M1 iMac - what was missing from the event?

[Internaut]

Or at least what I perhaps failed to notice. Now this by no means we're looking at a bad device, or bad value, but the base model is really just a base MBA (or perhaps Pro, bearing in mind the thermal management) inside a bigger thing with a very decent 24" screen. As I wrote, by no means bad - I think for most less demanding users, one of these plus a USB hub and some extra storage is going to be all they'll need.

The other thing that slightly surprised me. In the UK at least, all models come with a Magic keyboard (with the 8 GPU base model upwards coming with the touch ID variant). Mouse not mentioned, so I'm guessing that's extra. You have to shell out quite a bit extra for 8 GPU cores if you want the two extra USB-C ports. No word on the availability of 16Gb models, at the moment - I'm guessing that's because you can select and start the pre-order process (yet).

 

[mystery hill]

No inverted-T arrow keys to match the MacBook keyboard layout.

 

[CheesePuff]

At its core its the exact same SoC and thus performance (save for a fan for slightly better sustained > 10 minutes of heavy CPU/GPU usage) as a base model MacBook Air, which is a bit insulting in a $1800 machine. It should have definitely come with a higher performing clock speed or higher core count M1, that can support > 2 GB of storage and > 16 GB RAM as well.

 

[phillytim]

Apple should have talked about whether or not 16GB would be an option for the iMac M1.

 

[lcubed]

Apple probably should have gone over what iOS 14.5 is, and the new technologies available to us - such as FaceID unlocking with masks, and higher privacy levels. Because they didn't, that says to me that Apple doesn't have amazing confidence in its FaceID mask-wearing unlock.

are you expecting the new imac to run ios 14.5?

 

[mtneer]

At its core its the exact same SoC and thus performance (save for a fan for slightly better sustained > 10 minutes of heavy CPU/GPU usage) as a base model MacBook Air, which is a bit insulting in a $1800 machine. It should have definitely come with a higher performing clock speed or higher core count M1, that can support > 2 GB of storage and > 16 GB RAM as well.

I suspect they saving that to upsell consumers to the rumored larger iMac later in the year.

 

[Spindel]

At its core its the exact same SoC and thus performance (save for a fan for slightly better sustained > 10 minutes of heavy CPU/GPU usage) as a base model MacBook Air, which is a bit insulting in a $1800 machine. It should have definitely come with a higher performing clock speed or higher core count M1, that can support > 2 GB of storage and > 16 GB RAM as well.

Just FYI. My M1 Mini + the new display I bought set me back around $1800 (before VAT), given my display is 27" so it is bigger. So I don't find the price unreasonable since (at least in the past) iMacs don't come with crap displays and a good display isn't cheap.

But yeah a M1 Mini with a crap display will be a cheaper option if you don't care about display quality.

EDIT:// My display is good, but the ones that come with at least intel macs are better

 

[CheesePuff]

Just FYI. My M1 Mini + the new display I bought set me back around $1800 (before VAT), given my display is 27" so it is bigger. So I don't find the price unreasonable since (at least in the past) iMacs don't come with crap displays and a good display isn't cheap.

But yeah a M1 Mini with a crap display will be a cheaper option if you don't care about display quality.

EDIT:// My display is good, but the ones that come with at least intel macs are better

I think the value is fine compared to the other M1 devices, but just last year the performance difference between the $1K MBA and the $2K iMac was immense, now its identical

 

[GSWForever8]

I feel like they should add more ports to the iMac. The iMac should have just as much port as the previous generation. At least put them on the side!

 

[theSeb]

Apple should have talked about whether or not 16GB would be an option for the iMac M1.

The tech specs on apple's site clearly mention that 16 GB is an option.

 

[4sallypat]

Can someone tell me what the $30 option upgrade for the base iMac to get gigabit ethernet ??

Is that a power brick upgrade or a dongle ??

 

[guzhogi]

Can someone tell me what the $30 option upgrade for the base iMac to get gigabit ethernet ??

