No 2018 iMac?!

[stillcrazyman]

If the memory access door is removed, that’s going to cause an unwanted cost difference on building an iMac. 32GB for the current model is $600. $250 more than it should be.

That might affect sales. Or not. I’ll still buy one when it’s time. It’s just going to be more expensive.

 

[pappkristof]

No iPad Pro in September -> October event with iPads and Macs confirmed.

 

[cwanja]

No iPad Pro in September -> October event with iPads and Macs confirmed.

Minus that whole "confirmed" thing.

 

[NetCatman]

If they didn’t have so much “filler”, they’d have time to introduce the new iMacs.

 

[Candykane75]

Apple should just become a phone company and sell the computer division
(stock holders here is your chance to make a quick buck, split the company !)
I want to see a company that puts TIME AND EFFORT in macs again.
Not a lasy one that cant be botherd to update desing , harware or collor for years now but does ask a premium price for 5 year old crap

no one give a Crap about the touch bar . Macs should have bin cutting edge , microsoft of all company's came up with the surface studio, a all in one thats just crasy good and better for professionals because of it ergonomics design you can draw on it! that is progress .
Making things thin beond the point that you can cool it , stickytape it together so you cant service it... , solder everyting onboard so if something breaks well you have to replace 3/4 of the computer ....
That listens to costumers USB A the most used port in the world so put it back on the machine!
forced to use dongles = Crap

 

[DQ11]

I absolutely agree here. With the exception of the Mac Pro, The iMac 27” is the very last Mac that is user upgradeable with RAM. I strongly believe the days of the bay door are numbered.

If/when they announce new 2018 imacs, would I still have a chance to buy the 2017, if I thought that was the better option, or will they immediately upon announcement switch over to the 2018 model on the website?

If they remove the ram door on 2018, and the upgrade isn't that much, it might make more sense for me to get the 2017. Depends on what cpu they use, hot it gets, fan noise, & cooling + ram access door.

 

[cwanja]

If/when they announce new 2018 imacs, would I still have a chance to buy the 2017, if I thought that was the better option, or will they immediately upon announcement switch over to the 2018 model on the website?

If they remove the ram door on 2018, and the upgrade isn't that much, it might make more sense for me to get the 2017. Depends on what cpu they use, hot it gets, fan noise, & cooling + ram access door.

They could have refurbished 2017 iMac models, but the main Apple Store (online and physical) will only sell you the newest models based upon the availability date announced at the time the product is introduced. If it is an event, you likely will have a few days to grab some from physical stores, but stock will dwindle. If it is a press release, your chances are next to nothing as Apple shipped the stock out and asks for the older versions to be shipped back (if the store has any stock).

Aside from that, you could look to third-party stores (Best Buy, etc.) to grab an older model.

 

[DQ11]

They could have refurbished 2017 iMac models, but the main Apple Store (online and physical) will only sell you the newest models based upon the availability date announced at the time the product is introduced. If it is an event, you likely will have a few days to grab some from physical stores, but stock will dwindle. If it is a press release, your chances are next to nothing as Apple shipped the stock out and asks for the older versions to be shipped back (if the store has any stock).

Aside from that, you could look to third-party stores (Best Buy, etc.) to grab an older model.

ok. thanks for the help. I couldn't get a stock in store model as I'm looking for specs they only offer in BTO so I would have to get it online most likely, unless they randomly started stocking 27" i7-7770k + 512 SSD + 16 ram

 

[cwanja]

ok. thanks for the help. I couldn't get a stock in store model as I'm looking for specs they only offer in BTO so I would have to get it online most likely, unless they randomly started stocking 27" i7-7770k + 512 SSD + 16 ram

Only shot to get a BTO would be if someone purchased one and returned it to your local Apple Store. It is the managers discretion if they want to see that.

 

[Icaras]

If/when they announce new 2018 imacs, would I still have a chance to buy the 2017, if I thought that was the better option, or will they immediately upon announcement switch over to the 2018 model on the website?

If they remove the ram door on 2018, and the upgrade isn't that much, it might make more sense for me to get the 2017. Depends on what cpu they use, hot it gets, fan noise, & cooling + ram access door.

Yea, Apple will most likely cut off the sold-as-new 2017 model entirely from their website, although you’re certain to find them sold in their refurbished store. But also sold-as-new 2017 might not disappear entirely either. There have been a couple of times where Apple kept around one size of an older model around after introducing a newly redesigned model (i.e: previous generation 13” and 15” MacBook Pros).

