it all depends on expectations, how long does a piece of equipment last. a consumer durable items implies a lifetime of 6 years or so , I have a 60 plus year old ball-peen hammer that continues to function but for computers 5 to 7 years sounds about right given their current rate of evolution. plan for replacement costs
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Apple Developing iMac Pro With M5 Max Chip
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I just wiped and reloaded two 27" 2013 iMacs for a client, he doesn't know what to do with them, but he can't part with the quality of the monitor. That's the issue with iMacs. The 27" screen was so good!
same thing can be said about the 24" imac that can be an mac mini with a nice display....and still the larger imac always outsold the smaller one in general...27" imac was great, probably in sales right behind the mac mini and ahead of the 21" imac
I've been waiting for this for so long, and complaining about it not happening... but it's been so long that I dont want it anymore and think that the studio or mini with a display is just fine.
I've had most of the iterations of iMac. The all-in-one nature is great and it also allows Apple to control and optimize the design and hardware.
Altogether, have had a total of one issue with an iMac, an issue with the graphics card which was fixed under a warranty extension program. Other than that, they've been retired (put to other uses or given away) due to being superseded by technological advances as opposed to any failures, so that argument doesn't resonate.
Haven't bought an AS version because the screen size is just too small. 27" is the smallest size that would make sense for me and would prefer 32".
As long as the display is Retina and HDR, instant buy. The screens on the iMacs I've had have been stellar - even my 2019 Intel Retina remains excellent, although not HDR.
For those of you talking about Target Display Mode, check out High Performance Screen Sharing, it's great (and includes audio). Requires an AS Mac on both sides (client and server) and performs best with a decent local connection, but with HP screen sharing any concerns about being "stuck" with a display integrated with a computer have disappeared for me.
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While it's true Apple designs and develops lots of devices that never reach the market, heavily suspect they keep an eye on the economy and an new, bigger, more performant iMac may be something more attractive to buyers as opposed to the expensive combination of a Mac Studio and separate display, which can wind up being pretty spendy.
Altogether, have had a total of one issue with an iMac, an issue with the graphics card which was fixed under a warranty extension program. Other than that, they've been retired (put to other uses or given away) due to being superseded by technological advances as opposed to any failures, so that argument doesn't resonate.
Haven't bought an AS version because the screen size is just too small. 27" is the smallest size that would make sense for me and would prefer 32".
As long as the display is Retina and HDR, instant buy. The screens on the iMacs I've had have been stellar - even my 2019 Intel Retina remains excellent, although not HDR.
For those of you talking about Target Display Mode, check out High Performance Screen Sharing, it's great (and includes audio). Requires an AS Mac on both sides (client and server) and performs best with a decent local connection, but with HP screen sharing any concerns about being "stuck" with a display integrated with a computer have disappeared for me.
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While it's true Apple designs and develops lots of devices that never reach the market, heavily suspect they keep an eye on the economy and an new, bigger, more performant iMac may be something more attractive to buyers as opposed to the expensive combination of a Mac Studio and separate display, which can wind up being pretty spendy.
Because not every one needs a super powerful MacPro and even less can afford to buy one. On top of that the 24" iMac doesn't have a pro chip and is a smaller screen than what most professional people had with the 27" iMac.
Go into most graphic design studios around the world and they will be full of 27" iMacs. High end 27" iMacs came in at between £1800-£2500 and was the perfect amount of power and screen space also taking up much less physical space in the design studio. With the single power cable they are a very elegant solution for rows and rows of computers in a studio.
With the MacStudio it starts at £2500 and doesn't come with a screen. Apple expects you to pay £1500 for 10 year old display technology on top of that. So to get the equivalent of a 27" iMac today you have to pay £4000 instead. Which almost all of my colleagues in the design industry refuse to do so after waiting many years in the hope of a replacement they went and reluctantly bought MacMini's with pro chips and third party displays. So Apple has lost a lot of revenue because of this. I know next to no one that bought a MacStudio and I work in the industry they are supposed to be aimed at.
After I lost a $7,000+ investment in the last (Intel) iMac Pro, like many others reported online - due to a power supply failure that techs were unable to fix - leaving a beautiful 27" monitor component useless and of course all files on the SSD lost because they were encrypted to the hardware (I did have a Time Machine backup)... I will never buy an "all in one" pro machine again.
