What 2019 iMac Did You Order?

[brokeneck]

Last week when they showed up in Apple stores I picked up the top stock 27", which has the 3.7GHz i5, 580X card, 8GB RAM and 2TB Fusion. I was a little worried about the fusion as I am used to SSDs on all my more recent iMacs and MacBooks but after reading it had 128 on it I thought that was big enough to give me great performance most of the time.

I spent 24 hours using it and I decided the fusion drive was just a weak link on an otherwise very capable computer. It was occasionally sluggish but worst of all I could hear it. I dont want to hear it. At all. So I returned it and ordered the following:

iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Early 2019)
3.6 GHz 8-core Intel Core i9
8 GB RAM
Radeon Pro Vega 48
512GB SSD

As you can see I decided to upgrade everything but the RAM, which I will bring to 40GB for $200 myself. The Vega was a pure luxury item that I don't need, but I just said screw it, I want this puppy to last me 5+ years so I'm gonna basically max it out. I do mess with H.265 10bit color video, so more power is good. From what I read it will help the computer stay cooler but I admit this particular upgrade is unnecessary as the 580X looks to be very capable as well. I use the computer for all the regular stuff (browsing, MS Office, etc) but also Final Cut Pro and Lightroom. I have a PC for gaming so I dont care about that. Computer arrives for me to pick up at a nearby no sales tax state Tuesday or sooner. Can't wait.

 

[GoHuskies15]

My first iMac. Have been a MacBook Pro user for 10+ years.

I went with:
27-inch iMac with Retina 5K display
3.6GHz 8-core 9th-generation Intel Core i9 processor, Turbo Boost up to 5.0GHz
8GB 2666MHz DDR4 memory
Radeon Pro Vega 48 with 8GB of HBM2 memory
1TB SSD storage

Will upgrade the RAM myself to 64gb.

 

[Colonel Blimp]

I spent 24 hours using it and I decided the fusion drive was just a weak link on an otherwise very capable computer. It was occasionally sluggish but worst of all I could hear it. I dont want to hear it.

Yes, that’s a good point, and an excellent reason for choosing an SSD.

I’ve made several posts defending the Fusion Drive’s performance and its capacity-to-price ratio, but while my 3 TB Fusion Drive is very quiet compared to the spinning hard drives in my external drive dock, it is not silent.

 

[evilmurries]

This is the iMac I ended up ordering. It will be my first Apple desktop:

-27" 5K
-3.7Ghz i5
-8 Gb Ram
-Radeon 580x
-512 Gb SSD
-Extended Keyboard
-AppleCare+

I will swap out the ram myself when it comes in. It will be primarily to learn development with Swift and comp sci course projects. I only do light video production for school assignments. The extra muscle from the i9 would have been great, but this will already be a big step up from the mini I was originally considering.

 

[fwh32720]

-27”
-3.7 I5
-580x
-8 gb RAM
-512 SSD

I put a lot of time mulling over decision and decided on this setup for several reasons:

1. I am Upgrading from lowest tier Mid 2011 21.5 iMac so this will seem blazing fast.

2. I discussed my use with Apple and another online seller and they recommended the 3.0 i5, so I am still getting more power than they suggest. I just do regular tasks such as email, web surfing, MS Office. I do some hobby level Lightroom/Photoshop and some DVD encoding for a NAS and iPad.

3. I play games on PS4 and learned long ago how costly staying up to date with computer hardware can get—so I avoid it.

4. If Apple has huge improvements in next few years, I won’t feel as guilty upgrading since I saved the cost of upgraded i9 and Vega.

 

[amoergosum]

Review:

"Pro or no? How the high-end 2019 iMac measures up"

"High-end iMac or iMac Pro?"

https://www.macworld.com/article/3386401/how-high-end-2019-imac-measures-up-imac-pro.html

 

[adamjackson]

Apple thinks my 27" is a 21.5"

and my AppleCare Auto Registration hasn't kicked in.

Guess I need to make a call.

 

[Shivetya]

I’m set on a new 27 to replace my current BTO 2012 iMac. But giving no internal refresh (?) I’m waiting for reviews to make sure the i9 and Vega GPU are worth it for gaming.

Same boat but with a BTO 2013, I am a little loathe to leave behind Nvidia graphics. Still the jump from i5 to i9 and 780m to V48/R580X would be meaningful. Yet I look at the Pro and get annoyed that it is over a year old and still the iMac has a less powerful GPU.

So I wait for substantial testing to show where the true power lies. The only issue is convincing myself that even though my current iMac is approaching six years of age it still means I am spending the equivalent of six hundred dollars a year for a computer; meaning I could buy one at the price each year to equal what I spent six years ago. That gives me more pause on pulling the trigger

 

[adamjackson]

Sharing a couple of photos of my very practical setup. Nothing crazy but this is my workstation on nights & weekends. The MacBook Pro is my work computer and usually stays at work or goes on trips:

 

[JacobHarvey]

Would any of you new iMac owners be so kind as to have a look and reveal the exact model of Bluetooth module/chipset used in the 2019 iMac? There are reports that it does support the newest Bluetooth 5.0 standard even though Apple lists it as only supporting Bluetooth 4.2 on its specifications page.

 

[adamjackson]

Would any of you new iMac owners be so kind as to have a look and reveal the exact model of Bluetooth module/chipset used in the 2019 iMac? There are reports that it does support the newest Bluetooth 5.0 standard even though Apple lists it as only supporting Bluetooth 4.2 on its specifications page.

