Anyone actually happy with their iMac 5K ?

MacDanish · Feb 5, 2015

Hi everyone. I'm new to the forum, but have been a reader for quite some time, and having had Mac computers for the last 10+ years, I'm giving it a thought to change out my 2011 iMac for a brand new 5K machine.

However.. although I get the concept of why people often are on a forum, trying to solve their problems, sharing (bad?) experiences, it strikes me that there is a lot of moaning and complaints going on with the new iMac 5K. They may very well be absolutely justified, but I'm wondering - are there actually totally happy new owners here who's got no problems with the iMac 5K?

Surely you can push any machine to it's limits, fire 5K games at it and complain the GPU is getting hot and a fan kicks in while you try to put 8 steams of 4K YouTube video to work, but I think that's not what the iMac 5K is for. My needs are especially photography and their associated apps, 1080p video editing (for now), some light work and a game every now and then.

Before hitting the "Buy button" on a brand new iMac 5K, I'd love to hear if your expectations have been met, how happy you actually are, or are you?

Cheers and thanks for a good forum to read !

dyt1983 · Feb 5, 2015

edit: To remove personally identifying info not relevant to the conversation.

robgendreau · Feb 5, 2015

MacDanish said:
Hi everyone. I'm new to the forum, but have been a reader for quite some time, and having had Mac computers for the last 10+ years, I'm giving it a thought to change out my 2011 iMac for a brand new 5K machine.

However.. although I get the concept of why people often are on a forum, trying to solve their problems, sharing (bad?) experiences, it strikes me that there is a lot of moaning and complaints going on with the new iMac 5K. They may very well be absolutely justified, but I'm wondering - are there actually totally happy new owners here who's got no problems with the iMac 5K?

Surely you can push any machine to it's limits, fire 5K games at it and complain the GPU is getting hot and a fan kicks in while you try to put 8 steams of 4K YouTube video to work, but I think that's not what the iMac 5K is for. My needs are especially photography and their associated apps, 1080p video editing (for now), some light work and a game every now and then.

Before hitting the "Buy button" on a brand new iMac 5K, I'd love to hear if your expectations have been met, how happy you actually are, or are you?

Cheers and thanks for a good forum to read !

Maybe forums should have a checkbox for forum posts where someone could say "So I returned my [fill in blank] to Apple." Sort ONLY on those posts and you'd find people who really are dissatisfied.

I've been buying Macs of all sorts for home and office since the eighties. I never keep one more than a couple years before I get to move on, and I've even built hackintoshes and rehab'ed and repurposed old ones. I'd say the riMac is one of the best ever. Remember that it's only a regular iMac with a new display and display technology, but retina is HUGE. That's why it's on all the other machines. I'm sure you can strain it to it's limits (I've only once managed it, but I think gaming is better done on hackintoshes, PCs and consoles), but it's worth it. WELL worth it. I'd still go retina now even if it was guaranteed to melt into a pile of rubble in two years. I've got Apple Care.

There is simply no alternative to retina. And once you use, you can't go back to looking at news print like displays; it would be like a old cell phone.

roadkill401 · Feb 5, 2015

I am very happy with my new 5K iMac. As with everything there are bumps along the way but nothing that could not be overcome.

The first model I selected what a base i7 with 8gb ram and the fusion drive. Sadly the unit shipped out to me had an issue with it and the display kept on going to black and the unit would stay that way until you hit the power button on the back. This started happening within the first 2-3 days, and Apple was very helpful in testing it with me and the unit was returned under the 14 day policy.

The next parts are my own fault doing. I decided that rather than get the exact same model, that I would like to change some parts. I wanted 16gb ram from the factory as I wanted memory that was covered by apple care.

I also wanted to move to a SSD. But in doing this, I had to wait for apple to receive my defective unit, and process the return before I could re-order, as there is no way to change the replacement. So that added an extra 20 days to the process.

It turned out to my advantage however as I placed the order and it was going to take 4-5 days to get it built. On day 4, apple got a bunch of i7 Retina's into the refurb, and one had the 16gb ram and a 512ssd and was cheeper than what I had ordered, so I canceled the new system order and purchased the refurb. That added another 3-4 days to the shipping time.

