Have We Seen the Last of the 27-inch iMac?

[macgabe]

Same thing can be said about iPods? Yet Apple didn’t hesitate to slash it down to a mere iPod Touch with barely functional A10 chip, which you can barely find on their online store or website.

That's completely true, the iPod changed everything, but in my view the iPod was really the first iteration of the iPhone, which carried all the same functionality plus a lot more in an identical package. Similarly the iPod mini is really the Watch now. So they were never abandoned.

Splitting screen and processor (if true; a big if) again though is going back to the 90's, and imv probably points to the fact that everyone is watching TV on their computers now and rather than smaller screens (eg iMac 24 , laptop), which is what many people are saying on this thread, people actually want bigger screens. Or I suppose if they bring out a headset then you can forego the screen altogether, but, really, who's going to edit a spreadsheet in AR?!

 

[PlayUltimate]

Mac mini M1 ($699) and the studio display ($1599) is probably the soliton for someone who was previously in the market for a 27” iMac. One thunderbolt cable gives you a 27” monitor with webcam and speakers. It is likely the same price as a 27” iMac.

I was looking for this comment so I didn't have to say it. I agree. The studio display + MacMini/Mac Studio provides a similar experience as the 27" iMac with a variety of performance/price options. Further, it allows for an upgrade every few years without the expense of a new monitor. For offices needing a desktop, the 24" is sufficient. But the 27" was often used as a prosumer device. The "studio" path allows for increased flexibility and less environmental cost.

 

[currocj]

The lifecycle of a monitor and one of the CPU are very different. My 2017 iMac's CPU is a little long in the tooth. Even with maxed out RAM its sluggish. However its 5K monitor is still cutting edge as far as ppi and brightness in a 27" package. I wish I could divest the monitor from the CPU, but I can't. So they must stay fused.

I like the studio + display lineup except the starting price is a whopping $3598. Yikes. Okay you could pair a hobbled Mac mini entry for $699 or 2298 total. That's closer to old 5K starting price, but with a marginally capable CPU. But I suspect the next iteration of Mac mini will be much better.

 

[ian87w]

I think the Macbook line will also get consolidated. 13" (Air), 14", 16". I have a feeling, the Macbook Pro 13" will soon be EOLed.

Yeah the 13" Macbook Pro is an odd duck. It carries the Pro branding, but it's severely limited in RAM capacity for a "Pro" laptop. And since Apple ditched the Touchbar on the newer Macbook Pros, it would be really weird if the 13" MBP remains.

But Apple can be weird at times (such as when they had the non-retina 13" Macbook Air, the retina Macbook Air, and the 12" retina Macbook for sale side by side).

 

[JWD]

Need to replace a late 2009 27” iMac, won’t be getting a smaller screen that’s for sure, need to have the ability to open two windows side-by-side, can’t do that on a 24”. Ironically the Mac Mini is the best offering so far. In the past I always thought the Mini was a unnecessary offering, as the specs were terrible and it rarely got hardware upgrades. I feel Apples growing pains these last few years.

 

[jeffpeng]

Yeah the 13" Macbook Pro is an odd duck. It carries the Pro branding, but it's severely limited in RAM capacity for a "Pro" laptop. And since Apple ditched the Touchbar on the newer Macbook Pros, it would be really weird if the 13" MBP remains.

Agreed. It guess it'll be discontinued along with the Air when the new MacBook (Air?) comes around.

In general I think it's a good thing the iMac is practically dead. (Yeah, there's that 24 inch model, but we all know that's a computer for children and grandparents.) As noted above multiple times: a good screen is still a good screen 5 years down the road. A five year old computer, especially since the ARM revolution, is just old. I rocked two (admittedly very expensive at the time) LG 27inch IPS panels for over 8 years. If I had to I could easily still work on them. I burned through 4 computers in the time. I would rather not work on any of these.

That being said: A machine between the Mac Mini and the Mac Studio is clearly missing, or more precisely: the Mac Mini M1 Pro is missing. That would have been the absolute perfect addition to the lineup, and would have excited most current iMac users enough to take the financial hit the now paradigm comes with.

 

[mlody]

I dont like how Apple is associating PRO with everythiung that has a big screen. What about people that dont need PRO features but simply need a bigger screen?

why there isn't a regular iPhone with 6.7" ?
why there isn't a regular iPad with ~13"?
why there isnt a mac book air with 15-16"?
and now why there isnt iMac with 27'?

Regular users, who are not looking for PRO features are forced to use smaller screens for all Apple devices, unless they pay heavy PRO tax. WTF Apple

 

[jeffpeng]

Need to replace a late 2009 27” iMac, won’t be getting a smaller screen that’s for sure, need to have the ability to open two windows open side-by-side, can’t do that on a 24”. The Mac mini is the best offering so far. I feel Apples growing pains these last few years.

If you need to open two things side-by-side .... get an ultrawide. Seriously. Changed my life.

