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iMac totally outdated....whats going on?
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Not sure how it's outdated
and the once a year update is the way it's always been! In fact the last update took longer than that.
For what it is, the iMac is still very powerful and I don't see it as outdated.
On the flip side, it may not be the bleeding edge of technology, but iMacs never have been.
For what it is, the iMac is still very powerful and I don't see it as outdated.
On the flip side, it may not be the bleeding edge of technology, but iMacs never have been.
I'm not sure what you're looking at, but the iMac hasn't been updated since the end of last year. At the time it was using current processors and technology. So it wasn't outdated when it arrived.
Desktop is not where the money at. iMac might be the least of what Apple could do with desktop computers.
You want a high end machine? Build your own desktop, only gets Macbook and some iOS devices if you want to stay with Apple. It's surely has a faster cycle (MBA has Haswell already while other OEMs stuck with IB)
You want a high end machine? Build your own desktop, only gets Macbook and some iOS devices if you want to stay with Apple. It's surely has a faster cycle (MBA has Haswell already while other OEMs stuck with IB)
The high-end iMac is hardly outdated. The GTX 680MX GPU runs at near desktop 680GTX speeds (graphically) all day long with an overclock. And please find me another computer which has a PSU, 32GB RAM, twin drives, a powerful GPU, a 3770 CPU, all cooled by ONE fan, right behind a 27" 1440p monitor, running near silently on your desk!
My friend just built a new PC with a Haswell i7 4770K and a Geforce 770 GTX GPU. He benches at 10,300 in 3DMark 2011. That's considered a pretty high-end system.
My iMac with the 3770, Geforce GTX 680MX benches 8400 with a 225/350 overclock (24/7). But that's NOW, and the iMac came out in December, 2012!
For the "regular" high-end crowd, there's nothing out there much faster than the 3770 Ivy Bridge or 4770 Haswell processors. And the 4770 is what, 10% faster than the 3770?
So I'm really not sure what people are looking for in a new iMac. It's blazing fast by today's standards. Would I like an even faster GPU just for the sake of it? SURE! But do I "need" it? Heck no!
My friend just built a new PC with a Haswell i7 4770K and a Geforce 770 GTX GPU. He benches at 10,300 in 3DMark 2011. That's considered a pretty high-end system.
My iMac with the 3770, Geforce GTX 680MX benches 8400 with a 225/350 overclock (24/7). But that's NOW, and the iMac came out in December, 2012!
For the "regular" high-end crowd, there's nothing out there much faster than the 3770 Ivy Bridge or 4770 Haswell processors. And the 4770 is what, 10% faster than the 3770?
So I'm really not sure what people are looking for in a new iMac. It's blazing fast by today's standards. Would I like an even faster GPU just for the sake of it? SURE! But do I "need" it? Heck no!
Its not like the 2012 model will stop working once the new one is released =P Its just that voice inside youre head saying "but there is something better! I though I got the best"
Your iMac will still be powerful for years to come. Although not the most powerful on the market, it will still do what you need it to.
But as someone mentioned, the design and production of computers take time, and by the time they are released, there are already better internals out on the market that they can use in the next gen. The progress of technology is growing exponentially.
Your iMac will still be powerful for years to come. Although not the most powerful on the market, it will still do what you need it to.
But as someone mentioned, the design and production of computers take time, and by the time they are released, there are already better internals out on the market that they can use in the next gen. The progress of technology is growing exponentially.
Unrealistic
Ask yourself...what will the current iMac NOT do that I need it to do
and what will it be able to do if updated....answer NOTHING
Ask yourself...what will the current iMac NOT do that I need it to do
and what will it be able to do if updated....answer NOTHING
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Computers are only outdated when they won't run the applications you want to run. My 2011 is hardly outdated and won't be for many years.
I think we are getting to a point where clock speed isn't as important as the overall user experience. average users don't care how much RAM their computer has, only that it works and works well.
I'm personally on a 27" late 2009 iMac and am still in love with it. only thing I wish I had was a bigger HD but honestly that's what externals are for. I don't want to upgrade either because that would mean ML and I'm gonna stick with SL as long as I can.
I'm personally on a 27" late 2009 iMac and am still in love with it. only thing I wish I had was a bigger HD but honestly that's what externals are for. I don't want to upgrade either because that would mean ML and I'm gonna stick with SL as long as I can.
Yeah I loved my late 2009 27" iMac. The main reason I really wanted the upgrade to the 2012 was the new GPU. That AMD 4850 really wasn't cutting it! Aside from that, I was using an internal SSD since the beginning so moving to the 2012 iMac wasn't a huge improvement there by any means.
The glare reduction was nice, of course...
All technology is outdated as it's released, but I know what you mean. For such an exclusive computer company, I think they'd have the capability and/or influence to have access to the latest components before they're released, rather than adding them as they come out to the public.