The only issue that I have had was a 4-5 day period where iMessage didn't work on the machine. Apple fixed it and all is well again.

I use the machine with Photoshop CS6 and Lightroom 4. I run VMWare Fusion without any issues. The screen is near perfect, and I found that my Spyder 3 calibration couldn't really find anything wrong..

The machine is super fast and exceeds all my needs so far. I put in an external USB2 hard drive as I happened to have a case kicking around. it works great for VM's.

I would buy the same unit again in a heart beat.

steve62388 · Feb 5, 2015

Very. I'm pleasantly surprised I can run Elite Dangerous at 2560*1440 with all settings on max at 60fps (only dropping to 42fps in Stations). I have a M295X. I think that's pretty darn good for a new game and mobile GPU.

As with all things on the Internet it's the silent majority you're not hearing from that are no doubt happy too.

theSeb · Feb 5, 2015

When you go to the hospital don't be surprised to see sick people

kikote · Feb 5, 2015

I am very happy with my 5K iMac. I got the base unit and did extend the memory with 16 GB more RAM.

I am using it for web-development and also for processing photos and short HD-videos. It is a nice machine with plenty of power, that performs as expected... and the display is just FANTASTIC.

Resuming... Expectations habe been met and I would buy the same unit with the same configuration again

Brics · Feb 5, 2015

As always, wait for the 2nd gen.
Lots of problems with 1st gen apple products, i have to return 3 imacs till i got a good one. And i said a good one, not a perfect one (it still throttles the CPU during load due to temperatures, but all imacs i had do that, apple always uses crap cooling solutions).

WilliamG · Feb 5, 2015

Brics said:
As always, wait for the 2nd gen.
Lots of problems with 1st gen apple products, i have to return 3 imacs till i got a good one. And i said a good one, not a perfect one (it still throttles the CPU during load due to temperatures, but all imacs i had do that, apple always uses crap cooling solutions).

I've no idea what you mean as "always?"

I bought the 2012 iMac, that was really the first-gen of this chassis. Worked beautifully till upgrading to the 2014 iMac - which also has no issues.

I've bought every iPhone, every iPad, - and those too - no issues.

I also would not say that Apple always uses crap cooling solutions. Yes, the high-end 2014 iMac runs hotter than I think it should (though I'm not an engineer), but the 2012/2013 iMacs had brilliant thermals.

seroposi · Feb 5, 2015

Have the base version and could not be happier with it. May increase ram as and when though no rush.

ApfelKuchen · Feb 5, 2015

Bought one for someone else in the office - so far, not a peep of complaint (this is a heavy user of Adobe Creative Suite). Got 'em an i7, bumped up the GPU... no issues related to the hardware (there's the issue of a few legacy apps that won't run on Yosemite...)

There's a basic truth about all new model-related threads around here - a substantial number of comments are coming from people who are unhappy that it isn't what they want/need. You have to filter those from the actual owners.

In the case of this model, there are those who wish it was a single-CPU Mac Pro. There are others who wish it was a gamer's dream machine. It's not either. That's clear from the spec sheet and BTO options list. So if this isn't for you, is it really necessary to post, "It's not for me?"

Any product, manufactured by any company, is built with a target user in mind. If, say, if the 2016 Jeep Cherokee doesn't have the features of a Toyota Prius, will people rate the new Jeep a fail? Not likely. But around here...

cynics · Feb 5, 2015

MacDanish said:
Hi everyone. I'm new to the forum, but have been a reader for quite some time, and having had Mac computers for the last 10+ years, I'm giving it a thought to change out my 2011 iMac for a brand new 5K machine.

However.. although I get the concept of why people often are on a forum, trying to solve their problems, sharing (bad?) experiences, it strikes me that there is a lot of moaning and complaints going on with the new iMac 5K. They may very well be absolutely justified, but I'm wondering - are there actually totally happy new owners here who's got no problems with the iMac 5K?

