel Core i7 processor Extreme Edition Mobile (FCPGA8)
i7-920XM (8M L2 cache, 4 Cores, 8 Threads, 2.00 GHz) - $1,054

Intel Core i7 processor Mobile (FCPGA8)
i7-820QM (8M L2 cache, 4 Cores, 8 Threads, 1.73 GHz) - $546
i7-720QM (6M L2 cache, 4 Cores, 8 Threads, 1.60 GHz) - $364

Mobile Core i7 are expensive - socket m989 has started has another 3 to 5 years life

well, another three to four weeks we will know what apple decides!

[djellison]

Again, If one is at their iMac, they are no more than a stones throw away from a REAL TV. Probably twice as big as their mac, considering the mac crowds techno-infatuation. With a couch. And a coffee table to boot, so you don't need to worry about spilling your beer on your iMac ;).

You seem to be confusing a house, with a multimedia production office.

All I want is what my PC workstation offers. The ability to read and write, and watch, BR, for £150.

[MattSepeta]

The 24" iMac is higher resolution than any 1080p TV... Bigger isn't necessarily better.

Correct.

But lounging on a couch with the feet kicked up surrounded by friends/family IS better than sitting at your desk with your face 2 feet away from the screen. You'll melt your eyes out! :confused:



"All I want is what my PC workstation offers. The ability to read and write, and watch, BR, for £150. "

Another point I made. Knowing Apple, if they include this Blu-ray drive, they will charge a very ridiculous price for it!

[brendu]

I really do expect to see the new 'mouse' bundled or optional with this new iMac to be essentially an enlarged MBP silver-coloured 'glass' multi-touch trackpad. It will be wired rather than BT.

Ive been thinking the exact same thing lately. Replace the unMighty Mouse with a nice solid multitouch pad and id scoop one of those up for my imac in a heartbeat.

[djellison]

Another point I made. Knowing Apple, if they include this Blu-ray drive, they will charge a very ridiculous price for it!

If they do - then I will continue to not buy Mac's - at work, or home, for desktop solutions.

[oldwatery]

I'd buy an iMac if it looked like that :P

Me too...that is very smart.

[danielwsmithee]

I'm using a G4 at work (public access TV) as a teleprompting machine. I have the VGA output running mirrored display to 15" LCDs mounted on the studio cameras.!That would be mirroring, extension was blocked on the iMac and iBook back in the day.

[The Samurai]

I hope this story is true - and that blu-ray is available on them.

I might just be the only one who doesn't see anything 'physically' wrong with the iMac (i.e. chin).

[AidenShaw]

P.S. I do not care if it has a "chin" or not. I mean really, what is the big deal about that?

Aside from aesthetics (and the old chin was ugly, the new one is just camouflaged), the chin puts the monitor too high.

Experts recommend that the top of the monitor be at eye level - that's hard when the monitor is pushed up 120mm by the chin.

http://z.about.com/d/ergonomics/1/5/A/-/-/-/goodpcmonitor.jpg http://ergonomics.about.com/od/office/ss/computer_setup_2.htm

http://a330.g.akamai.net/7/330/2540/20090728172111/www.videobusiness.com/contents/images/2009MidYearOverallPie.jpg

I love how your chart shows that BD sales are up by +91% - by far the fastest growing segment!


The ability to read and write, and watch, BR, for £150.

Just for the record, the TLA is "BD", not BR. The logo is a "BD"...

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/1/14/Blu-ray_Disc.svg/201px-Blu-ray_Disc.svg.png

[TennisandMusic]

Man...to all the people saying you can't see a difference between blu ray and DVD unless you're using a TV over 50 inches...

You either.

A) Are making excuses for Apple being years behind the times.
B) Have never in your life seen a blu ray on anything.
C) Have ridiculously bad eye sight.

Don't get me wrong, I don't care at all if Apple adds Blu ray or not. I don't watch movies on a computer. However to suggest it's "hard" or that (even worse) you CAN'T see any difference on a sub 50" screen is completely absurd, to put it gently.

[TennisandMusic]

Another note...I find this news extremely disappointing if true. Dual core? Again? Are they actually going to put out another C2D based machine when PC's are basically three generations ahead now?? (C2D->C2Q->i7->newi7/i5)

That is flat out embarrassing.

