Would you change a 2019 5K iMac for 2020 iMac 24?

[Sensamic]

I’m thinking of selling my base 2019 5K iMac and buy a base 2020 24 iMac, mainly for M1 (it’s the future of Mac), SSD vs Fusion Drive and touchID in keyboard (would buy later maybe).

I would definitively miss the bigger screen (I’m a journalist), but I think everything else is a win, except not having Ethernet.

Thoughts?

 

[Moonjumper]

I suggest waiting for the bigger Apple Silicon iMac unless there is something on your current machine that is holding you back significantly. I’ve had to use a work 24” at times since getting my 27” iMac, and it felt a big loss.

 

[Andrea Filippini]

I’m thinking of selling my base 2019 5K iMac and buy a base 2020 24 iMac, mainly for M1 (it’s the future of Mac), SSD vs Fusion Drive and touchID in keyboard (would buy later maybe).

I would definitively miss the bigger screen (I’m a journalist), but I think everything else is a win, except not having Ethernet.

Thoughts?

Absolutely not.
New M1 iMac are literally garbage and you can't custom or repair them later.
They aren't future-proof. Strong memory, storage and architecture limitation.
And if the storage or any part burn then you can throw it to the trash can.
Maybe in the future if Apple will change its policy.
Your 2019 5K iMac is an amazing machine and you can upgrade or repair it with a few bucks if you need (SSD, memory, screen).
Basically an immortal machine.
Furthermore the base 2020 24 iMac has a 4.5K display, not a 5K.

 

[400]

My ageing iMac needed replacing (various issues) and I got this 24" to tide me over and see which way the wind blows with the larger variety if they ever appear. Not the base model though.

Its OK, I suppose, it works, does photo editing, ports are a joke, but had I a new ish 27" I would be waiting if I didn't need to replace it.

Unless you really want to that is.

 

[SRQrws]

I ordered an M1 iMac the day it was released and sold my 27" iMac. The 24" is a terrific, family-oriented consumer all-in-one with some strong new features such as Touch ID. I used it for about 90 days but just purchased another 27" machine. There were two factors in my decision. First, I found the smaller screen wasn't as good for my workflow. A typical scenario for me is to have a spreadsheet and a browser opened side-by-side. The 27" just works better for me. The second factor was I usually Airplay from Apple Music to my Homepods and the new iMac had issues with Airplay when waking from sleep. Not a huge problem, but annoying. I am going to wait for the new, larger iMac and re-evaluate at that time. There are plenty of comments on the Forums from people who don't miss the larger screen, but I did. If you think you will, my advice would be to wait.

 

[IBMlover]

Never ever! Keep your 5K iMac and wait for a bigger iMac with probably M1X/M2 chip.

Larger Redesigned High-End iMac Rumored to Launch Next Year

Apple's larger redesigned iMac will arrive sometime in 2022 rather than later this year, according to the leaker known as "Dylandkt." ...

www.macrumors.com

 

[azentropy]

I thought about doing the same, but found the 24" (which I purchased for my parents but had myself for a while to test out and set up) to just seem too small after having the 27". I'm kinda still tinkering with the idea of selling my iMac now though and just using my MBA (have external monitors) for a while to try and maximize the resale value, but leaning towards not doing that.

 

[dimme]

I was forced to replace my 27" iMac which became unreliable and I was not able to get it fixed. (But that's another story). I have the new iMac w/16GB ram. I do not mind the smaller screen 80% of the time. I may purchase an addition 24" screen for the 20% of the time I need the extra real estate, but I am still working on workflow and nay not need it. Performance wise I am very happy. Going from 40MB of ram to 16 has not been a issue for me. When I bought this machine I knew it was just a bridge mac until the M1 platform matures. I expect the 1st 27" iMac M1 replacement will also have issues so I am hoping my new iMac will hold me over until the second gen iMac in about a year or so. But for now I am enjoying my 24" machine and happy how everything worked out.

 

[Sensamic]

Thanks everyone for the advices.

I was thinking about changing because I really don’t need much horsepower for my workflow, since I’m a journalist and basically need good web performance and I use a lot of Microsoft Word.

