I’m confused about the complaints about the M1 chip in the iMac

[azentropy]

The M1 chip is awesome. However for a desktop some people expected more than a 16GB RAM limit and more than 2 Thunderbolt ports.

 

[ZachNathan]

I think a lot of people are forgetting that we're still in the "phase 1" aspect of the M1 rollout. Every device that's been released with this processor is specifically designed for wow factor and showcase the power and ease of switching to an all-Apple design.

MacBook Air: Released with M1 at the same entry price point, achieves "Pro-level" performance for bottom-line device. This showcases Apple's commitment to not raising the prices for a miraculous new feature set.

MacBook Pro: Also released at entry MacBook Pro price point, showcases bewildering performance and battery gains on a prosumer device, albeit an entry-level spec.

Mac mini: Shows the flexibility of the M1 processor as not just a laptop/mobile grade spec. Extremely entry-level price point for the desktop Mac experience.

All of these are phased in with essentially the same design language so customers can directly compare the new spec to the old under the guise of familiarity.

iMac: Designed to show off the crazy new designs (thin!) enabled by the M1 processor, all the while further putting mainstream customers at ease by showing them an immediately perceivable advantage to using this processor: the M1 is enabling Mac to break free of the tangible stagnation it's felt over the past decade... now Apple can embrace the cool, chic futuristic designs it's wanted to make.

iPad Pro: Again, showcasing flexibility of the processor. "These aren't just laptop chips, or even desktop chips! What is a computer, anyway? The M1 is powerful enough for our those machines, but quiet and energy efficient enough to bring our Pro tablets up to speed." This also reinforces the narrative Apple's made for some time regarding the iPad: These are laptop alternatives. They are computers, but they are not a Mac.


We might be entering Phase 2 now that all produce lines have been updated. This would include showcasing the true professional grade power levels available to M-class processors, and would likely include a larger (and more professional-looking) iMac.

You've gotta look at how Apple products are marketed now.

iPad Pro is black or white. It's a professional device. iPad Air is full of color. It's the mid-range consumer/prosumer device.

MacBook Pro is black or white. It's a professional device. MacBook Air is consumer/student device. It comes in pink.

So on and so forth, all the way up to and including the iPhone XR/11/12 series.


You'll get your "pro" colored iMac. Just be patient. Apple has to convince the masses first.

 

[nottorp]

The M1 chip is awesome. However for a desktop some people expected more than a 16GB RAM limit and more than 2 Thunderbolt ports.

Exactly. There's no way I can work with only 16 G ram and with that few ports for expansion.

And what really ticks me off is that when they'll come out with M1X or M2 or whatever it will be called, they'll only put it in a humongous 48" iMac that I don't want, because I prefer multiple 24 inchers to one 100 inch or whatever.

Hopefully they'll come up with a decent mac pro... or at least with a mac mini with 64 G ram (i can do with 32 now, but it might as well be future proof).

Edit: hey, does this new iMac even support an additional monitor?

 

[4sallypat]

I think a lot of people are forgetting that we're still in the "phase 1" aspect of the M1 rollout. Every device that's been released with this processor is specifically designed for wow factor and showcase the power and ease of switching to an all-Apple design.

MacBook Air: Released with M1 at the same entry price point, achieves "Pro-level" performance for bottom-line device. This showcases Apple's commitment to not raising the prices for a miraculous new feature set.

MacBook Pro: Also released at entry MacBook Pro price point, showcases bewildering performance and battery gains on a prosumer device, albeit an entry-level spec.

Mac mini: Shows the flexibility of the M1 processor as not just a laptop/mobile grade spec. Extremely entry-level price point for the desktop Mac experience.

All of these are phased in with essentially the same design language so customers can directly compare the new spec to the old under the guise of familiarity.

iMac: Designed to show off the crazy new designs (thin!) enabled by the M1 processor, all the while further putting mainstream customers at ease by showing them an immediately perceivable advantage to using this processor: the M1 is enabling Mac to break free of the tangible stagnation it's felt over the past decade... now Apple can embrace the cool, chic futuristic designs it's wanted to make.

iPad Pro: Again, showcasing flexibility of the processor. "These aren't just laptop chips, or even desktop chips! What is a computer, anyway? The M1 is powerful enough for our those machines, but quiet and energy efficient enough to bring our Pro tablets up to speed." This also reinforces the narrative Apple's made for some time regarding the iPad: These are laptop alternatives. They are computers, but they are not a Mac.


