Can 2013 iMac's handle 4K displays?

[MartinAppleGuy]

2013 iMac's have more powerful GPU's that rMBP's and rMBP's can handle 4K displays. Can these iMac's still handle 4K displays through Thunderbolt 1?

 

[fa8362]

No, Apple has chosen not to allow it as yet.

 

[yjchua95]

2013 iMac's have more powerful GPU's that rMBP's and rMBP's can handle 4K displays. Can these iMac's still handle 4K displays through Thunderbolt 1?

TB1 itself doesn't have the bandwidth to support 4K@60Hz.

 

[MartinAppleGuy]

TB1 itself doesn't have the bandwidth to support 4K@60Hz.

Is there any other way to do it then?

 

[rambo47]

Is there any other way to do it then?

At present: no. The MacPro, however, can handle multiple 4K monitors with aplomb.

 

[yjchua95]

Is there any other way to do it then?

Nope. Unless you're happy with 30Hz.

 

[brdeveloper]

TB1 itself doesn't have the bandwidth to support 4K@60Hz.

The problem is the lack of compression standards. Streaming uncompressed 4K content is insane, but if there was a system capable of delivering frames at 70% of their original (uncompressed) size, TB1 would be capable of handling 4K@60Hz. Compression should be made in real time, but it shouldn't be a problem for recent iMacs with discrete graphics or with an Iris Pro. OpenCL would perform the task blazing fast.

On the display side, the compression algorithm should be known, though. Hopefully the next gen Apple Display will allow 4K@60Hz on TB1-capable devices. Then it will be a matter of time do see the method supported by major brands.