[mavis]

I jumped onboard in 2007 with the Aluminum design, and do not plan on upgrading until a quad-core iMac is introduced.

Same here. I've got a mid-2007 2.8GHz C2E with 4GB of RAM - all I'm waiting for at this point is quad-core.

[mtzalex]

Sooo...

Aside from the tech supremacy (which I love and use), the iMac is ALREADY THE PRETTIEST, COOLEST DESKTOP COMPUTER THERE IS... I haven't found a match yet of any other brand... And it's been so since 2007 (and even before, with the older models)

So, how make it better, industrial-design-wise?

[danielwsmithee]

Aside from aesthetics (and the old chin was ugly, the new one is just camouflaged), the chin puts the monitor too high.

Experts recommend that the top of the monitor be at eye level - that's hard when the monitor is pushed up 120mm by the chin.

http://z.about.com/d/ergonomics/1/5/A/-/-/-/goodpcmonitor.jpg Yeah that is fine for a shorty. For me even with a the chin I need to set my iMac on a few books to get the ergonomics correct. I hate to think how bad it would be with an LED Display. I guess if I sat on the floor instead of a chair the screen might be in the right spot.

[CapturedDarknes]

You don't need 50 GB for a decent rip/download. Ripping from DVDs is good enough unless you have a >50" HDTV screen and are sitting very close to the screen.

Actually if you've ever done a blu-ray rip, the main video file, no extras, subtitles, etc. are usually around 8-9 GB. Thus ripping lets say 20-50 movies as a lot of people have, would actually amount to a lot of space taken by someone's DVD library.

Like most people's comments, the thinness can't really get any better. I couldn't care less about quad-core, as a user said, most people don't use it anyway. Maybe an option for those who are so inclined to have one. As for the display, I would love it to match the current look of the LED display, and maybe it should have that shiny new display port they came out with along the UB MBP's.

As for blu-ray, I would love for a blu-ray player. I'm sure the Mac Pro will gain a blu-ray burner, and that will distance itself from the two. Maybe the iMac 24" will have an option for a blu-ray burner.

Overall, I am sick of this hp business laptop. I paid about the same amount as an iMac, and after just a year, it's crapping out. I bought a 3 year warranty from Staples, which covers everything, but it's still garbage. When these come out soon, I will happily purchase a 24" iMac and sell this off. Any takers? :D

[JoeG4]

Already in production? So much for i5 iMacs. :(

i7 Mobile? Nah that's too good for an Apple machine. I have a feeling the thinner one will look like a skinny cinema display and have a dual core Atom.

*shudders at the thought*

[scroto]

No quad core = FAIL! Apple has a huge hole in their desktop lineup with Mac Pro's starting at $2500.

[gianly1985]

Meanwhile, a pair of other associated enhancements -- one believed to be related to audio -- should see this new generation of iMacs become the most versatile ever, according to another group of people who declined to elaborate because they were not authorized to discuss matter in detail.

My wild guess about this: not only the new iMacs will resemble the ACD 24" in industrial design, they will also actually double as a 24" IPS Led monitor for PCs, Macs and consoles....they would be a great bargain (24" IPS monitors start from 500$-600$)...

[g00dbye]

Aside from aesthetics (and the old chin was ugly, the new one is just camouflaged), the chin puts the monitor too high.

Experts recommend that the top of the monitor be at eye level - that's hard when the monitor is pushed up 120mm by the chin.

http://z.about.com/d/ergonomics/1/5/A/-/-/-/goodpcmonitor.jpg

Haha. You serious with this graphic? "Experts recommend...". I mean people can easily adjust their office chairs to their preferred height. Nobody is going to NOT buy a cheaper,thinner, redesigned iMac because of its chin.

[Master Chief]

Man...to all the people saying you can't see a difference between blu ray and DVD unless you're using a TV over 50 inches...

You either.

A) Are making excuses for Apple being years behind the times.
B) Have never in your life seen a blu ray on anything.
C) Have ridiculously bad eye sight.

Don't get me wrong, I don't care at all if Apple adds Blu ray or not. I don't watch movies on a computer. However to suggest it's "hard" or that (even worse) you CAN'T see any difference on a sub 50" screen is completely absurd, to put it gently.
or D) Should really stop watching these low quality torrent downloads.

[Eidorian]

or D) Should really stop watching these low quality torrent downloads.Oh you can get 720p there and it's noticeable even on my MacBook. :p

[pr5owner]

If they include a Blu-ray option on the new iMacs, I would like to have a Blu-ray option with burning for Mac Pros, as well, so that I can start backing up 50 GB of data to a single disc. It's sort of lame that this option is available on PCs but not on the Mac.

lame? in what way? PC's always have the latest tech in them, Macs always get it last when its nearly out of date. i thought you would be used to it by now.

No quad core = FAIL! Apple has a huge hole in their desktop lineup with Mac Pro's starting at $2500.

huge hole? they have NOTHING AT ALL in the desktop line.

iMac = overpriced underpowered laptop pretending to be a desktop
MacPro = workstation (this is not even close to a regular desktop tower)
Macbook/MBP = laptop

Sooo...

Aside from the tech supremacy (which I love and use), the iMac is ALREADY THE PRETTIEST, COOLEST DESKTOP COMPUTER THERE IS... I haven't found a match yet of any other brand... And it's been so since 1997 (and even before, with the white model)

So, how make it better, industrial-design-wise?

this wall-e computer is cooler than any mac IMO
http://www.walyou.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/wall-e.jpg

[danielwsmithee]

There is really nowhere for Apple to go with a Penryn iMac. They could add blueray, make it smaller ... but that is about it. Pretty boring update if you ask me.

I hope if they do that the plan is to cut out the quad-core Mac Pro in January and provide Mac or iMac Phat that is quad core using the desktop i7s.

[tasteofyourlips]

Man...to all the people saying you can't see a difference between blu ray and DVD unless you're using a TV over 50 inches...

You either.

A) Are making excuses for Apple being years behind the times.
B) Have never in your life seen a blu ray on anything.
C) Have ridiculously bad eye sight.

Don't get me wrong, I don't care at all if Apple adds Blu ray or not. I don't watch movies on a computer. However to suggest it's "hard" or that (even worse) you CAN'T see any difference on a sub 50" screen is completely absurd, to put it gently.

EXACTLY what I was thinking. I don't get how people don't see a difference...

I would love to see a Blu-ray option, but I guess it isn't needed if you're thinking about the majority of consumers.

[pr5owner]

Man...to all the people saying you can't see a difference between blu ray and DVD unless you're using a TV over 50 inches...

You either.

A) Are making excuses for Apple being years behind the times.
B) Have never in your life seen a blu ray on anything.
C) Have ridiculously bad eye sight.

Don't get me wrong, I don't care at all if Apple adds Blu ray or not. I don't watch movies on a computer. However to suggest it's "hard" or that (even worse) you CAN'T see any difference on a sub 50" screen is completely absurd, to put it gently.

BS, you dont even need a 50" TV to see the difference, a freaking XGA resolution screen is good enough to see the difference in skin texture (DVD Vs BD)

you can see the actual POURS in people's skin on a good quality BD (iRobot) and you cant see anything on the DVD copy.

[Master Chief]

Haha. You serious with this graphic? "Experts recommend...". I mean people can easily adjust their office chairs to their preferred height. Nobody is going to NOT buy a cheaper,thinner, redesigned iMac because of its chin.
People at home might yes, but employers are responsible for you and your health. At least that's how things work around here.

OT: F*&^ me. I never ever want to do a remote installation of Snow Leopard again... which I tell you takes forever – over two hours already – and we're still not done.... Installing Mail. I'm so going to RIP this installation method.

[chewbaccacabra]

I'm excited to see whatever comes out but I'll wait for USB 3.0.

[Shake 'n' Bake]

Besides, wouldn't you want the touchpad to be in front of your keyboard without making the whole thing a foot long? A Bamboo seems like a better option than a keyboard with a touchpad built in, at least to me.


I don't know about you, but all my keyboards (computational and musical) are all longer than 1 foot. It looks like, from eyeballing, my white Apple keyboard and Dell multimedia (which is just stupid to say, because media is already plural) keyboard are both about 1.5'. My (original, BTW, a fact I'm very proud of for some reason) Bondi iMac keyboard looks to be about 1.25'.

