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M1 iMac Configurations and Pricing Breakdown

Where is the replacement for the 27" iMac....that is what I am waiting for. I cannot wait until I can get rid of this iMac and get a new redesigned iMac!

I suspect that the delay is because of chip availability...Apple wants something more powerful then the M1, like the M1X or M2 and for whatever reason, it is not here yet.
 
pjs7171 said:
Which LG did you get? I am looking for mini plus screen, but a screen I can also plug in my Air. Any idea if that would work?
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Really tricky to find one with great reviews. I got the LG ultra fine 5K monitor in the end that Apple used to sell. It is fab but if I had my time again I would buy an IMac. I just got impatient.
 
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ForkHandles said:
I won’t be buying one because, as you say, it’s a very similar spec. This new iMac is a cheaper configuration, much better value for money than a mini plus 5K display plus new keyboard plus trackpad.
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Thanks - as I was on the fence whether to buy the new iMac or the iMac mini with LG 5k monitor. I though with the display separate it would be more future proof. Replacing my 2012 27 iMac.
 
20 years ago I got tired of the poopshow that was Windows/PC and went back to Apple when the Pixar Lamp iMac came out.

I am now on my fourth iMac, but I fear that Apple’s pricing, and waning user upgrade options, are going to leave me with no options but go back to Windows at my next purchase unless a version with user-upgradeable RAM slots comes out.

I do a boatload of hi-res illustration. 16GB max RAM? I’ve got 64GB dedicated solely to Photoshop on my 2019 27” iMac. There’s no way I can do what I need to do on these oversized iPads, and the Mac Pro is priced too far out of my league.
 
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Jeff Sorley said:
I do a boatload of hi-res illustration. 16GB max RAM? I’ve got 64GB dedicated solely to Photoshop on my 2019 27” iMac. There’s no way I can do what I need to do on these oversized iPads, and the Mac Pro is priced too far out of my league.
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The major difference is the unified architecture - the computational and graphics cores are directly connected to the RAM. No interconnects / controllers / busses. I think you'll be shocked at what you can do with 16GB, if you try it. It's just not like anything we've seen before. Yes, there are limitations, but it's pretty amazing still.
 
MVMNT said:
EIGHT HUNDRED DOLLARS for 2TB of storage.

It's like Apple want you to normalise the use of external devices.
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How big of a boot SSD do you think we need. If macOS and apps fit nicely in a 256 SSD, then I'll get an external 2TB external and be done with it.
 
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Jeff Sorley said:
20 years ago I got tired of the poopshow that was Windows/PC and went back to Apple when the Pixar Lamp iMac came out.

I am now on my fourth iMac, but I fear that Apple’s pricing, and waning user upgrade options, are going to leave me with no options but go back to Windows at my next purchase unless a version with user-upgradeable RAM slots comes out.

I do a boatload of hi-res illustration. 16GB max RAM? I’ve got 64GB dedicated solely to Photoshop on my 2019 27” iMac. There’s no way I can do what I need to do on these oversized iPads, and the Mac Pro is priced too far out of my league.
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Yeah, I’m not sure about this one... but I think the 27”+ iMac will cater more to pros. Plus the SoC architecture is so different that the RAM issue may not be as big an issue as you think. How many simultaneous 4K streams did they say it could handle? No frame drops? This is such a big shift that we can’t compare it to ‘standard’ non-SoC arrangements
 
These are the ugliest things that Apple has ever designed.

And a WHITE BEZEL? That contrast will hurt your eyes... not to mention give you that cheap plastic Playmobile or Medical Waste aesthetic.

These are a massive disappointment.

Weird how this is the actual first design and core product that Time Cook has overseen... and it is a disaster.
 
So much focus on continuity/handoff and user switching on the introduction and they forgot to mention that if you use fast user switching handoff and continuity stop working..
Since Yosemite.. they are clowns!
 
So this kind of highlights the issue of the M1 architecture for me with desktops, the memory integration is all well and good, I honestly don't mind not being able to user upgrade it if I didn't have to pay Apple memory prices. I pretty much only open up my iMac once to upgrade RAM and never again anyway.

