Yeah, I moved over to safari on my MBA because chrome is a terrible energy hog, but for some reason I decided to try chrome... and I got what I deserved
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Are You Happy With Your Retina iMac?
- Thread starter AirCanada22
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Yeah, I moved over to safari on my MBA because chrome is a terrible energy hog, but for some reason I decided to try chrome... and I got what I deserved
Just a not on the longevity of the iMac (from a former PC user):
I got 6.5 years from my early 2008 iMac, with 6GB RAM (It is still running, and the kids use it for their games). In that time, I have had the following "bumps in the road":
1. Graphics card failed. Apple wouldn't touch it because I upgraded the hard drive (twice - once from 240GB (?) to 2TB, and the second time to replace the 2 TB drive, which was failing. Replacing the HD is like this: Remove the HD, put the new one in, boot to Time Machine Restore, wait. Done. The only product that wanted keys was Office)
2. Wiped the hard drive clean (like a fresh installation of Windows I used to do every 6 months) and reinstall. Time Machine is a true wonder of the world! Pulled the data files from the hard drive, and had all of my documents. I was worried about reinstalling whatever made the Mac slow with the TM restore, so I did it manually.
Having said all that, I am very happy with my decision to try out a Mac 6 1/2 years ago, and while the initial Out of Box Experience was rocky (Finder is like Program Manager from Windows 3), it's solid, fast, and beautiful.
As for my Retina 5K iMac (maxed out, 3TB Fusion Drive), I LOVE IT! Play Lord of the Rings online, and it's fast with the highest settings possible (no 5120x2880 - Program Limitation). I run virtual machines on it, and there are no issues with heat or fan noises.
Thanks for all the opinions, everyone. I picked up my base model with a Track Pad today, and so far I am ecstatic. No noticeable lag in Mission Control; I haven't heard the fans once; there was only the smallest little sliver of light bleed at the top middle of my monitor, visible only in startup in a very dark room, so nothing I will ever think of again, I imagine. All in all, very pleased, and the screen is so damn sharp and crisp that I'm already struggling to look at my 11-inch MBA.
I don't have Microsoft Office installed and, while I was planning on doing that at some point, I think I'm going to have to give Pages a fair shot. It seems less cluttered than Word and probably equally useable.
I will report back with a fuller review when I've had the time to actually put this thing through its paces, but for now I still have a big grin on my face.
I don't have Microsoft Office installed and, while I was planning on doing that at some point, I think I'm going to have to give Pages a fair shot. It seems less cluttered than Word and probably equally useable.
I will report back with a fuller review when I've had the time to actually put this thing through its paces, but for now I still have a big grin on my face.
Thanks guys. I'm going to pick up my base tomorrow. Only thing left to decide is between Trackpad & Magic Mouse.
I'm a little worried by the people reporting sluggishness in everyday things like scrolling through apps, but the consensus on the boards seems to be that it's likely due to Yosemite and software optimization issues. Fingers crossed
It's not an either/or! I use both the magic mouse and track pad!
Ok... well .. maybe I spoke too soon.
Switched on the Mac, opened safari and it restarted itself.
Logged in, was going to go into the systems preferences, and it restarted.
Then went into a restart loop.
Managed to get into the Recovery system menu, then it restarted.
Another restart loop, then massive burst of fan power and now it won't start at all.
Tried disconnecting the power, leaving it for 10 minutes and then restarting, won't turn on.
Edit - Spoke to Apple, who put me through to after-sales care. It's been declared a DOA; machine getting picked up on Tuesday, and a new one delivered. Still leaves me without a machine, glad I have my little mac book air.
Switched on the Mac, opened safari and it restarted itself.
Logged in, was going to go into the systems preferences, and it restarted.
Then went into a restart loop.
Managed to get into the Recovery system menu, then it restarted.
Another restart loop, then massive burst of fan power and now it won't start at all.
Tried disconnecting the power, leaving it for 10 minutes and then restarting, won't turn on.
Edit - Spoke to Apple, who put me through to after-sales care. It's been declared a DOA; machine getting picked up on Tuesday, and a new one delivered. Still leaves me without a machine, glad I have my little mac book air.
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I just got my retina iMac setup last night. I'm coming from a 2013 iMac.
As others have said, the screen is amazing. Everything is really sharp and clear. It would be hard to go back now.
For those on the fence about spending the extra money on the 5K screen, I would definitely recommend it. Totally amazing.
Also, from what I can tell so far, I have no light bleed issues at all. Perfect screen.
As others have said, the screen is amazing. Everything is really sharp and clear. It would be hard to go back now.
For those on the fence about spending the extra money on the 5K screen, I would definitely recommend it. Totally amazing.
Also, from what I can tell so far, I have no light bleed issues at all. Perfect screen.
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There's been a lot of negativity surrounding the 5K iMac -- it's too loud, too hot, too buggy, underpowered, untested, etc etc.
I'd like to hear from people who have had positive experiences.
As someone about to pull the trigger on a base model, it would help to have some positive encouragement
I held off for quite a while on making the purchase of the 5K iMac for several reasons. I am a software developer, and have been using an older 20.5" iMac running OS 10.6.8 for almost 5 years (many reasons not upgrading for compatibility with Xserve's running same OS). I also had limited desk space that had my 20" iMac and another 20" monitor side by side. I didn't think I could fit both.