 

[azentropy]

A iMac Pro 27" doesn't make much sense now. Those users are now better served with the new Mac Studio and Mac Studio display for the same price point. I still see a huge gap in the consumer line for people who want a larger than 24" screen starting at ~$2000 for the entire setup even if it comes "just" with a M1/M2. Then maybe scales up to a M1/M2 Pro, but not to a Max. However Apple has left a large hole in the consumer laptop area for a very long time by not having a consumer laptop in the > 15" screen size range for ~$1300 for people who want bigger than the 13" MBA but don't really need the processing power or the other features or the price of a 15"/16" MBP.

 

[BayouTiger]

Some of the comments are truly baffling. One poster said he "hopes" the iMac concept is dead because he thinks it's a bad idea. So many users that think their use case is the only one that matters. Many people love the AIO form factor, even on their production machine. My iMac Pro was/is my best Mac ever so far, it sat on my desk churning nonstop for 4 years and will now move into another lighter duty probably for a family member.
Hell I could even give the title of the best Mac I have owned to my trash can. It gave me tremendous service for 4 years. Quiet and powerful and yes I did upgrade it to a 12 core.

Both of these computers are still perfectly capable and will find new duty somewhere in my home or with an ecstatic family member.

I think Apple may think that the 24" iMac filled the household AIO slot nicely and I am thinking they are probably correct. I think that a simpler 27 or 32" that used a lesser panel in 2560 at a great price would sell really well for family use. The 4K and up panels are awesome, but most monitors sold to Joe Sixpack are 1080P. But Apple has always focused on their displays being their real point of separation from all the other stuff on the floor at Best Buy.

 

[macgabe]

It is interesting that the current iMac is listed on Apple’s website as “iMac 24 in.” Why name it that if was going to be the only size?

So that people know what size it is? But agree a glimmer of hope…

 

[azentropy]

I dont like how Apple is associating PRO with everythiung that has a big screen. What about people that dont need PRO features but simply need a bigger screen?

why there isn't a regular iPhone with 6.7" ?
why there isn't a regular iPad with ~13"?
why there isnt a mac book air with 15-16"?
and now why there isnt iMac with 27'?

Regular users, who are not looking for PRO features are forced to use smaller screens for all Apple devices, unless they pay heavy PRO tax. WTF Apple

Yeah, we were writing about the same thing about the same time. It just seems to be Apple's strategy to leave large gaps between consumer/pro. Add to your list why there wasn't a pro iPhone mini. Or why isn't there an iPhone SE Plus. And while not based on screen size there is a gap going from the Mac mini now to the Mac Studio which hopefully will be addressed with a M1 or M2 Pro chip at some point.

 

[stocklen]

Typical office task is no longer having just a single excel/word open. It's Word, Powerpoint, Excel, each with maybe dozens of large documents open, PDFs, a web browser with dozens or more tabs with notifications, all those cloud syncing applets, email, zoom/webex/skype, any sort of accounting/proprietary company app, VPN/company monitoring app, etc all at the same time.

On my 2012 mac mini with just 8GB of RAM, I only have a browser with 5 tabs, a word and an excel documents opened, Apple mail, Onedrive and Google drive applets, and it already used up 10GB of RAM total (RAM + swap).

You're not experiencing slowdowns probably because the SSD is fast enough. But doesn't mean 8GB is "enough."

... and they wonder why people are off with stress so much

I wouldn't call that typical to be fair.

Might be worth trying 8Gb.
Get 16 if you must....

But your 2012 mac mini with 8gb ram is NOTHING in comparison to the M1 chip and highly optimised Monterey OS.

I think you'd be surprised at what it can do with that memory.

Certainly cannot be compared to a 10 year old Mac Mini with 8gb ram At All.

 

[stocklen]

Need to replace a late 2009 27” iMac, won’t be getting a smaller screen that’s for sure, need to have the ability to open two windows side-by-side, can’t do that on a 24”. Ironically the Mac Mini is the best offering so far. In the past I always thought the Mini was a unnecessary offering, as the specs were terrible and it rarely got hardware upgrades. I feel Apples growing pains these last few years.

Of course you can dont be daft... they are just every so slightly smaller than they would be on the 27inch. Theres only 3 inches in it and you'd be surprised how little difference that makes.

In conjunction with this why not try to use multiple desktops too - you can spread apps across desktops and it works very well.

 

[macgabe]

If you need to open two things side-by-side .... get an ultrawide. Seriously. Changed my life.

I was seriously looking at these - definitely my use case too. But in the end gave up after trying to work out which mini would be compatible with which monitor and which ports and which cables and which software. I always look at ports carefully before buying computer but after buying I never seem to have the optimal combination even for plugging in an old drive. No-one can help you with this, Apple Store aren't interested and 3rd parties will sell you anything. That's what pushes not very clued up people like me to iMacs.

 

[ronotaco]

I think so. In general, AIO 27 models seems (not just from Apple) to be going away as they’ve sold significantly less than 24” models. That said, I personally loved my 27” iMac and had hoped for a new model.

is that so? dont know in my bubble everybody has one. also i dont get why always the base level mac studio is compared with the entry level imac. the base level mac studio is clearly in the mid range of the m1 chips. so is my fully specced imac. and that one cost almost 3000€ even without the RAM upgrade yet.