Just removing the bay door by itself wouldn’t constitute a redesign so only if the 2018 iMac is properly redesigned, I would say it’s possible, although not likely, for Apple to continue selling a brand new 2017 model.

But I wouldn’t worry about that. You should be able to find lots of retailers trying to get rid of 2017 stock and at great prices well after the 2018 iMac hits, redesigned or not.

 

[idark77]

Today Apple is just a Phone/watch company. We can buy an iPhone at the same price of an iMac...

 

[SkiHound2]

ok. thanks for the help. I couldn't get a stock in store model as I'm looking for specs they only offer in BTO so I would have to get it online most likely, unless they randomly started stocking 27" i7-7770k + 512 SSD + 16 ram

If you keep an eye on the Apple refurbished store you may, or may not, find the configuration for which you are looking at about 15% below regular retail. Now if you're waiting till after the next generation hits the streets, then you may have to get lucky to get the exact configuration of the current generation. B&H and Adorama may also have stock of the particular configuration for which you are looking. They seem to stock quite a few configurations so you might take a look and see if it's a build they typically keep in stock. I'm kind of playing the same game. Waiting for the next generation but I'm not sure it wouldn't be better to try to find a good deal on a current model.

 

[Fishrrman]

DQ asked:
"If/when they announce new 2018 imacs, would I still have a chance to buy the 2017, if I thought that was the better option, or will they immediately upon announcement switch over to the 2018 model on the website?"

When new Macs are released, the old ones usually get sold off at slightly lower prices.
In the past few years, "remaining stock" often gets liquidated by a few sellers on ebay, often at significantly lower pricing.

And for at least a year or two, the "previous generation" iMacs should be available through Apple's "online Apple-refurbished" store. They'll look and run "like new", and you can even get AppleCare for them.

 

[Jorbanead]

If they didn’t have so much “filler”, they’d have time to introduce the new iMacs.

It actually makes more sense from a marketing standpoint to only announce two devices at once. Apple will surely want the Sept news cycle to focus on the new iPhone and watch. Then once all the hype dies down, they can come out with a few more products (like the iMac) to regain the media’s attention before the holiday season.

The more you can spread out your products releases, the more chances you have for the media to talk about your products throughout the year. This is also why they release the MBP in the middle of summer. It filled the gap between WWDC and Sept event.

 

[DQ11]

If you keep an eye on the Apple refurbished store you may, or may not, find the configuration for which you are looking at about 15% below regular retail. Now if you're waiting till after the next generation hits the streets, then you may have to get lucky to get the exact configuration of the current generation. B&H and Adorama may also have stock of the particular configuration for which you are looking. They seem to stock quite a few configurations so you might take a look and see if it's a build they typically keep in stock. I'm kind of playing the same game. Waiting for the next generation but I'm not sure it wouldn't be better to try to find a good deal on a current model.

What I'm hoping for is that with the 2018 imac update, the specs updates will be enough that I can get by with a lower tier model and not have to get the more expensive one, because with the 6 core chips, even the i5 would be enough for me and I wouldn't even need the most expensive version.
[doublepost=1536869277][/doublepost]

DQ asked:
"If/when they announce new 2018 imacs, would I still have a chance to buy the 2017, if I thought that was the better option, or will they immediately upon announcement switch over to the 2018 model on the website?"

When new Macs are released, the old ones usually get sold off at slightly lower prices.
In the past few years, "remaining stock" often gets liquidated by a few sellers on ebay, often at significantly lower pricing.

And for at least a year or two, the "previous generation" iMacs should be available through Apple's "online Apple-refurbished" store. They'll look and run "like new", and you can even get AppleCare for them.

Awesome, thanks. Still not ruling our refurb, but won't know until apple gives us new imacs.

 

[SkiHound2]

What I'm hoping for is that with the 2018 imac update, the specs updates will be enough that I can get by with a lower tier model and not have to get the more expensive one, because with the 6 core chips, even the i5 would be enough for me and I wouldn't even need the most expensive version.
[doublepost=1536869277][/doublepost]

Awesome, thanks. Still not ruling our refurb, but won't know until apple gives us new imacs.

