My 2017 5K 27" Fusion Drive iMac runs off an external SSD and I have upgraded the ram to 24 gb of ram so this thing absolutely flies. I love the 27" 5k iMac so much I am tempted to buy a 2020 one just to get a few more years of additional support out of it with my user upgraded ram. What do you guys think? Is this year the end of the road for software updates on the 27" 2017 5k iMac? If so it is a shame because mine is very fast with the upgrades and it has served me well. I think it would bother me not having anymore software updates or else I would hold onto it until it died.
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Do you think that Apple will discontinue software updates for the 27" 2017 iMac this year?
- Thread starter Jacoblee23
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If you meant Software Updates as in features & patches then it will end by late 2024.
If you mean Security Updates as in patches-only then it will end before 2027.
If you upgrade your 14nm iMac to a 2027 model then you'd be using a sub-1nm Mac.
So the 2017 will get the new software update this year?
Also what did you mean by a 2027 model?
I assume you'll buy a new Mac once the Updates ends, right? If you replace after 10 years then you'll get a really speedy Mac by then.
I think 2017 iMac users will get one more upgrade this year and then dropped support in 2024. It's a shame because I'm in a similar boat. My iMac is from the same year and does everything I need it to do and doesn't miss a beat.
I still want a blue M3 iMac, though.
I still want a blue M3 iMac, though.
I hear ya man. I have a 24" iMac in my game room and I love it also, but my goodness the 27" screen is perfect for my use and it really flies after the upgrades I have made to it. I am tempted to keep it for years to come- just bummed about probably losing software updates soon.
In my mind Software Updates (features & patches) aren't as important as Security Updates (patches).
As such I'd only replace to the Mac model after the final Security Update is released.
So say last Security Update occurs June 2025 then I'd get a late 2025 iMac M4 2nm as its replacement.
If the current features of whatever macOS version you are limited to does not detract from the way you use it then features of the macOS version after it will not marginally detract from it.
I have a 2012 iMac 27" 22nm that is limited to 2019 macOS Catalina that had its final Security Update over 6 months ago. It is turning a decade old in less than 2 weeks time. I hope Apple releases a 2023 iMac 27" repalcement by WWDC 2023.
When I compare it to 2022 macOS Ventura in my 2019 MBP 16" 14nm I do not see any feature that I'd miss. These are nice to have but Security Updates are much more crucial.
Although I wished I delayed for a 2021 MBP 16" M1 Pro instead.
I'm on the same boat! Have an iMac 2017 27" with an upgraded Samsung EVO 512GB SSD (replaced the 1TB Fusion Drive) and 24GB of RAM (placed 2x8GB Kingston ram slots). It's so fast and pretty and classic that I really want to hold on to it till it dies. I'm giving it a 50-50% chance that it’ll get the new OS this year and if it does, it will be its last for sure. Such a shame that this amazing hardware with a phenomenal screen (that can't be used as an external monitor) will get yeeted by Tim Apple for absolutely no reason. Also, no real replacement out there as of now.. Let's see!
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I would guess Ventura will be the end of the road for the 2017 iMac... and the 2017 MacBook. Open to being pleasantly surprised otherwise though...
Yep. I'm expecting Ventura to be the last supported OS for my 2017 iMac and 2017 MacBook, meaning macOS feature updates will end fall 2023, and macOS security updates will end fall 2025.
That doesn't bother me too much, because I suspect Chrome will continue to support it until around 2030. I pass these machines down to my family members, and the #1 need is proper up-to-date browser support. We are still running a 10.13 High Sierra iMac as it is still supported by the latest version of Chrome.
Anyhow, I've already replaced it with an M1 Mac mini, which I just bought used a few months ago because it was cheap. This M1 16 GB / 1 TB runs circles around the 27" i5-7600 iMac 24 GB / 1 TB it replaces... but the iMac was still actually fast enough for what I need it for.
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I was looking at browser compatibility for early-2010s machines earlier; doesn't Firefox go further back than Chrome? Firefox says it will support 10.12 (Sierra)...
That being said, in this case, there's the Intel vs ARM question. Will folks like Google want to support Intel Macs for 5 years after Apple?
I'm not getting the impression anyone wants to forget about Intel as quickly as folks wanted to forget PowerPC, but when you hear that M2 Pro MBPs are apparently 7X faster than 2017 Intel 13.3" MBPs, there may be a tipping point and Intel gets promptly forgotten after that tipping point is reached.
Yes, but my family prefers Chrome, as do I. It's more versatile and compatible. We do have Firefox installed though.
I am not a developer, but it seems to me they will support Intel Macs as long Apple supports them in the latest version of Xcode. All they have to do is keep building the fat binaries that Xcode supports. And given that Apple STILL sells Intel Macs, I suspect Apple will continue to support Intel in Xcode for a very, very long time. In the very least it would be 2028, but it's likely going to be much longer than that.