I love my 24” IMac, and use it propped with my laptop next to it for the most part. But it would be great to get any kind of larger iMac to satisfy those that seem to still want it (even though it will be inevitably priced higher than they want it). Mac Mini and Mac Studio are good options, but some want an all in one. Apple already makes the 24” iMac in tons of configurations, so I don’t see why they can’t make a few more.
took too long. I lost all interest. once you buy a studio display and realize how much easier it is to swap in and out Mac minis I see no need and I'm sure most of the population who wanted one of these 4 years ago did the same.
Remember that leaked memo from Tim Cook saying that he will focus and make it a priority to prevent leaks?!?
Yeah…it has actually gotten worse under his regime - case in point. We now have the entire device line up for the next 2 years at least thanks to this leak. LOL.
The keynotes won’t be surprising anymore.
Yeah…it has actually gotten worse under his regime - case in point. We now have the entire device line up for the next 2 years at least thanks to this leak. LOL.
The keynotes won’t be surprising anymore.
Rumors are that there are "new" Mac Studio Displays coming. The two first generation Mac Studio displays I have hanging on the wall in front of me work just fine with the M1 Ultra just below them. When they no longer work, I will replace them (could last longer than me at age 80) with the current technology of the day.
There will always be hubs supporting the earlier USB-C formats even if the "latest" Mac Studio uses some new faster technology. If the specifications of a M5 Ultra are really enticing, one may appear on my desk. It would cost thousands more than the over $7,000 I paid for the fully loaded M1 Mac Studio.
All of the "M4" processor family gear we acquired last year (2024) for me, my wife, her four daughters and a granddaughter (7 laptops, 2 Mac mini, iPad Pro and one iMac)will not roll over and play dead next year or the year thereafter.
There will always be hubs supporting the earlier USB-C formats even if the "latest" Mac Studio uses some new faster technology. If the specifications of a M5 Ultra are really enticing, one may appear on my desk. It would cost thousands more than the over $7,000 I paid for the fully loaded M1 Mac Studio.
All of the "M4" processor family gear we acquired last year (2024) for me, my wife, her four daughters and a granddaughter (7 laptops, 2 Mac mini, iPad Pro and one iMac)will not roll over and play dead next year or the year thereafter.
best use was workplaces, much easier to convince a boss to buy an iMac than a studio and a 5k display on top of it.
There are some things that Apple doesn't compromise on; here at MacRumors we all know this. If (and that's a big if) they finally produce a next generation iMac Pro, I'm confident that it'll have a 32" 6K display. And it will cost quite a pretty penny. Now, I'm not saying that previous iMacs were necessarily "cheap" or anything like that... but nonetheless, some of us who were the perfect target audiences for the 27" 5K iMacs may well find ourselves priced out of this new market.
I would suggest that this is why the 6K iMac is still in experimentation and hasn't come to market yet. Apple knows their audience better than anyone else, they've likely already run all of the numbers, and they know within several thousand or so how many units they'd be able to sell.
As for me: I've pretty well decided that my next Mac is almost certainly going to be a Mini. And I'm okay with that. Of course, I'll still drool over that new 6K iMac. If it ever makes an appearance, commercially.
I would suggest that this is why the 6K iMac is still in experimentation and hasn't come to market yet. Apple knows their audience better than anyone else, they've likely already run all of the numbers, and they know within several thousand or so how many units they'd be able to sell.
As for me: I've pretty well decided that my next Mac is almost certainly going to be a Mini. And I'm okay with that. Of course, I'll still drool over that new 6K iMac. If it ever makes an appearance, commercially.
The iMac always comes in a bit cheaper up front than buying the equivalent Mac plus a high-quality Apple display. Especially when you factor in that it comes with input peripherals which would retail for over $200 separately. The downside of course is that the upgrade path is more annoying in that you have to replace the whole unit instead of just the CPU. You save a bit up front and get a very tidy package complete with color-matched accessories, but it's more expensive to update later.
I will say this, though. They hold their resale value decently if you take care of them and do the upgrade in a decent amount of time. Last year I sold my last iMac M1 for ~60% of the price of a new iMac M4 with similar specs.
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Yes please. For all of Apple's "earth mother" greenwashing this alone would be an actually environmentally (and consumer-) friendly move.
I’d consider this depending on specs/price.
What would be hilarious is to compare the last Intel iMac Pro to an M5 Mac version. It would be a bloodbath while also running substantially cooler.
What would be hilarious is to compare the last Intel iMac Pro to an M5 Mac version. It would be a bloodbath while also running substantially cooler.
They need to get rid of the chin. All screen and just that.