Apple Expected to Launch New iMacs With Improved Processors and Display Quality This Quarter

[manu chao]

The good news is that if they do go back to Nvidia GPUs, Nvidia is actually releasing downloadable drivers that are much more performant than Apple's hyper-safe under performing drivers. (http://barefeats.com/gtx980ti.html) When is Apple going to realize that like Java... packaging GPU drivers with OS versions is a bad idea.

Interesting, the notion of never having to worry about drivers was one of main distinguishing features of Macs vs PCs. And the graphic card drivers Apple is shipping are written by Nvidia (and AMD), not by Apple. One systemic problem with Macs and graphic card drivers is that with PCs, the graphic card manufacturers have an interest in writing good drivers because that makes their graphic cards more appealing and thus drives sales. With Macs, since the user does not have a choice of graphic card brand, there is no incentive of writing good drivers, Nvidia and AMD only have to convince Apple not the end-user (in corporate environments Windows and PC makers fall into the same trap, Microsoft and PC manufacturers only have to convince the head of IT departments not the end-users).

I wonder if they're going to put some Thunderbolt 3 ports on refreshed models so that there could be a possible external GPU option. That way Apple can remain cheap while allowing users more flexibility for how they use their computers.

As much as I would like to see (easy to set up) external GPU options, I am convinced that probably only one in thousand of Apple users will ever use them.

 

[BillyBobBongo]

This is an iMac thread. Can we please move the talk of laptops to another thread? Thanks!

Easy now, should just be happy that this hasn't turned in to a discussion about iOS devices!

 

[DCIFRTHS]

Do you really want to pay a base price of $1,999 for a 256 GB SSD in a DESKTOP? Because that's what apple would do. You should ask them to improve and make the Fusion Drive standard.

There's no reason that a 2015 Apple computer should have a spinning HD in it. They are slower, noisier, run hotter, are more prone to mechanical failure. IMO, it's about time Apple did away with them.

If they are going to keep them around, then there should be a way for the user to replace them without voiding the warranty, or having to remove the damn SCREEN to get to it.

 

[wizard]

Plz just use OLED.

Please don't. Unless of course some of the issues with OLED can be over comed.

 

[manu chao]

Let's not include the fusion drive in that.

So you would prefer that Apple only offers the current SSD-only options (at their current prices), as well as adding a 2 TB SSD option for another grand, instead of offering 3 TB Fusion Drives (at their current prices)?

• A 27" (non-retina) iMac with 1 TB Fusion Drive costs $2000. Get a 1 TB SSD instead and you pay $2800.
• The same 27" iMac with a 3 TB Fusion Drive costs $2150. To get 3 TB in SSD storage via third-parties, you would pay probably about $1200 (three 1-TB SSDs + two external cases), combined with the base price of the 27" (non-retina) iMac of $1800 that makes $3000 (and that is with SATA-3 speed, Apple's internal PCIe-based SSDs are about three times faster). And you know that even if Apple radically slashed its SSD (or more generally storage space) upgrade prices, if will never match the cheapest third-party offering. Thus expecting to get 3 TB of SSD storage (in the 27" iMac used as a base here) from Apple for less than $3500, is totally illusionary. Thus you suggest that Apple drops the $2150 3-TB Fusion Drive option for a $3500 3-TB SSD option?

 

[manu chao]

There's no reason that a 2015 Apple computer should have a spinning HD in it. They are slower, noisier, run hotter, are more prone to mechanical failure. IMO, it's about time Apple did away with them.

There is no reason to pay for an SDD to store multiple GB of data in 2015 unless you really need fast access to them (eg, for video editing and even then a 6+ drive HDD RAID might be the better solution). For example, there is no reason to store music and movies on SSDs (except for backup purposes you never need access to them at high data rates) as long as you have space to add a HDD inside your computer. Even large raw files can be stored on HDDs with little penalty (if the rest of your editing uses SSDs).

 

[mrblack927]

But what I really want is a 21 or 23" 4K iMac... well what I really want is a user upgradable (RAM and storage) Mac Mini with discrete video, but that's not happening in my lifetime again.

