Please review your 2017 iMac

[MeValonicAcid]

Well the gaming is normal. I don’t use Chrome enough to judge.

A rough process will do that, but I had a Safari hang at 100% and it still didn’t push the fans to that. Chrome’s optimization is horrid.

Off topic:
Or the high CPU load might be related to cryptojacking ...

On topic:
The machines performance is top-end. Dit some subler/handbrake/... actions last night, it rocks!
Read/write performance in duplicating files, ... on the SSD is top! (ultra fast: 2000 MB/s - 2700 MB/s)

 

[bizzwriter]

Which iMac did you have the C2D or i5?

Sorry for the late response: 2.66 Ghz Core i5

I just wiped the hard drive, installed Sierra, and set it up as new. Off to craigslist!

 

[Lesser Evets]

Are you happy with your purchase? Any regrets? Wish you had upgraded the CPU, SSD or ___? What about fan noise?

About 2 weeks ago I purchased a top-end 21.5" iMac with stock i5 processor from the Christiana Mall Apple Store and took it home. It was a replacement for my wife's 2011 MacMini base-base-base i5. She thought her Mini was fine, but I thought it was slow (everything beach balled for 2 seconds when you clicked), and she didn't have a good screen, so it was an overall update for her--about time. The new iMac is purportedly 2-3x faster in benchmarks...

AND IT'S NICE.

The 4K retina screen is mind blowing, if you are coming from a $129 1080-cheapie monitor. She does art and video, primarily. For her needs, it is screaming fast! High Sierra and the fusion drive work well. The fan never runs enough to notice, frankly. It's a quiet machine. The speakers aren't the greatest, but they are fine. It cleaned up the desk area well and has excellent color and brightness. I don't think she regrets it one bit.

I have a top-end 2012 MacMini w/1TB SSD inside + 512GB original SSD, currently, and thought of upgrading. The problem is that the iMacs are SO nice now, but the improvement on speed and ability wouldn't be enough to warrant the expenditure.

My plan is to wait for the 6-core Coffee Lakes next year, probably the Cannon Lake or even Ice Lake beyond. Those will probably be dream computers for me. The 2012 i7 is still hearty, but I want a better screen and some oomph! for layering tons of instruments in Komplete/Logic Pro X, to create a huge and vibrant orchestra setup. The reduction to 10nm will probably cool everything down as well, and the Ice Lake processors will probably give me 3x speed and ability... but it is a longish wait.

The current iMacs are completely brilliant for medium-level CPU/GPU work. Depending on your needs, they might be slow--for massive 4K video works or huge audio work, CGI work, etc.

Hardware for Macs will reach a sweet spot in a few years when DDR5 comes in, everything is USB-C, and various hardware improvements are added to the reduced architecture. What Apple must do now is improve all software! Especially the MacOS and Siri and iTunes... not sure they need to improve on their "iLife" suite that much.

If you are a low-end-ish user, iMacs are "all that" at this time.

 

[drfk]

I got my 27" iMac with 3.4 GHz processor, 8 GB RAM (which I plan to add another 16 GB to), and 512 GB SSD a week ago and am absolutely loving it.

Not a surprise, considering I was coming from a 2007 lower end iMac that served me very well for about 9 1/2 years. I can't get over how quiet the new computer is, how cool it stays (even after a full day of use), how fast it boots up and runs everything, and how great the monitor is.

 

[PerfectTommy]

Are you happy with your purchase? Any regrets? Wish you had upgraded the CPU, SSD or ___? What about fan noise? I'm particularly interested in whether your iMac is quiet or not and what CPU choice you made when you make that observation. If you were ordering again, what changes to your order would you make?

Finally pulled the trigger on an i7 (8GB RAM, 1TB SSD) just before XMAS. It replaced a mid-2010 i7 w/12 GB RAM.

1. Immediately added two 16GB RAM sticks to it to bring it up to 40GB.

2. No noise that I find offensive thus far. I hear a subtle fan noise, but it's nothing I find distracting... and far quieter than my old iMac or previous Apple products I've used. I was waffling between the 3.8 or the 4.2, but decided the fan noise would be fine to me if it cropped up.

3. No screen issues. Less light bleed or color issues than my old iMac. Screen looks fantastic.

4. I got the numeric version of the keyboard. I love the keypad, but not really a fan of how much bigger the overall footprint is when using it. I just got so used to the smaller ones! I'm 50/50 right now if I'd order it again.

5. Only "regret" is thinking maybe I should have gotten the 512 SSD instead of the 1TB. I ended up rocking a T5 external anyways... so not sure how much of that internal I'll actually use. Time will tell.

Overall, I'm super happy with it.

