iMac Redesign for 2018?

[helloineedhelp]

I get the impression you may not benefit from the iMac Pro, but obviously it depends on what you need it for. It seems kinda odd to me you're considering an iMac Pro vs a 65 Watt iMac. They are in quite different performance classes, both from the CPU side and the GPU side. And they are also in completely different price classes. So, if you don't need an iMac Pro, it would be an incredible waste of money to buy one.

Problem is that whenever buying something here in Sweden, everything is expensive.
So every buy needs to be made smart, and really not make a bad buy.

Here is what the prices are in Sweden..

- i5 with 512 ssd, and 8gb ram = 3274$
- i7 with 512 ssd, and 8gb ram = 3700$
- iMac Pro = 6800$
[doublepost=1522963752][/doublepost]
[doublepost=1522963789][/doublepost]My Macbook Pro works great today still, but the Lightroom and so on is a bit laggy.

Iv'e found this as a temporary solution, would this be a good one still? And is it a good deal?

- iMac 5k, Late 2014
- 3.5 GHz intel Core i5
- 16 GB 1600 MHz DDR3
- 1 TB Fusiondrive
- AMD Radeon R9 M290X 2 GB

Price 1000-1200$.

Remember that i have this today,

Today i use a 2014 Macbook Pro
- 2.2 GHz
- intel i7
- 16 GB 1600 MHz DDR3
- Intel Iris Pro 1536 MB

 

[meddow]

personally I would wait it out till june

 

[fokmik]

They won't update the chassis for this because of one thing: iMac Pro has the old body style. They would never make the iMac look more sleek and modern than their $8K version.

See 12” macbook that came first and after the macbook pro
They need this year a slim bezel down imac for consumers for 2 reasons
1) the anniversary
2) the mac pro is not coming this year so they need somekind of wow factor in design since everybody slim down the bezels
Hey even the ipad pro will have slimmer bezels this year

 

[rjtiedeman]

Removable Vesa mounts are on all iMacs?

yes my apple display has a apple connection point that only works with an apple vesa mount. flat screens work with any standard mount. cheap but not pretty to look at.

 

[fokmik]

i wonder if the new imacs will keep amd 580 ? or are new one on the market? !

 

[Mac32]

i wonder if the new imacs will keep amd 580 ? or are new one on the market? !

There's a new 580X coming out, with 5-8% better performance than 580. Maybe the 2018 iMac will get that one. One thing's for sure, the present iMac cooling design can't handle a Vega Pro 56. Even the 8700K is a hotter CPU than 7700K, which is already creating more heat than the present cooling system can comfortably handle. The iMac might not get a serious GPU upgrade before Navi, which brings us into 2019. Though AMD is supposed to release some less powerful Vega variants (like Vega 48 or 32 or something) around June. This year it's difficult to make predictions for the iMac, so who knows...

 

[klatox]

There's a new 580X coming out, with 5-8% better performance than 580.

Do you have a source for this?

 

[iPadified]

AMD is apparently also developing mobile Vega. There are no specifics but I guess a mobile vega could have sufficient power (5-6 TFLOPS) for the majority of users. If Apple choses to give the iMac the same cooling as iMP, then Vega 56 is likely. Otherwise Apple may slim the iMac case and use 65W CPU plus a (powerful, ie not the same as those going into MBP) mobile Vega.

We want so leaks/info now, don't we.

 

[Michael Scrip]

AMD is apparently also developing mobile Vega. There are no specifics but I guess a mobile vega could have sufficient power (5-6 TFLOPS) for the majority of users. If Apple choses to give the iMac the same cooling as iMP, then Vega 56 is likely. Otherwise Apple may slim the iMac case and use 65W CPU plus a (powerful, ie not the same as those going into MBP) mobile Vega.

It still makes my skin crawl to hear the word "mobile" used to describe parts for a "desktop" computer...

 

[iPadified]

It still makes my skin crawl to hear the word "mobile" used to describe parts for a "desktop" computer...

I agree. However mobile is a marketing term telling very little about performance and a mobile part will probably draw redicule from this forum. I hope for a iMP cooling in the next iMac but if not I rather take a 5-6 TFLOP low power ”mobile” part instead of a ”old” desktop part with the same performance but using more power. A silent computer is important for a lot of people. I have no clue if a mobile vega can match a 580 card in performance at a significant lower TDP.

 

[Michael Scrip]

I agree. However mobile is a marketing term telling very little about performance and a mobile part will probably draw redicule from this forum. I hope for a iMP cooling in the next iMac but if not I rather take a 5-6 TFLOP low power ”mobile” part instead of a ”old” desktop part with the same performance but using more power. A silent computer is important for a lot of people. I have no clue if a mobile vega can match a 580 card in performance at a significant lower TDP.

Yep. Apple did some magic to cram as much power and cooling into the iMac Pro.

Let's see if the standard iMac gets the same treatment.

I'd still like to see a consumer Mac with some breathing room for internal components. Though with Apple's fetish for thin designs... I doubt that'll ever happen.

And that goes back to my earlier comment... why does a "desktop" computer need to be thin?

It's sexy, sure. But airflow and not thermal-throttling is sexy too!

 

[EugW]

It's looking like the new iMac, if released soon, will not have Vega. AMD just announced "new" OEM chips for 2018:

https://www.anandtech.com/show/12638/amd-releases-oem-desktop-and-mobile-radeon-rx-500x-series

It seems these 2018 PC chips are identical to the 2017 PC chips. The Mac models are similar, with my 2017 iMac's Radeon Pro 575 for example being almost the same as the 2018 PC Radeon RX 570X, but with a slightly lower clockspeed.