Appreciation for my iMac would be boosted a lot if Apple made it easier to upgrade the parts myself. Even if doing surgery was easier than upgrading but they made MXM cards more readily available I'd be happy. CPU's, Ram and Harddrives are easy enough to come by, though it wouldn't hurt if they lowered the price they currently sell their parts at and made more available.
I think a lot of you will answer this with "Then why not go with a Mac Pro and a custom built desktop!?" The answer is I have, but I enjoy the all in one factor of the iMac. Why is it such a tall order to want a compact machine with user friendly upgradability, this is more a very possible order.
Allowing people to upgrade for themselves would take strain off the companies ability to push out products faster and become more ecological for part trade-ins.
Of course they'd still be able to continue selling the products they make now for those who want a simple solution. No doubt if they keep pushing out new iMac chassis with cooling features, screen sizes, form factors, etc they'd be able to sell them well.
Kinda got carried away there... my 2 cents, don't tear my head off.
Appreciation for my iMac would be boosted a lot if Apple made it easier to upgrade the parts myself. Even if doing surgery was easier than upgrading but they made MXM cards more readily available I'd be happy. CPU's, Ram and Harddrives are easy enough to come by, though it wouldn't hurt if they lowered the price they currently sell their parts at and made more available.
I think a lot of you will answer this with "Then why not go with a Mac Pro and a custom built desktop!?" The answer is I have, but I enjoy the all in one factor of the iMac. Why is it such a tall order to want a compact machine with user friendly upgradability, this is more a very possible order.
Allowing people to upgrade for themselves would take strain off the companies ability to push out products faster and become more ecological for part trade-ins.
Of course they'd still be able to continue selling the products they make now for those who want a simple solution. No doubt if they keep pushing out new iMac chassis with cooling features, screen sizes, form factors, etc they'd be able to sell them well.
Kinda got carried away there... my 2 cents, don't tear my head off.
If you start pushing out parts before they are released then you run the risk that there is some technical flaw that causes serious problems down the line. Would you want to gain a month or so at the risk of having to do a major recall later?
OP doesn't have a history of trolling.. but does have a history of a lemon 2011 model. No doubt he's waiting till the 2013's to buy to replace his lemon.
iMacs get updated when there's something worth updating, which typically has been every 9 months. Releasing a new one today with available components would result in a single-digit-percantage performance increase; there's no reason to bother.
I expect a new model around Sept-Oct.. and I also expect it to be nearly indistinguishable for any real world tasks from the 2012. There are only a few corner cases (sustained SSD drive reads, 4K video over WiFi) where the new model will make a serious difference. If that's all you're waiting for, seriously, stop waiting.
iMacs get updated when there's something worth updating, which typically has been every 9 months. Releasing a new one today with available components would result in a single-digit-percantage performance increase; there's no reason to bother.
I expect a new model around Sept-Oct.. and I also expect it to be nearly indistinguishable for any real world tasks from the 2012. There are only a few corner cases (sustained SSD drive reads, 4K video over WiFi) where the new model will make a serious difference. If that's all you're waiting for, seriously, stop waiting.
Apple updates its desktops last as they are the least profitable machines they sell, so it's common for them to be behind updated processor release by 6 months or so. Add to that the fact that the 2012 iMac was delayed due to production problems above and beyond this fact and you have the current situation. This was one of the reasons I chose not to buy a 2012 model and to wait for the 2013 model instead. Still, expect the 2013 to be nearly 6 months behind the Haswell refreash--again this is normal for Apple.
When I first decided to buy a Mac, I wanted one as soon as the hardware was refreshed. Naturally they refreshed the Macbooks first and that's what I ended up buying even though I didn't really need a laptop and sure enough I've used it only a handful of times as a portable device.
Needless to say, I held out last year past the Macbook refreshes only to be disappointed by the delay and limited availability. This year I'm doing the same thing and I hope they deliver on-time this time around. At least then I'm only paying a premium for 6-month old tech as opposed to year old tech as the 2012 is now.
This is very true, something I hadn't considered. I suppose in a perfect world it may work. Apple is very very good at harmonizing software and hardware and that is worth waiting for I will agree.
Perhaps when a ceiling of sorts is hit for both hardware and software, harmonizing will be common place, it doesn't seem outside the realm of possibility that some algorithm will be developed.
My understanding is Intel is still to release the next CPUs suitable for the iMac, so just how out of date is my 7 month old 27" iMac?
One of the reasons I paid extra for the upgrades is even when the next iMac is released (and the one after that) it won't feel out of date. Especially considering they are not likely to change the exterior design for another 1 or 2 upgrades.
One of the reasons I paid extra for the upgrades is even when the next iMac is released (and the one after that) it won't feel out of date. Especially considering they are not likely to change the exterior design for another 1 or 2 upgrades.
I think 'outdated' is a gross exaggeration. With as slowly as processing power increases have come since...well let's face it, the Core 2 architecture--I'm not sure I would call anything that is at least I-series architecture 'outdated'. Frankly when I upgraded my gaming rig from a Core 2 Quad to an Ivy Bridge I5 I really hoped for a more noticeable improvement than I got.
The idea being debated is a matter of personal perspective: how long past release should you be willing to pay full price for any particular generation of architecture and it's different with Macs than it is with PCs because of the lag time between chipset/CPU release and Macs based on that architecture being released. I also realize I'm much more sensitive to the issue than a lot of Mac purchasers will be because I work with PC hardware every day and have been building my own PCs for over 20 years. I personally find it objectionable to pay full retail MSRP for a product that is going to be replaced with newer tech within 6 months or so because I know on the PC side of things I could build a machine for quite a bit cheaper than I could have if I'd built it near the release of the then new generation.
My rule of thumb with Macs is to buy new within a month or two of release or wait a bit longer and save some cash and buy a refurb. Once the halfway point is reached toward next year's model I see no reason not to wait unless I'm in a desperate situation which I simply don't see happening for a home machine.
In PC world you would be right.
Three days ago I exchanged my iMac 2009 (!) 2.8 Quad Intel 860 8 GB ATI 4850 128 GB SSD for a 2012 i7 3.4 16 GB 16 GB GTX 680 MX 250 GB SSD.
The first point I want to make is: I got a good deal, meaning, iMac keeps its trade in value. A PC wouldn't - after three years it's worthless even if you put the highest grade components in it.
The Mac (and iMacs) may not have the latest of the latest but in combination with the software it works. To be honest with you, in day to day work I hardly notice any difference between my old and new iMac. Yes - Handbrake is much faster and so are other CPU and GPU intensive tasks but in my case, iLife, movie downloading and unpacking (and sometimes decoding), Parallels Windows for work etc even the old iMac was sufficient. I am still looking for an app that can unrar for me and give me much higher speeds (now 20% gain)....
Yes, there are newer, higher grade components. Yes they are faster than previous gen. Even the new vs the old iMac gives a higher score in geek bench. But then again - do you see the actual difference?
My benefits now are Thunderbolt, USB 3 etc and on top of that I am now able to install Windows 7 64 bit in Bootcamp and score a 7,9 system score out of 7,9 maximum, hence being able to actually play games in high res. That my old iMac couldn't but it wasn't important for me at the time and even now it is an " extra".
The 2013 iMac will of course be even better, faster etc etc. So will the 2014 and 2015 by the way.
I have - since I made the change in 2007 - been happy with everything iMac brought me in terms of performance, usability and functionality.
But then again - depending on your needs - there is also something extra to wish / hope / need for.
Three days ago I exchanged my iMac 2009 (!) 2.8 Quad Intel 860 8 GB ATI 4850 128 GB SSD for a 2012 i7 3.4 16 GB 16 GB GTX 680 MX 250 GB SSD.
The first point I want to make is: I got a good deal, meaning, iMac keeps its trade in value. A PC wouldn't - after three years it's worthless even if you put the highest grade components in it.
The Mac (and iMacs) may not have the latest of the latest but in combination with the software it works. To be honest with you, in day to day work I hardly notice any difference between my old and new iMac. Yes - Handbrake is much faster and so are other CPU and GPU intensive tasks but in my case, iLife, movie downloading and unpacking (and sometimes decoding), Parallels Windows for work etc even the old iMac was sufficient. I am still looking for an app that can unrar for me and give me much higher speeds (now 20% gain)....
Yes, there are newer, higher grade components. Yes they are faster than previous gen. Even the new vs the old iMac gives a higher score in geek bench. But then again - do you see the actual difference?
My benefits now are Thunderbolt, USB 3 etc and on top of that I am now able to install Windows 7 64 bit in Bootcamp and score a 7,9 system score out of 7,9 maximum, hence being able to actually play games in high res. That my old iMac couldn't but it wasn't important for me at the time and even now it is an " extra".
The 2013 iMac will of course be even better, faster etc etc. So will the 2014 and 2015 by the way.
I have - since I made the change in 2007 - been happy with everything iMac brought me in terms of performance, usability and functionality.
But then again - depending on your needs - there is also something extra to wish / hope / need for.
I went from a G5 PowerMac to the i7 iMac, so I'm more than pleased with my upgrade in performance.
Yes it's always good when in the know and to buy just after the release date but I'd hate to buy an iMac after 3 months only to find weeks later Apple has dropped the price. I get your point.
I haven't checked the big name PC makers like Dell and Sony, but in general do their prices remain steady through the models life?
That said I know Microsoft recently dropped the price of Surface mid cycle, with no Surface 2 likely to come soon.
There is too much bias here, like most here have asked what are you using you Mac for. If you intend on using it for games just get yourself a nintendo, sony playstation, or xbox. Macs are fantastic machines to date but new release games are still rare on the platform just look at the upcoming lineup Bioshock Infinite and Sim City which are already ageing on the PC. My best answer to this thread is enjoy your Mac and stop the bickering.