New iMac Is Beautiful

[Bodhitree]

I was on CPU benchmark for another thread where I was hunting for some comparisons between an equivalent priced Dell AIO against the new iMac: https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare/Apple-M1-8-Core-3200-MHz-vs-Intel-i7-1165G7/4104vs3814

The CPU is from last year around the same time as the M1 launch. That's comparing against an i7 with similar TDP, a lower base clock but higher boost clock and an equivalent amount of performance cores. It comes from a comparable priced equivalent product (a Dell Inspiron 27" AIO) currently listed for sale. The M1 appears to be beating it on their overall score and their single threaded execution score.

My read is that this means it's doing better than the Core i7 released around the same time.

Thats true, but we need to compare against the latest Rocket Lake processors which were announced in March 2021, after all you are not spending your money back in November last year. If you were to buy a computer now, your choices would be a 24” iMac or a Dell XPS featuring the latest Intel chip.

And as far as single-threaded performance goes, Intel had a very good update, the latest 11th generation desktop chips now score about 1600 on single-threaded Geekbench 5, compared to 1250 a year or so ago. Which is probably why they have released chips with a couple of cores less. In multithreaded mode the latest i5 scores about between 7200 and 8200, the i7 between 9000 and 11000, the i9 between 8500 and 11500. The M1 consistently scores about 1700 single threaded, 7700 multi-threaded.

But honestly, for most tasks that’s already very fast. My dad bought a new PC from HP a couple of years ago with a Ryzen processor which scores about 850 single threaded and 2700 multi threaded, and it’s fine for everything he does and he expects it to last him a good 8 years.

The thing is, Apple has not been very good at keeping machines up to date the last few years. Some Intel macs were still featuring 8th generation processors, and so comparing performance against what has come before is going to favour the new M1 chips heavily. A lot of YouTubers are also playing that game, comparing against whatever machine they have on hand.

Bottom line, you’re buying the whole package, design, great screen, peripherals, processor and macOS. I still like the iMac, it’s a great computer and I suspect it will be fast enough for my needs, although I may have to hold out for the 30” version.

 

[RodDavies]

The design — inside, outside — beautiful. Perfectly positioned in the Mac lineup.

I get it all — the M1, the colors, the white bezel, the logo-less chin, the power brick. Brilliant.

What exactly do some not get about this remarkable machine?

 

[RodDavies]

Well, of course, beauty IS in the eye of the beholder.

I wantED a new Mac, but these are just ugly. The citrus, pastel colours of the front? Ugly. Could not have ONE.

The silver one with the white bezel? Also ugly. That bezel just highlights the screen. Not hiding it within the body. Don’t mind the FACT it has a chin. But the colours of the chin? Too pastel and bright.

I would have loved a Slate Grey option, as I work in dark mode and that, IF the bezel had been black/dark Gray, would have looked lovely.

Really, for an upmarket, premium workstation, the colours make them look like 20-30 year old Tonka Toys. Hideous. 8mb RAM base model? 256gb SSD base model? 2 decades old Tonka Toy looks?

And, appreciating Apple’s never ending quest for THIN, WHY does a workstation NEED to be so thin? We work on them from the front. We hardly EVER NEED TO PICK THEM UP and move them, in truth. How many of you (come on, be truthful) ever look at the sides of your current Mac? And how many look at the sides and say “I wish it was thinner”.


They could have/should have been a few mm thicker, thereby reducing the chin altogether, by moving what is hidden behind it, further up the body, behind other components. THIN in this instance is strictly form over function.

No thanks. I’ll just put an SSD in my 27” later 2013 Mac and be happy.

A hard FAIL from me.

 

[ErikGrim]

Really, for an upmarket, premium workstation, the colours make them look like 20-30 year old Tonka Toys.

again:

These are the entry level base model 21" iMac replacements not "premium workstations"​

 

[Trenches]

I liked it from the start, but starting to love it more and more. I think that any great design will always have mixed reactions at first, but people will become accustomed to it quickly. You can't make an iconic design without some bold choices. And they really went above-and-beyond with the attention to detail on the power cord and keyboard/mouse. Plus, all this running on the M1 chip for a fairly affordable price...the average consumer will be absolutely delighted, I'm betting.

Yeah I’m not seeing how this design is iconic in the least. People would literally say that about any design Apple put out. Think about that and name the non-iconic design in the bunch. It’s a computer cult; let’s get real.

The new iMac is straight up ugly. It’s an iPad on a stand in some pretty gaudy hues. The lack of logo in front is somewhat undesirable/off, and the huge logo on back is vom. I actually prefer every other generation of iMac over this one. I was much more excited for the MacRumors mockup version, but they’d have had to have put the components in a thicker stand to accomplish a chinless design.

The logic board/SoC engineering and specs are another story entirely. Those are pretty great minus the base model seemingly lacking features just for the sake of it. Seems more expensive and cumbersome for them to produce that separate model just to artificially require an upgrade to a price point they should have just started at.