Sooo...

Aside from the tech supremacy (which I love and use), the iMac is ALREADY THE PRETTIEST, COOLEST DESKTOP COMPUTER THERE IS... I haven't found a match yet of any other brand... And it's been so since 1997 (and even before, with the white model)

So, how make it better, industrial-design-wise?

I beg to differ. The new Alienware Aurora ALX has some really cool actively-controlled louvers; kinda like the spoiler on Porsches. And what is so technically supreme? iMac uses the same hardware as everyone else. There's nothing special about it.

http://i.dell.com/images/global/products/desktop-alienware/alienware-aurora-alx-superview-banner.jpg

Plus there's the iMac G4, which I believe is the second best-looking computer from any manufacturer to date, behind the G4 Cube.

And there was no iMac in 1997. iMac was introduced in 1998.

[bajee]

Like most people's comments, the thinness can't really get any better. I couldn't care less about quad-core, as a user said, most people don't use it anyway. Maybe an option for those who are so inclined to have one. As for the display, I would love it to match the current look of the LED display, and maybe it should have that shiny new display port they came out with along the UB MBP's.

Nobody is using quad-core? Quads are really made for multi-tasking/multi-processing, but now that Snow Leopard is out and have Grandcentral, even a single program can reap benefits with a quadcore chip, doubling the power / speed of a dual core machine. So everybody will use it

[splashnader]

Im not sure we should put more into BR movie discs or players
according to Endgaget and VIDEOBUSINESS Q1,2 sales of BR to July 1 are abysmal;
despite being pushed like crazy BR's share of the pie is still 13% BR and DVD 87% market share

Even VOD/DDL are leaving BR WAY behind

1. DVD sales to date..........................$5 Billion
2. Video on Demand/DDL sales to date: $968 million (!)
3. BR sales to date.............................$410 million

[B]A truer pie graph would show:

1. DVD sales.........85%
2. VOD/DDL sales..11% (and this is really only just getting off the ground)
3. BR sales............4%

a ROUGH figure
Since a VOD/DDL purchase is generally a LOT less expensive that buying a BR-that means it took a MASSIVE number MORE buyers to hit that near to one billion sales figure
Now ALL optical media sales are down at about 4%
But that doesnt hurt DVD much-but it kill BR-even if sales are rising(......?)
They must be rising a LOT slower than if the economy where OK
But I think it may be too little too late

With this XMas expected to be the worst ever, and the economy dropping still
BR, already being heavily subsidized by a deeply ailing SONY, could bite the dust

When things get tougher in discretionary spending, DVD has the cushion of near a Billion already familiar-and installed players-no need for all-new equipment;
Not sure what BR share has but its probably miniscule and the nations wallets are pretty much locked shut on entertainment electronics

But the REAL death knell for BR is that the young upstart VOD sales are closing in on one billion in sales-which really came into its won in just this year;
And everyone and their brother are jumping into the VOD/DDL Market Google UToob Vuze Stars
DVD/VOD rentals far outstrip BR rentals by a lopsided 90-10%

http://a330.g.akamai.net/7/330/2540/20090728172111/www.videobusiness.com/contents/images/2009MidYearOverallPie.jpg

Maybe this is why APPLE has held off on BR-then again-it would still make for excellent storage-unless an even better format is on the horizon-
or THE CLOUD

I tracked BR marketshare on Endgaget until they took that chart down March 7, for obvious reasons as BR could never hold and defend more than 13% sales per week average,
in a pie graph of only DVD and BR

http://www.videobusiness.com/info/CA6673480.html


You do realize that at this moment there are only about 300 BR titles available on the market. Compare that to well over 20,000 DVD titles that are available to rent or purchase. If you take into account that there are almost 65 different DVD titles for every 1 Blu-ray title you would understand that $410 million in sales is not bad. In fact if we were to do a simple little conversion and say that if blu-ray could double their production output to 600 titles they would be making $1 billion in sales with only 1/30th the market share. If you actually want to pretend that blu-ray is an old technology on it's way out then you don't understand the market.

[ditzy]

Have there been any announcements of an event? I can't see apple completely redesigning the iMac and then not having an event to launch it. They only do that with speed bumps. But then not sure how much notice apple give for events.

