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Potential iMac Update to Sandy Bridge and Thunderbolt in 4-6 Weeks?

linux2mac said:
I converted to Linux in 2007 and Mac in 2009 after using Windows since version 3.1 and don't miss a thing! It's true what they say "Mac's just work."
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That is the funny thing I was thinking about either going Linux (just so I don't need to listen to my mac wife tease me about my conversion to the light.) But if I want something that as you say "Just works" why go linux, I might fool around with that by setting my Dell up to dual boot, just upgraded it to 300 GB internal drive so plenty of space.

I had also thought of grabbing a netbook, and making a hackintosh, but that isn't reliable or realistic for daily computing needs either.

But I must say the thing that was perhaps the most instrumental in my thinking of going mac, was android.

I wanted a phone that just worked and was looking at iPhone vs Android. In my opinion the iPhone is a more reliable platform, due to the fragmentation of droid. Too many manufacturers, with their own independent specs, and a separate entity creating the software.

If you extrapolate the fragmentation of droid argument, it is an equally valid argument against windows.

Apple is in my opinion the Volvo of the computer world. And at this point, working full time, while also taking night classes and working on an undergrad degree, a volvo is what I need.

On a side note, I just went to the apple store, and looked at the 27" imacs....

Ok, maybe I just should get one of those when they refresh. I thought my wife had the 27", but she must actually have the 24"

Those 27" ones are very pretty. More space than I have on the 2 screens I have now combined. I could just use my Ipad 2 when I get one as a 2nd remote screen and call it a day. Damn they look nice.

iRobby said:
I've been told "Once you go Mac you don't go back!"

Judging from my experience with my iPhone 3GS making me wanting to get an iMac 27" inch Quad Core I may agree.
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I think that is what my experience is turning into. Just swap for a iphone 4 and not caring as much about quad core.
 
Dont forget you'll need an SSD too inside the iMac to achieve the Thunderbolt speeds!!

And it must be a very good and expensive SSD, with more than 700MB/s.

Thunderbolt not worth it right now because its TOO expensive. I'll wait 2 years, when SSDs are much MUCH more cheaper.
 
Sensamic said:
Dont forget you'll need an SSD too inside the iMac to achieve the Thunderbolt speeds!!

And it must be a very good and expensive SSD, with more than 700MB/s.

Thunderbolt not worth it right now because its TOO expensive. I'll wait 2 years, when SSDs are much MUCH more cheaper.
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So its only SSD to SSD where you get the performance? For example, if I have a regular HD 7200 WD in my Imac and an externall Lacie SSD, I wont see the speeds posted? I needs to be SSD to SSD?
 
You'll never see 10 Gbps

JimMacFan said:
So its only SSD to SSD where you get the performance? For example, if I have a regular HD 7200 WD in my Imac and an externall Lacie SSD, I wont see the speeds posted? I needs to be SSD to SSD?
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Even SSD to SSD you won't see the 10 Gbps wire speed - if for nothing else than the fastest SATA standard is 6 Gbps. (Assuming that the internal SSD isn't a RAID-0 pair on 6 Gbps SATA controller in a PCIe x8 slot.)

On the other hand, it *will* be faster than USB 2.0 or any shipping flavor of 1394 - so it's a good thing. An external ThunderPort drive will be as fast as an internal drive in the same configuration - because as far as the PCIe bus is concerned it *is* an internal drive.

Apples will finally have the same speeds that eSATA has been giving "the rest of us" for a long time - but there will be a very limited selection of products and most likely a much higher price unless ThunderPort breaks into the high volume mainstream. My guess is that ThunderPort will have a niche market for high-end and special-purpose peripherals (RAID arrays, video/audio professional gear, docking stations), but you won't find USB/1394/ThunderPort disks on sale at Costco. Just due to the butt-pain of daisy-chaining you won't see consumer-priced disks.

I'd buy a ThunderPort to 8 port eSATA hub in a microsecond if it had port-multiplier support, though. (Or, more truthfully, a microsecond after my non-Apple system could support ThunderPort.)
 
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Sensamic said:
Dont forget you'll need an SSD too inside the iMac to achieve the Thunderbolt speeds!!

And it must be a very good and expensive SSD, with more than 700MB/s.

Thunderbolt not worth it right now because its TOO expensive. I'll wait 2 years, when SSDs are much MUCH more cheaper.
Click to expand...

thats what I have been saying. Wait till they see the price of the new TB drives people will choke... some will have moved on from 2011 model to 2012 models without even owning a Thunderbolt drive.
 

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pondosinatra said:
I bet you think the iPad makes a better e-book reader than the Kindle as well huh?
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Im with you on the glossy iMacs, there AWFUL to actually sit in front of and use for any lenght of time, talk about eye strain.

MATT option iMac and im there in a flash, but im not holding out hope, the £1600 ive sat waiting for a new desktop is more and more likely going towards a home built i7 sandybridge rig, and windows 7 so that when i sit with my back to the window the screen doesnt just refelect the outside world and i have to squint through it rather than just see what im working on. I dont need a tree or a bus in my spreadsheets or word documents thank you apple.

I Love my Macbook pro, with its MATT screen, i cant justify a MacPro expense, and the Mac Mini just doesnt cut it at the graphics card level, so that leaves the iMac, love the form factor, love the OS, hate the unusable migrane inducing shiney screen.

However,

the iPad i prefer the glossy screen, same with the iPhone, but then the occasions ill be using an iPad require me to have a bright colour screen for PDFs, and the lighting is usually bad enough that the reflective qualities are not a problem.
 
Nightarchaon said:
Im with you on the glossy iMacs, there AWFUL to actually sit in front of and use for any lenght of time, talk about eye strain.

MATT option iMac and im there in a flash, but im not holding out hope, the £1600 ive sat waiting for a new desktop is more and more likely going towards a home built i7 sandybridge rig, and windows 7 so that when i sit with my back to the window the screen doesnt just refelect the outside world and i have to squint through it rather than just see what im working on. I dont need a tree or a bus in my spreadsheets or word documents thank you apple.

I Love my Macbook pro, with its MATT screen, i cant justify a MacPro expense, and the Mac Mini just doesnt cut it at the graphics card level, so that leaves the iMac, love the form factor, love the OS, hate the unusable migrane inducing shiney screen.

However,

the iPad i prefer the glossy screen, same with the iPhone, but then the occasions ill be using an iPad require me to have a bright colour screen for PDFs, and the lighting is usually bad enough that the reflective qualities are not a problem.
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Well it looks like my iMac will meet the minimum specs for Lion, so I might upgrade, but then that's it for me. I'll probably go to Linux or some alternative operating system. - Maybe I'll crack out my NeXT Dimension Cube :D
 
I don't get peoples fascination with thunderbolt. Besides that it is new, it is pretty much useless right now. I agree that it is a cool port once they come out with the suitable accessories .. but til then, I couldn't care less.

The one thing I would like to see is the thunderbolt mag safe adapter as basically a one plug docking station .. not sure that is ever going to see the daylight though.

T.
 
We need a 30 inch iMac.. just hear me out...

I think most of you know what I am talking about when I say that the iMac (or a PC) is the work and media center in my room. Several of my friends and family have their huge expensive flat screens TVs in the living room (with or without Apple TV), but in the office, or like in my case, average joe who has no office space in the house, have a computer/laptop in our room or additionally we may have another less expensive TV to watch media in a bigger screen.

A 27 inch is great for office work but just not enough for a room entertainment system. Apple took the 30 inch nice, but hot iron monitor, out of their inventory and never replaced it. I suggest they come up with a 30 or so inch iMac. Not as expensive as a tower, better equipped than a MacBook Pro and by no means as simple as a Mac Mini. Something you can really work on.

Now days TV and PCs are merging technologies and having a nice monitor in your room/office to work with and watch media would just fill the void (not to mention save space). furthermore, imaging being able handle all your work on a nice big screen that does not take as much space and to be able to manage all your media from your room/office and being able to play it anywhere in your house with either Apple TV or any iPod/iPhone device, Cool hu?

.. my two cents
 
Kupp said:
That is the funny thing I was thinking about either going Linux (just so I don't need to listen to my mac wife tease me about my conversion to the light.) But if I want something that as you say "Just works" why go linux, I might fool around with that by setting my Dell up to dual boot, just upgraded it to 300 GB internal drive so plenty of space.

I had also thought of grabbing a netbook, and making a hackintosh, but that isn't reliable or realistic for daily computing needs either.

But I must say the thing that was perhaps the most instrumental in my thinking of going mac, was android.

I wanted a phone that just worked and was looking at iPhone vs Android. In my opinion the iPhone is a more reliable platform, due to the fragmentation of droid. Too many manufacturers, with their own independent specs, and a separate entity creating the software.

If you extrapolate the fragmentation of droid argument, it is an equally valid argument against windows.

Apple is in my opinion the Volvo of the computer world. And at this point, working full time, while also taking night classes and working on an undergrad degree, a volvo is what I need.

On a side note, I just went to the apple store, and looked at the 27" imacs....

Ok, maybe I just should get one of those when they refresh. I thought my wife had the 27", but she must actually have the 24"

Those 27" ones are very pretty. More space than I have on the 2 screens I have now combined. I could just use my Ipad 2 when I get one as a 2nd remote screen and call it a day. Damn they look nice.



I think that is what my experience is turning into. Just swap for a iphone 4 and not caring as much about quad core.
Click to expand...

If you want to experiment with Linux I would say try Ubuntu or OpenSUSE 11.4 (just released). I liked the Linux desktop a lot, but I like Mac better due to stability of a *NIX system and its polished GUI over Linux. My server choice is still Linux but my desktop is Mac.

The 27" iMacs are great. That was my first Mac ( October 2009). Mine is only a C2D and a lot of Apple haters here like to point out how inferior my processor is compared to similar priced Dells and HP's. But I am here to tell you that the C2D 27" iMac has been the best performing computer I have ever owned. And I have had Dell, HP, IBM, Compaq, VAIO notebooks and desktops. I have a Windows XP virtual machine on my Mac because I support a client that still uses a legacy Access application. XP runs better as a VM on my Mac than it ever did as a physical machine on my last C2D Dell boxes - LOL.

I have had iPhone since it debuted in 2007. Best phone by far. Definitely wait for the refresh on the iMac and probably iPhone too (iPhone 5 due out soon).

iRobby said:
I've been told "Once you go Mac you don't go back!"

Judging from my experience with my iPhone 3GS making me wanting to get an iMac 27" inch Quad Core I may agree.
Click to expand...

Its been true for me. ;)
 
I have a imac late 2009 and Im very very happy with it. I dont need a bigger screen, I dont need more resolution, I dont need more disk space, I dont need thunderbolt or USB 3, I dont need Lion, I dont need more RAM, I dont need better graphics...

I dont plan on buying a new imac until they come with USB 3 and thunderbolt and SSD inside and, who knows, bluray...

Right now theres just absolutely no need to change. Only option I want is the next macbook air with core i3, since I dont have a laptop and I need one. Ill have to wait until November or so. It wouldnt be smart to buy it now since the next update sure with have core i3 and thunderbolt and 4GB RAM.
 
Sensamic said:
I have a imac late 2009 and Im very very happy with it. I dont need a bigger screen, I dont need more resolution, I dont need more disk space, I dont need thunderbolt or USB 3, I dont need Lion, I dont need more RAM, I dont need better graphics...

I dont plan on buying a new imac until they come with USB 3 and thunderbolt and SSD inside and, who knows, bluray...

