My late 2013 iMac is dying: What should I replace it with?

[sppunk]

My late 2013 27” iMac is starting to experience issues and I feel it’s about time for a replacement.

With the M1 stuff, I’m out of the loop on best options. I should I say upfront money isn’t much of an issue.

I an a graphic designer and do some video editing - not much but some. Main work is in Illustrator, Photoshop and InDesign. Large files, lots of editing. Video work is mostly iMovie - I’m not tuning Premier Pro or anything.

I also must be able to log in to my work office via VMWare Horizon (I see this is M1 ready now thankfully).

Other than that, it’s an Internet machine mostly. Some Libre work documents but that’s very minor.

I prefer a desktop instead of docking a laptop but is there a viable desktop available currently than can handle Adobe large files/work?

 

[usagora]

If money isn't much of an issue, then I'd say go for the M1 iMac with 16GB RAM and go as large as you want on the SSD. As long as all the software you need to use runs natively on Apple silicon, go for it!

 

[sppunk]

If money isn't much of an issue, then I'd say go for the M1 iMac with 16GB RAM and go as large as you want on the SSD. As long as all the software you need to use runs natively on Apple silicon, go for it!

I wish the 24” was 27”!

But the M1 can run Adobe well without lag? I swear I’ve seen videos of users saying it’s not great with large Photoshop files.

 

[jz0309]

I wish the 24” was 27”!

But the M1 can run Adobe well without lag? I swear I’ve seen videos of users saying it’s not great with large Photoshop files.

there have been discussions in the digital Photography subform about M1 Mac, see links below.
Re PS, it is a RAM hog, undeniably, how much RAM does your current iMac have? Since you seem to be needing a replacement rather sooner than later, waiting for the 27" iMac M model might not be an option.
So you can obviously get a new BTO 27" iMac with an Intel, or you could check for refurbs ...

Do you have a SSD in your current iMac? the SSD in my M1 MBA is quite fast, ~ 2900 MBps, so even swapping is a little better ...

I also saw a thread somewhere here where a guy had to replace his 27" 5k and went for the 24" and seems quite happy


Editing Photos on an M1 Mac

M1 Mac - real life photo SW experience

 

[sppunk]

there have been discussions in the digital Photography subform about M1 Mac, see links below.
Re PS, it is a RAM hog, undeniably, how much RAM does your current iMac have? Since you seem to be needing a replacement rather sooner than later, waiting for the 27" iMac M model might not be an option.
So you can obviously get a new BTO 27" iMac with an Intel, or you could check for refurbs ...

Do you have a SSD in your current iMac? the SSD in my M1 MBA is quite fast, ~ 2900 MBps, so even swapping is a little better ...

I also saw a thread somewhere here where a guy had to replace his 27" 5k and went for the 24" and seems quite happy


Editing Photos on an M1 Mac

M1 Mac - real life photo SW experience

Thanks! I have maxed out ram (16mb) and a 512 go SSD, yup.

Those links reassure me that a M1 iMac might be sufficient.

 

[Fishrrman]

My suggestions:

1. Keep holding on for now if you can -- just a few weeks or months longer.

2. It looks like a new "m1x" Mini will be announced/released in a few more weeks (end of Oct). This will be a BIG improvement over the current "m1" Mini.
Consider waiting for it, if a Mini looks like it could work for you.

3. The "larger screen" m1x iMac will probably be announced Jan/Feb 2022 (maybe a little earlier, don't know yet). It, too, will be MUCH improved over the current 24" m1 iMac.

If you want an iMac with a larger screen, hold out as best you can until then.

4. DO NOT BUY ANY m-series Mac UNLESS you get 16gb of RAM, minimum. Otherwise, it will "over-work" the internal SSD with VM swaps and other temp files.

 

[sppunk]

My suggestions:

1. Keep holding on for now if you can -- just a few weeks or months longer.

2. It looks like a new "m1x" Mini will be announced/released in a few more weeks (end of Oct). This will be a BIG improvement over the current "m1" Mini.
Consider waiting for it, if a Mini looks like it could work for you.

3. The "larger screen" m1x iMac will probably be announced Jan/Feb 2022 (maybe a little earlier, don't know yet). It, too, will be MUCH improved over the current 24" m1 iMac.

If you want an iMac with a larger screen, hold out as best you can until then.

4. DO NOT BUY ANY m-series Mac UNLESS you get 16gb of RAM, minimum. Otherwise, it will "over-work" the internal SSD with VM swaps and other temp files.

Thank you! I definitely will limp along as long as I can in hopes the 27” iMac is announced sooner rather than later. I’m not opposed to a Mini but for whatever reason prefer an all-in-one.

​

 

[jz0309]

Thank you! I definitely will limp along as long as I can in hopes the 27” iMac is announced sooner rather than later. I’m not opposed to a Mini but for whatever reason prefer an all-in-one.

​

if you're "limping along", make sure your backups are up-to-date ...

 

[sppunk]

if you're "limping along", make sure your backups are up-to-date ...

Oh they are! I rotate external drives for TM hourly backups every week.

 

[lacrossegoalie4]

Really happy with my maxed out 24" iMac for much of the same, having migrated from a late 2014 27" iMac. I have the USB-C / Thunderbolt cable attached to a 34" Samsung Monitor, which I will use as my primary when I need more space. I thought it would be too small for design work, but the extra power plus the larger monitor has been a really sweet setup -- so much so, that I think I will not need to upgrade when/if a larger pro iMac comes along.