 

[sublunar]

The big takeaway from this year's Intel CPUs is the possibility of Apple using 6 core Coffee Lake desktop chips. It's a massive performance leap for multi-core use and could mean that users could save money by not buying the i7 if they don't need 12 threads. GPUs (as you can see from EugW's copy and paste of the Anandtech table) are pretty much staying static this year. Vega Graphics probably get to stay in the iMac Pro for a year.

The iMac Pro shows that there won't be a cosmetic refresh - if a future iMac needs better cooling they know where to look.

 

[Glmnet1]

Would it make sense for Apple to use those instead?

 

[sputnikBA]

Count me in as someone who already believed that they will want to use the 65W CPUs instead.

- It’s also worth noting that they already use “B” variant CPUs in iMac Pro (2140B, 2150B etc). It didn’t realise this until recently but turns out the “B” variants are specifically intended to be for OEMs to use in all-in-one boards.

 

[L-Viz]

20th anniversary of iMac is just around the corner. If Steve was still around, i would expect the iMac (not pro) in 4 colors:

Silver, Space Gray, Gold and Rose Gold. Including Keyboard, Mouse and Trackpad.

But since Timmy is captain of the ship, I expect nothing in June. Sad.

 

[EugW]

Count me in as someone who already believed that they will want to use the 65W CPUs instead.

- It’s also worth noting that they already use “B” variant CPUs in iMac Pro (2140B, 2150B etc). It didn’t realise this until recently but turns out the “B” variants are specifically intended to be for OEMs to use in all-in-one boards.

No question in my mind: They will use the 95 W variants at the high end. The 65 Watt models will also be used, however, just like now.

 

[Glmnet1]

Count me in as someone who already believed that they will want to use the 65W CPUs instead.

- It’s also worth noting that they already use “B” variant CPUs in iMac Pro (2140B, 2150B etc). It didn’t realise this until recently but turns out the “B” variants are specifically intended to be for OEMs to use in all-in-one boards.

I didn't know they used the B variants in the iMac Pro. Any advantage to using the soldered CPUs besides saving some space? Are they cheaper?

 

[sputnikBA]

I didn't know they used the B variants in the iMac Pro. Any advantage to using the soldered CPUs besides saving some space? Are they cheaper?

From the anandtech link:-

The goal of the Core-B line, as we were told, is to offer embedded versions of desktop processors for AIO-type form factors with a lower z-height, enabling a more streamlined and premium design for integrated desktops. In the past this segment was supplied by Core-H or socketed Core-S processors.

In all respects, these are identical to their 65W desktop equivalents. That includes core counts, base frequencies, turbo frequencies, memory support, Optane support, and integrated graphics. The only difference however is that these CPUs are likely to be placed into TDP-limited scenarios enabled through firmware.

They also give an example of a system using one in the link

 

[Glmnet1]

From the anandtech link:-



They also give an example of a system using one in the link

Yeah I read that but the iMac Pro is using the same form factor (same z-height) as the iMac which uses socketed CPUs so I'm not sure why they decided to go that route. If they decide to make the iMac any slimmer then they would probably have to use the B variants.
[doublepost=1523727883][/doublepost]Or maybe the saved space was required for the new cooling system?

 

[sputnikBA]

Yeah I read that but the iMac Pro is using the same form factor (same z-height) as the iMac which uses socketed CPUs so I'm not sure why they decided to go that route. If they decide to make the iMac any slimmer then they would probably have to use the B variants.
[doublepost=1523727883][/doublepost]Or maybe the saved space was required for the new cooling system?

Yes, but remember iMac Pros use Xeons, which are traditionally desktop chips. This is particularly true of the Xeon-W line which are themselves versions of the HEDT Skylake-X line of chips.

Also z-height isn't the only benefit of the "B" variant, they also have firmware changes to their mhz steppings to better regulate how much power / heat they use & generate.

 

[macachia]

hi, are we really expecting an updated (not necessarily redesigned) iMac for 2018? I have the budget for a 27inch retina iMac but I don't want to purchase 2-3 months before a new one is released.

Any thoughts?

Thanks
A

 

[Mac32]

This thread has gone circular. Short version: No one knows, there are no confirmed rumours, only speculations. Personally, I would wait and see until June. The CPU upgrade this time is fairly significant, whenever it happens.

 

[Moonjumper]

Iv'e found this as a temporary solution, would this be a good one still? And is it a good deal?

- iMac 5k, Late 2014
- 3.5 GHz intel Core i5
- 16 GB 1600 MHz DDR3
- 1 TB Fusiondrive
- AMD Radeon R9 M290X 2 GB

Price 1000-1200$.

The first iMac 5K to have sufficient power to really cope with that number of pixels is the Late 2015 model, so I would avoid the iMac you listed, but would consider a newer second-hand version.

In fact, a few months ago I did buy a second-hand Late 2015 iMac. It is the top spec standard model, and I have added 16GB RAM for a total of 24GB. It has no problem with my needs (Unity, Xcode, Photoshop, Illustrator, Audacity, etc.).

 

[294307]

This thread has gone circular. Short version: No one knows, there are no confirmed rumours, only speculations. Personally, I would wait and see until June. The CPU upgrade this time is fairly significant, whenever it happens.

You realise how disappointed people will be after saying that if it turns out Apple decide not to release a new iMac update for two years, right? Or even better - the Mac mini for four years.

Sarcasm aside, the risk is always a new Mac could be around the corner. If you need an iMac now, just buy it. It will last you just as long. Everyone is going by speculation about the 6-core Intel CPUs that Apple may use in the higher-end iMacs. It's all possible but its all pure speculation and that doesn't make the current iMacs slow... they are in fact very fast machines (well, except the base 21.5-inch iMac).