As for Google, their concern is not speed, but installed base. Just the fact that Apple Silicon is way faster doesn't negate the fact that there many, many, many more Intel Mac users out there than Apple Silicon Mac users out there. If speed really mattered they probably wouldn't be supporting 10.13 High Sierra right now. Ultimately, browsing doesn't really take that much speed. My fanless 2017 12" MacBook still browses just fine for example. It's really mainly about RAM. It's fine as long as you have at least 8 GB RAM.
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P.S. In my opinion, any machine with at least 8 GB RAM and which has a Geekbench 5 single-core score of around 600 or better along with a multi-core score of about 1400 or better, surfs full desktop websites fine in 2023.
750/1550 - 2017 13" MacBook Air (Core i5-5350U)
780/1590 - 2017 12" MacBook (Core m3-7Y32)
760/1650 - 2014 Mac mini (Core i5-4278U)
800/1720 - 2015 13" MacBook Pro (Core i5-5257U)
610/2225 - 2010 27" iMac (Core i7-870)
We have all of these machines, and have no complaints about any of them for surfing speed. Is my M1 Mac mini way faster? Yes, no comparison at 1750/7800, but for web browsing, it's diminishing returns.
Will most of those machines seem slow surfing in 2028? Probably, but they will likely still work fine for light users, and Google will still want to capture those users to harvest their surfing data of course.
Ironically, I think the only machine in the above list that will likely lose Chrome support sooner rather than later is the fastest Intel Mac above, which is the 2010 Core i7 iMac, because it's stuck on 10.13 High Sierra. The other slower machines will still continue to receive Xcode support from Apple for longer, as they all run at least Monterey or later.
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Would you say the 27 inch 5k iMac is still sufficient for doing schoolwork? I’m talking about multitasking between a bunch of pdfs and safari tabs/word files.
Until a few months ago, my main work machine was as 2014 dual-core Core i5 Mac mini. However, it had an SSD. However, if your 5K iMac has only a Fusion Drive, you may find it sluggish at times. It's hit and miss with Fusion Drives.
It also depends on the memory. For your workload, I'd recommend 12-16 GB. My Mac mini had only 8 GB and usually it was actually OK for business type usage, but occasionally I'd notice the swap usage when more heavily multitasking.
It comes with a Fusion Drive, but I plan on replacing it with a nice external SSD. It does, however, have 16 gb of ram. It's either that or an external 24 inch display for my M1 Air, but for some reason I gravitate towards the 5K iMac.
Which model year iMac and what size Fusion Drive? Some of them have reasonably sized SSDs. For those that do, the Fusion Drive can be “defused” and the SSD run separately as the boot drive.
2017 5k iMac, with 1 tb fusion drive. I believe that drive comes with only a 32gb SSD. I plan on using an external SSD to boot from.
If it performs well enough for you, I've heard that you can patch unofficial updates to Macs that got support dropped using some software, but I haven't looked too much into it, so you would have to do the heavy digging.
If it's an external USB SSD, it won't have TRIM support. So make sure you get a drive that doesn't slow down too much with extended usage.
Still rocking my 27” 5K 2017 iMac running Monterey using its 512GB SSD. I’d like to get a newer model but really, REALLY want to keep the size and the all-in-one form factor. Actually considering an upgrade to a refurb’d 2020 27” model. I’ve all but given up hope that Apple will ever offer an iMac larger than the current 24” line regardless of what goes into the guts, and I’m not a fan of the expensive MacMini/Studio implementations even with getting the separate 27” display. I just want a 27” screen in an all-in-one machine. Sadly, I don’t see that ever happening again. Now I have to cope somehow.
Why? Do you absolutely need the CPU upgrade? Cuz even the i5 2017 runs Ventura very well.
If I needed the performance boost and my software were Apple Silicon compatible, I'd consider an M2 Mac mini with discounted Apple Studio Display. I ended up getting up an M1 Mac mini with 28.2" 4K+ Huawei monitor instead. The 2017 5K iMac will be passed down to my kid.
My 2017 iMac has the 4.2GHz i7 “Kaby Lake” I7-7700K 4-core processor, turbo boost to 4.5GHz so no, I don’t really need an upgrade for my uses, which is why I haven’t done anything.
I don’t really care what engine’s under the hood as long as the software works and it gets the processing done. I do agree an M1, M2, M-anything would be more powerful than my i7, as would most of the 2020 Intel iMacs in the refurb store. But the M-series processors don’t come in a 27” all-in-one package, which I very much want. I’ll likely have to get over that after my 2017 decides to go to the computer farm in the sky.
No kids here, and the dog has expressed little-to-no interest in my iMac, shockingly. He’s surprisingly old school about things that impact his life: fresh water, active play, orthopedic bed, lots of play, reliable and healthy breakfasts and dinners, frequent playtime, grooming, play, being included in everything, good walks, always knowing where his sheep (my wife and I) are. No excessive screen time worries at all.
Sad to hear that there will be no more macOS releases for the 2017 iMac
Agree. This means I’m on Monterey life support with some limit to security updates only. Then the same if I move to Ventura, but no Sonoma for me. How will I exist?