Forgot one thing
No Ethernet
Video card at pci-e X8 at best.
Just hope that there is still an power port and that the mini and pro ships with at least 2 free USB-C to A cable or mouse + keyboard.
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Anyone else in fear that user replaceable ram won't be a thing on redesigned iMacs?
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No Ethernet
Video card at pci-e X8 at best.
Just hope that there is still an power port and that the mini and pro ships with at least 2 free USB-C to A cable or mouse + keyboard.
The 27" is effectively Apple's new "pro" machine (unless / until they ever get off their duffs and update the Mac Pro). So I think they'll keep the RAM as upgradeable as there is no downside to them for not doing so (yes, you can argue they'd do it to maximize profits, but they would have done it back in 2012 when they went to the new design if that was the goal).
I really don't know what to do. Thinking about an iMac and buying 32 GB third party ram. On the one hand the current iMacs are a year old - but on the other hand my fear is that they will switch so soldered ram on the redesigned models which would make them ridiculously expensive...
Please tell me that I'm crazy
You're not crazy. There is every possibility that the expected new iMacs will have soldered memory, and you won't be able to upgrade with 3rd party RAM. More still, there is also a chance that they will max out at 16GB, but this I can't be sure of.
USB-A will probably be replaced with USB-C as in the recent MBP.
SD Card Slot will disappear.
The price will increase.
etc.
Theses are predictions and I hope I'm wrong. In any case I just bought a retina 27" and will max out the RAM with 3rd party RAM and keep my array of external hard drives the way I have them right now. I nearly thought about the Surface Studio, but that's a whole other ball ache, but the point is I am becoming aware that this could be the last iMac I own. A maxed out 5K iMac today will last me for around 4 years, - I can continue working without uneccesary transitions and I can look at options in the future, but I can now see that my options might no longer be only Apple.
Chances are, the new iMac may not be a re-design, so there is still space to continue the current model with a few modifications and updates, but if they change the design again, it will no doubt be thinner, which unfortunately in Apple's case also means leaner, and not in a good way.
Does anyone want to buy an iMac 2012 with 32GB Ram?!!
Sorry, I don’t get your question...
My comment was simply an innocent, general observation in life ;-)
I meant that you switch to an all soldered approach on the lower selling items to see if it hurts sales.
I voted very likely. The mac mini was the guinea pig to see how people reacted to the idea. I'm guessing the 21" imac is a cert, the 27" 50/50. Time will tell
That's pretty much what I think. Although I think the 21" iMac is already there.
Wow...thanks for the update. Pretty sad stuff tbh.
All the best for tomorrow night Fat Jez, hope it's a good game.
Something like this would be the smartest thing they could do, which is why I don't expect them to do anything like this. They could come up with a very flexible, easily upgradable, no monitor system that covered from Mini users to Pro users within the same hardware platform and get rid of Mini, iMac and Pro lines. I've never liked all-in-one systems since the first Sun all-in-one I purchased back in the 1990s. If the Mini hadn't taken a nose dive in the last release my plan was to replace my iMac with a high-end Mini and a 3rd party high-end monitor or two.
The 21" iMac has been a sealed unit since 2012. While the RAM was upgradeable, you couldn't get into the machine to change it without removing the glued on screen and removing most of the internal components. I think 2015 was the first time the RAM was soldered on, but an ifixit tear down will confirm.
Thanks for the game best wishes, but as a rugby man I'm looking forward to the Scotland v Australia rematch on Saturday.
NOPE.
None of us know, but it's pretty certain that the All in One iMac lineage will continue.
I guess the problem Apple have with the iMac is that the screen is that good and the computing is that powerful - Enough for most mid-tier Pros (e.g. like me, a photographer) which is enough to cannibalise Mac Pro Sales.
The iMac is not good for Mac Pro sales.
This is what I think we'll start to see happening:
The iMac will go the same way as the MBP. Leaner, simpler, less sheer computing power and crippled RAM, meaning a 16GB MAX with no expansion). Thinner, no chin, USB-C all the way. Slightly bumped up MHz - more expensive. Wider Colour gamut, Faster SSD, possibly even touch ID/New Magic Keyboard. This will still be a capable machine, but just capped short of a pro spec.
Then, if you want more you will have to buy a *New Mac Pro - Increased performance, ultimately expandable, Superduper graphics cards, external Thunderbolt 3 yadda yadda yadda. It will again cost more, but that will be your pro machine.
The iMac started out as an "Internet Computer", became a very powerful desktop solution, and is now plateauing. It might be a good time for something new - I wouldn't be surprised if we see a whole move into proper cloud computing from Apple to take some of the load from the actual computer, for example. iCloud is so very near being a good and well implemented idea, but without it evolving into something useful, instant, collaborative, and accessible and immediate, I'm afraid all Apple will achieve is providing lower specified computers to their loyal customers while asking for more money for doing so.
If its plateauing, its because the market for desktops is shrinking, and also the competition is heating up. I don't think a different product type is needed, but rather like the MBPs a nice refresh with some innovative designs.
What about the Microsoft Surface Studio? I think Apple may just sell three MacBook Pros for all their Macs someday. They probably see 90% of their sales on laptops today.
That's something I think that will give Apple a good run for the money and that's why I mentioned that apple's competitors are catching up. I think that product is a great designed AIO, but its wicked expensive, so much so, its not something that the average user is going to be purchasing.
That was kind of my point, and kind of not too. I also don't think a different product type is needed - I just think that the iMac will be 'reduced' down to a more simplified, but still capable modern workstation and the Mac Pro will be re-instated as the workstation for professionals who need the power.
The competition is indeed heating up, and Apple will no doubt re-establish their intentions with their laptops and desktops.
Macbook to iMac - simplified everyman macs. Nearly expensive. Limited expansion throughout.
MBP to Mac Pro - simplified workstation macs geared towards pros. Highly priced. Ultimate expansion in the Desktop Mac Pro.
The Mac Pro is becoming more and more the edge case for what is generally defined as "professional desktop" computing in the Macintosh world. Which is why I think Apple has ignored it while concentrating what effort they do put into desktop computing into the iMac. Even today, on single-processor tasks an iMac will crush a Mac Pro and even more powerful Xeon CPUs aren't going to reverse that as Intel's design philosophy is that the i Series excel in single-core while the Xeon Series excel in multi-core.
So I expect to see more of the same - iMacs continuing to get more powerful in performing the tasks the significant majority of Macintosh users - casual, semi-pro, and pro - use while the Mac Pro goes a generation or two between updates.