[bagelche]

That would be mirroring, extension was blocked on the iMac and iBook back in the day.

Sorry I wasn't clearer. The teleprompter output is not a direct mirror of the primary screen it is a "mirrored mirror" -- reversed for the on-camera teleprompter glass that reverses it again. got that? :)

I ran an available software patch to make the G4 iMac run a screen extension on the VGA output. So, technically the G4 is capable of it, but for some reason Apple chose to block it.

[tasteofyourlips]

Plus there's the iMac G4, which I believe is the best-looking computer from any manufacturer to date.


Really? That thing always reminded me of the damn Pixar lamp for some reason. I hated that one.

[Eidorian]

I beg to differ. The new Alienware Aurora ALX has some really cool actively-controlled louvers; kinda like the spoiler on Porsches. And what is so technically supreme? iMac uses the same hardware as everyone else. There's nothing special about it.I'm still a bigger fan of the P180 mini. I like the monolithic feel.

I got my tower up to 3.5 GHz last night and still reasonably quiet.

[brendu]

huge hole? they have NOTHING AT ALL in the desktop line.

iMac = overpriced underpowered laptop pretending to be a desktop Agree
MacPro = workstation (this is not even close to a regular desktop tower) Agree

You forgot their "consumer desktop Mac Mini"


Although I guess one could make the claim that the Mac Mini is just a laptop without the screen keyboard or trackpad

Also I dont see it happening but what if apple introduced the 20" entry level model at or under $999 by using the fastest Atom processor, a >200GB HDD 2GB ram and the 9400M graphics? then worked up to the C2D/i5/i7 whatever they used, 4GB ram (expandable to 8) more graphics / dual graphics options and easily upgradable HDD's for the more performance desktop model.

[PeterQVenkman]

If people can't see the difference in Blu-Ray, good for them. They can save the money and stick to DVD!

It sucks being able to notice the jump in quality, because now I don't want to go back. ;)


The new iMac BETTER be quad core. They would have an awesome place for an iMac running a Core i7, even if it was only the top of the line.

[danielwsmithee]

Really? That thing always reminded me of the damn Pixar lamp for some reason. I hated that one.The ergonomics on that iMac were the best though, you could move the screen up down, swivel, tilt ... I really hat not being able to adjust the height on Apple's current displays.

[tasteofyourlips]

The ergonomics on that iMac were the best though, you could move the screen up down, swivel, tilt ... I really hat not being able to adjust the height on Apple's current displays.

True. I completely agree with that.

[danielwsmithee]

If people can't see the difference in Blu-Ray, good for them. They can save the money and stick to DVD! I don't want Blue-Ray simply because I don't want to pay for it because I know I won't use it. It is definitely superior to DVD though, and I can see why people would want it. Hopefully they just make it a build to order option across the entire line.

[fhall1]

I hope the new iMac doesn't come out until next April or May.....why? Cause I just bought this one in June!

[TMay]

It's rumored that Steve Job's is working on it as we text. It's going to cost somewhere between $799 and $999, which seems high. The nice thing is that when you're not using it for a multitouch trackpad, you will be able to use it like an iPhone/iPod touch.

Cool...

/snark

[PeterQVenkman]

I beg to differ. The new Alienware Aurora ALX has some really cool actively-controlled louvers; kinda like the spoiler on Porsches.


If I was 15, it might be cool. Now I just want a computer to be quiet and stay out of the way. That Alienware is a beast that draws way too much attention in a room.

Motorized fins on top? Ugh.

It looks like it should have robots worshipping at it's base.


And what is so technically supreme?

The OS. ;)

[KindredMAC]

umm, actually it's:

Blu-ray

I was mainly getting at how many people were typing "blue".

[Xibalba]

i am ready to buy as soon as they are available...

and then pick up an apple tablet in early/mid 2010

i have been chugging along with my 07 mac mini with upgraded ram and hd but it is time to get more serious and i've been a' waiting for an imac for a while now...

[pr5owner]

Although I guess one could make the claim that the Mac Mini is just a laptop without the screen keyboard or trackpad

Also I dont see it happening but what if apple introduced the 20" entry level model at or under $999 by using the fastest Atom processor, a >200GB HDD 2GB ram and the 9400M graphics? then worked up to the C2D/i5/i7 whatever they used, 4GB ram (expandable to 8) more graphics / dual graphics options and easily upgradable HDD's for the more performance desktop model.

LOL a Mac Mini? currently in canada a macmini is $729, my coworker bought a full out GAMING Machine for $650 with a 4870 video Card.

how is a mac mini supposed to compare? a 9400 with shared ram? no HDMI with audio, non-upgradable (you can but you void your warranty)

also the Macmini being the greenest? BS, this is the greenest

http://www.desktoplinux.com/news/NS9153577198.html

even has HDMI and less than $400 for the most expensive model

[pr5owner]

I don't want Blue-Ray simply because I don't want to pay for it because I know I won't use it. It is definitely superior to DVD though, and I can see why people would want it. Hopefully they just make it a build to order option across the entire line.

dont want to pay for it? how much do you think it costs? laptops that are $600 have blueray drives in it. it couldnt possibly cost that much, or are you going by apple dollars?

they somehow think that 4GB of ram costs $240 << (lol from newegg it costs $50)
or that a 1TB drive costs $359 << (again, WTF 1TB drives can be had for $70)

you seriously need to open your eyes apple is just stealing every dime you make and you somehow are happy with it.

[Dwalls90]

One thing that many people are overlooking is the fact that Arrandale is technically dual-core. Many are concerned with the fact that because the rumors point out that the next iMac is dual-core, it's going to be Peryn. So doesn't this mean that Intel could give Apple priority with CPU releases (as they have in the past), and we could see Arrandale in the next iMacs?

[Eidorian]

One thing that many people are overlooking is the fact that Arrandale is technically dual-core. Many are concerned with the fact that because the rumors point out that the next iMac is dual-core, it's going to be Peryn. So doesn't this mean that Intel could give Apple priority with CPU releases (as they have in the past), and we could see Arrandale in the next iMacs?It's possible. Intel already has Arrandale in production. Apple might be getting the first batch of stock ages before anyone else.

Apple's numbers might be low enough compared to Dell/HP to get it this early.

[PeterQVenkman]

you seriously need to open your eyes apple is just stealing every dime you make and you somehow are happy with it.

Wait, I know you! You live under a bridge!

[Scottcop]

With USB 3 and SATA 6 around the corner, mind you there is always something around the corner !

[bigwig]

I'd be surprised if there were a Blu-ray option. The noxious hacks Microsoft had to add to Vista in order to get the Blu-ray Association's stamp of approval were well known destroyers of performance and reliability. Apple doesn't want to add those kludges to OSX.

[BAK]

You can SAY it. But i5 is quad core, not dual core.

your are correct i missspoke, this is what i was trying for: dual-core Arrandale Core i7 processor

[leomac08]

imac's r too expensive!


unless they drop to $1!


i will buy.....


maybe $5


but meh>!:D;););););)


i hope they have blu-ray, and super mega LED screens! that will make me blind...;)

[Bag of Hurt]

Unless they have a Matte option, none of the other wish-list upgrades matter to me. A glossy iMac is just unusable...except as a mirror!

And I think Blu-ray is still a bag of hurt.

[LukeHarrison]

Blu-ray....

... no I'm not clamoring for Blu-ray in the new iMac....

I just wanted to make sure that people can see HOW TO SPELL IT CORRECTLY!!!!!!!!!

Corrected. (lower case r's) :p

[jaw04005]

Really? That thing always reminded me of the damn Pixar lamp for some reason. I hated that one.

How do you not like the iMac G4? I still have mine, and every person that comes over (it’s the guest room computer) mentions how cool it is. The commercial for it was really good too:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYutehhGknI

I’m not sure if Ive will ever be able to top it. Speaking of the current iMac design, what’s hilarious is Jobs bashed essentially the same design when introducing the iMac G4. Then they released the iMac G5 a few years later (coincidentally he didn’t announce the iMac G5, Phil Schiller did as he was on leave from Apple).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMV6glb23kg#t=05m04s

Schiller introducing the iMac G5 and attempting to convince the audience that it was inspired by the iPod:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UL46PTX6Ps4