We might be entering Phase 2 now that all produce lines have been updated. This would include showcasing the true professional grade power levels available to M-class processors, and would likely include a larger (and more professional-looking) iMac.

You've gotta look at how Apple products are marketed now.

iPad Pro is black or white. It's a professional device. iPad Air is full of color. It's the mid-range consumer/prosumer device.

MacBook Pro is black or white. It's a professional device. MacBook Air is consumer/student device. It comes in pink.

So on and so forth, all the way up to and including the iPhone XR/11/12 series.


You'll get your "pro" colored iMac. Just be patient. Apple has to convince the masses first.

Well summarized!

For an entry level, the M1 is low priced device where you do get a lot of performance gains.

The M1 definitely fits the bill with consumers, schools, governments, businesses and non professional users.

Those that "think" they are professionals or pro-user and wanting over 16GB of Unified Memory can wait to get their "pro" lines and pay a lot more.

Having had to use a large percentage of Intel based Macs since 2006 (single core , core 2 duo, i3, i5, i7, i9, Xeon), I can say say the M1 SOC design is the "return" of the old Motorola RISC processors that Apple used to design around (efficient, snappy, cool running, and software that matched).

I personally think when Apple changed to Intel and worked so hard around Intel's limitations, that was what failed them.

 

[CWallace]

That I believe is the pebble in the powerusers' shoes, personally I'm not too bothered, I'll just wait.

Power Users need to understand that the M1 "is not the SoC you are looking for".

The Mac Pro does not have an M1. Nor does the 16" MacBook Pro (or the 4-port 13", for that matter) nor the 27" iMac. They are not (yet) on an M-series SoC because there is not (yet) an appropriate M-series SoC for them. But they are coming, you can be sure of that. And they will have the performance and the ports people expect/need.

I do find it funny that people expect apple to launch a pro machine before refreshing their existing line up. Patience.

Indeed.

I’m actually tempted to buy one of the new iMacs. I think the issue the ‘pros’ have is that while Apple aren’t expecting pros to replace their high end iMac with a ‘low end’ iMac, there is no other option at present. Apple are no longer offering the higher end models so it’s M1 or nothing if you want an iMac.

This is patently not true. I can buy an Intel-powered iMac 5K right now with powerful dedicated GPUs, plenty of memory, plenty of storage and plenty of ports.

And the Intel-powered Mac Pro and 13" or 16" MacBook Pros are also available and they to have powerful dedicated GPUs, plenty of memory, plenty of storage and plenty of ports.

Apple will release M-series SoCs with more cores and more memory, but the focus now is to get the "mass market" models switched over because they can directly benefit from the M1 - more performance than the (admittedly low-end Intel CPUs and GPUs the older model had) and better battery life.

The M1 chip is awesome. However for a desktop some people expected more than a 16GB RAM limit and more than 2 Thunderbolt ports.

Hence why Apple did not put the M1 into the larger iMac and MacBook Pro. They will get the M1X/M2/M-something that will support more memory and more ports.

 

[CWallace]

And what really ticks me off is that when they'll come out with M1X or M2 or whatever it will be called, they'll only put it in a humongous 48" iMac that I don't want, because I prefer multiple 24 inchers to one 100 inch or whatever.

32" seems like what most people believe it will have, but maybe Apple will release a 27" iMac 5K alongside a 32" iMac Pro 6K, both with the more powerful M-series SoC.

The ransomware folks leaked the model numbers of two unreleased desktop Macs and 9to5Mac believes they will be Mac mini models with the more powerful M-series SoC so you will be able to roll your own monitor(s) if you wish.

 

[Maconplasma]

I’m actually tempted to buy one of the new iMacs. I think the issue the ‘pros’ have is that while Apple aren’t expecting pros to replace their high end iMac with a ‘low end’ iMac, there is no other option at present. Apple are no longer offering the higher end models so it’s M1 or nothing if you want an iMac.

Wait till WWDC. That will be addressed.

 

[Maconplasma]

The M1 imac should be fine for most casual users and provides great performance without the heat issues of Intel cpus.
It would have been nice to have the 8 core gpu included with every model like the M1 mac mini, but it probably won’t matter too much for the people opting for the lowest cost base model 24”.

The 24” imac is not supposed to be a replacement for the 27” imac as that should come later when Apple has a faster M1X? available.

