Apple Updates iMac Lineup With Up to 8-Core 9th-Gen Intel Processors and Radeon Pro Vega Graphics Options

[Sadman88]

What don't you get? Do you really think the average consumer cares or can tell the difference between 5400, 7200, Fusion, and SSD?

Does the average consumer care or tell the difference between 8th gen and 9th gen Intel?

 

[otternonsense]

Am I the only one who LOVES the iMac design and doesn't want it to change?

It's iconic and beautiful, and I can't find anything wrong with it visually. The last major revision, to make it thinner and lighter, pretty much perfected it.

The only thing I'd be happier with is better serviceability, but iMacs, especially with SSDs, have gotten so reliable that it doesn't matter as much as it used to.

By the same line of reasoning, the iMac should have never evolved past the original candy coloured CRT displays because some people liked them and didn't want them to change.

 

[Nikiaf]

What don't you get? Do you really think the average consumer cares or can tell the difference between 5400, 7200, Fusion, and SSD?

Yes, without a doubt. Mechanical hard drives have all but disappeared as boot drives across the board; except in the iMac for some reason. This is dead technology and the average consumer will absolutely notice the difference.

 

[Ulbup]

Does this i9 3.6 Ghz supports hyperthreading ???

 

[joueboy]

Apple doesn't do refresh and new updated devices anymore. The trend has change if new processor comes out that is called an upgrade meaning you have to pay for it higher than the previous generation. When a new design iDevices are out meaning that's an upgrade you want pay the same amount buy the last year model. From now on anything refresh or new model comes out expect to pay more than what you paid from your older model. You want the same price buy the last year model and be happy with it or buy another brand as simple as that.

 

[alien3dx]

I think that some of the people commenting here and complaining about how slow 5400 rpm drives are aren't aware as to what 5400 rpm actually means. It is not the sole measure of a hard drive's speed and being 5400 rpm does *not* mean it's super slow. It is purely a measure of the *rotational* speed of the platters in the drive. While it is true that a 7200 rpm drive *with all other specs identical to a 5400 rpm drive* would be able to read data faster, there are multiple other factors. A drive also reads data faster if it is higher capacity per platter (the data is closer together and per revolution, more can be read), if it has more platters (multiple platters can be read at the same time) and if it is bigger (a desktop hard drive will be faster than an otherwise similarly specced laptop hard drive as there is more data being read per revolution further out).

There are genuine reasons for wanting to go with a 5400 rpm drive instead of a 7200 rpm drive - mainly that they are significantly less likely to fail and within the 3 years of AppleCare most people get, the hard drives are by far the most likely parts to fail as they are the mechanical parts that see the most use (optical drives similarly have a high failure rate which might be part of the reason why they're not included on Macs anymore).

If I were to complain about the standard hard drives in these models, I wouldn't be complaining that it's a slow 5400 rpm drive, I'd be complaining that it's not a *higher capacity* 5400 rpm drive. Chances are, a 2TB 5400 rpm drive would actually be faster than a 1TB 7200 rpm drive anyway. Although, I'm guessing that Apple is keeping the mechanical drive capacity option low so that the SSD options look more tempting.

pretty slow .. if 4gb ram cum 5400 uber slow mac mini.. compare to normal computer.. very far away performance. ex mac mini 2015 and slow 5400 imac 2017 user.

 

[kylepro88]

As usual... nobody is happy. Sigh lol. Looks great to me.

 

[BigBoy2018]

I'm disappointed with the pricing of the storage options. Everything else looks great.

Put your own sata SSD in there. It's not that hard really.

 

[chooyoshi]

What the hell are they doing in Cupertino? 7
years without a redesign? This is madness.

15 if you count the iMac g5, since all imacs subsequently adopted the same general shape.

 

[Falhófnir]

Yes, without a doubt. Mechanical hard drives have all but disappeared as boot drives across the board; except in the iMac for some reason. This is dead technology and the average consumer will absolutely notice the difference.

I'd prefer if they just do what a lot of windows machines now do, give you a 128 or 256GB SSD with the OS installed on it for maximum system fluidity, then offer the HDD as basically an inbuilt external drive for media files and documents and what have you. As I understand the fusion drive doesn't actually let you decide what's put where (though I guess the OS is pretty much the only thing on the 32GB SSD in the 1TB F drives anyway)?

