HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
This is for HDMI output, not input.
That's not a known. Everyone is assuming HDMI output only. What if it IS an HDMI input?
Consider this: if M-series chips are going to be "long in tooth" in even 2 generations or so like their A-series siblings, iMac screens on even more expensive iMacs are still going to be pretty fresh only 2-4 years from now. I've been an iMac fan/user for well over a decade but I don't think I pay way up for one again if there isn't some way to keep using the screen when MacOS updates are not working in full with the early/"old" M-series chips (what we'll be spinning to each other in only a few years). Thus, I'm wanting to see a target display mode-type revival. One way to do that would be HDMI IN.
Consider this too: even bigger screen iMac (as rumored) might double as someone's TV. What does any other thing a person may have to push picture to a screen use? HDMI. For example, how do I hook the cable box to my iMac 32"? How do I hook my game console to my iMac 32"? Etc. The easiest option would be to include an HDMI IN jack.
Protected content REQUIRES a direct HDMI connection, so an idea of sending it through a hub and then sending it on to a computer on USB-C/Thunderbolt would break the HDMI secure connection... opening the door wider than ever for video piracy. How to get around that? Put an HDMI input jack on the new iMac.
I'm not actually expecting it myself- just pointing out the possibility and a little logic in it. I know that I will not pay way up for a new iMac if I can see I'll have to "throw baby out with the bathwater" in only a few years when "long in tooth" starts being slung around. A great monitor can still be a great monitor 8-10 years from now. Knowing how things go with A-Series chips, how long until even M1 MAX is being viewed as "old", "getting very slow", "showing it's age", etc? How long until new macOS update features "are not able to work well on early M-series chips" (even if hacks prove otherwise). Almost certainly not close to 8-10 years.
Last edited: