Touch Bar for iMac

[GaryCY]

About to upgrade my MBP 15 and thinking of going back to an iMac for more video processing grunt. But the thing I'll miss most is the Touch Bar, and especially the fingerprint for logging into sites and software. Does Apple have any plans to produce a magic keyboard with a Touch Bar? Does anyone know of a third party alternative?

 

[Apple_Robert]

Haven’t read any news on that front about Apple or anyone else.

 

[Falhófnir]

If they do, there's no rumours about it (yet). Perhaps it might come alongside the iMac redesign, but that's pure speculation. The Touch Bar is heavily reliant on Apple proprietary tech/ software, so there's probably nothing comparable from third parties.

 

[GaryCY]

It's very odd that Apple talk up their Touch Bar for their laptops, but deny the tech for desktop users.

 

[CWallace]

It's very odd that Apple talk up their Touch Bar for their laptops, but deny the tech for desktop users.

I expect the reason we have not seen the TouchBar on the external keyboard is a mix of cost and battery life. I expect it would at a minimum double the price of the keyboard (and likely more due to lack of production scale like on the MBP) so how many would Apple sell if it was $200-300 without a keypad and $300-400 with? I also expect it would hit the battery life hard, requiring much more frequent recharging.

As to TouchID, I expect there is a security/technical reason for that. The Secure Enclave would need to talk to the Mac and the options would be wireless over BlueTooth or wired via a physical cable and both would be susceptible to "man in the middle" attacks (though wired would require physical access).

 

[Royksöpp]

This was fun.

 

[Zippy99]

I use a 2020 M1 MB Air with a 5K Ultrafine. It's the best of all worlds, even better than an iMac IMO. Here's why: The iMac is not silent, MBA is. I work with laptop open, so I sign in with fingerprint sensor, as well as use it for all passwords and web forms. I don't like the Touch Bar, so another win there. I'm a trackpad user, and using the MBA trackpad while on the 5K is better than external trackpad because of the noticably lower latency. The MBA is incredibly fast. As a developer I am wanting nothing with this setup. Best of all, I can unplug from the 5K at any time and take it with me.

In summary: Don't wait for Apple to make the keyboard you want. Get an M1 MBA or MBP + 5K Ultrafine. You pay a little more, but you get the best of all worlds.

 

[CWallace]

I think Apple could move to FaceID for authentication on the iMac and perhaps the MacBook Pro (both as a differentiating feature from the MacBook Air and because the extra cost of FaceID can be passed on more effectively).

 

[filmak]

I use a 2020 M1 MB Air with a 5K Ultrafine. It's the best of all worlds, even better than an iMac IMO. Here's why: The iMac is not silent, MBA is. I work with laptop open, so I sign in with fingerprint sensor, as well as use it for all passwords and web forms. I don't like the Touch Bar, so another win there. I'm a trackpad user, and using the MBA trackpad while on the 5K is better than external trackpad because of the noticably lower latency. The MBA is incredibly fast. As a developer I am wanting nothing with this setup. Best of all, I can unplug from the 5K at any time and take it with me.

In summary: Don't wait for Apple to make the keyboard you want. Get an M1 MBA or MBP + 5K Ultrafine. You pay a little more, but you get the best of all worlds.

One problem is the possible need for more than 16 GB of RAM...

 

[Moonjumper]

The only way I know of to get a Touch Bar on an iMac is connecting an iPad using Sidecar. Unfortunately it does not make use of TouchID, which seems to be the important for the OP.