I'm willing to bet at WWDC the Pro models will still contain the "M1" monikered chip. People here keep saying M1X and such. I can't say I know the internals of the M1 but I'll bet Apple designed the M1 to simply be unlocked for more powerful use. For example the M1 is available with a 7 Core GPU and an 8 core GPU. It's the same chip unlocked.

 

[Maconplasma]

And what really ticks me off is that when they'll come out with M1X or M2 or whatever it will be called, they'll only put it in a humongous 48" iMac that I don't want, because I prefer multiple 24 inchers to one 100 inch or whatever.

Wow you're really making a bunch of stuff up.

Edit: hey, does this new iMac even support an additional monitor?

Yes it does. It's mentioned right on Apple's website. You should take a look for yourself.

 

[mrcat]

Wow you're really making a bunch of stuff up.

Yes it does. It's mentioned right on Apple's website. You should take a look for yourself.

Didn't they see the power adapter? Big clue considering the iMac doesn't use a lot of power.

 

[AVonGauss]

Deleted.

 

[KennyJr]

Intel's task with their ads was to sew doubt on Apple's M1 chip capabilities. With many - it worked. Gullibility is one of the least fulfilling characteristics in the human condition.

 

[iPadified]

M1 is not slow by any means. There is also more in the M1 than CPU and GPU which makes the chip difficult to compare with the has been technology of Intel/AMD. I expect that the M1 will perform nearly as well as my 2020 iMac with 8 core CPU and 5700. I do wish they clock the M1 higher in the iMac than in the MBP.

You say perhaps that the 5700 is stronger than M1 GPU. True on paper, but it has no meaning for me as the 5700 and CPU are equally fast in Blender Cycles rendering. So, I do not need a very strong GPU or I need a very strong GPU.

I wish people here made a better analysis of their needs rather than broad generalisations around spec sheets and "pro" labels. What is a "pro" anyway? I expect the 24 iMac is excellent in many professional settings.

 

[omenatarhuri]

Even if the M1 is clocked at the same ~3.2GHz as the other models, that there are two fans means it should be able to maintain full load better then the MBP and Mac mini (with one fan) and much better than the MacBook Air (no fan).

Maybe so, but until benchmarks prove otherwise, I'd suppose that will be a rather miniscule difference.

I have full faith in Apple that when they roll out their desktop chips they'll be significantly faster than the M1 (at least in multicore performance).

EDIT: Please note that I think M1 is a magnificent chip and offers incredible performance in itself. Not at all bashing it in anyway. Just excited for MBP16, MP and iMac27"

 

[JMacHack]

And they will have the performance and the ports people expect/need.

Not on this forum.

 

[4sallypat]

M1 is not slow by any means. There is also more in the M1 than CPU and GPU which makes the chip difficult to compare with the has been technology of Intel/AMD. I expect that the M1 will perform nearly as well as my 2020 iMac with 8 core CPU and 5700. I do wish they clock the M1 higher in the iMac than in the MBP.

You say perhaps that the 5700 is stronger than M1 GPU. True on paper, but it has no meaning for me as the 5700 and CPU are equally fast in Blender Cycles rendering. So, I do not need a very strong GPU or I need a very strong GPU.

I wish people here made a better analysis of their needs rather than broad generalisations around spec sheets and "pro" labels. What is a "pro" anyway? I expect the 24 iMac is excellent in many professional settings.

Yes, agreed.
The M1 is mind blowing faster than any Intel Mac I have owned.

I think when people hear 8GB - they think back to the 486 days when 256MB was just not enough.

Well my M1 Mini base with 8GB of Unified Memory outperforms all my past Macs - even the $2500 32GB 16" MBP that runs so hot and battery is awful. My 16" MBP sits collecting dust now.

Why anyone would get an Intel unless you run Bootcamp for Windows, is just nuts.

And by the way: "Pro" label, Apple logo, black bezels - all makes people think they are special - above others.....

 

[Bodhitree]

I expect the 24 iMac is excellent in many professional settings.

I used to work as a graphic designer on illustrated books long ago, and the 24” iMac would do great in that environment. Also as an illustrator it seems like a strong machine. It has no problem editing photo’s, so thats photography covered. As a developer machine there is still a lot of software which is not ARM native, so they would probably hold off for a while. I can see a lot of small movie makers using it, too.