This is my sentiment exactly. I'm waiting to see what they do with the (possibly redesigned?) skylake Mac Mini but I have a feeling it's going to be like a desktop version of the Macbook 2015 .

 

[manu chao]

Better display quality? I wonder how, since the current Retina iMac has the best display I have ever seen on any computer. It's perfect. Colors, viewing angles, saturation..

The iMacs (or any displays used by Apple) have never had wide-gamut panels so far. My $800 HP monitor from 2008 still has a noticeably wider gamut than the current iMac. Most mid-range and higher printers have significantly larger gamut than Apple's displays.

 

[62tele]

Someone needs to take Cook and Ive to one side and slap some sense into them about their obsession with "thinness" on desktop machines. They've taken it so far that they're actively choosing to make devices less user-friendly. I know I've mentioned it before, but because they are so obsessed with making the edge as narrow as possible, they moved the SD card slot on the iMac from an easily accessible side location to the rear, where you either have to turn the Mac around/to the side, stand up, or reach around under the unit, folding your wrist back trying to find the slot by touch. It's an idiotic decision, as anyone could tell you after a couple of minutes of basic ergonomic testing. I've actually had to go and buy a separate card reader as I got fed up with the hassle of trying to put the card from my DSLR into the back of the Mac.

Style has its place in design, but Ive particularly has got to the point of having a fetish about it to the detriment of useability. It's Form over Function taken to the extreme. Add in their desire to remove the ability for people to upgrade the simplest of components and you get to the point where you start to seriously p-off people.

You're absolutely right! Apple should discard this beautiful design for those hourly tasks like loading an SD card into the iMac. I hardly ever look at the back of my iMac. In fact, I rarely use thumb drives, SD cards or other such items because so much is done in the cloud or wirelessly. I do admit that I must attach my Apogee Duet for recording in Logic X and it takes so much effort that it wears me out. The ergonomics are awful. How will I survive?
At each step of Apple's design process when they've removed some hardware, like the DVD drive for instance, folks have whined and complained. Then one day, you look up and realize that you don't miss it.
I don't want a bulky desktop or a bulkier all-in-one. I want compact. I'm willing to sacrifice certain things, including more powerful processors. It's plenty powerful as it is and serves many people well.
However, you're right. Ive's obsession is clearly misplaced. He's horrible. Who does he think he is? Why does he made "idiotic" decisions.

 

[manu chao]

Because it's been 3 years now since the last design refresh and if you go through Apple's history, they tend to redesign every 3-4 years.

There however might a lengthening of the cycle to about 5 years.

 

[wiz329]

Currently, even when they stick a half-way decent GPU into the computer, they have to throttle the clock on them so that Apple's sub-par chassis thermodynamics can handle the heat. (I'm looking at your iMac 27" retina and new Mac Pro)

iMac, yes. New Mac Pro, no. That machine has excellent performance, both thermally and acoustically.

 

[manu chao]

Currently, even when they stick a half-way decent GPU into the computer, they have to throttle the clock on them so that Apple's sub-par chassis thermodynamics can handle the heat. (I'm looking at your iMac 27" retina and new Mac Pro)

I have never heard about the new Mac Pro throttling because of GPU heat.

 

[Glideslope]

For God's sakes Tim, climb down from your mountain of money and make ssd's standard on new Macs!
As a professional beancounter I'm sure you just love 5400 rpm spinners but the rest of us don't.
It 2015 for crying out loud.

"Hi, Tim here (impression). We hear you. Expect a 64g SSD standard on the 21.5" With a $250 path to 128g, $350 to 256g, $450 to 512g, and 1TB at $999. We love you."

 

[manu chao]

But fusion still means that the weakest link in an iMac is the old fashioned spinning drive. They can and do fail.

That is what backups are for. I have owned probably about 30 HDDs in my life. Only one of them failed, and as it was a backup drive, it didn't really cause much upheaval. I've restored stuff many times because of software or user error, never so far because of hardware failure.

