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Apple Announces Lighter, Thinner iMac Models with Fusion Drive
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No audio input
Maybe as a nod to the first Mac Minis, the new iMacs have no audio input (just a single headphone jack). I guess most people must use USB or Thunderbolt to record audio. No Firewire ports, either.
Maybe as a nod to the first Mac Minis, the new iMacs have no audio input (just a single headphone jack). I guess most people must use USB or Thunderbolt to record audio. No Firewire ports, either.
I haven't had to use an optical disc to install an App on a Mac in years, way before the inception of the Mac App Store.
The most recent disc I own these days, with Mac software, has Snow Leopard on it.
On the tech. specs it says 'user accessible'. Wheather that means you can upgrade it or not is another matter.
CD drivers are so 2000
Yeah we'll see who comes out ahead few years if an EMP hits and your entire music, movie and photo collection is wiped out while we have physical engraved backups on discs.
Given it will be at least a $200 price hike to get the new model ($100 + Superdrive) and that there is no real speed increase I may just run out quickly and buy the existing model, keep it in the box as I ponder the decision even more.
Gorgeous machine.
Great specs (I for one am not disappointed about the lack of Retina at this screen size).
And god, does it make the Apple Thunderbolt Display look antiquated (update soon, I hope).
Great specs (I for one am not disappointed about the lack of Retina at this screen size).
And god, does it make the Apple Thunderbolt Display look antiquated (update soon, I hope).
I'm happy and sad at the same time, I would never guessed this update would be so devastatingly good and bad at the same time.
No firewire, not upgradeable unless at the Apple Store, no audio input jack (??), the Graphics Card just with 512MB. The list goes on.
I'm also sad for such a long wait and now I may (am considering for the first time since the wait begun - for me was 10 months ago) that maybe the previous iMac may be a better buy.
Also in my country the mid-21" is ~120 EUR more expensive compared to the previous one.
No firewire, not upgradeable unless at the Apple Store, no audio input jack (??), the Graphics Card just with 512MB. The list goes on.
I'm also sad for such a long wait and now I may (am considering for the first time since the wait begun - for me was 10 months ago) that maybe the previous iMac may be a better buy.
Also in my country the mid-21" is ~120 EUR more expensive compared to the previous one.
Yesterday's technology.
The mobile user of today has everything accessible via cloud, memory stick, downloads etc.
I would bet most people these days rarely use their drives.
Haven't needed one in 2 years.
I simply cannot wait until my new PC arrived in the next few days. After seeing this, I can't help but feel I have made the right decision.
With no optical drive, kind of defeats the whole point of an all in one. Yes I do use my optical drive, and quite a bit. At least its got thinner edges, just ignore the bulge around the back and the fact its a desktop.
With no optical drive, kind of defeats the whole point of an all in one. Yes I do use my optical drive, and quite a bit. At least its got thinner edges, just ignore the bulge around the back and the fact its a desktop.
If you want a refurbished PC with less ram, no USB 3.0, a worse screen, and a worse graphics card, go right ahead.
USB 3.0 is enough of a reason, to be honest. I would never buy a computer with USB 2.0 in this day and age.
I think finally that laptop principles applied to a desktop computer have gone too far.
I like the All-in-one aspect of the iMac for home, and some small business users, who don't upgrade often, and use the computer for more than 3 years. maybe they get their money's worth out of a built-in monitor.
Most business environments, the hardware needs to be swapped more often than the monitor does, and a very good monitor can last for two CPU upgrade cycles.
Mac Pro is ridiculously out of date. Mac Mini is nice, but not pro-grade. Maybe the new quad-core will start to edge into that, but probably still not dedicated graphics.
But now the iMac has gone too far to copy the MacBook Pro->Retina methodology. What is good for a laptop is not necessarily good for a desktop.
Weight isn't an issue. It sits on a surface. Thickness is not that big of an issue, either, ever since CRTs hit the dustbin of technological history.
Now it is just gratuitious thin-ness, at the expense of versatility and performance.
I would rather that the aluminum chin had gone away, and just been a screen, with a computer integrated into the back, with a thunderbolt jumper to a matching Cinema display, to offer two-matching-monitor usage.