I have mostly never bought the idea of the Apple tax, a lot of times making a PC with the same level of parts is a similar price, except when it comes to RAM. For whatever reason, Apple still seems to think RAM is made from gold.

One of the great parts of the last iMac I bought (The last 27 inch Intel unit sold) is that I was very easily able to upgrade it to 32 GB of RAM myself. While I don't necessarily need 32, I would love to be able to get more RAM at a sane price in the future. As it stands they want more than double what I spent on 32 GB for just 16.

EDIT: For now I will keep a wait and see approach to see what they do with the 27 inch, which is what I would be interested in anyway.
 
Hate the Chin and Bezels. Wanted to see a full screen iMac. well I guess we’ll have to wait 10 more years for the next major update
By the way the LG monitor as well as the HP Envy are full screen so why not Apple
Last hope is when they launch the larger size it’s all screen
 
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Remy149 said:
Is m1 as ram hungry as intel chips?
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From what I read and saw in tech reviews, no. Apparently, the unified architecture makes your 8GB of RAM go further than it would on an intel.

I mean, it’s kinda similar on phones, no?
Just by the numbers, a lot of Android phones have more RAM to offer but are still beaten by the iPhone in terms of speed.
 
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ewu said:
why M1 has so limit on ram?
I expect iMac 24inch to have at least 32GB ram option.

M1 is fast, but with so limit ram, it is only suitable for office work.

but why office work need a fast cpu?
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What are you doing that can’t be done with 16GB? Just curious. And I guess you know that you can buy an iMac with 128 GB.
 
4look4rd said:
This iMac makes no sense.

4.5k on a 24” screen is wasteful, and that’s the bulk of cost of the machine. You’re essentially paying for a $600 Mac mini integrated into a $900 24” LCD display.

they missed the chance of giving the iMac an entry level price point of $999 with still a good display. You just don’t need these many pixels in such a tiny display.
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It’s not a tv, it’s a computer monitor. To me, the 4.5k display is one of the biggest selling points. There’s also a 21.5” iMac with 1920x1080 pixels for sale, maybe you prefer that?
 
gevalt said:
like others, i'm very surprised that apple has taken a huge step backwards and that these new machines appear appear to be limited to 16Gb ram. even today's i9 imacs can go up to 128Gb.
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Repeat after me: This is the new low-end iMac. Apple promised to replace the high-end iMac within the next 17 months.
 
MVMNT said:
EIGHT HUNDRED DOLLARS for 2TB of storage.

It's like Apple want you to normalise the use of external devices.
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That’s what they are there for. Base model+16GB+good USB-C hub + 2TB external SSD + 5TB external hard drive for backups.
 
breather said:
The only difference between the middle one and the most expensive is the bigger SSD?
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Yes, they could have left that one out completely. The expensive one “comes with” 512 GB for $200, the others can be upgraded to 512 GB for $200. Both can be upgraded to 1TB or 2TB and you get the same computer for the same money.
 
ewu said:
with limit ram, it swaps too much data from ram to SSD.
That is why lots of news said SSD life is much shorter in M1 mac.
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That “news” has actually been quiet for months. It’s one of these things that come up after Apple releases something and then it goes away. In this case I’d bet someone ran a speed test on his SSD and by mistake kept it running 24/7 for a month. And was surprised about the large number of reads and writes.

For most people the amount of swapping will be minimal.
 
Surrix said:
Does anyone have a sense of whether the speed increase of this RAM makes up for having so little of it? My 9yo iMac has 24 GB of RAM and still feels very fast today. Would stepping down to 16 GB on a new machine still objectively be an upgrade in every circumstance? How about even when running virtual machines (where some chunk of memory is dedicated to each)?
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For VMs today use an Intel Mac. 8GB is ok for many because the SSD is so fast. For most uses I wouldn’t care about SSD speed, but for handling insufficient memory it works wonders. Same 8GB with a spinning hard drive would be a disaster if 8GB is not enough. Or with a slower SSD it would be a bit sluggish.
 
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Why would anyone buy these with the Mac mini and even the MacBook Air being just as capable? It doesn’t make any sense, a desktop should gain some sort of performance for the lack of portability.
 
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