Thinking of switching - is iMac 5k as good as they say?

[TheCopywriter]

Hi, Windows/Linux here. I'm thinking of getting an imac 5k 27"...

Currently I am on a 24" regular HD monitor.

My question is, will I notice a significant decrease in eye strain? Also, has anyone here found that the imac 5k has increased your productivity thanks to clearer text?

Thanks

 

[rkaufmann87]

Hi, Windows/Linux here. I'm thinking of getting an imac 5k 27"...

Currently I am on a 24" regular HD monitor.

My question is, will I notice a significant decrease in eye strain? Also, has anyone here found that the imac 5k has increased your productivity thanks to clearer text?

Thanks

Why don't you got to a store where they carry them such as an Apple Store or a reseller and then view one. You will be able to tell pretty quickly if the display is for you or not. Otherwise, all you will get is opinions.

 

[TheCopywriter]

All I want are opinions.

 

[JonnyBlaze]

My opinion. Yes it's simply outstanding. As you refer to text specifically, I find reading articles/text on it to be a great experience. The HD monitors I use a work are positively painful in comparison.

 

[Dariel]

what's your viewing distance to the monitor?

I've used a 2560x14440 cinema display for a few years which is more than enough for displaying crisp and clear text.

affordable 4k monitors are not an issue either and if your workflow is windows/linux based, why not stick to it?

if you're looking for a higher res screen first and foremost, buy one. if you're interested in purchasing a one-in all solution, the imac is absolutely fantastic.

 

[imacken]

I've used a 2560x14440 cinema display for a few years which is more than enough for displaying crisp and clear text.

I recently replaced my 2560x1440 2011 iMac with a 5k 2015 model, and the difference is huge! When I had my 2011 iMac, I didn't think I needed a higher resolution, but I was wrong!

 

[maflynn]

My opinion is the iMac is the best computer I've ever purchased, I have zero buyers remorse. I love the display, the performance is great. Overall, imo its well worth the cost

I also recommend going out to an apple store and trying it - get a feel for it and see if it fits your needs.

 

[MacGizmo]

The screen is incredible. MUCH easier on the eyes while reading... as long as you have perfect vision. At its highest resolution, GUI text is tiny. If you're far-sighted at all, you're likely going to have problems reading the tiny text. You can of course decrease the resolution of the display, but that kind of defeats the purpose of paying extra for the retina screen.

 

[TheCopywriter]

The screen is incredible. MUCH easier on the eyes while reading... as long as you have perfect vision. At its highest resolution, GUI text is tiny. If you're far-sighted at all, you're likely going to have problems reading the tiny text. You can of course decrease the resolution of the display, but that kind of defeats the purpose of paying extra for the retina screen.

Isn't there a scaling effect? Something about four pixels for every one? So even at lower resolutions its clearer.

 

[turbineseaplane]

The screen is incredible. MUCH easier on the eyes while reading... as long as you have perfect vision. At its highest resolution, GUI text is tiny. If you're far-sighted at all, you're likely going to have problems reading the tiny text. You can of course decrease the resolution of the display, but that kind of defeats the purpose of paying extra for the retina screen.

That's one of the reasons I'm hoping the rumored LG 31" 5k is a reality. It would be the perfect physical size for perfect retina 2x

 

[Dariel]

I recently replaced my 2560x1440 2011 iMac with a 5k 2015 model, and the difference is huge! When I had my 2011 iMac, I didn't think I needed a higher resolution, but I was wrong!

got the same specs than you, the new imac is fantastic and the 5k resolution is also something I needed, not for reading though.

For reading you shouldn't need to go up to 5k to help with eye strain in my opinion but then again, I'm nearsighted.

the new imac is a fantastic machine regardless but if buying a good ultra-hd monitor would do the trick, it would be worth the 2500ish dollar savings

and yes there is a scaling "effect", the 5k imac display always has a resolution of 5k but several pixel can be grouped together.
I don't know the benefits exactly (better performance & lower power consumption?) but you don't notice the "scaling effect" in every day use.

 

[Ledgem]

Hi, Windows/Linux here. I'm thinking of getting an imac 5k 27"...

Currently I am on a 24" regular HD monitor.

My question is, will I notice a significant decrease in eye strain? Also, has anyone here found that the imac 5k has increased your productivity thanks to clearer text?

Thanks

I don't know about eye strain, but the crisper text is really a delight to behold.

For photography, I think the display is worth it. The largest monitor I used previously was 21", and I'd have to zoom in around my photos to find flaws. It was always frustrating to transfer them over to my iPad, because I'd find that I had missed things. With the "retina" display, flaws really stand out at you, and I find that zooming in doesn't net me much (although perhaps that's just a limitation of my camera).

For "office" work, it's a bit more mixed. Whenever I'm working from home I'm logged in to my hospital's medical records system. I don't know if it's a limitation on their end or if it's an issue with the remoting software (Citrix), but text appears as blocky as you'd expect for a non-retina display. It's no more difficult to read than on a non-retina display, it's just a lot more obvious. I still have a major productivity boost thanks to the 27" screen and the resolution boost (using scaled mode), which allows me to view more elements at once. I suspect that productivity boost would be the same effect if I were using any 27" screen, though.