Surely you can push any machine to it's limits, fire 5K games at it and complain the GPU is getting hot and a fan kicks in while you try to put 8 steams of 4K YouTube video to work, but I think that's not what the iMac 5K is for. My needs are especially photography and their associated apps, 1080p video editing (for now), some light work and a game every now and then.

Before hitting the "Buy button" on a brand new iMac 5K, I'd love to hear if your expectations have been met, how happy you actually are, or are you?

Cheers and thanks for a good forum to read !

People are complaining about doing things they used to do at resolutions they used to use and getting so much more heat.

Would you complain if you ran a benchmark at 1440p and it ran 20c hotter and benchmarked lower then an older iMac?

Thats the trade off for that beautiful screen. However when you spend a lot of money for the best you dont want it to have a "trade off". And thats why people complain.

I wouldn't have a problem with one. I can't justify getting one yet though since I AirPlay my iMac to my living room 75% of the time so I wouldn't get to enjoy that 5k screen.

Steveatesh · Feb 5, 2015

Base model for me but 16gig RAM.
My first Mac, I use ot for work stuff, general computing and photography.

No complaints, it's everything I hoped for.

You really have to take a lot of the negative comments on here with a pinch if salt, I've experienced nothing like them!

phpmaven · Feb 5, 2015

It's kind of counter-intuitive, but the reality is that a forum like this is probably the worst possible place to go if you want to get an unbiased opinion on any piece of technology. I've gotten pretty good at filtering out the "background noise" and getting some valuable information. I've been hanging out in forums and reading Amazon reviews etc.. for many years, and you get to where you get pretty good at weeding out the "chaff".

One big tip off is that the post/review is emotionally charged and makes use of extreme statements or dogmatic points of view.

By the way, I have the 5K and have had no issues that affect my opinion of this machine. I wouldn't hesitate to by it again and highly recommend it.

aevan · Feb 5, 2015

I am very happy with my iMac 5K. I have the base model, and it's great. Sure - it does lag in Mission Control and Preview sometimes, but otherwise it is really good, fast and silent/cool. It's really fast and the screen is all that it's hyped up to be.

It's simple. If you need a computer for art, design, 3d, video, etc. - you'll appreciate the screen and in that case, iMac 5K is worth every dime. If you're looking to game or you spend most of your time in bootcamp, there are better computers than this.

It really is all about the screen. I spend most of my time in Photoshop doing illustrations and having close to print quality in front of you while working is a game-changer. So, in other words, this is the best computer I've ever seen - for me.

hfg · Feb 5, 2015

I have one of the first shipment of machines with the max configuration (I added RAM), and I am very pleased with it and the fantastic display. I have tried to duplicate the issues presented here without seeing the problems in my particular machine, so there are variances with some production units.

pasadena · Feb 5, 2015

I love mine. The only thing I would do differently (maybe) is that I would get a bigger ssd (maybe).

Other than that, absolutely no regret whatsoever. This is by far the best machine I've ever had, and the most beautiful. I haven't had a single problem with it.

I don't do videos and I'm not a big gamer. I may play a few RPG now and then, but nothing fancy. My brother in law used it a while ago for some heavy photography photoshop (CS6) during a couple of 8hr days, and he loved it.

So yeah, if I had to buy it again, I would, without question.

Cape Dave · Feb 5, 2015

I love this computer. What a screen! It works with no issues. I did a fresh install, it was funky when I did a migration, which somehow went south and I did not notice.

I am a little worried about the heat in the Summer. But so far just fine. Never goes above default 1200RPM.

SD-B · Feb 5, 2015

I love it. Mind you I am not as technically inclined as most here but i haven't had any problems with it. Other than the odd small bug but i suspect thats Yosemite, not the iMac itself.

btw for anyone that might not have noticed, I just received, earlier today, a email from some apple refurb company I must have signed up for, before purchasing this.
They were letting me know about some new reforms but they had some 5k iMacs although they were all sold out by the time i looked.
I think they saved $450

No doubt other reforms will be coming up, for anyone interested

I just got mine with the Fusion drive and i still love it.
Mind you, I haven't yet used SSD but I am editing videos in 7 minutes (IF that!) that take me 45 on my 2011 MBP

monokakata · Feb 5, 2015

Mine is the top i7, 1TB SSD, 295X, and I added 16 gb of memory, for 24 total.