I know Apple hates cabling, but fishing around behind a monitor, or disturbing the desk to turn the whole monitor, or iMac for ports, is TEDIOUS. and turning a 27 inch monitor is not a minimal space. It isn't as if they are in the base or something, and a USB, FW, or TB hub defeats the purpose of AIO.
The BIG thing is... they have now emphasized the hole in their desktop lineup that has been there for a VERY long time now.
Smaller and less overkill than the Mac Pro's old huge case, and often-unused redundancy (4 drive bays and 2 optical bays, and 4 PCI slots is a lot. Good for a few HIGH-power users, but most machines never see that much hardware expansion.
Larger and less minimalism than Mac Mini. Not laptop components.
Not integrated screen, and capable of dual or even triple external matching monitors, Apple or otherwise.
A Mini-tower.
Desktop/Server grade dual or quad core i7 processors, minimum, upgradeable to two physical processors with quad-core, or more.
Desktop/Server grade full-size DIMMS. 4 at least...not sure if 8 are really needed in a mini-tower, without upgrading to a larger full-size tower.
2 3.5" HDD bays, with hardware-RAID ready SATA controller.
1 2.5" HDD/SSD bay, also compatible with Apple's laptop SSD blades from the MacBook Pro Retina, with the SATA controller ready to implement "Fusion drive" between the SSD and HDDs.
1 optical drive bay, optionally blanked and unused, or used for additional HDD, or front-facing peripheral port array face-plate.
Dedicated PCI-E graphics card, possibly compatible with SLI bridging for upgrading to 2 discrete graphics cards in the aftermarket.
Replaceable internal power supply.
Full boat of back panel peripheral ports, USB3, 2x TB, a legacy FW800, and 2 ethernet ports.
That sort of mid-range machine, between the Mini and the Mac Pro, could do most of what people ask of the MacPro towers now, save for a very few that might use every inch of the big Mac Pro's internal capacity, and it would do more than the MacMini, and iMac can do, especially the new thin iMac.
This new thin iMac just emphasizes the hole in the lineup, under and including the Mac Pro tower.
I like the All-in-one aspect of the iMac for home, and some small business users, who don't upgrade often, and use the computer for more than 3 years. maybe they get their money's worth out of a built-in monitor.
Most business environments, the hardware needs to be swapped more often than the monitor does, and a very good monitor can last for two CPU upgrade cycles.
Mac Pro is ridiculously out of date. Mac Mini is nice, but not pro-grade. Maybe the new quad-core will start to edge into that, but probably still not dedicated graphics.
But now the iMac has gone too far to copy the MacBook Pro->Retina methodology. What is good for a laptop is not necessarily good for a desktop.
Weight isn't an issue. It sits on a surface. Thickness is not that big of an issue, either, ever since CRTs hit the dustbin of technological history.
Now it is just gratuitious thin-ness, at the expense of versatility and performance.
I would rather that the aluminum chin had gone away, and just been a screen, with a computer integrated into the back, with a thunderbolt jumper to a matching Cinema display, to offer two-matching-monitor usage.
I know Apple hates cabling, but fishing around behind a monitor, or disturbing the desk to turn the whole monitor, or iMac for ports, is TEDIOUS. and turning a 27 inch monitor is not a minimal space. It isn't as if they are in the base or something, and a USB, FW, or TB hub defeats the purpose of AIO.
The BIG thing is... they have now emphasized the hole in their desktop lineup that has been there for a VERY long time now.
Smaller and less overkill than the Mac Pro's old huge case, and often-unused redundancy (4 drive bays and 2 optical bays, and 4 PCI slots is a lot. Good for a few HIGH-power users, but most machines never see that much hardware expansion.
Larger and less minimalism than Mac Mini. Not laptop components.
Not integrated screen, and capable of dual or even triple external matching monitors, Apple or otherwise.
A Mini-tower.
Desktop/Server grade dual or quad core i7 processors, minimum, upgradeable to two physical processors with quad-core, or more.
Desktop/Server grade full-size DIMMS. 4 at least...not sure if 8 are really needed in a mini-tower, without upgrading to a larger full-size tower.
2 3.5" HDD bays, with hardware-RAID ready SATA controller.
1 2.5" HDD/SSD bay, also compatible with Apple's laptop SSD blades from the MacBook Pro Retina, with the SATA controller ready to implement "Fusion drive" between the SSD and HDDs.