Right now theres just absolutely no need to change. Only option I want is the next macbook air with core i3, since I dont have a laptop and I need one. Ill have to wait until November or so. It wouldnt be smart to buy it now since the next update sure with have core i3 and thunderbolt and 4GB RAM.
Click to expand...

I would be shocked if USB 3 came to the Mac. Jobs has already said
We don’t see USB 3 taking off at this time. No support from Intel, for example.
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I see Thunderbolt taking the place of USB altogether. Same with blu-ray, internet downloads are already edging away at the blu-ray market.

http://www.9to5mac.com/32948/jobs-no-usb-3-at-this-time/
https://www.macrumors.com/2010/06/30/steve-jobs-suggests-blu-ray-not-coming-to-mac-anytime-soon/
 
Remember long ago when there was all the excitement about FW1600 and FW3200 ?

MacGeek7 said:
I would be shocked if USB 3 came to the Mac. Jobs has already said I see Thunderbolt taking the place of USB altogether.
Click to expand...

Pavia said:
If they did go on and add either USB3 or blu-ray to Macs, they'd be removing it the following year, as it will become obsolete quite rapidly (maybe even more than USB 2.0).
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The USB 2.0 ports will be simply be upgraded to USB 3.0 ports - count on it once the chipsets only support USB 3.0.

ThunderPort is going to be far more expensive than USB 3.0 - USB will stay king for most devices (those needing 100 MB/sec or less). ThunderPort will be a high end special purpose connector for RAID-arrays, breakout boxes, eSATA/USB 3.0 hubs, docking stations, specialized audio/video equipment.

Just like cheap, ubiquitous USB 2.0 killed 1394a and 1394b in the marketplace (and killed FW1600 and FW3200 in the womb), USB 3.0 will be fine for the tasks that most people have.
 
AidenShaw said:
The USB 2.0 ports will be simply be upgraded to USB 3.0 ports - count on it once the chipsets only support USB 3.0.

ThunderPort is going to be far more expensive than USB 3.0 - USB will stay king for most devices (those needing 100 MB/sec or less). ThunderPort will be a high end special purpose connector for RAID-arrays, breakout boxes, eSATA/USB 3.0 hubs, docking stations, specialized audio/video equipment.

Just like cheap, ubiquitous USB 2.0 killed 1394a and 1394b in the marketplace (and killed FW1600 and FW3200 in the womb), USB 3.0 will be fine for the tasks that most people have.
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I doubt anyone purchasing a MacBook Pro or iMac won't be able to wait a bit longer when transferring files, actually. Which makes me wonder why Apple put them in, instead of USB 3.0, if it's that cheaper, and still that fast. I do realize that I am somewhat contradicting myself now.
I am sure I won't be needed thunderbolts transferring speeds, ever.
 
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Nice to see a substantial rumor to keep us going for the next few weeks. I've been waiting to upgrade from my 2008 C2D iMac for the last 6 months.

I have a plasma running off my iMac for home theatre purposes, and I must say it really struggles now with 1080p content. iMovie is unusable and my big iphoto library freezes constantly. When trying to access My 1.5TB iTunes library the beachball greats me with every click.

Still this iMac would be perfect for your average user.

My biggest wish would be the SSD for a quick start up, I just hate to see 1k worth of kit being sluggish!

I also love the way the apple displays look, if apple could somehow rid the iMac of the aluminium chin it would look so much better

They should also come with 8gb ram as standard, especially the i7
 
LightSpeed1 said:
Do you guys see Thunderbolt replacing maybe the firewire ports one day?
Click to expand...

No - ThunderPort will be too expensive. And USB 3.0 will destroy the last bits of firewire that USB 2.0 didn't kill.

My guess is that the most popular ThunderPort peripheral will be a small hub with four port-multiplier capable eSATA ports and six USB 3.0 ports.

At the high end, there will be ThunderPort RAID devices and professional A/D gear - but ThunderPort disks will be too expensive for the common folks.
 
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