Before the obsessed downvote criticism as negative as I’m anticipating, consider what you’re supporting first. Is this the best design they could come up with? I don’t think so. I’m praying for an iMac Pro refresh at this point or a separate consumer display. Quite frankly, I think what’s to come will render this to become seen as the quite hideous bubble gum teeny bop machine that it is.

 

[Trenches]

The design — inside, outside — beautiful. Perfectly positioned in the Mac lineup.

I get it all — the M1, the colors, the white bezel, the logo-less chin, the power brick. Brilliant.

What exactly do some not get about this remarkable machine?

I am really genuinely glad someone can feel this way about this machine. I can’t, but I am glad this design makes someone’s day. Maybe it will grow on me once I see one in person. I have a tendency to find the beauty in things I initially dislike, but I just am a big fan of their now-classic silver-centric designs that’s now signifying Pro.

 

[Trenches]

Well, of course, beauty IS in the eye of the beholder.

I wantED a new Mac, but these are just ugly. The citrus, pastel colours of the front? Ugly. Could not have ONE.

The silver one with the white bezel? Also ugly. That bezel just highlights the screen. Not hiding it within the body. Don’t mind the FACT it has a chin. But the colours of the chin? Too pastel and bright.

I would have loved a Slate Grey option, as I work in dark mode and that, IF the bezel had been black/dark Gray, would have looked lovely.

Really, for an upmarket, premium workstation, the colours make them look like 20-30 year old Tonka Toys. Hideous. 8mb RAM base model? 256gb SSD base model? 2 decades old Tonka Toy looks?

And, appreciating Apple’s never ending quest for THIN, WHY does a workstation NEED to be so thin? We work on them from the front. We hardly EVER NEED TO PICK THEM UP and move them, in truth. How many of you (come on, be truthful) ever look at the sides of your current Mac? And how many look at the sides and say “I wish it was thinner”.


They could have/should have been a few mm thicker, thereby reducing the chin altogether, by moving what is hidden behind it, further up the body, behind other components. THIN in this instance is strictly form over function.

No thanks. I’ll just put an SSD in my 27” later 2013 Mac and be happy.

A hard FAIL from me.

Couldn’t agree more, except I’m getting My Little Pony from them, not Tonka. Also agree with the bezel color distraction. I do predict they’ll come out with your desirable color combination or perhaps a standalone display.

 

[mfacey]

I’m going to bet it’ll look 3x better in real life than on the pictures. I’ve got my wallet ready for a blue one to pre-order this friday

 

[crazy dave]

Really, for an upmarket, premium workstation, the colours make them look like 20-30 year old Tonka Toys. Hideous. 8mb RAM base model? 256gb SSD base model? 2 decades old Tonka Toy looks?

As @ErikGrim said:

These:

Are the new these:

They are base level machines. Not premium workstations. Those come later.

 

[Braderunner]

The design — inside, outside — beautiful. Perfectly positioned in the Mac lineup.

I get it all — the M1, the colors, the white bezel, the logo-less chin, the power brick. Brilliant.

What exactly do some not get about this remarkable machine?

The fact that people have an opinion, that you disagree with, means they don't get it? Doesn't make sense. You don't understand what an opinion is...evidently.
The white bezel is ugly. The pastel chin and stand are ugly. One could get silver, to avoid the pastels, but the white bezel...

 

[Silmakhor]

I honestly don't understand why so many people feel so passionately for the design one way or the other. This design is fine. The classic unibody 27" is fine. They are, at the end of the day, computers. They are not installations in fine art museums.

The presence or absence of a white bezel has no bearing on its function.
The presence or absence of a chin has no bearing on its function.

What matters is what it can do. Will it run photoshop, play nice with Discord, power several monitors, and not slow down? That's what I care about.

Will it last 8+ years or more without becoming, as my current 27" has? That matters considerably more than whether it has a chin or that I can't get it in space gray.

 

[blairh]

The presence or absence of a white bezel has no bearing on its function.

Yeah I totally disagree. White bezels are going to stick out in dark mode, dark websites, and in video playback. They should have simply made one model without white bezels. And I feel the silver model would have been the logical choice with black or matching silver bezels. To place white bezels on all models is a mistake IMO.

 

[Silmakhor]

Yeah I totally disagree. White bezels are going to stick out in dark mode, dark websites, and in video playback. They should have simply made one model without white bezels. And I feel the silver model would have been the logical choice with black or matching silver bezels. To place white bezels on all models is a mistake IMO.

99% of the target market isn't going to care. It's not like white bezels made graphic design, watching movies, or browsing in dark mode impossible up until this point.

In any event, it's a non issue. Here ya go: https://9to5mac.com/2021/04/26/dbra...-new-imac-black-bezels-or-a-fully-black-imac/

 

[AZhappyjack]

I honestly don't understand why so many people feel so passionately for the design one way or the other. This design is fine. The classic unibody 27" is fine. They are, at the end of the day, computers. They are not installations in fine art museums.

