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2017 iMac refresh wish list [merged]

Malus120 said:
I prefer sources a bit more reputable than GPUboss, so I did some more searching.
(https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/GTX_1050_Ti_Strix_OC/34.html)
(http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/nvidia-geforce-gtx-1050-ti,4787-8.html)

Turns out you're not wrong about the 1050ti being noticeably faster (my bad) in DX11 based games, but the degree seems to vary a lot by benchmark, and I haven't been able to find out a lot about how it does in OpenCL (what mattes to Apple), while DX12 and Vulkan (which would be relevant for Metal performance), appears to put AMD on a better (than it is in DX11) footing.

Either way, I would still generally slot them into the same performance class(budget), and it's not one I really want to see in a (27") iMac (yes the M380 is a travesty). Again I'm not against seeing Nvidia return to the mac, I just imagine that If Apple was going to switch to Pascel they would've done it already.

I feel like Apple's waiting for something, and I don't think its chips from Nvidia that are almost a year old (for the 1080/1070).
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DX 11 has a higher rate of testing being manipulated by providing tweaks for the benchmark. Less so on DX 12. Also, 11, requires less to run at a higher frame rate than 12 due to the extra engines.
 
Trebuin said:
DX 11 has a higher rate of testing being manipulated by providing tweaks for the benchmark. Less so on DX 12. Also, 11, requires less to run at a higher frame rate than 12 due to the extra engines.
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If you're saying what I think you're saying (that DX11 games aren't the best for extrapolating relevant performance in macOS) then yeah, that was kind of my point, although I also don't think it's quite fair to look only at DX12/Vulkun due to the relatively small sample size.

While I could totally have seen Apple go for Pascel a year ago (given that AMD ceded the performance and efficiency high ground for almost a year) to do so today when Vega (and a significantly more efficient Polaris) is literally right around the corner, seems odd unless Apple knows something we don't.
 
Malus120 said:
If you're saying what I think you're saying (that DX11 games aren't the best for extrapolating relevant performance in macOS) then yeah, that was kind of my point, although I also don't think it's quite fair to look only at DX12/Vulkun due to the relatively small sample size.

While I could totally have seen Apple go for Pascel a year ago (given that AMD ceded the performance and efficiency high ground for almost a year) to do so today when Vega (and a significantly more efficient Polaris) is literally right around the corner, seems odd unless Apple knows something we don't.
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Regarding DirectX, yes, I think we're on the same page. I'm actually testing software that will be trying to include speed improvement, but I won't let them know what I'm using to avoid them tailoring their software to get that boost. Apple likely know & already has plans for what GPU they are going to use. I was surprised they didn't launch a low end iMac update with the GPU, but that's more of an indication that Apple is being more cautions given the history of both GPU manufactures having issues with overtiming their chips. It's either that or they're going for one mainboard upgrade that is compatible with the full range of updates...& the high end AMD hasn't been updated yet given that AMD hasn't built a die shrink version of the 395x that Apple employs on their highest end iMac chip.
 
Its clear we will have a redesigned too for the imac . Since apple could launch the internals upgrades a month ago
 
BigBoyBmw760li said:
I don't think they will remove usb's on the new imac. I won't be surprised if they would though, ever since Steve Jobs died some of the things Apple has done is a bit questionable...
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Technically, USB-C is USB - just a different shape. It's still the Universal Serial Bus (USB). We've just been using USB Type-A since 1996. Even if Apple swaps out the USB-A ports for USB-C, the iMac would still have USB ports - just not the conventional USB-A port we've had for 20 years.

Regardless of that technicality, such a swap is maddening for us consumers because most USB peripherals still use USB-A, and a switch to USB-C would require the repurchase of many adapters or new peripherals.
 
For those of you wanting a re-design, what do you realistically expect the re-design to consist of aside from a smaller bezel? Because I'm plum out of ideas...maybe Jony Ive has something thinner up his sleeve...
 
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ThisBougieLife said:
For those of you wanting a re-design, what do you realistically expect the re-design to consist of aside from a smaller bezel? Because I'm plum out of ideas...maybe Jony Ive has something thinner up his sleeve...
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personally, I think the iMac is great as is & couldn't imagine much better. If it had to have a redesign, find a way to help thermal cooling, keep the noise level down, make more parts user upgradable (from realistic to unrealistic obviously). I wouldn't mind stepping back to the wider version to help with cooling.
 
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The more I look at the new Ryzen 7 1800 X specifications and results the more I'm hoping Apple announces a transition of the iMac to Ryzen 7 and a new Mac Pro shipping the fall with AMD Naples.

iMac - 8 Core, lower power, better benchmarks (multi-core) than current 12 Core Mac Pro or 7700k.
Mac Pro - 32 Core - 64 PCIe lanes enabling 4 NVME slots in current form factor.

Before anyone comments, yes you can have TB3 with AMD chips. All you need is one of these chips:
https://ark.intel.com/products/87402/Intel-DSL6540-Thunderbolt-3-Controller
 
I would love to see a 32" iMac with 8/16 Ryzen. I don't know that there's much to redesign on the case. Smaller bezel, maybe.
 
m0nkeyb0y said:
I would love to see a 32" iMac with 8/16 Ryzen. I don't know that there's much to redesign on the case. Smaller bezel, maybe.
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My guess is that if they do go to a larger iMac it will be to use the rumored 8k panels. I haven't done the math but my guess is that would need to be closer to 36" to get the correct pixel density.

Edit: just did it cause I was interested to know. It is 40".
 
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New imacs are coming this year 100% confirmed. I think based on phill that confirmed redesigned imacs
 
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The talk of a "pro" iMac is very interesting, i wonder what they have planned with that a redesign maybe? or are we talking much higher specs. either way i think i will wait until later this year to upgrade my 2012 iMac, i think some nice upgrades could be coming.
 
Dave245 said:
The talk of a "pro" iMac is very interesting, i wonder what they have planned with that a redesign maybe? or are we talking much higher specs. either way i think i will wait until later this year to upgrade my 2012 iMac, i think some nice upgrades could be coming.
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My hope is the new iMac Pro will have:
  • AMD Ryzen 7 8 core/16 Threads
  • TB3
  • 8K Display.
  • User upgrade-able RAM up to 64GB.
  • User upgrade-able M.2 NVME, all flash design.
  • RX580
New Mac Pro:
  • Dual socket AMD Naples 2x 32 core / 64 thread
  • TB3
  • User upgrade-able RAM to 256 GB.
  • 4 M.2 NVME user upgrade-able slots.
  • PCIex16 expansion ports for latest and greatest video card.

No internal support for SATA etc.
 
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Wildcard idea/wish for the 5K redesign, get rid of mechanical drives, add a user accessible SSD bay in the back for storage expansion. Would allow faster speeds than with a USB drive. With such a large computer frame and a higher end user market you could treat SSD storage like RAM and let people add more down the line.
 
All those announcements sound so cool! Too bad for me, though, who needs a display and a new desktop Mac soon... Would love to wait for that Mac Pro, but that's gonna be a long wait. And that iMac, while sounding good and practical, would not be quite the same as a potential Big Mac. Oh well, first world problems...
 
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