The bigger screen is REALLY helpful for my workflow, since I have A LOT of tabs open at the same time. The iMac feels really snappy, but I thought the M1 should feel even snappier with the M1.

 

[tornado99]

You could also consider the 4.5K Hauwei Mateview + a Mac Mini. That is a bigger screen even than the iMac, as it's 3:2 ratio.

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[Mr. Awesome]

New M1 iMac are literally garbage and you can't custom or repair them later.

So are you saying that all iPhones are also
“literal garbage”? None of my iPhones have failed, broken, or needed repairs. I have entirely working models back to the original. Apple’s period of support for iOS devices keeps increasing, as well, which will soon become the case for Apple Silicon Macs.

I’m effect, with an M1 Mac, you get updates for a longer period of time, a much more efficient processor, I/O improvements, more software capabilities, and a computer that will get more than 5 years more support.

 

[dimme]

New M1 iMac are literally garbage and you can't custom or repair them later.

This is the way electronics are evolving. Look at today's TVs, tablets, phones. Just about everything. I remember when I was a kid watch my dad repairing out TV going to the hardware store to check the tubes and replacing the broken one. Don't get me wrong I wish electronic were not made the way they are today but it's just progress. Unfortunately if you want a computer you can customize and repair yourself then MacOS is not for you. You can still build your on PC but I don't like windows and Linux does not have the apps I need.

 

[Fishrrman]

NO.
Absolutely not.

I'd keep using what I have, and wait for at least "the next generation" of large-screen iMacs.

Or perhaps even longer than that, perhaps another 1-2 years. What in particular is WRONG with the 2019 iMac you have now?

If you buy the 24" iMac, I predict that by next January you're going to be a VERY unhappy man (due to what's "comin' down the line" for release by then)...

 

[wilberforce]

I suggest look into using an external SSD on your 2019 iMac. Lots of threads on this topic in this forum, and it is fairly easy and inexpensive. Fusion drives are slow and prone to failure. This is the one thing that strikes me as undesirable on your 2019 iMac.
btw, the 24" iMac is actually 23.5". 25% less screen area. A big reduction if screen area is important to you.

 

[PlayUltimate]

I have a 2017, 27" iMac. I have been asking myself similar questions. But I have not had any issues with this machine. (3.4GHz i5, upgraded RAM: 24GB, 500GB SSD, Retina 5K) And thus see no reason to change (not really sure if the M1 24" iMac is an upgrade)

 

[redheeler]

I'd be worried about missing the extra screen space. My current Late 2015 model is all SSD and not Fusion drive which makes a difference, although I wish the SSD was 1 TB instead of 512 GB. I've not used a Mac with M1 so I can't make any judgements on the performance of that, but I'd guess the performance is at least equal to my 5-year-old iMac if not better (benchmarks indicate better). From a developer's perspective there are also some advantages to staying on an Intel platform, for a journalist the screen space and cost are the only valid arguments to staying put.

 

[PsykX]

You did not mention explicitly if you had a 27-inch display at the moment, but it seems so.
My suggestion : You'll only feel a minimal difference, it's not worth it.
WAIT until a bigger screen gets out, and buy a better chip than M1 if you have the opportunity.

Disclaimer : I just upgraded from a 2013 iMac to a "temporary" refurbished M1 iMac.
I do feel that it lacks GPU performance, and of course memory (downgraded from 32GB to a "temporary" 8GB, always have a bunch of apps open in my workflow). I also miss the 27-inch screen, but 24-inch is actually not bad.

 

[jz0309]

it seems from your 2nd post OP that you are happy with what you have right now, so why something new?
Keep your 2019 iMac and get your money's worth out of it ... when you get to a point that you have performance issues, then ask yourself what to do ... just my 2 cents

 

[tornado99]

Everybody ignored my comment

 

[wilberforce]

Everybody ignored my comment

Interesting thought.
The MateView screen is the same width as a 27" iMac, but is 1.2" taller.
It is 164 ppi, instead of 218 ppi for the 27" and 24" iMac (i.e., 25% less pixel density. The MateView has 9.8 million pixels, whereas the 27" iMac has 14.7 million pixels, 50% more).
Would have to see one, to tell if that makes any difference, or limits the scaling.