 

[freediverx]

I dunno. I've got an SSD and HDD in my iMac, with the OS+apps installed on the SSD. I've never found it slow keeping my documents on my HDD (200gb Photo library, 100gb iTunes, +work stuff). No problem here.

Do you have this setup as a Fusion drive? How large is the SSD?

 

[manu chao]

Someone needs to take Cook and Ive to one side and slap some sense into them about their obsession with "thinness" on desktop machines. They've taken it so far that they're actively choosing to make devices less user-friendly.

As long as making them thinner results in more sales, you can hardly fault them.

 

[Rogifan]

As long as making them thinner results in more sales, you can hardly fault them.

Seriously, do people think marketing does no research?

 

[kazmac]

I'm glad my 2010 iMac said, Look you stupid bastard I'm not dead!

I will buy a replacement when I need it, but new Macs are always nice to hear about. I'm curious about the changes and updates especially to the 21.5" variant. If they do not add Retina to the smaller size, I'll finally consider the 27" or a next gen Macbook and an external monitor.

I think the latter is where my computer needs / uses are lately...

 

[762999]

Please be Skylake... please be Skylake... please be Skylake...

Please be Skylake & NVIDIA GPU

 

[freediverx]

But fusion still means that the weakest link in an iMac is the old fashioned spinning drive. They can and do fail.

SSDs' failure rate is only marginally better than that of hard drives.

 

[Benjamin Frost]

A 34" screen, an optical drive and a 6TB SSD are the features I want in a new iMac.

Amazingly, CDs and DVDs still exist.

 

[freediverx]

There's no reason that a 2015 Apple computer should have a spinning HD in it. They are slower, noisier, run hotter, are more prone to mechanical failure. IMO, it's about time Apple did away with them.

If they are going to keep them around, then there should be a way for the user to replace them without voiding the warranty, or having to remove the damn SCREEN to get to it.

SSDs are still too expensive for many. if you want a terabyte of storage on your iMac, the SSD option will add $1000 to the price. Not everyone is willing or able to pay such a high premium for what they may consider to be a minimum amount of internal storage. For the time being, Fusion drives bridge the gap, providing a middle ground in terms of performance and affordability.

 

[Statusnone88]

They better put some Nvidia GPUs in there. AMDs are hot garbage for such poorly design airflow considering how much heat AMD gpus create. Worse yet, attempting to do anything at 4k on a mobile GPU is spitting in the face of consumers.

Geat your act together, Apple.

This. So much this.

I dumped $3500 into my Retina iMac and got rid of it a few weeks back. Why? I could barely run games at a down scaled 1440p on medium settings, let alone even trying to run 4K. The purpose of the machine was not intended to run games, but if you spend almost $4000 dollars on a computer, it better be able to run some content smoothly at the resolution the monitor intended. I've never had buyers remorse on an Apple product I've purchased... Sadly my first iMac will probably be my last.

 

[merkinmuffley]

Apple's iMac line is set to receive a significant boost this quarter in the form of a refresh including new processors and improved display quality, according to KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Display improvements are said to arrive in the form of greater color saturation, but Kuo makes no mention of whether Apple is planning to extend Retina display options to the smaller 21.5-inch iMac lineup.While Apple has released several 27-inch Retina iMac models since last October, the remainder of the iMac lineup has not been updated since September 2013 as Apple has had to wait for Intel to release new desktop processors that could allow for a substantial update. With Broadwell processors starting to trickle out and Skylake right around the corner, it appears Apple will finally be able to offer a substantial upgrade for the entire iMac family.

Kuo believes that an inventory draw-down in the second quarter, the upcoming new iMacs, and promotions such as the current Back to School program will drive strong sequential growth in iMac shipments for the current quarter, perhaps doubling quarter-over-quarter to one million units. The third calendar quarter is typically very strong for Apple's Mac segment with much of the world in the midst of back to school shopping.

Article Link: Apple Expected to Launch New iMacs With Improved Processors and Display Quality This Quarter

This one is worth waiting for.

 

[apolloa]

Awesome, once they upgrade that processor in the low end 5K iMac it will be a great computer.