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When will the iMac be refreshed?

  • September/October Event

  • November/December Event

  • March/April Event

  • WWDC 2019


Results are only viewable after voting.

pappkristof

macrumors regular
Aug 1, 2015
149
259
If Apple moves to Vega graphics in the regular iMacs what would be the difference between iMac and iMac pro?
 

iPadified

macrumors 68020
Apr 25, 2017
2,014
2,257
If Apple moves to Vega graphics in the regular iMacs what would be the difference between iMac and iMac pro?

Slightly lower price tag and Xeon processors, ECC RAM, 128 GB RAM, and I think more PCI lanes in the iMP. Xeon and RAM does not always translate to more powerful computer but to a more reliable computer. For 99.9% user that reliability is wasted.

I think Apple should adopt the iMP thermal solution in the iMac range to enable as wide range of processors (i5-i9) and GPU (polaris and Vega) as possible for a given motherboard. Wide range of configurability would be good.

If that eats iMP sales, who cares?
 
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pappkristof

macrumors regular
Aug 1, 2015
149
259
If that eats iMP sales, who cares?

Apple.

Also “slightly lower price” would still be too much for an average iMac user.

I’m not planning to spend more than 2500 usd on my new iMac and that’s only half of an iMac pro.
 

newyorksole

macrumors 603
Apr 2, 2008
5,207
6,535
New York.
I'm ready for some rumors...seems like we would have heard something if Apple is planning an October event. Is the October event 100% happening at this point?

Not until the invites go out and we read the news report, I am afraid.

I don't think anything's 100% at this point. There are strong indications there are going to be new iPads, though. So that could entail an October event.

I’m 99% sure that there will be an event next month. We’ve seen several rumors regarding iPad with Face ID. iPhone XR launches October 26.

I could see the event being held the same week that iPhone XR preorders start. So maybe an event on Wednesday October 17?

We got the iMac Pro last year. Allegedly a new Mac Pro next year. I’d say it’s time for a new iMac and/or Mac Mini.

I’m optimistic.
 
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fokmik

Suspended
Oct 28, 2016
4,909
4,688
USA
Slightly lower price tag and Xeon processors, ECC RAM, 128 GB RAM, and I think more PCI lanes in the iMP. Xeon and RAM does not always translate to more powerful computer but to a more reliable computer. For 99.9% user that reliability is wasted.

I think Apple should adopt the iMP thermal solution in the iMac range to enable as wide range of processors (i5-i9) and GPU (polaris and Vega) as possible for a given motherboard. Wide range of configurability would be good.

If that eats iMP sales, who cares?
Yes, adopting the same thermal solution will bring apple a lot of money...that solution will be the only solution for the next 5 years,maybe even more since it will be very effective foR any 8th gen or 9th 10th gen cpu
 
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Zdigital2015

macrumors 601
Jul 14, 2015
4,144
5,624
East Coast, United States
If Apple moves to Vega graphics in the regular iMacs what would be the difference between iMac and iMac pro?

An updated 2018 iMac is not going to get either of the Vega GPUs offered in the iMac Pro at this point. They are an important USP for Apple and clearly demarcate the two product lines.

If Apple did offer some sort of Vega option, I suspect it would be restricted to another tier sales higher than $2299 (Core i5-9600K), probably at $2499, which would offer the Core i7-9700K and make the i9-9900K the only other BTO CPU option, which would be another $200-$300 above the base $2499. Basically, Apple would restrict the Core i9-9900K to the highest end iMac model with the highest end GPU as a strategy to deal with Intel's current 14nm supply issues. This scenario is not without precedent.

Also, it won't be a standard Vega, most likely a mildly customized variant of the Vega Nano with lower CU and Stream Processor counts, so as not to compete with the iMac Pro's GPUs, but to be a bit more powerful than the incoming Polaris 30 GPUs. However, I can only see Apple going this route should Intel announce and ship a 22-core version of the Xeon W alongside the Core-X/X299 refresh, discontinue the 8-core version of the iMac Pro, move the base to the 10-core Xeon and put the 22-core option at the highest BTO tier, which would be a worthwhile, albeit incremental update to the iMac Pro and might entice some iMac Pro holdouts, but not so much as to anger existing iMac Pro owners.

There are many key differences between the iMac and the iMac Pro, which I have outline before in an earlier post - https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/no-2018-imac.2121604/page-22#post-26353173

We have around 2-3 more weeks before the picture becomes clearer and anything could happen. Buckle up!
 

HappyIntro

macrumors 6502
Apr 30, 2016
313
306
Or possibly a refreshed iMac will get the same treatment the refreshed MBP got this summer. A nice splashy front page on Apple's web site along with a glowing press release. It is possible that there will be no October event if there are not enough things to talk about. A new iPad by itself does not warrant it. If on the other hand Apple really does have multiple product upgrades to announce, that would make for a super exciting event. But does anyone think it's likely that there will be multiple refreshed products? It would seem almost too good to be true if there was a new Mini, iPad Pro, iMac, MacBook Air/MacBook, etc. I sure hope that happens, but I'm wondering if it's a bit of wishful thinking on our part. Time is running out...
 