When I'm in Word or Scrivener or Excel or any text-based app, or on the web, or using FCP X or Avid MC8 -- I love it. The screen's everything I hoped for.

But in Lightroom or Photoshop, I don't like it so much. It's laggy. I like to slide the sliders faster than the screen can keep up, and that's annoying. My 5,1 MP that died had a 7970 and a Dell u2711 and there was nothing I could do that it couldn't keep up with.

There are some nagging Thunderbolt issues (I'm not the only one) and not every USB2 device has liked the USB ports, and there's something weird happening when I wake it from sleep (Firefox takes as much as 5-7 seconds to reestablish whatever internet connection it had; this doesn't happen with any of the other Macs in the house).

I've been very surprised at how little I miss a height adjustment. I was sure that would be a problem, but it hasn't been.

But . . . this screen is fabulous, it's quiet enough, and so all in all, I'm happy.

yjchua95 · Feb 5, 2015

I'm delighted with mine.

4GHz i7-4790K, 32GB RAM (16 from Apple and 16 from myself), 512GB SSD and 4GB M295X, complete with 3-year care.

Natzoo · Feb 5, 2015

I love it, probably the most modern graphics card apple has released into their products. I use it for photo editing and can finally take advantage of 4k videos.

onefish2 · Feb 5, 2015

Yes!!

MacDanish · Feb 6, 2015

Thanks all !

Thanks to all for your input, experiences and some witty and very true comments.

"Always skip the 1st gen" and "wait, there's a fix and upgrade in, what looks like, 2032 !" are of course the expected comments. I for one have the 1st gen MacBook Pro Retina, and could not be more happy with it. Don't expect a product to be 100% perfect - there is no such thing. Lot's of "issues" addressed are often related to software bugs, be it Yosemite or let alone third party software still not adopted to the massive 5K screen and it's resolution(s). For me it's a flash-back to when I bought my riMBP 1st gen. No regrets whatsoever.

Yes, it's a massive investment for most people, pulling the tricker on a base or fully loaded iMac 5K, and people expect absolute flawless and instant miracles. It's a brand-new technology having a 5K screen, and if you want it today, buy it today but dont moan about what it would be like in 5 years from now. Wait 5 years. That's the dilemma or fact with being an "early adaptor" with any new technology.

If you want to play games, buy/build a PC or get a console. The iMac is not built for gamers for but a general purpose as an "all-in-one", as someone rightfully said here. It's a 2K worth screen where you happen to get a slick and fast computer for an extra 400 USD for the base model. Add what you want and can afford and don't complain about it.

I personally can't relate to people unboxing their brand new 5K and the first some apparently do, is immediately start to benchmark everything possible, throw every third-party software on it to measure temps of CPU and GPU and push their new machine to the absolute limits and beyond. Why can't people just don't enjoy it..? Yes, there is always a faulty product here and there with anything, but especially Apple is more than well known for how they handle those things.

Why is it so hard to actually share good experiences with a product? People want to get excited about their new-born iMac, and if some have made a wrong choice, don't yell it from the rooftop but swallow your pride.

Again, thanks to all of you for your input. I'm pushing that "BUY NOW" button for sure, adding a few things, wait.. don't sleep for the time the delivery takes.. laugh hysterically for no apparent reason other than the expectations for when the UPS guy is at my door and I unbox - and enjoy. It's actually a lot more fun to.. enjoy.

AppleFan360 · Feb 6, 2015

I couldn't be happier with my 5K iMac. Just a joy to use. This place is a breeding ground for unhappy people but in reality, most 5K iMac users are satisfied. Heck, who wouldn't with a screen that requires a magnifying glass to see pixels. LOL

Anyone actually happy with their iMac 5K ?

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