Apple Bluetooth Software Version: 6.0.11f4
Hardware, Features, and Settings:
Name: iMac
Address: xxxxxxxxxxx
Bluetooth Low Energy Supported: Yes
Handoff Supported: Yes
Instant Hot Spot Supported: Yes
Manufacturer: Broadcom
Transport: UART
Chipset: 4364B0
Firmware Version: v66 c4392
Bluetooth Power: On
Discoverable: Off
Connectable: Yes
Auto Seek Pointing: On
Remote wake: On
Vendor ID: 0x05AC
Product ID: 0x007B
HCI Version: 5.0 (0x9)
HCI Revision: 0x1128
LMP Version: (0x9)
LMP Subversion: 0x1042
Device Type (Major): Computer
Device Type (Complete): Mac Desktop
Composite Class Of Device: 0x380104
Device Class (Major): 0x01
Device Class (Minor): 0x01
Service Class: 0x1C0
Auto Seek Keyboard: On

 

[JacobHarvey]

Apple Bluetooth Software Version: 6.0.11f4
Hardware, Features, and Settings:
Name: iMac
Address: xxxxxxxxxxx
Bluetooth Low Energy Supported: Yes
Handoff Supported: Yes
Instant Hot Spot Supported: Yes
Manufacturer: Broadcom
Transport: UART
Chipset: 4364B0
Firmware Version: v66 c4392
...
LMP Version: (0x9)

Thank you. A quick google search doesn't yield any info on any Broadcom product with that chipset number but the LMP version does seem to indicate that it supports bluetooth 5.0. Who knows why apple does not list Bluetooth 5.0 support on the specs page?

 

[amoergosum]

I finally ordered this configuration (I'll add more RAM later on)...very excited.

I'll be using Photoshop, Lightroom and Final Cut Pro X mainly.

27" iMac mit Retina 5K Display
3,6 GHz 8‑Core Intel Core i9 Prozessor der 9. Generation (Turbo Boost bis zu 5,0 GHz)
8 GB 2666 MHz DDR4 Arbeitsspeicher
Radeon Pro Vega 48 mit 8 GB HBM2 Grafikspeicher
1 TB SSD Speicher
Magic Mouse 2
Magic Keyboard mit Ziffernblock – Deutsch
Zubehörkit

 

[Bohemien]

I finally ordered this configuration (I'll add more RAM later on)...very excited. I'll be using Photoshop, Lightroom and Final Cut Pro X mainly.

That's most probably the config I'll get too, including the German Zubehörkit

 

[tyc0746]

Ordered this last week, and it’s arrived whilst I’ve been away.

It will be my ‘portable’ iMac to replace an ageing 21.5” 2010 iMac. Home machine is a 27” 5K iMac, but 27” is too big to cart around everywhere.

 

[SkiHound2]

Thank you. A quick google search doesn't yield any info on any Broadcom product with that chipset number but the LMP version does seem to indicate that it supports bluetooth 5.0. Who knows why apple does not list Bluetooth 5.0 support on the specs page?

I've seen speculation that it supports BT 5.0 but hadn't been certified prior to release.

 

[1chrischan]

How long into the AC did that happen. Also, those would be manufacturing issues, so wouldn't the customer protection law still protect you for replacements?

33 months into the 3-yr warranty. No consumer guarantee lasts that long that I know of.
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Ahh. I was not aware of newimac code. Thanks

When I was on their site, they said the code ended last weekend.

 

[amoergosum]

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[bondavi]

Owner of a 2017 27" 5K i5 3.8 w/ 32GB/2TB Fusion and today.....

bit on a 27" i9 8GB/512SSD/580X

No Vega for me, couldn't justify the cost, plus $2,750 out the door was very attractive vs $3,150. Will upgrade RAM to 40GB separately.

Had my 2017 had a SSD I might not have upgraded, so that was the major turn-on - all SSD.

 

[1chrischan]

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Thanks, after seeing this I am still very happy I am getting the top of the line 2019 (except I opted for 1TB, since I don't need anything larger and of course will upgrade the 8GB RAM myself).

 

[dekaloc]

Thanks, after seeing this I am still very happy I am getting the top of the line 2019 (except I opted for 1TB, since I don't need anything larger and of course will upgrade the 8GB RAM myself).

Did you saw this video...?

 

[1chrischan]

Did you saw this video...?

thanks, I hadn't but further proves to me that I made a good decision. I had to buy a new computer since my 21" wasn't cutting it anymore. And I don't need the extras that the imac pro offers. So, I'm still good!

 

[dekaloc]

I think, you are good...! And I think the i9 also works quietly with the 580x.

 

[Kfamily]

Finally made a decision. Ordered yesterday:

27”
i9
Vega
8GB with 32GB more crucial memory coming from amazon
2TB SSD
Apple care

Delivery estimate 4/11-15

So, obviously nice to be able to make these choices. I was going to do the 512GB SSD but decided to buy truly equivalent external (say Samsung x5) was, while cheaper than Apple’s internal, still expensive, so I preferred to keep as much internal storage as I can.

My biggest motivator is to future proof the machine and even the large SSD had that in mind. I spend hours on these forums (thank you to everyone on their amazing knowledge and input here) and researching and now look forward to hopefully avoiding all that for another 8 years and more if I’m lucky. My 2011 lasted me almost 8 years, and one of my biggest priorities is for my new one to do the same, while making my photoshop and home video projects as easy as possible to work on, and therefore actually get finished.

Another factor that helped was that Amex currently is running a promotion on their Plan It so I can spread it out over 2 years with no fees or interest. So I started looking at the various upgrades from a monthly cash outflow over the next 24 months, as well as a hopefully practical life of 5-8 years.

Now if I can make my 10-year old Volvo keep going another handful of years...

 

[bwsteg]

I just set up my new iMac (i9, Vega, ssd)

Some reviews same it’s silent however I can hear something. Very faint but still can hear it. Is this normal?