Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
New iMac this fall?
- Thread starter Appleaker
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I know about iMac releases you don't need to list them out. If you read my comment, I am talking about between MAJOR redesigns i.e. 2007 and 2012. It works similar to an S cycle, where in the 2 year refresh after the major redesign, we got a 5K display instead of tweaking to the design. They could wait 2 or 3 years after that update to bring a major redesign to the iMac, meaning it could happen in 2017.
Since apple still tags the almost 1 year old current one as "new" (http://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/imac) - I consider that a good indication that apple doesnt have any plans of updating the iMac within the first months. If you need a new workhorse, you can always consider this:
By that logic, we shouldn't expect much next year because they'll be focussing on the 10th anniversary iPhone
2009 was a MAJOR redesign. They completely changed the display sizes (27" and 21.5") and aspect ratio (16:9). The 2009 model was different in almost every way to the 16:10/long chin models it replaced. So, the iMac had a major case redesign in 2007, 2009, and 2012. It's 2016, so it's overdue for one and the most likely reason they change it is the switch to USB-C/Thunderbolt 3 ports requiring manufacturing changes anyway. Virtually every port on the back of the current iMac can be replaced with a few USB-C ports of which 2 support Thunderbolt 3. Everything else can go except maybe ethernet since it's a desktop machine.
Adapters will be required for USB-A and Thunderbolt 1/2 (which use the MiniDisplayPort connector).
4 USB 3.1, 2 Thunderbolt 3, Ethernet, SD card slot, and a headphone jack. It is unlikely the last 2 will be dropped as you say. Casing doesn't need to be changed for USB-C ports although it wold be easier to implement them in a redesign rather than tweak the same body (as they would have to do if they changed the ports last year).
You're right, I forgot the aspect ratio change happened with the 2009 model. That was a redesign similar to how, 2 years after the sunflower iMac, it received a redesign (although not as drastic). I wouldn't say it is overdue for a major redesign, but it is due for a redesign. Their strategy might prolong the life of Mac designs as they focus on iOS devices, which means to be honest we can't be certain. Hopefully it is this year.
Agreed on this. In a lot of ways I celebrate the iPad's growth struggles because hopefully it sends the message to Apple that people still want Macs. Not a bigger version of their iPhone.
I'm not the only one pointing out that Apple does seem more preoccupied with iOS over Macs. Whether its true or not, one cannot deny that there's not been much in terms of new macs for 2016 - at least 8 months into the year.By that logic, we shouldn't expect much next year because they'll be focussing on the 10th anniversary iPhone
15" MBP is on Haswell, 21" iMac is on Broadwell, etc, etc.
I love my iPad Pro but please God. I want to upgrade in a year and I want the shiniest newest 27" they can conjure up, not another iteration of the 2012.
I am expecting a new iMac design.
- iMac. Thinner 21.5" and 27" retina with iGPU only. 8GB DDR4 Ram, 128 GB SSD. 27" model will be 100$ cheaper that todays M380 model. Same display tech as today. Same casing color. No LAN socket. 2x USB, TB2 and TB3.
- iMac Pro. Space gray or similar casing color, not as thin as basic iMac. 16 GB DDR4 RAM, 256 GB SSD (both user replaceable). dGPU as standard for both 21.5" and 27" models. HDR panels with adaptive sync. LAN connector and one additional USB, TB2 and TB3.
Last edited:
Yeah if that were true I would stick with Mac...but i highly doubt it will ever happen.
I doubt Apple is waiting on Kaby Lake but trying to work out what Apple might do based on availability isn't reliable either. For example, there have been at least two gens of Xeons and GPUs available for a potential Mac Pro upgrade since December of 2013 but none materialized; Intel is not always the upgrade delay culprit.
I mentioned the Mac Pro to illustrate a point but IMO Apple's iMac strategy ( which options they offer and when ) is intertwined with their Mac Pro strategy.
Last edited:
I don't think they will decrease the I/O on the smaller model. They are not removing the Ethernet port because while they prefer wireless for portable devices, they do still accept wired connections. They even suggested connecting an Ethernet adapter to an iPad Pro.
[doublepost=1470183051][/doublepost]
Which bit?
They probably won't remove it but ite possible. There are 3rd party adapters that a lot of people buy so they're not going to remove a port so they can make a really small amount of money from adapters.
Yes I know what I mean is even if they do make it much thinner, it'll be thicker than it looks. RJ45 socket does not take up much space. Who knows, it could happen and if it does hopefully they replace it with a USB C port.
Since apple still tags the almost 1 year old current one as "new" (http://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/imac) - I consider that a good indication that apple doesnt have any plans of updating the iMac within the first months. If you need a new workhorse, you can always consider this:
Eh, it's a mature product. How much can it change? Any thinner will compromise what power the iMac gets and other than that what's there to change? I doubt we see any substantial change to the iMac design going forward.
Maybe...I'll bet more than a few people at Apple are itching away at making the aluminum which currently matches nothing else (maybe the silver Sport watch?) space grey and rose gold...
...and having said that, making the latest Magic Keyboard near identical to the previous one and making the latest Trackpad white is puzzling indeed.
Yeah they might make some color options. That makes sense and is a very Apple thing to do. Not sure what you mean it matches nothing else. It's the same color as the Mac mini, the silver MacBooks, the silver iPhone and iPad and the keyboard.
It does need a bit of tweaking to align it with the new Mac design language. Making it thinner won't require any compromises in power due to the increased efficiency (and therefore lower heat output) of the GPUs. They can go thinner since there is also internal space to do so, however I hope it doesn't mean they go all flash storage or remove RAM upgradeability.