Am I the only one who prefers the Studio to an iMac?

[BotchQue]

My issue with the iMacs (have a 2007 and a 2015) is that the OS is no longer supported, the last OS in the '15 won't be accepted online by my bank nor even Wikipedia (!) so now I have two perfectly good monitors (one excellent) that can't be used.
So I went the Studio/ASD route last year; once my CC cooled off, was perfectly happy with the setup. I can foresee replacing the Studio once or even twice more in this lifetime, but I should be good with the ASD for the remainder. Yeah, there will be better monitors in the future, but the incremental improvements anymore pale to my own eyesight degradation (I just replaced my 13-year old LCD TV with a new Sony OLED, and while I love the deeper blacks and thin bezels, I otherwise can't see much picture improvement; growing old ain't for sissies).

 

[transmaster]

I have favored Samsung monitors since the 1990's. Thunderbolt connectivity is not important to me My system all works through My Yamaha AVR, and HDMI. I like curved monitors. My current monitor is a 24 inch Curved Samsung I purchased back in 2017. It is a 1080P unit but it is starting to develop screen artifacts.

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[klky]

When I was still using my 27" iMac in 2021, the Mac Studio and Studio Display didn't exist. I enjoyed using it but the Studio setup suits me much better. I'll never go back to an iMac though I suspect Apple is done with this product line beyond the 24" model.

 

[transmaster]

It is funny, and I knew this would be the case, The Mac Studio has been upgraded to the M2. I don't care I am perfectly happy with my M1 Max and will be for years to come. In the PC's I assembled I never went for the latest and greatest in motherboards or CPU's I got the performance I wanted for a lot less money. With Apple it is basically unless you are a extreme power user there is no need to upgrade an Apple computer until Apple stops supporting it.

 

[Ryand123]

When I was still using my 27" iMac in 2021, the Mac Studio and Studio Display didn't exist. I enjoyed using it but the Studio setup suits me much better. I'll never go back to an iMac though I suspect Apple is done with this product line beyond the 24" model.

I'll go even further. In the not too distant future I can see them discontinuing even the 24 inch iMac. They will release a 24 inch monitor which will be chepater than the Studio Display and say just get that and a Mac Mini instead.

 

[transmaster]

I'll go even further. In the not too distant future I can see them discontinuing even the 24 inch iMac. They will release a 24 inch monitor which will be cheaper than the Studio Display and say just get that and a Mac Mini instead.

What is going to take the iMac's place is a Vision "Air". You will wear your computer. As you predicted if you want a desktop you purchase a Mini or a Studio Apple will have LG monitors built to apple spec's available in the Apple Store.

 

[klky]

I'll go even further. In the not too distant future I can see them discontinuing even the 24 inch iMac. They will release a 24 inch monitor which will be chepater than the Studio Display and say just get that and a Mac Mini instead.

Perhaps. I think the value proposition offered by the iMac, along with the all-in-one, fuss-free setup is still very compelling to families who hold on to their computers longer and younger users who want something a bit more fun and affordable. The 27" makes less sense today with the more powerful Minis, the new Studios and Studio Display.

 

[trickster is meaningless]

I never owned an iMac, but it was on my radar as a “next machine” until I started working from home. Then I quickly realised a dual display with a kvm would be more suitable for me.

When iMacs had target display mode, it made more sense to keep the last machine as a monitor, but I dislike the idea of the e-waste, but I understand the technical limitations making TDM no longer possible.

I’m not planning on getting apple displays though, 1440p is fine for me at the moment. When one of my monitors dies, I might jump up to 4/5k but I don’t do photo/video work and don’t struggle for screen real estate at the moment.

 

[Mark200789]

2014 iMac i7 is the best computer I’ve ever owned. 9 years and it’s still a decent performer. I’m only grudgingly upgrading to the studio because of software support. My one problem with the iMac is that the screen suffered from some image retention. But replacing a $1500 studio display with the same issue out of warranty wouldn’t have been easier or prudent. Overall, I wish there was a similarly specked m2 max 27” iMac. I’d get it in a heart beat.

 

[yadmonkey]

Go OLED. Look absolutely amazing, and the technology is advancing, and fast. Once you've used an OLED monitor, you'll never go back to IPS.

What OLED do you use? Is burn in not a potential issue? I have had an LG OLED for 7 years and it's still brilliant, but I worry more about the potential for burning on a desktop because of static images.

 

[designerdave72]

2014 iMac i7 is the best computer I’ve ever owned. 9 years and it’s still a decent performer. I’m only grudgingly upgrading to the studio because of software support. My one problem with the iMac is that the screen suffered from some image retention. But replacing a $1500 studio display with the same issue out of warranty wouldn’t have been easier or prudent. Overall, I wish there was a similarly specked m2 max 27” iMac. I’d get it in a heart beat.

I upgraded my 2014 i7 to a Max in November due to needing more power, screen burn and most of all more memory. I booted it up yesterday to make it ready for selling and realised the difference. I too wish they continued the larger iMac but I guess we’ve got to get what they offer next. I wish my iMac would’ve held out until now and I would’ve bought the Max with 96gb but I can’t warrant a 20% speed increase over M1, the loss of money on a trade in and the fact that I’ll be in the same situation when M3 is announced!

 

[Mark200789]

I upgraded my 2014 i7 to a Max in November due to needing more power, screen burn and most of all more memory. I booted it up yesterday to make it ready for selling and realised the difference. I too wish they continued the larger iMac but I guess we’ve got to get what they offer next. I wish my iMac would’ve held out until now and I would’ve bought the Max with 96gb but I can’t warrant a 20% speed increase over M1, the loss of money on a trade in and the fact that I’ll be in the same situation when M3 is announced!