Sidetrackedd

macrumors newbie
Sep 26, 2018
13
4
I am patiently waiting on an update. However I just got a pretty good deal on a 2017 i7 iMac 1TB SSD 32GB Ram. I haven't opened it yet.

I saved about a little over a 1,000 bucks off retail. Do you think if new iMac's come out, they will be worth the additional cost? Say they get new cores like the MacBook Pro's. I think the savings of $1,000 bucks, roughly 25% off is a pretty good deal. Anyone chime in? Should I keep it or return/sell it and see what the new one has to offer.
 
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Grohowiak

macrumors 6502a
Nov 14, 2012
768
793
I am patiently waiting on an update. However I just got a pretty good deal on a 2017 i7 iMac 1TB SSD 32GB Ram. I haven't opened it yet.

I saved about a little over a 1,000 bucks off retail. Do you think if new iMac's come out, they will be worth the additional cost? Say they get new cores like the MacBook Pro's. I think the savings of $1,000 bucks, roughly 25% off is a pretty good deal. Anyone chime in? Should I keep it or return/sell it and see what the new one has to offer.

Depends what will you use it for. -$1K off is a pretty good deal if you ask me.
 

EugW

macrumors G5
Jun 18, 2017
14,996
12,962
I am patiently waiting on an update. However I just got a pretty good deal on a 2017 i7 iMac 1TB SSD 32GB Ram. I haven't opened it yet.

I saved about a little over a 1,000 bucks off retail. Do you think if new iMac's come out, they will be worth the additional cost? Say they get new cores like the MacBook Pro's. I think the savings of $1,000 bucks, roughly 25% off is a pretty good deal. Anyone chime in? Should I keep it or return/sell it and see what the new one has to offer.
25% off a 2017 is awesome. What kind of stuff do you plan on using it for?

This message has been typed on a 2017 iMac.
 
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Sidetrackedd

macrumors newbie
Sep 26, 2018
13
4
25% off a 2017 is awesome. What kind of stuff do you plan on using it for?

This message has been typed on a 2017 iMac.

Right now it is total overkill but I plan to get into more video/pic editing stuff and business/financial items. It is a long term investment. Apple retail is $3,868 + tax which puts it at $4200 with my zip code. I paid $2,850 with Applecare+. BH & Photo sells it for $3,868 with no tax. They are not offering a discount.

The iMac I was looking at was just the high end base model at $2,299. Basic i5 with 2TB Fusion Drive and 8GB Ram. So for $2,850 I though it was a no brainer.

I even thought I could try it out for a month and see if I like it. If the new iMac comes out and I want it, I could always sell it and get most of my money back via the Refurbished market. Maybe lose a little. Just thinking out loud here.
 

EugW

macrumors G5
Jun 18, 2017
14,996
12,962
Right now it is total overkill but I plan to get into more video/pic editing stuff and business/financial items. It is a long term investment. Apple retail is $3,868 + tax which puts it at $4200 with my zip code. I paid $2,850 with Applecare+. BH & Photo sells it for $3,868 with no tax. They are not offering a discount.

The iMac I was looking at was just the high end base model at $2,299. Basic i5 with 2TB Fusion Drive and 8GB Ram. So for $2,850 I though it was a no brainer.

I even thought I could try it out for a month and see if I like it. If the new iMac comes out and I want it, I could always sell it and get most of my money back via the Refurbished market. Maybe lose a little. Just thinking out loud here.
I think you'll be happy with it. Most of the 2017 models are probably fine for your needs.
 
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cwanja

macrumors 6502a
Jun 23, 2010
742
436
Texas
I have no idea how what they send Apple or not, what I know is that if you look at the Mac releases and compare them with Intel's, you see that Apple's is always at least a few months after.

For example:
iMac 2017 released on June 5, 2017 - 7700k released on January, 2017
iMac 2015 released on October 13, 2015 - 6700k released on August, 2015
iMac 2014 released on October 16, 2014 - 4790K released on June 2014

Currently the 8700k has been out for almost a year and still no concrete sign of a new iMac. I don't know what's going on but I wouldn't bet on Apple suddenly putting 9th gen CPU in an iMac days or even weeks after it's released.
I mean, to that same logic then we would already have an iMac with an 8th gen CPU in it.
 

TheIntruder

macrumors 68000
Jul 2, 2008
1,774
1,288
If that eats iMP sales, who cares?

Apple execs have repeated stated in the past that they don't mind cannibalization.

Judging by how competitive the iPhone XR is, that philosophy continues. A significant portion of users won't pony up the extra $350+tax for the Max for a nicer, slightly larger screen, and an extra camera; the XR will suit their needs fine.

The iMP has always been a niche model at best. if Apple offers the 8-core option on the iMac, it can appeal to the prosumers and nicely fill in the price gap between the two.

If Apple sells, two...three...four...or whatever regular iMacs for each iMP sold, it's will still come out ahead.
 