 

[skippermonkey]

SSDs are configurable on the Apple Store. Also, they've introduced an option for a Vega 64X with 16GB memory for the iMac Pro, which is great if you use ProRender. Oh, and you can add 256GB RAM too.

 

[Classie]

I’m eagerly awaiting next years redesign - yes, the iMac needs one!
My wallet thanks this years internal only upgrade

 

[DNichter]

The design isn't terrible (although it should be updated), but it's pretty bad that they are still offering a spinning hard drive. 256GB SSD should be the base model. My guess is they are working on a redesign for next year. Personally, I am happy using my iPad Pro as my desktop computer. Glad I don't need to deal with this nonsense anymore.

 

[jezbd1997]

The base retina 4K model does for me, the £1,249 model ("3.6GHz quad-core 8th-generation Intel Core i3 processor") I'm not complaining if it helps keep the costs down, just wondering why they traditionally only ever offered i5 and i7...


So literally just because before now they didn't offer enough power to be 'worth it'?

Oh yes you’re right, the site has changed for me now (I’m guessing some things were still cached in the Apple store app as it was showing i5 before).
I guess the i3’s are faster than before so Apple may’ve thought to keep costs down why not offer them

 

[cardfan]

Does the average consumer care or tell the difference between 8th gen and 9th gen Intel?

Yep because if the average idiot consumer doesn’t care why should anyone else? It’s the new standard I guess.

 

[chooyoshi]

Are they going to upgrade the 2003 Boob iMac?

You mean the sunflower g4? What if apple did a retro re release of the iMac g4 with updated specs? T

 

[ROGmaster]

What don't you get? Do you really think the average consumer cares or can tell the difference between 5400, 7200, Fusion, and SSD?

YES.

I replaced the mechanical HDDs in many laptops with SATA SSDs. There wasn't a single person that said they can't fell a difference and most were people that didn't know anything about computers.
Even the difference between a 5400 RPM HDD and 7200 RPM HDD are quite obvious.

 

[Stella]

Still a HDD in 2019, can't belive it

It's Apple, I can.


On the positive side, the upgrades on the other machines aren't bad though... Next MacBook Pros?

 

[JTBing]

Apple doesn't do refresh and new updated devices anymore. The trend has change if new processor comes out that is called an upgrade meaning you have to pay for it higher than the previous generation. When a new design iDevices are out meaning that's an upgrade you want pay the same amount buy the last year model. From now on anything refresh or new model comes out expect to pay more than what you paid from your older model. You want the same price buy the last year model and be happy with it or buy another brand as simple as that.

Then it’s ironic that this update didn’t come with a price increase. Perhaps you shouldn’t complain without knowing of what you speak.

 

[lkrupp]

Negative comments, how shocking.

In case you missed it in the article, these are updated iMacs, not new iMac models.

As usual... nobody is happy. Sigh lol. Looks great to me.

Remember, this is MacRumors, not some Apple centric site.

 

[partsofspeech]

Yes. But people were hoping for a bezzeless iMac, a complete redesign. ZOT made some concept renders a few months back.

Want that and will pay for that are two different mental operations. I want new design too, but my wallet is more honest and practical.

 

[Caseynd]

No updated cooling to bring it in line with the iMP?! That i9 is going to cook, and not in a good way if they did nothing different with the thermals.

THIS^ When you have major cooling issues affecting products, you really should highlight the advances you make in cooling the products, or the increased performance claims aren't going to be attainable by anyone in the real world.

 

[burgman]

Still a HDD in 2019, can't belive it

If only Apple offered an option... oh wait

 

[svenning]

Apples version of 12 days of christmas

so Airpower and Airpods tomorrow?!

 

[tubomac]

The 5400rpm HDD is a joke for the base 4K model... Should be fusion drive standard even in the base non 4K model

The reason they keep selling stuff with those ridiculous "dusty" 5400 rpm HDD is to have a starting price tag less scary as possible. At Apple they are the first to know well that their products are expensive as hell. Because we know that as well, they should stop this farce and start selling stuff with realistic starting configurations. Even idiots know that the first iMacs, the G3s, had 5400rpm HHD, but it was 1998 , that is 21 years ago. Please Tim Apple, just quit!