iMac was just refreshed after a long wait, will that happen again?

[Xystence]

I'm thinking of selling my MacBook Pro from last year in favor of one of the new 27inch iMac's that just came out. Do we think Apple will continue supporting these or will we wait another two years before they are refreshed again?


Any thoughts on the subject would be appreciated.


Thank you!

 

[EugW]

My GUESS is that they will be refreshed next year, with 6-core CPU options.

Intel will be releasing 6-core mainstream CPUs relatively soon. Unfortunately, I couldn't wait that long. Plus, they may be lower clocked than current high end quads. While 6-core is great for stuff like video exports or whatever, for some 2D photo work, having faster clocked quads could be more beneficial.

 

[iMi]

The reality is that no one knows what will happen. A few weeks ago there were so many who thought Apple has abandoned the Pro market. Including myself. This refresh was unexpected and for the most part seems to have appeased almost everyone. Including myself.

When will the next update come? No one knows for sure. The only advice I can give you is buy whatever computer fits your needs today. That's the best policy in my opinion.

 

[Sirmausalot]

The delay, as was pointed out, was due to the delay in the Intel refresh and Apple moved ahead with their usual October upgrades for some machines and held off on the iMac so they could upgrade the iMacs to Kaby lake in the spring. I think this fall will really be the fall of the iPhone 8, iMac Pro, and perhaps Apple TV 4K. If Intel chips are ready, then we will likely see updated iMacs in the spring giving the current batch a full year lifecycle.

MacOS running on the A12X or something is an inevitability.

 

[Fishrrman]

I'll be corrected if this is wrong, but I don't believe that the iMacs will be able to support "full" 4k (by that I mean 4k with hardware-based DRM decoding) until the Coffee Lake chips are out later this year.

So I'll reckon that we'll see an iMac update probably about this time next year, or perhaps even a little sooner.

 

[trsblader]

Impossible to know for sure. You can see the history of releases at https://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#Mac but that doesn't mean they can't refresh them next month, or this fall. Whether refreshed soon or not, Apple will continue supporting the 2017 models for years to come. my 2011 iMac and 2012 macbook pro are both on Sierra, though the iMac doesn't have all the bells and whistles (probably like 90% of them though).

If you're on the "Do I buy now or wait" debate, buy if you need it, wait if you don't. You will NEVER update if you're constantly waiting to see if they refresh soon or not. I know you want to have the best of the best when you're dropping so much money on the machine and the fear of missing out can be extreme, but don't let the fear of missing a 10% spec bump in the future prevent you from enjoying yourself in the present.

 

[chakdey]

I have been debating on buying now or wait for the next upgrade. My issue is the redesign, feel as they are due for a redesign soon. The screen might be nice all, but the bezel appears really outdated on the iMacs.

 

[Dave245]

It's a very difficult one to answer, but my guess would be next year sometime what that will entail I don't know. There have been rumours that the iMac will get a redesign it was 2012 that it was last redesigned but know one really knows except Apple.

 

[EugW]

I'll be corrected if this is wrong, but I don't believe that the iMacs will be able to support "full" 4k (by that I mean 4k with hardware-based DRM decoding) until the Coffee Lake chips are out later this year.

So I'll reckon that we'll see an iMac update probably about this time next year, or perhaps even a little sooner.

The "full" DRM support is already built into Kaby Lake Macs. All of them, right down to the 12" MacBook. Now we are waiting for macOS support. I'm guessing we will see 4K Netflix support by winter.

All of them already support hardware decoding for HEVC too, for both 8-bit and 10-bit video, at 4K and at high bitrates. Again, all the way down to the 12" MacBook. That OS support is already in the High Sierra beta.

 

[Shivetya]

Waiting on the redesign is posted so often I am curious why people think one is coming when the iMac Pro is not to debut to December with the same exact chassis in use now. Why would Apple then turn around and release a new chassis next year and immediate design obsolete the iMac Pro. Plus, is there a new wonderful chipset from Intel coming that year? I don't think Apple would simply reuse the same chipset today in a new chassis

 

[chakdey]

T

Waiting on the redesign is posted so often I am curious why people think one is coming when the iMac Pro is not to debut to December with the same exact chassis in use now. Why would Apple then turn around and release a new chassis next year and immediate design obsolete the iMac Pro. Plus, is there a new wonderful chipset from Intel coming that year? I don't think Apple would simply reuse the same chipset today in a new chassis

This is the reason i will mostly likely end up buying one now. As much as i want to wait for a redesign, I don't think it will happen for at least 12-18 months. Since iMac Pro looks same as the regular iMac, besides the color of course.

 

[EugW]

Waiting on the redesign is posted so often I am curious why people think one is coming when the iMac Pro is not to debut to December with the same exact chassis in use now. Why would Apple then turn around and release a new chassis next year and immediate design obsolete the iMac Pro. Plus, is there a new wonderful chipset from Intel coming that year? I don't think Apple would simply reuse the same chipset today in a new chassis

Mainstream desktop 6-core comes next year and it will use a new chipset.

Also, the colours and design of the iMac Pro may be a hint of things to come.

 

[redheeler]

I'm thinking of selling my MacBook Pro from last year in favor of one of the new 27inch iMac's that just came out. Do we think Apple will continue supporting these or will we wait another two years before they are refreshed again?

If you want a desktop, now is a fine time to buy. There is likely to be a refresh next year, either in the spring or summer, with Coffee Lake CPUs (Apple had been waiting for Kaby Lake CPUs appropriate for the iMac, which is why it didn't get refreshed in the fall of last year).

 

[CWallace]

I'm thinking of selling my MacBook Pro from last year in favor of one of the new 27inch iMac's that just came out. Do we think Apple will continue supporting these or will we wait another two years before they are refreshed again?

Apple generally has been updating the iMac every October, but both Intel and AMD were slow on their release schedules so there was neither a new CPU nor GPU available last October. I was surprised Apple launched at WWDC rather than wait until October, but I guess they felt better to get it all out now.

I don't honestly see Intel speeding up their release schedule in terms of new generations of CPUs (Coffeelake, etc.). The process shrinks are getting harder and harder now and the FAB investment costs are significant. And while AMD looks to be competitive now in CPUs, they're focused on multiple cores on existing processes.

 

[Mac32]

I'm waiting for the next iMac generation, which could likely inherit the improved thermal/fan system in the upcoming iMac Pro. This will facilitate a more powerful CPU and GPU (hopefully Nvidia), and with less fan noise.

I'm still happy with my late 2012 iMac w/Nvidia 680MX (can be overclocked to match the regular GTX680). Apple really needs to get back with Nvidia, which has much more powerful GPUs - esp. for occasional gaming.

 

[EugW]

I'm waiting for the next iMac generation, which could likely inherit the improved thermal/fan system in the upcoming iMac Pro. This will facilitate a more powerful CPU and GPU (hopefully Nvidia), and with less fan noise.

I'm still happy with my late 2012 iMac w/Nvidia 680MX (can be overclocked to match the regular GTX680). Apple really needs to get back with Nvidia, which has much more powerful GPUs - esp. for occasional gaming.

Coffee Lake 6-core chips appropriate for the iMac are either due in late 2017 or early 2018, depending upon on what you read, which means we could have a 6-core non-Pro iMac as early as Q1 2018 or as late as Q3 2018. So, I'd guess 12-15 months.