 

[thefriendshipmachine]

3 / 10

I am comparing the 2017 model I own with respect to all iMacs I have ever owned or still own. I have owned the following iMacs: 2017, 2014, 2010, 2008, 2007, G4, G3.

* [-2] is still using LG display panels which have image retention issues

* [-5] is still destroying the longevity of the product by making the devices too slim and with too weak cooling

You will find a lot of G3 iMacs and G4 iMacs still around for sale because their build quality was excellent. In comparison, build quality of current iMacs is just about the worst its ever been maybe with the exception of the G5.

It makes me sad to say but I don't recommend iMacs to anybody anymore because while they're excellent machines for casual use or in the short term: long term they wear out fast and die.

 

[SaSaSushi]

I have owned the following iMacs: 2017, 2014, 2010, 2008, 2007, G4, G3.

I have owned a Late 2006, Late 2009, Late 2013 and currently own the Mid-2017 iMac.

* [-2] is still using LG display panels which have image retention issues

I have never had any problem with image retention ever on any of the machines I've owned. I have had LCD panels replaced for other problems over the years, particularly on the 2009.

The panel on this mid-2017 is absolutely beautiful. I have no complaints regarding uniformity, no gradients, no backlight bleeding, stuck/dead pixels and certainly no image retention.

* [-5] is still destroying the longevity of the product by making the devices too slim and with too weak cooling

I took delivery of the 2017 in June and it went through a brutally hot western Japanese summer in a room often not air conditioned. It's never overheated and the fans rarely kick in.

In comparison, build quality of current iMacs is just about the worst its ever been maybe with the exception of the G5.

I can't speak for the G5 since I joined the Mac community with the switch to Intel but the build quality has improved in my opinion since the mostly plastic Late 2006.

It makes me sad to say but I don't recommend iMacs to anybody anymore because while they're excellent machines for casual use or in the short term: long term they wear out fast and die.

The logic board on my first iMac failed one month after the one year warranty expired. Since then I've purchased AppleCare for every iMac and while I have had LCD panels, failed HDD and once a failed keyboard replaced, I haven't had a logic board fail again.

While I still highly recommend the purchase of AppleCare for all new iMacs, the number of AppleCare claims I've made has decreased with every new machine. Now I mostly buy it just for the peace of mind.

 

[EugW]

I have owned a Late 2006, Late 2009, Late 2013 and currently own the Mid-2017 iMac.

I have never had any problem with image retention ever on any of the machines I've owned. I have had LCD panels replaced for other problems over the years, particularly on the 2009.

I currently have RIGHT NOW IN MY HOUSE two G4 iMacs, a 2006 Core Duo iMac, a 2010 Core i7 iMac, and a 2017 Core i5 iMac. I have also owned a G5 iMac and a 2009 Core i7.

I also have never had any problem with image retention. For the G5 I had its monitor replaced though for stuck pixels. One of the G4s also has a stuck small partial line of pixels, but I actually bought it that way used because it was uber cheap.

I can't speak for the G5 since I joined the Mac community with the switch to Intel but the build quality has improved in my opinion since the mostly plastic Late 2006.

The G5 was the best in terms of user serviceability because it was actually designed to be user serviceable. In fact, it was beautiful inside.

However, it turns out the G5 iMac was also one of the most problematic if not THE most problematic iMac in Apple's history. However, it was not Apple's fault directly. It was the fault of Taiwanese tech company espionage causing failing capacitors.

You can see the "G5" on the left in the background, behind the bulging caps (arrows).

 

[pier]

Hey @propower I saw in another forum you got the i5 for audio.

How is it holding up?

 

[thomascbullock]

Coming from a Late 2011 MacBook Pro (i7, 16 gb RAM, aftermarket ssd). I'd put money aside for a new Mac a couple of years ago, but thanks to extra RAM and an SSD, my MBP showed no real signs of age, so I decided to wait a bit longer. The only thing I didn't particularly like was the lack of Apple Watch unlock as that model was before whatever bluetooth change in the 2012-present MBPs enabled that.

Given that my MBP had remained in clamshell for virtually all of the last 6 years, I went with a desktop this time (the mid tier processor + graphics, 512 GB SSD, 8 GB RAM upgraded to 40). Things I have noticed:
- As my laptop was previously hooked to a 23" 1900x1080 monitor, the upgrade to a huge Retina display is amazing. It makes me smile to look at it every time I sit down.
- Audio recording and processing is lightning fast (as is everything else, but that's probably the most processor intensive thing I do)
- Watch unlock is as neat as I was expecting (and removes any need for Touch ID)

...all in all a very happy customer, and I look forward to using this for another 5-6 years. As a result of various planned upgrades hitting all at once, late 2017 involved getting the iMac, an iPad Pro, and an iPhone 8, and this current generation of Apple products exceeds my expectations in every way. I know the Mac hardware story hasn't been especially good the last few years, and the laptops still seem like a problem to be solved. But 2017's products were incredibly good.