1 optical drive bay, optionally blanked and unused, or used for additional HDD, or front-facing peripheral port array face-plate.
Dedicated PCI-E graphics card, possibly compatible with SLI bridging for upgrading to 2 discrete graphics cards in the aftermarket.
Replaceable internal power supply.
Full boat of back panel peripheral ports, USB3, 2x TB, a legacy FW800, and 2 ethernet ports.
That sort of mid-range machine, between the Mini and the Mac Pro, could do most of what people ask of the MacPro towers now, save for a very few that might use every inch of the big Mac Pro's internal capacity, and it would do more than the MacMini, and iMac can do, especially the new thin iMac.
This new thin iMac just emphasizes the hole in the lineup, under and including the Mac Pro tower.
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Flash sticks like rMBP. Not 2 x 2.5 drives.
HDD not likely to be upgradable b/c the chin and chassis are now 'fused'. The screen is also fused to the glass. Good luck opening that on your kitchen counter...
OSX determines what goes on SSD and what goes on HDD. This is not in the user's control, unless someone comes up with a hack.
Not a revolution
Been waiting months to replace a 4-year old iMac with failing hard drive and broken optical drive. Been living with a firewire external optical drive for months. So no change...
With no firewire port I will need a thunderbolt-firewire adapter for a range of peripherals (are there any adapters yet?). Maybe Moshi will bring out a replacement for their Firewire/USB hub. (and add an Optical drive)
So no change...
At least USB3 gives me more flexibility
Been waiting months to replace a 4-year old iMac with failing hard drive and broken optical drive. Been living with a firewire external optical drive for months. So no change...
With no firewire port I will need a thunderbolt-firewire adapter for a range of peripherals (are there any adapters yet?). Maybe Moshi will bring out a replacement for their Firewire/USB hub. (and add an Optical drive)
So no change...
At least USB3 gives me more flexibility
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This is a very bold new design. Not sure if it's my cup of tea though. Are they still using desktop CPU's?
Purchased the 27 inch 3,4 GHz i7 with 2GB video in the summer - looking at current specs and design I am happy I picked up what I have now - I dont give much for thin design, it stands on my desk and does not move. Other items are really nice-to-have rather than must-have.
Ouch!
Not the price increase I feared, but much worse: the cheapest iMac is now at 1.349 , 200 euros more expensive than the previous one!!!
This is the worst price increase we've seen, ever, and the end of an era.
Apple without Steve: definitely in it only for the money.
Not the price increase I feared, but much worse: the cheapest iMac is now at 1.349 , 200 euros more expensive than the previous one!!!
This is the worst price increase we've seen, ever, and the end of an era.
Apple without Steve: definitely in it only for the money.
I have to agree here. I think the iMac really stole the show. I was really wow'd by it. I'd have to buy an external superdrive when in a few years I get one of these iMacs. But that I am willing to live with.
No user replaceable ram in the 21.5 is much tougher to live with. But maybe I can manage if Apple don't price their ram too high. And if Apple put good brand ram sticks in there.
Ah, I should read more I guess then haha
Still being a PITA to get to really sucks. In my world they would have kept it the same size and took out the optical drive, but allowed the hard drives to be replaceable in that area very easily, and the ability to add a SSD obviously in there by yourself.
Never would happen but it would have been nice. Oh and it would have sold the same possibly more if they did go with that.
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Enjoy your 2011 model, because you are going to be using it the rest of your life if you expect either FW or optical to come back.
Everyone on earth knew both were gonners. How is anyone surprised?
You wouldn't have a computer to use those CDs in, if we get hit by that kind of EMP, my music and photos will be the last thing I am worried about...
Hmmm, wonder how much I can get for my still perfectly working G5?
Slightly under $ 500 depending on HD size , memory etc.
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Ouch!
Not the price increase I feared, but much worse: the cheapest iMac is now at 1.349 , 200 euros more expensive than the previous one!!!
This is the worst price increase we've seen, ever, and the end of an era.
Apple without Steve: definitely in it only for the money.
How about thinking a little?
Energy prices worldwide rising, transportation (freight) rising, raw material rising etc.etc. and you want a better product for the same price ?