 

[macgabe]

Of course you can dont be daft... they are just every so slightly smaller than they would be on the 27inch. Theres only 3 inches in it and you'd be surprised how little difference that makes.

In conjunction with this why not try to use multiple desktops too - you can spread apps across desktops and it works very well.

If you work with text, or even spreadsheets, professionally, no 24" is not good enough. 27" retina is just OK (perfect?) for two pages of A4 but, really, wider would be better. That's why I'd welcome a 30" even if it came at a premium.

 

[ronotaco]

yes the 27" !!! imac probably is not returning...but who said NO to an bigger 32" or something else imac/imac pro!?
Apple knows that the bigger imac made more money over decades than the smaller one...so i dont think apple put money R&D just for the 24"

please, thats what i am hoping for! a 32" imac with an m1 max upwards. but i guess if even a 27" version with 120hz mini led might be more realistic? dont know. who cares. ill just buy anything at some point as long as its fast haha

 

[BayouTiger]

Yeah the 13" Macbook Pro is an odd duck. It carries the Pro branding, but it's severely limited in RAM capacity for a "Pro" laptop. And since Apple ditched the Touchbar on the newer Macbook Pros, it would be really weird if the 13" MBP remains.

But Apple can be weird at times (such as when they had the non-retina 13" Macbook Air, the retina Macbook Air, and the 12" retina Macbook for sale side by side).

Frankly, I wish the "Pro" terminology would just go away. It's meaningless in it's usage anyway. In today's vernacular, the Internet mob considers a "Pro" to be focused in media creation. Period. Completely disregards the rest of us engaged in other pursuits. My 13" MBP is as powerful as my Thinkpad and it is certainly a "Pro"machine. This nonsense lives nowhere but in the Apple forum world.

 

[wanha]

We already know that because it’s not in the Apple Store. It says nothing about a replacement. Or do you think Apple broke their own rule and decided to suddenly comment on future products? LOL

So what you're saying is that you don't know what "end of life" means

 

[dtshaw82]

I doubt it, but they do this a lot. Discontinue the current 27” iMac to help boost sales of the new studio, then introduce a new larger iMac at the end of the year. For someone like me, I don’t need a “pro” computer with pro costs but I do need the screen real estate.

 

[svish]

Does not look like a normal 27 inch iMac is coming back. A bigger iMac might be launched eventually as iMac Pro with a much higher price tag.

 

[ronotaco]

Some of the comments are truly baffling. One poster said he "hopes" the iMac concept is dead because he thinks it's a bad idea. So many users that think their use case is the only one that matters. Many people love the AIO form factor, even on their production machine. My iMac Pro was/is my best Mac ever so far, it sat on my desk churning nonstop for 4 years and will not move into another lighter duty probably for a family member.
Hell I could even give the title of the best Mac I have owned to my trash can. It gave me tremendous service for 4 years. Quiet and powerful and yes I did upgrade it to a 12 core.

Both of these computers are still perfectly capable and will find new duty somewhere in my home or with an ecstatic family member.

I think Apple may think that the 24" iMac filled the household AIO slot nicely and I am thinking they are probably correct. I think that a simpler 27 or 32" that used a lesser panel in 2560 at a great price would sell really well for family use. The 4K and up panels are awesome, but most monitors sold to Joe Sixpack are 1080P. But Apple has always focused on their displays being their real point of separation from all the other stuff on the floor at Best Buy.

i totally feel you. imacs and especially imac pros are amazing devices in production environment. especially on film set. just one power cord and you are ready to go for highly paid work on set with proper viewing of the material, which device delivers that with that power and simplicity.

btw: just 2 years ago my studio collegue sold her 2014 27 5k imac for 1000€ to a production company as welcome desk terminal. That equals almost to not have paid nothing for the computer and screen for all the years.

 

[Rychiar]

I hope the end of the big all-in-one Macs is sealed. It's such a pointless form factor. Monitor and computer in one case is also bad for the environment.
Many disadvantages. And hardly any advantages (in my case, not a single advantage; I've never bought an iMac).

What's important is that Apple finally offers desktop Macs (beside Mac mini) without a forced monitor. Hopefully there will be a also better Mac mini.

I can’t think of any disadvantages. It was apples best value computer and most designers used it. I doubt I can convince my boss to fork over $1600 for a monitor alone . It’s not like this studio thing is expandable. It’s just a big lump on the desk

 

[cmcbhi]

For me, its that conundrum of need vs. want. My 2020 iMac (20" 5k Retina. 3.6 Ghz 10-Core intel i9, AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT 16 GB, 128 GB DDR4 RAM w/ a 4TB SSD will likely do all I want for a good while. I use Photoshop and Lightroom for my personal photography, no video or musical processing.
But that Mac Studio and Studio Display is singing its siren song. The Ultra Model is probably way overkill, the Max Model would be an upgrade, probably, but........ That display sure is nice............