Let me know how selling that thing goes. Id love to sell mine, but with the screen burn I don’t know who would want it. What price are you going for?

 

[ErneX]

I had an iMac (2007) and it served me well for 10 years! But I also prefer the Studio now, I can use any monitors I want and replace them when something better/affordable is available.

 

[ErneX]

What OLED do you use? Is burn in not a potential issue? I have had an LG OLED for 7 years and it's still brilliant, but I worry more about the potential for burning on a desktop because of static images.

There are people using LG OLED TVs as PC monitors for quite some time with no issues. Not only you get the good stuff of OLED but if your computer supports it also variable refresh rate (gsync/freesymc or HDMI VRR).

They sell a 48inch model that’s better suited for this than the bigger ones.

 

[yadmonkey]

There are people using LG OLED TVs as PC monitors for quite some time with no issues. Not only you get the good stuff of OLED but if your computer supports it also variable refresh rate (gsync/freesymc or HDMI VRR).

They sell a 48inch model that’s better suited for this than the bigger ones.

Ah... I love my LG OLED TV and haven't had any issues after 6 years, but would still worry about burn-in on a desktop with far more static image use. Also 48" seems ginormous for my workstation. Have to think about that.

 

[ErneX]

Ah... I love my LG OLED TV and haven't had any issues after 6 years, but would still worry about burn-in on a desktop with far more static image use. Also 48" seems ginormous for my workstation. Have to think about that.

Newer models are more resilient to burn in and have better mitigations.

Agreed on the size, 48 is massive for a desktop but I’ve seen people rocking those 😅

 

[designerdave72]

Let me know how selling that thing goes. Id love to sell mine, but with the screen burn I don’t know who would want it. What price are you going for?

Be lucky to get £300 inc accessories 😔

 

[yadmonkey]

Newer models are more resilient to burn in and have better mitigations.

Agreed on the size, 48 is massive for a desktop but I’ve seen people rocking those 😅

I see they have that LG C series OLED in 42 inches. 🤔 It's inexplicably more expensive than the 48" but not by too much. Oh boy this is an intriguing option. $600 cheaper than the Studio Display.

 

[ErneX]

I see they have that LG C series OLED in 42 inches. 🤔 It's inexplicably more expensive than the 48" but not by too much. Oh boy this is an intriguing option. $600 cheaper than the Studio Display.

Oh I forgot about those. Just keep in mind it’s a 4K display and the Studio is 5K.

 

[pshufd]

Let me know how selling that thing goes. Id love to sell mine, but with the screen burn I don’t know who would want it. What price are you going for?

My previous 2014 iMac had image retention but it was only 20 seconds or so. My screen was typically static so it wasn't a big deal. I sold it last fall with a money back guarantee and I never heard back from them so I assume that they are happy with it. It looks like I'm buying a 2015 this evening and I asked about the screen and the response is that they hadn't noticed anything.

Screen retention may be important for some uses but I'd guess that those uses would need more CPU horsepower than you get from an old iMac.

 

[ErneX]

@yadmonkey one big advantage those LG OLEDs have over the Studio (besides being OLED which is already incredible) is that if you plug these to the new Macs with the HDMI 2.1 port like the new Minis or Studios you get 4K at 120hz with HDR. The Studio Display is 60hz.

 

[transmaster]

As I have pointed out elsewhere If you are using your Mac's for watching movies, streaming services, or music you really should look into an AVR. A really decked out 8K receiver will set you back about the same cost as a really good Radeon GPU. it add's so much to the mix. you can plug in Blueray players, turntables, Apple TV's, Roku, Amazon fire Stick, Chromecast. They have Bluetooth, Airplay2, Wifi, Ethernet. You get all of this all you need from the Mac is one HDMI connection. Depending on the Model AVR up 3 monitors. One of the sweet things about this setup is the GPU on the AVR does all of the GPU work, not your Mac.

 

[yadmonkey]

@yadmonkey one big advantage those LG OLEDs have over the Studio (besides being OLED which is already incredible) it’s that if you plug these to the new Macs with the HDMI 2.1 port like the new Minis or Studios you get 4K at 120hz with HDR. The Studio Display is 60hz.

This is what kills the Studio Display. I love the look, the built in webcam, the ability to change brightness from the kb. But with zero local dimming, HDR, and 60Hz it is painful at that price point. Not sure about how text looks on it. And while I am accustomed to 5K, honestly I'm finding the text is getting small for my aging eyeballs, so maybe 4K would be good in that sense?

 

[Velin]

What OLED do you use? Is burn in not a potential issue? I have had an LG OLED for 7 years and it's still brilliant, but I worry more about the potential for burning on a desktop because of static images.

LG C2 42-inch at the office. Not at all concerned about burn in. Working on upgrading home office now. The difference between OLED and the home iMac IPS panel -- I can't stand the IPS iMac anymore.

 

[pshufd]

I picked up the 2015 iMac 27, i5 3.2 Ghz, 32 GB RAM, 1 TB HDD, 2 GB Video card, and it has room for an additional cheap 16 GB of RAM. Also comes with the rechargeable wireless keyboard and mouse and charging cable and the original box. For $200. I asked him why he was selling it and he just bought a Studio to do 4k video editing. I think that he could have got $300 but it may have taken a month at that price.

So, to answer the topic of the thread, I like the Studio AND the iMac. Together.