Do you have one? How is it?

 

[profcutter]

I’d wait. I suspect your mac, if it’s really the base model, may be feeling quite pokey because they came with a fusion drive instead of an SSD. In comparison, a new iMac will seem like a totally different experience. That said, if you’re writing and doing photography, a large screen makes a huge difference, so why not wait until there’s a machine that’s super fast, SSD-based, and with a large, quality display?

 

[za9ra22]

There are plenty of reasons to consider not replacing the existing iMac with a 24-inch, but

Absolutely not.
New M1 iMac are literally garbage and you can't custom or repair them later.
They aren't future-proof. Strong memory, storage and architecture limitation.
And if the storage or any part burn then you can throw it to the trash can.
Maybe in the future if Apple will change its policy.
Your 2019 5K iMac is an amazing machine and you can upgrade or repair it with a few bucks if you need (SSD, memory, screen).
Basically an immortal machine.
Furthermore the base 2020 24 iMac has a 4.5K display, not a 5K.

none of this nonsense.

While it is entertaining reading, objectively it isn't at all helpful, or even that accurate.

If I were in this situation (my 27-inch iMac was a 2015 model, not 2019, so an easier upgrade proposition), I'd be looking almost entirely at what my system was used for, and matching that against the capabilities (meaning, real-world, not imagined) of the 24-inch 2021 (not 2020) models.

If, and only if, I could be certain that the M1 model could do what I need, I would then consider the value of the 2019 27-inch, and whether it could be sold to offset the cost somewhat, or handed on to someone deserving for them to put to productive use.

In my case with the 2015 iMac, I was expecting speed and overall performance benefits of the M1 and SSD, and was ready to spend a little extra money on replacing old (32-bit) apps I was still using. What I got totally surprised me, because the performance of the new iMac against the old one was almost like night and day.

And while I would like a bit more screen size because I was used to the 5k 27-inch, it was actually a bit too big. 4.5 turns out to be plenty, and a bit more manageable, though I found it necessary to be a bit more harsh on deciding what I would leave open and what not.

Ultimately, the idea that Apple will miraculously come to their senses and revert to building systems the like of which we haven't actually seen from them for a couple of decades is just plain silly. They won't. A few naysayers who don't like what they see are rather less well positioned than Apple are themselves to understand the markets they are aiming for and the product roadmaps that will get them there.

Whether we like it or not, this new system strategy of theirs is here to stay, perhaps for a few years, perhaps a lot longer, so while it is perfectly possible to cling to great systems from the past (and I still use my G4 mini, amongst others), the systems we are seeing now are the beginning of the 'next generation' of Apple products, whatever any individuals amongst us might prefer.

 

[mj_]

Considering that your 2019 iMac's value tanked the day Apple announced the first M1 iMac there's nothing for you to gain at this point. Yes, the M1 iMac may be faster but you're not going to notice that. The 2019 is still plenty fast and powerful enough even for demanding workloads. What you will notice, however, is the smaller screen and reduced screen real estate.

Personally, I wouldn't switch if I were you.

 

[scottrngr]

If you do any video editing, you would like the M1. However, get the mini and a 27" or larger display. Then when the next big thing comes out, you can keep the display and save some money.

 

[tornado99]

Interesting thought.
The MateView screen is the same width as a 27" iMac, but is 1.2" taller.
It is 164 ppi, instead of 218 ppi for the 27" and 24" iMac (i.e., 25% less pixel density. The MateView has 9.8 million pixels, whereas the 27" iMac has 14.7 million pixels, 50% more).
Would have to see one, to tell if that makes any difference, or limits the scaling.

Do you have one? How is it?

I don't have one yet but there are plenty of reviews on youtube etc. of people using one with Macbooks. The scaling looks fine. Also I think 164 ppi is sharp enough, it's still very dense. Apple didn't choose 218 ppi because anything below that is blurry, it was only because it's double 110dpi so they can do 2x scaling.