New M1 iMacs vs. older ones?

[kat.hayes]

I work in an office with a bunch of older iMacs and we use Photoshop and Premiere a lot. Some are 2017 3.2 GHz 8-core Intel Xeon, some are 21.5-inch iMac (Late 2015) 4-Core 3.3ghz intel core i7 and some are 27-inch iMac (Late 2015) 4-Core 4GHz intel core i7.

1. Anyone know how much of an improvement the new M1 based iMacs will be with Photoshop and Premiere over what we have?
2. Is there a way to determine how much better the new Macs are percentage wise?

Thanks in advance.

 

[wilberforce]

Probably really depends on exactly what you are doing.
The best way would be to simply order one, with (minimum) 16GB RAM, and try it out for about a week. That is the whole point of the Apple 14-day return period.
I suggest also wait until the new M1 27"+ iMacs come out next year. Probably will be exactly what you need

 

[circatee]

If you have an Apple shop nearby, pay them a visit and try an M1 in the shop.

From recollection, Macs in the Apple shop used to have high level apps installed, so one could see how they operated. Albeit, not 100% if that is still the case. Does not hurt to phone a local Apple shop, and ask...

 

[ADGrant]

I work in an office with a bunch of older iMacs and we use Photoshop and Premiere a lot. Some are 2017 3.2 GHz 8-core Intel Xeon, some are 21.5-inch iMac (Late 2015) 4-Core 3.3ghz intel core i7 and some are 27-inch iMac (Late 2015) 4-Core 4GHz intel core i7.

1. Anyone know how much of an improvement the new M1 based iMacs will be with Photoshop and Premiere over what we have?
2. Is there a way to determine how much better the new Macs are percentage wise?

Thanks in advance.

You seem to have a very wide range of iMacs including several iMac Pros. Which iMacs are you looking to replace.
The new 24" M1 iMac will obviously provide a significant improvement over the 21" iMacs and the 2015 27".

 

[gilby101]

Some are 2017 3.2 GHz 8-core Intel Xeon, some are 21.5-inch iMac (Late 2015) 4-Core 3.3ghz intel core i7 and some are 27-inch iMac (Late 2015) 4-Core 4GHz intel core i7.

Can you add the RAM to each of those. The current M1 iMacs are limited to 16GB.

If your iMac Pros have (and really use) 32 or more GB you could have problems (almost certainly if 64 GB or more). Depending on the detail of your workflows, I suspect the current M1 iMacs might not be a great replacement. Wait for the new 27" iMac (maybe called an iMac Pro) next year which will have faster processor (M1X maybe) and (we assume) greater maximum RAM.

If 16GB RAM is enough, replacing your 21" and 27" iMacs now (with 24" iMac) would see a big jump in CPU performance.

The top of the line M1 based Mac is now the 16" MacBook Pro. Has the M1 Max (M1X) processor and up to 64GB RAM. Testing with one of those (if you need an excuse) would give you a good idea of what you can expect next year from the new 27".

 

[pshufd]

Can you add the RAM to each of those. The current M1 iMacs are limited to 16GB.

If your iMac Pros have (and really use) 32 or more GB you could have problems (almost certainly if 64 GB or more). Depending on the detail of your workflows, I suspect the current M1 iMacs might not be a great replacement. Wait for the new 27" iMac (maybe called an iMac Pro) next year which will have faster processor (M1X maybe) and (we assume) greater maximum RAM.

If 16GB RAM is enough, replacing your 21" and 27" iMacs now (with 24" iMac) would see a big jump in CPU performance.

The top of the line M1 based Mac is now the 16" MacBook Pro. Has the M1 Max (M1X) processor and up to 64GB RAM. Testing with one of those (if you need an excuse) would give you a good idea of what you can expect next year from the new 27".

Getting your hands on an M1 MAX with 64 GB RAM may be a challenge.

The Apple Store has them delivering in March 2022 right now.

 

[Bodhitree]

I’d suggest replacing the 2015 21.5” iMacs with new 24” M1 iMacs, that should be the lowest-hanging fruit and a surefire improvement, and that should allow you to see where you stand with your uses of Photoshop and Premiere compared to the other machines.

The new larger iMac which is rumoured to come in 2022 might be what you need to replace the iMac Pro’s.

If you want numbers on raw performance you could collect some Geekbench 5 scores, there might also be some YouTube video comparisons out there which look more specifically at Photoshop and Premiere.