Is that a power brick upgrade or a dongle ??

Looks like a power brick upgrade. We'll know for certain once they ship.

 

[Spudlicious]

I feel like they should add more ports to the iMac. The iMac should have just as much port as the previous generation. At least put them on the side!

Fully agree. You can’t have too many ports, and note they have also dropped the SD card slot.

 

[A_Flying_Panda]

At its core its the exact same SoC and thus performance (save for a fan for slightly better sustained > 10 minutes of heavy CPU/GPU usage) as a base model MacBook Air, which is a bit insulting in a $1800 machine. It should have definitely come with a higher performing clock speed or higher core count M1, that can support > 2 GB of storage and > 16 GB RAM as well.

No they are not ‘the exact same’ SoC. the iMac has TWO fans, and a 143W power input, this is NOT the same as MBA.

 

[m1maverick]

No they are not ‘the exact same’ SoC. the iMac has TWO fans, and a 143W power input, this is NOT the same as MBA.

Perhaps because the iMac has a much larger screen and requires more power and cooling?

With that said if I were to make an educated guess, and that's what I am doing here, I would say it's the same SoC because, in every aspect we know about right now, it matches the SoCs available in the original M1 products. In fact Apple has stated as much: M1

 

[A_Flying_Panda]

Perhaps because the iMac has a much larger screen and requires more power and cooling?

With that said if I were to make an educated guess, and that's what I am doing here, I would say it's the same SoC because, in every aspect we know about right now, it matches the SoCs available in the original M1 products. In fact Apple has stated as much: M1

Yes the larger display will consume more power. But a typical 4K 24inch monitor power consumption is around ~40w, which still leaves 70w over the MBA’s 30W adapter.

Yes they are the same SoC model, so does the iPad Pro, but they certainly are not speced the same in terms of power consumption. The spec is not only hardware, but also firmware/software configuration.
the M1 chip on 143w will certainly outperform the ‘same’ M1 chip on a 20w, passively cooled 11inch iPad Pro.

 

[petvas]

I missed the Apple silicon Pro Macs. I want a new 32“ iMac with at least 32GB of RAM..

 

[m1maverick]

Yes the larger display will consume more power. But a typical 4K 24inch monitor power consumption is around ~40w, which still leaves 70w over the MBA’s 30W adapter.

Yes they are the same SoC model, so does the iPad Pro, but they certainly are not speced the same in terms of power consumption. The spec is not only hardware, but also firmware/software configuration.
the M1 chip on 143w will certainly outperform the ‘same’ M1 chip on a 20w, passively cooled 11inch iPad Pro.

So M1 is M1 except when it's not M1?

 

[CheesePuff]

No they are not ‘the exact same’ SoC. the iMac has TWO fans, and a 143W power input, this is NOT the same as MBA.

The SoC refers to the M1 package, which is identical in both machines.

 

[xraydoc]

Yes the larger display will consume more power. But a typical 4K 24inch monitor power consumption is around ~40w, which still leaves 70w over the MBA’s 30W adapter.

Not sure that's saying much -- the M1 MacBook Pro comes with a 60W power supply. I very much doubt that the MacBook Pro could pull that much power even with the GPU and CPU pegged at 100% utilization, the screen at max. brightness and a couple of SSDs plugged into the USB ports.

Per Apple's specs, the M1 Mac mini has a 150W power supply.

I think the extra power goes to the display and maybe a little for the second fan, with ample power left over for bus-powered devices (like with the 60W power supply of the MBP and 150W in the mini). I bet the second fan is to keep it more silent compared to a single fan inside such a thin enclosure.

While we won't know until it ships, I suspect the 8-core GPU version of the 24" iMac will perform identically to the Mac mini.

 

[m1maverick]

The SoC refers to the M1 package, which is identical in both machines.

Isn't that what was said that you took issue with?

EDIT: Oops, responded to the wrong poster. Please ignore.