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iMac 21.5" 4K Worth Buying?

A

antonypg

macrumors member
Original poster
May 8, 2008
93
43
I was thinking of buying an iMac 27" 5K, especially if it got updated yesterday. However, not only did it not get updated but the prices massively jumped in the UK. I wanted a fusion drive at least, and that model has gone up approx. £300. Even the refurb models have jumped by 20%.

I wanted to ask what people think of the 21.5" 4K model. Does it suffer from having the integrated graphics with 4K of pixels to drive?

Also is the fusion drive on the 4K worth £90. Is it a 24GB or a 128GB card? I might buy the basic machine and then add a 512GB Thunderbolt SSD.
 
21'' is not worth the money. 27'' is getting old.

Save your money until March 2017 and get one of the new models.
 
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I think the 4K is a joke with the lack of a dGPU. If you're going to go with a ridiculously high res display, I'd just go with the 5K.
 
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\-V-/ said:
I think the 4K is a joke with the lack of a dGPU. If you're going to go with a ridiculously high res display, I'd just go with the 5K.
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The catch is there is no dGPU 21.5 inch. That's what many people want and Apple is just saying FU to those customers.
 
antonypg said:
I was thinking of buying an iMac 27" 5K, especially if it got updated yesterday. However, not only did it not get updated but the prices massively jumped in the UK. I wanted a fusion drive at least, and that model has gone up approx. £300. Even the refurb models have jumped by 20%.

I wanted to ask what people think of the 21.5" 4K model. Does it suffer from having the integrated graphics with 4K of pixels to drive?

Also is the fusion drive on the 4K worth £90. Is it a 24GB or a 128GB card? I might buy the basic machine and then add a 512GB Thunderbolt SSD.
Click to expand...
Viva Brexit!!
 
Go for something cheap and sweat things out a little longer, I’d say.
Or, start selling all you’re other devices and buy big.
 
Really depends on your needs. I have one, bought it a month ago (wasn't anticipating an update, was anticipating sterling affecting prices sooner rather than later, and I suspect will get worse before it gets better). I am no power user, no fancy requirements just need a reliable and pleasant to use desktop. I just use internet, some spreadsheets and pages documents. Occasionally photography stuff, some video encoding. Meets my needs. My late 2010 iMac was playing up a bit, and as a long term mac user I had no interest in a p.c. It'll do me nicely for some time (I tend to get a good six years, my old G5 iMac lasted 10 years though retired to my father after 5). The 27" 5k would be expensive overkill for me.
 
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The 21.5 iMacs always had a dGPU up until around the time of the 4K, which is the 21.5 with the best screen and honestly the one that would need a better gpu the most.

This is why Apple is alienating many people.
 
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kblbn86 said:
21'' is not worth the money. 27'' is getting old.

Save your money until March 2017 and get one of the new models.
Click to expand...

The 27" has a Skylake Processor in it so although not Kaby lake, not as old as you might think. I think it was the only Mac updated with SKylake last year. The 27" inch is a solid machine and I highly recommend it.
 
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kblbn86 said:
27'' is getting old.
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How so?
The processor and GPU is current, i.e., Skylake processor and a decent GPU.

I think if the OP needs/wants one now, he might as well enjoy the machine for the next 6 months instead of waiting and hoping (and maybe even incurring a price increase).

As for the 21" model, I agree, its not worth the money, imo
 
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antonypg said:
I was thinking of buying an iMac 27" 5K, especially if it got updated yesterday. However, not only did it not get updated but the prices massively jumped in the UK. I wanted a fusion drive at least, and that model has gone up approx. £300. Even the refurb models have jumped by 20%.

I wanted to ask what people think of the 21.5" 4K model. Does it suffer from having the integrated graphics with 4K of pixels to drive?

Also is the fusion drive on the 4K worth £90. Is it a 24GB or a 128GB card? I might buy the basic machine and then add a 512GB Thunderbolt SSD.
Click to expand...
People in the UK are having success with John Lewis at the older prices. I'd grab a top spec 27" at the old price if you can. As others have said, stay away from the 21"
 
I agree with the others that the 27" is a better buy. However, I wouldn't stay away from the 21" for the reason it doesn't have a dGPU. If you have no need for more powerful graphics it should last you just fine. Pushing 4k worth of pixels with the Iris Pro should not be an issue at all. The biggest concern would be the small amount of solid state on the 1TB drive. Definitely get the 2TB.
 
If you go with John Lewis whilst they still have stock at the older prices I'd also opt for the 27" model too.

Although my Mac Mini has a much slower processor the Iris Pro graphics share some of the system's RAM and that can impact on performance sometimes.

My old mid-2011 iMac 21.5" had a dGPU so quite why Apple removed it in subsequent years is beyond me!

Not only that JL also have a decent warranty. Yes there's the SoGA or whatever it's called these days but from what I've read their CS is second to none usually when a problem arises.
 
When my iMac finally hangs up it's boots I think I will be looking at a decent monitor and hooking that up to an Intel NUC. I can put in the bits I want, it will be pretty powerful and cost me a heck of a lot less than an overly price inflated iMac. Windows 10 - what's not to like.

I'm very much of the mind that Apple has really lost it's way with their desktop computers. It could be that they no longer see them as the future and aren't part of their long term strategy. Either way it's cold comfort for the customer.
 
The 21" has always been my preferred size of iMac. But... This one is not worth it, IMO. The iGPU driving that 4K display isn't great, RAM is not user-upgradable, and you basically have to upgrade the HD or have it choke the whole system's performance.

So, that $1500 starting price goes up $200 for the RAM (unless you're ok with 8GB forever) and $100 minimum for the drive (which only gets you the 1TB fusion with the tiny 24GB ssd). And for that $1800 you still have that weak iGPU.

I'd love it if they made a 21" with a dGPU option, user-accessible RAM and a reasonable storage option standard. Maybe spring 2017.
 
Since Apple couldn't get the Iris pro, i guess the next 21.5" imac will have a dGPU to handle the power because the HD530 is too weak for a desktop 4k computer.
 
QCassidy352 said:
You're most likely right, but hope springs eternal. That, and merging different iCloud accounts, is all I want from Apple.
Click to expand...
I really don't think it will happen because that is basically the opposite of what Apple is trying to do with their product line.

Your proposition was a reasonable, customer friendly idea that would also improve their overall image as a company.

Apple is merely looking to disgrace themselves at every turn, nothing more.
 
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