The presence or absence of a white bezel has no bearing on its function.
The presence or absence of a chin has no bearing on its function.

What matters is what it can do. Will it run photoshop, play nice with Discord, power several monitors, and not slow down? That's what I care about.

Will it last 8+ years or more without becoming, as my current 27" has? That matters considerably more than whether it has a chin or that I can't get it in space gray.

The color of the bezel has no bearing on function, but it is a real issue in usability for some.

It may well last 8+ years (or may not, as Apple is the becoming the king of planned obsolescence), but IF it does, isn't 8+ years a long time to stare at an ugly computer (or one that is bothersome to the eyes) all day, every day to try to get some work done? (Asking for a friend.)

 

[AZhappyjack]

99% of the target market isn't going to care. It's not like white bezels made graphic design, watching movies, or browsing in dark mode impossible up until this point.

In any event, it's a non issue. Here ya go: https://9to5mac.com/2021/04/26/dbra...-new-imac-black-bezels-or-a-fully-black-imac/

That's the solution. Spend $60 on a black sticker to cover up the white bezel. How ridiculous?!

 

[jeyf]

at last a computer that functions as furniture

 

[Silmakhor]

The color of the bezel has no bearing on function, but it is a real issue in usability for some.

It may well last 8+ years (or may not, as Apple is the becoming the king of planned obsolescence), but IF it does, isn't 8+ years a long time to stare at an ugly computer (or one that is bothersome to the eyes) all day, every day to try to get some work done? (Asking for a friend.)

Can you explain your first point? For *hardcore* people in arts production I can see that, but those people are holding out for a pro model anyway.

Re: the second point, I can confidently say that I truly won't give a damn what color the bezel is in 8 years. I'll be more concerned about whether it still runs the programs I need at a speed that doesn't drive me nuts. There are many, many things we can get upset about. I prefer to channel that energy to more important causes.

 

[blairh]

99% of the target market isn't going to care. It's not like white bezels made graphic design, watching movies, or browsing in dark mode impossible up until this point.

In any event, it's a non issue. Here ya go: https://9to5mac.com/2021/04/26/dbra...-new-imac-black-bezels-or-a-fully-black-imac/

Yes they will. White bezels was a polarizing choice. I have no doubt the pastel models will sell. The point being it makes sense to offer one model that looks more traditional. It's not that white bezels make it impossible to do anything. It's just a different experience and some people really prefer black or silver bezels in the scenarios I stated earlier.

Having to buy over-expensive tape to cover the bezels or your new iMac is a fail.

 

[Silmakhor]

That's the solution. Spend $60 on a black sticker to cover up the white bezel. How ridiculous?!

Folks routinely drop as much for a custom cover for their iphone. I think it's nuts, but I'm also not wasting my energy getting upset over a non-issue.

 

[Silmakhor]

Judging by the pushback I'm getting on my post, it seems that people really, really care about the bezels. To me, that's just a completely bizarre waste of energy, but none of you are me. So carry on.

 

[RodDavies]

again:

These are the entry level base model 21" iMac replacements not "premium workstations"​

Apple market EVERYTHING they sell as the very best. ie Premium. We pay premium Apple prices for all their products. We get gaudy baubles as Macs this year. The PROS might be better, but the Macs are premium. They’re Apple. Ah well.

 

[AZhappyjack]

Can you explain your first point? For *hardcore* people in arts production I can see that, but those people are holding out for a pro model anyway.

Re: the second point, I can confidently say that I truly won't give a damn what color the bezel is in 8 years. I'll be more concerned about whether it still runs the programs I need at a speed that doesn't drive me nuts. There are many, many things we can get upset about. I prefer to channel that energy to more important causes.

I stare at a screen for 8-10 hours a day... never thought of myself as *hardcore*

To both points, I am not upset and not burning any energy on this... just stating my opinion and personal preference... I have a 2019 27" iMac (and an M1 MBP for travel), so I am set for a while... and when I am ready to buy again, I will see what they offer.

 

[AZhappyjack]

Folks routinely drop as much for a custom cover for their iphone. I think it's nuts, but I'm also not wasting my energy getting upset over a non-issue.

Again, not upset... but this is beyond ridiculous... and FWIW, I have a $18 case on my iPhone 12 Pro Max... again, just stating an opinion/preference.

 

[darkest.d]

Are there going to be outlet and youtube previews before we can order on the 30th?

 

[Bodhitree]

It's just a different experience and some people really prefer black or silver bezels

Honestly, I don’t think it matters from a functional perspective. I can think of a lot of work scenarios where white bezels are a slight advantage, and when the screen is turned off it will look marginally better with black bezels.

I do think that from a product design perspective the white bezels look better with the coloured iMacs, and Apple have had all-white machines in the past which people used without any problems. The whole reaction to white bezels is way over-done.