That being said, I had held out in hope that the new 4K iMac, was going to be my new machine. When it was released with an older chipset and no discrete graphics or user-upgradeable memory, I then began to look much more at the 27".
I spent a lot of time researching configurations, looking at benchmarks for graphics and processor speed and finally pulled the trigger in early January on a 27" with the top-end graphics card, stock memory (which I added 16GB to), and the 2TB drive (to ensure it was 7200RPM and had the 128GB Fusion drive).
I couldn't be happier! The new iMac is WAY quieter than my old 20" model. Even when I am playing Elder Scrolls Online at max settings, the fan rarely comes on and even when it does I hardly notice it. I really don't even need my second monitor any more since my screen real estate is HUGE. Although I do have my old iMac currently as a second monitor via a thunderbolt cable and target display mode while I synch the two.
The screen is unbelievable. And the graphics speed is very nice for the types of games I play. LOTRO, Elder Scrolls Online, Guild Wars 2, Star Wars Battlefront, etc.
I upgraded from the 2009 24" all options model which had served me well for those many years. I obtained the late 2015 Retina 27" maxed out. (i7, 1TB SDD, Max Video Card, Max RAM, etc.) All options. I can tell you that it is a pleasure to run. It is ultra fast and ultra quiet (in comparison to my old iMac). It still make a very small fan noise which almost never increases unless heavily taxed. Still the attached HDs make more noise than the iMac ever makes.
I am not a professional of any sort. Just enjoy my technology. This one will do me for another 6 or 7 years.
I don't have any complaints or reservations.
I am not a professional of any sort. Just enjoy my technology. This one will do me for another 6 or 7 years.
I don't have any complaints or reservations.
My old 2011 died (got so flaky I gave it away to a friend who uses it with an external monitor) so I got the 5K the day after it can out. Apple gave me a discount because of the problems with the old one so I got the base model and it works very well. I don't do much heavy stuff, occasional Final Cut X, Office, e-mail, iMessage, FaceTime. No noticeable fan noise but I do play music almost all the time. no where near as hot as the 2011. Case is cool to the touch.
Some of the coolness could be the fact I do not use the internal HDD so it never spins up. All my storage is external in TB enclosures.
I miss the DVD drive for the once every 3 months I need one but so far I just put the DVD on my Windows PC and use the internal network to move it over. I guess someday I'll but an external DVD drive.
All in all this is a very nice upgrade.
Some of the coolness could be the fact I do not use the internal HDD so it never spins up. All my storage is external in TB enclosures.
I miss the DVD drive for the once every 3 months I need one but so far I just put the DVD on my Windows PC and use the internal network to move it over. I guess someday I'll but an external DVD drive.
All in all this is a very nice upgrade.
The magic mouse isn't great as is, but if you purchase this software called bettertouchtool you will love it. You can customize gestures (create new ones to do new things, for me I have 4 finger tap to bring up launchpad), customize keyboard shortcuts (for me I use command shift L to lock screen), and even customize other input devices such as the magic trackpad 1/2 / Apple remote etc.
Best computer I've owned.
As for too hot, that was the prior generation, the skylake chipset runs as fast (if not faster) but significantly cooler.
The 5k iMac will be finally at its peak when TB3/USB-C are onboard for future concerns and that will also allow them to bring back target display mode. (I hope they do!)
I know some people like to poo poo the future proof concerns but with a highly sealed up and not upgradable machine like the iMac it is pretty important to get as much forward looking tech and options onboard as possible.
I know some people like to poo poo the future proof concerns but with a highly sealed up and not upgradable machine like the iMac it is pretty important to get as much forward looking tech and options onboard as possible.
The workload has a much bigger effect on heat than the cpu and chipset do. The people running into those heat issues are mostly the ones trying to game on the machines whereas a lot of the photography people don't notice anything, just to give an example. If your workload matches the iMacs then this is a really awesome machine indeed. Words can't describe the impact that 5k display has.
has anybody here run another 4k or 5k monitor for their 5k iMac? How is the experience? Do you notice any lag?
And what's the general consensus on 16gb vs 32gb? Do people see a large increase in productivity from going to 32gb? I figure if I were to get a 5k iMac, I'd just add 16gb for a total of 24gb.
And what's the general consensus on 16gb vs 32gb? Do people see a large increase in productivity from going to 32gb? I figure if I were to get a 5k iMac, I'd just add 16gb for a total of 24gb.
Not really, you get a top of the line 2013 iMac 27" with i7 4gb video card and 16gb RAM on ebay for $1600. That's about half the price of a comparably equipped 2015 iMac 27" ($3,000) - less than half when you factor tax. And both of these models are almost tied when it comes to benchmarks:
https://browser.primatelabs.com/mac-benchmarks
My post is now a year old and probably no longer valid due to the new 2015 release.
Regardless, please don't compare second hand eBay prices to new retail prices.
Apple is incredibly good at up-selling, so the price and performance difference between one model and the superior model is always very slim.