 

[lali]

3 / 10

I am comparing the 2017 model I own with respect to all iMacs I have ever owned or still own. I have owned the following iMacs: 2017, 2014, 2010, 2008, 2007, G4, G3.

* [-2] is still using LG display panels which have image retention issues

* [-5] is still destroying the longevity of the product by making the devices too slim and with too weak cooling

You will find a lot of G3 iMacs and G4 iMacs still around for sale because their build quality was excellent. In comparison, build quality of current iMacs is just about the worst its ever been maybe with the exception of the G5.

It makes me sad to say but I don't recommend iMacs to anybody anymore because while they're excellent machines for casual use or in the short term: long term they wear out fast and die.

It has not been my experience with my late 2012 iMac during the past 5 years, it has been rock solid even during very long encoding sessions

 

[pier]

I took delivery of the 2017 in June and it went through a brutally hot western Japanese summer in a room often not air conditioned. It's never overheated and the fans rarely kick in.

What model did you buy?

What is your main use of the machine?

 

[SaSaSushi]

What model did you buy?

27 inch i7 4.2GHz with the Radeon 580 and a 512GB SSD.

What is your main use of the machine?

I use the machine primarily for my work (online) but also for gaming, media player, photo editing, etc. It's the best Mac I've owned to date.

 

[MacLawyer]

I’m late to this thread, but I’ll share my situation. I special ordered the 21.5 inch 2017 with the Radeon Pro 560 GPU. I got the i7 processor upgrade and the 512 gig SSD option. All the upgrades were in hopes that the unit would support the X-Plane 11 flight sim. (It does play the game smoothly at high settings.)

The iMac arrived about 90 days ago. All went well until last week, when I got the spinning beach ball, spontaneous restarts, and finally a dead computer. The Genius Bar managed to get the thing to show signs of life, but the unit was obviously not working right, so they kept it for the back room people to diagnose. The phone call came two days ago: bad logic board. At least a week before I can come and pick it up.

I don’t know what the moral of the story is here. It’s the first time I’ve had hardware issues with a Mac since my business acquired a PowerMac 6100/66 with DOS card so far back I can’t rember the year. I’d be interested to hear if any reader here has had a logic board issue.

 

[SaSaSushi]

I’d be interested to hear if any reader here has had a logic board issue.

It happens. I had a logic board fail on the very first Mac I owned, a 2006 iMac. This is why I always recommend AppleCare. (AppleCare+ now)

You're lucky yours failed as soon as it did. If it happens out of warranty, it is a very expensive repair. I haven't had a logic board fail since that first Mac but other expensive parts have been replaced like LCD panels.

They are well-constructed, high quality machines but they are not infallible.

 

[Brian Y]

Have to say, after a few months of ownership, I've had 0 issues (touch wood).

i7/64GB/512GB/580 model with a Vega Frontier connected via TB3. Fans don't get too loud even under stress, and it handles the eGPU perfectly. Only problem I've had is a lack of USB-C ports.

Two things I'd like to see:

- Couple more USB-C/TB3 ports. Whilst daisy chaining is possible in theory, in practice it's rarely practical unless you want a rat's nest behind your desk.
- A downstream power delivery port, for charging a laptop. This would be a killer feature IMO.

 

[pieshopUK]

Just before Christmas I purchased a Retina 5K, 27-inch, 3.8 GHz, Radeon Pro 580 with 8GB ram. Immediately upgraded to 24GB ram. I was coming from an 2012 quad mac mini - I do prefer headless but couldnt wait anymore for a new decent mini! The machine is lovely. But I have bluetooth issues - with my keyboard and mouse disconnecting intermittently, but regularly. When I wake from sleep in the morning the keyboard and mouse invariably have lost bluetooth connection. Very frustrating as I am incredibly busty atm. But I have got on to applecare and diagnostics have been submitted now - we will see where this goes. For now Im using a wired keyboard, and restarting when I loose the wireless mouse.

Anyone else experienced anything similar?

 

[haruhiko]

Bought the 2017 5K iMac several months after release. It is much faster than my 2016 Quad-core 15-inch MBP and easily complete whatever tasks I throw at it.