Glmnet1

macrumors 6502a
Oct 21, 2017
973
1,093
I mean, to that same logic then we would already have an iMac with an 8th gen CPU in it.
Exactly what I said at the end of the comment you quoted. I don’t know why it’s taking so long this time but it doesn’t look like their speeding up their upgrade cycle, quite the contrary.
 

Jimmdean

macrumors 6502a
Mar 21, 2007
648
647
I am patiently waiting on an update. However I just got a pretty good deal on a 2017 i7 iMac 1TB SSD 32GB Ram. I haven't opened it yet.

I saved about a little over a 1,000 bucks off retail. Do you think if new iMac's come out, they will be worth the additional cost? Say they get new cores like the MacBook Pro's. I think the savings of $1,000 bucks, roughly 25% off is a pretty good deal. Anyone chime in? Should I keep it or return/sell it and see what the new one has to offer.

Depends what you really paid. Usually 15" MBP is a good indicator for iMac, so that would mean core counts (with HT) going from 8 to at least 12. That is not insignificant when dealing with video. Where the difference price-wise will come is in what is standard and what is bto at the various price points.

Bottom line - bad time to buy, even given the discount. What kind of window do you have to return it should upgrades come soon?
 

iPadified

macrumors 68020
Apr 25, 2017
2,014
2,257
Apple.

Also “slightly lower price” would still be too much for an average iMac user.

I’m not planning to spend more than 2500 usd on my new iMac and that’s only half of an iMac pro.
Clarification: a top end iMac with overlapping performance as the low end iMP would be slightly cheaper. Not cheap though:).

As my post also indicated, an iMac with great price/performance span and starting low is preferable. Performance per dollar ratio for Mac is poorer than for PCs in general, so you will unfortunately not get top end CPU/GPU/SSD(!) for 2500 USD.
 

Lesser Evets

macrumors 68040
Jan 7, 2006
3,527
1,295
You guys think there will be an event?

I mean--there might be--however if they are just spec bumping iMacs and iPads, it isn't really an event-type affair.

They could hold an event for an improved mini, to stir up the press and public relations. If the mini is also spec bumped, they would just release it like they did in the past: without fanfare and fawning events.

Depending on how the mini develops this year (assuming they actually release new minis of any sort in 2018), I believe they will just revamp the store online and do a quiet release of these things.
 

Dave245

macrumors G3
Sep 15, 2013
9,863
8,086
You guys think there will be an event?

I mean--there might be--however if they are just spec bumping iMacs and iPads, it isn't really an event-type affair.

They could hold an event for an improved mini, to stir up the press and public relations. If the mini is also spec bumped, they would just release it like they did in the past: without fanfare and fawning events.

Depending on how the mini develops this year (assuming they actually release new minis of any sort in 2018), I believe they will just revamp the store online and do a quiet release of these things.

There will be an event, iPad Pro is getting a redesign, that is something Apple will want to mention on stage.
 
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HappyIntro

macrumors 6502
Apr 30, 2016
313
306
I'm sure we would not mind the quiet update, as long as it happens soon. :)

Yeah, for sure! Hey Apple - maybe do fewer "events" and provide more numerous, slightly-less glamorous updates as new chips and features become available. I have to believe it would translate into more sales and a less frustrated user base. (I'm speaking here of Mac; I get that the iOS devices may benefit from the glitzy events.)

Just think if, just like current iOS users get, we Mac users could count on at least a yearly significant update cycle for most Mac products. That would be nice.
 

28Gauge

macrumors 6502a
Sep 4, 2011
777
584
DFW
Yeah, for sure! Hey Apple - maybe do fewer "events" and provide more numerous, slightly-less glamorous updates as new chips and features become available. I have to believe it would translate into more sales and a less frustrated user base. (I'm speaking here of Mac; I get that the iOS devices may benefit from the glitzy events.)

Just think if, just like current iOS users get, we Mac users could count on at least a yearly significant update cycle for most Mac products. That would be nice.

I couldn't agree more!!!
 

Dave245

macrumors G3
Sep 15, 2013
9,863
8,086
Yeah, for sure! Hey Apple - maybe do fewer "events" and provide more numerous, slightly-less glamorous updates as new chips and features become available. I have to believe it would translate into more sales and a less frustrated user base. (I'm speaking here of Mac; I get that the iOS devices may benefit from the glitzy events.)

Just think if, just like current iOS users get, we Mac users could count on at least a yearly significant update cycle for most Mac products. That would be nice.

Well i'm personally hoping we see some good stuff for the Mac as i'm frustrated (as are other people) that it's taking so long, the October event really needs to be good for Mac. iPad Pro as well, these devices really need to knock it out of the park.
 

DQ11

macrumors regular
Apr 12, 2018
199
65
There will be an event, iPad Pro is getting a redesign, that is something Apple will want to mention on stage.

I actually don't care if there is an event to be honest, I'd be ok with a silent upgrade release via the website like with the Macbook Pro.

I just want that improved CPU....new cpu's means I don't have to buy the top end i7-7700k, I could get an i5 with 6 core and be just fine.
 
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