The current i5s are fine for most stuff but the benchmarks I've seen suggest that the 8th generation cpus took a big step forward with respect to tasks that support multi-threading. Even the 2.8 mhz i5 seems to perform well. I'm hoping they offer a model with the lower TDP i7. The 8th generation of intel cpus seem to provide a pretty meaningful performance upgrade over their 7th generation counterparts.

 

[HappyIntro]

The current i5s are fine for most stuff but the benchmarks I've seen suggest that the 8th generation cpus took a big step forward with respect to tasks that support multi-threading. Even the 2.8 mhz i5 seems to perform well. I'm hoping they offer a model with the lower TDP i7. The 8th generation of intel cpus seem to provide a pretty meaningful performance upgrade over their 7th generation counterparts.

Yes, the performance is better thanks to those two extra cores, however those two cores will most likely bring extra heat, which begs the question, "How well will the iMac cooling system cope with any additional heat load?" Currently the heat management system seems to struggle with the higher TDP CPUs (3.8/4.2). By struggle I just mean I'm reading many anecdotes about fans spinning loudly even during routine tasks like surfing the web. So if the 2018 iMac is just a spec upgrade, I am concerned that it will cause problems (throttling/fans spinning loudly all the time). Of course they could upgrade the cooling system, but I feel somewhat skeptical about that happening.

 

[pappkristof]

It definitely won’t be a spec bump only update. The last redesign was 6 years ago. I really believe that there will be a new design in October (with thinner bezels) or at least an iMac pro-like cooling system and a space gray option.
[doublepost=1536902287][/doublepost]I also think that it’s time for an SSD only lineup preferably starting at 512 GB for the 27” models.

 

[Ifti]

What about the iMac Pro - any chance of an update there alongside the standard iMac?

 

[pappkristof]

What about the iMac Pro - any chance of an update there alongside the standard iMac?

If the standard iMac gets a 8 core option, then it’s likely that Apple will drop the 8 core iMac pro and maybe replace it with a 22 core one.

For more significant updates I think you will have to wait for WWDC19 or even longer.

 

[Lammers]

Today Apple is just a Phone/watch company. We can buy an iPhone at the same price of an iMac...

I think that depends how you look at it. Yes, Mac makes up a relatively low (and decreasing) percentage of Apple’s overall revenue, but it’s still a massive business in its own right; Apple sells billions of dollars of Macs every quarter. Their Mac business alone is bigger in terms of revenue than household names like Netflix, eBay, SalesForce, and others.
[doublepost=1536929558][/doublepost]

It definitely won’t be a spec bump only update.

Wow, well that’s a very confident assertion. What evidence do you have for that? Let me guess: none whatsoever.

 

[vojislavsh]

If they present the new iMac in october , it’ll be only spec bump to 8th gen intel. If they delay the presentation to first quarter od 2019, I think we’ll see redesigned iMacs with 9th gen cpu , along with redesigned iMac Pro or new Mac pro.

 

[oVerboost]

I really believe that there will be a new design in October (with thinner bezels)

I'm not so sure Apple will go down this route... If they do, there are going to be a lot of unhappy iMac Pro owners who have the bezels when the new regular iMac and updated Pro (can't see it being updated this soon either in that regard) get released with edge to edge displays. They will go down that route, but I'm not sure we are going to see it at the next iMac update (IMO). Be nice if they do though lol.

 

[Zdigital2015]

Fuel for the fire - https://wccftech.com/intel-core-i9-9900k-cinebench-5-ghz-performance-benchmark-leak/

 

[Icaras]

I'm not so sure Apple will go down this route... If they do, there are going to be a lot of unhappy iMac Pro owners who have the bezels when the new regular iMac and updated Pro (can't see it being updated this soon either in that regard) get released with edge to edge displays. They will go down that route, but I'm not sure we are going to see it at the next iMac update (IMO). Be nice if they do though lol.

I don’t think so. If you peruse the forum threads, most users that use any of Apple’s Pro Mac machines really don’t care much of the design (unless of course it’s internal like cooling that yields more performance out of the machine). Talk about a redesign and some even get up in arms about it. Case in point: lot of Mac Pro users were quite content with the cheese grater design and we’re rather unhappy with the trash can design. For Pro users, I would imagine performance and features mostly trump aesthetics. But invigorating the consumer iMac with a refreshed aesthetic will work wonders with Apple’s marketing to entice consumers and prosumers back to an otherwise aging product design.