 

[PerfectTommy]

Just before Christmas I purchased a Retina 5K, 27-inch, 3.8 GHz, Radeon Pro 580 with 8GB ram. Immediately upgraded to 24GB ram. I was coming from an 2012 quad mac mini - I do prefer headless but couldnt wait anymore for a new decent mini! The machine is lovely. But I have bluetooth issues - with my keyboard and mouse disconnecting intermittently, but regularly. When I wake from sleep in the morning the keyboard and mouse invariably have lost bluetooth connection. Very frustrating as I am incredibly busty atm. But I have got on to applecare and diagnostics have been submitted now - we will see where this goes. For now Im using a wired keyboard, and restarting when I loose the wireless mouse.

Anyone else experienced anything similar?

In the past, I saw this would happen when my battery level on the devices dipped below 15-20%. Probably a silly question, but have you charged them up since purchase?

 

[bl11]

Bought i5, 3.4 with 512 ssd, 8gb ram (16gb on order). I'm coming from a 14 MBP 15 (which apple store sell sells for about the same price i paid for mine).

It was just delivered and i love it.
-Screen is absolutely gorgeous. I love how easy it's to adjust the brightness
-I'm surprised how powerful it feels. Running 2 youtube 4k streams + twitch in 1080p is very smooth (CPU usage about 65-70%). It wasnt until i added a 3rd 4k video it started to lag. (On my MBP, wasn't able to run one 4k smoothly)
-The speakers are very loud
The only negative i can think of is:
-Headphone jack (and SD card to a way lesser extent) on the back is very annoying. I'm switching between built in speakers and headphones frequently and it's an annoying process.

For the price i paid, approx 2200 euros, i feel i got a lot of my moneys worth. I will also be able to recoup money for keyboard/mouse and selling the MBP.
Overall, i'll look into sound interface, so i'd give this computer a solid 9.5 / 10.

 

[pieshopUK]

In the past, I saw this would happen when my battery level on the devices dipped below 15-20%. Probably a silly question, but have you charged them up since purchase?

Hi - thanks for response. And yes I have recharged them. I've addressed all potential issues I can think of :
• made sure nothing close is interfering with bluetooth (its in same place my previous mac mini 2012 with rock solid bluetooth keyboard/mouse was - I did remove a usb 3 hub!)
• reset bluetooth via debug menu
• recharge devices to full capacity
• disabled wireless (using ethernet),
• safe boot
• reset PRAM etc
• Turned off handoff ()
• booted with D - gets clean bill of health

I haven't done a system reinstall - but I only got the iMac a few weeks ago so it has a clean system - software was installed from scratch - nothing was copied over from previous computer.

I've been through the Applecare call now - logs are with an engineer. I was hoping it was something High Sierra related. My mac mini was not upgraded beyond Sierra, so I have no experience with latest OS yet.

I'm real busy right now and don't want the hassle of taking it back to the closest apple store - that will take half a day!

Was just wondering if any new iMac owners in this thread have experienced similar? Ive trawled the forums and found threads discussing similar, but have no idea if this is a widespread issue, os related, or just an unlucky hardware issue I'm having.

Cheers

 

[MeValonicAcid]

After a few moths of use: added two 16GB RAM sticks to it to bring it up to 40GB. I think for this machine (i7 top model) 8 GB is just to low.
Still very happy with the machine.
+ Ultra fast machine
+ Speedy Thunderbolt 3/USB-C
+ Super gorgeous & crispy screen (and currently using a 2012 iMac as a temp 2nd screen).
+ Win10 bootcamp: speedy & gaming with RX580 is very nice

Some neg. points experienced:
- Headphone jack on the back (solution: switched to wireless headphones)
- Only 4 USB 3.0 slots and located on the back (solution: no phone dock anymore connected, no usb speakers/headset, cloud based document storage instead of USB stick, but still unplugging game controllers, ...
- magic mouse
- Samsung T5 SSD (connected via USB-C or standard USB) is recognized by Win10 disk manager, but no driveletter assigned to it. Anyone suggestions on how to resolve this issue?

 

[tarsins]

In the past, I saw this would happen when my battery level on the devices dipped below 15-20%. Probably a silly question, but have you charged them up since purchase?

Agree with this. I have a 2017 5K iMac with Magic Trackpad 2 and the new extended Magic Keyboard and if they get low in power they'll occasionally disconnect. Keep 'em topped-up and you should be fine.

 

[Brian Y]

Tbh, given how close it is, I use my magic keyboard as a wired keyboard. Doesn't really bother me, and makes it easier when switching OSes. When it was wireless it used to drop out at around 25%.

Don't know about the mouse though, I've never used it.

 

[MeValonicAcid]

Tbh, given how close it is, I use my magic keyboard as a wired keyboard. Doesn't really bother me, and makes it easier when switching OSes. When it was wireless it used to drop out at around 25%.
Don't know about the mouse though, I've never used it.

Did the same with the magic keyboard. Unfortunately, another USB slot occupied...