The 27" iMac is my first iMac, and my first retina display on a computer. Prior to this, I was using dual-monitor setups with MacBook Pros (and prior to that, Windows machines). I'd be lying if I said I wasn't thinking about getting a 27" Thunderbolt display when Apple updates it to retina, but that's more to geek out; with the 27" display I haven't felt that I was missing anything by only using a single screen.

 

[The Doctor11]

I'd say I see increased productivity, not much of an increase but an increase. Everyday at school I am distracted by the horrible displays. They're all pixelated, the colors are off, everything is too white. It's just horrible. At home my 5k iMac is perfect, I can just work and nothing gets in the way.

 

[maflynn]

Isn't there a scaling effect? Something about four pixels for every one? So even at lower resolutions its clearer.

Yes, but you can easily adjust it. All retina screens from apple do this. FWIW, I find the display razor crisp at the default settings.

 

[MacGizmo]

Isn't there a scaling effect? Something about four pixels for every one? So even at lower resolutions its clearer.

Everything is clearer... but at the full Retina resolution, it's also very very small.

 

[Eric Best]

Hi, Windows/Linux here. I'm thinking of getting an imac 5k 27"...

Currently I am on a 24" regular HD monitor.

My question is, will I notice a significant decrease in eye strain? Also, has anyone here found that the imac 5k has increased your productivity thanks to clearer text?

Thanks

I have a pre-retina 27" iMac desktop and a retina 15'' Macbook Pro. I really only got the Macbook for portability. But I now frequently use the Macbook in preference because it causes me considerably less fatigue when writing and reading text. I attribute that to the resolution.

 

[Eric Best]

Also, some people find the contrast between the black text and white background of text documents a source of eye strain.
Try playing around with different background colours in text windows to see if that makes a difference.

 

[Mockenrue]

My biggest disappointment is 1080p and especially 720p video quality - very soft, with plenty of scaling artifacts. I watch a lot of video podcasts, and they look much worse on the Retina iMac compared to my old Windows PC with 1080p monitor or the 32" 1080p TV in the same room.

 

[joema2]

My biggest disappointment is 1080p and especially 720p video quality - very soft, with plenty of scaling artifacts. I watch a lot of video podcasts, and they look much worse on the Retina iMac compared to my old Windows PC with 1080p monitor or the 32" 1080p TV in the same room.

I have on my desk a 2013 iMac 27, a 2015 iMac 27 and a Windows PC. Attached are three crops from a screen cap on each machine taken from the same frame of a 1080p Youtube video. I don't see what you are talking about.

 

[desmond2046]

Hi, Windows/Linux here. I'm thinking of getting an imac 5k 27"...

Currently I am on a 24" regular HD monitor.

My question is, will I notice a significant decrease in eye strain? Also, has anyone here found that the imac 5k has increased your productivity thanks to clearer text?

Thanks

I program in VIM and found the 5K display very pleasant even in terminals.
Switching from linux to OS X can't be easier. Macports is all what I need.

 

[nkarafo]

iMac 5k retina has the best screen (monitor) that I have ever seen in my life in 30 almost years using pc. Seriously. Only some ultra HD TVs may look better due to more contrast, bigger dimensions but this a maybe, I am not very sure.

They gave to me yesterday a Dell laptop with windows 10 in order to install ms office, some other programs etc. The screen was just AWFUL. The specs of laptop was ok (i5 cpu, I think 8gb ram, etc). It was brand new laptop but with an AWFUL screen. In the dark, at the night with the white space of the monitor and with the horrible cleartype thing of windows, the viewing was too painful for my eyes !!! In comparison to imac 5k's, the view is fantastic. You can even get a higher brightness than this laptop.

If you can afford it, yes please take one. I don't work for Apple but seriously this screen is very very good and your eyes will thank you!

 

[maflynn]

Also, some people find the contrast between the black text and white background of text documents a source of eye strain.
Try playing around with different background colours in text windows to see if that makes a difference.

The white is very bright, but the 2015 iMac's white is very much improved, thanks to the new panel technology. I'd say its a plus.

 

[scottgoh]

following.

 

[MacGizmo]

Isn't there a scaling effect? Something about four pixels for every one? So even at lower resolutions its clearer.

Yes, it's clearer (or maybe sharper is a better term for it). But lowering the resolution almost negates the "bang-for-buck" factor of a 5K iMac—as far as the screen goes, anyway.

 

[umzyi]

I am also looking to get a 5k retina iMac but I am very much concerned by the yellow tint issue, which lingers around Apple products a lot. So, my question is how are the latest screens? Is there a uniformity issue? I dont mind having a little bit of tint as long as the screen if uniform.

This is the only things making me hesitant to place an order. Those of you who an 5k retina imac please let us know about your screens

Thanks