27-inch iMac gets a major update • Hacker News Board

Re: 27-inch iMac gets a major update

#251

Post by ogre_codes » Tue, Aug 04, 2020, 5:24 PM UTC

skohan wrote: post #233

nicoburns wrote: post #152

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've heard rumours of a low end 12" MacBook, along with a 13" MacBook pro targeting developers as launch devices. No idea if it's true, but it would certainly make a lot of sense.

I don’t know if they would actually do it, but that would be an awesome way to launch: one category-defining device in terms of portibility and performance, and one super high end device to create a halo effect around the new processors

Yes, this would be a good strategy. The "low end" one would likely ship with the same CPU as the next-model iPad. The higher end one would be their new shiny high performance designed-for-MacBook CPU.

Re: 27-inch iMac gets a major update

#252

Post by saagarjha » Tue, Aug 04, 2020, 5:24 PM UTC

duxup wrote: post #242

saagarjha wrote: post #220

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Schools like buying Macs, and they don't particularly care about performance. The low-end iMac has always been a top seller to lower education because a kid isn't going to complain that their computer takes four minutes to boot.

That doesn't explain "Schools need Macs at that price point or they can’t buy them ."

I'm not sure what kind of explanation you're looking for beyond "more expensive Macs will not be bought".

Re: 27-inch iMac gets a major update

#253

Post by rbanffy » Tue, Aug 04, 2020, 5:24 PM UTC

mikestew wrote: post #172

pak9rabid wrote: post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is Target Display Mode no longer supported on these?

It is no longer supported. See my reply to sibling comment.

I believe no Retina iMac ever supported it.

Having mentioned that, it'd be awesome if we could plug it into a MacBook Pro via USB-C and use it as a power supply, an eGPU, and an external monitor. And maybe also mount the disks.

That would be great.

Re: 27-inch iMac gets a major update

#254

Post by dawnerd » Tue, Aug 04, 2020, 5:24 PM UTC

dijit wrote: post #19

asadkn wrote: post #15

It just feels wrong to buy anything new from Apple with "Intel Inside" - when they're clearly going to dump it soon, in favor of ARM (excuse me for not using the cringey term Apple Silicon).

Why does it matter? There will be a period where the Intel Macs are still supported and probably more stable, and it could be ~2y before your upgrade is available if it's ARM based. If you have a retina macbook pro from 2014~ it definitely makes sense to upgrade to a macbook pro 16" today. The thing will see you through another 5-6y easy.

I’m guessing intel will be supported much longer than we think. They just (relatively speaking) launched the new Mac pros and I don’t see them switching that over to ARM quite as quickly.

Re: 27-inch iMac gets a major update

#255

Post by kossTKR » Tue, Aug 04, 2020, 5:24 PM UTC

dijit wrote: post #19

asadkn wrote: post #15

It just feels wrong to buy anything new from Apple with "Intel Inside" - when they're clearly going to dump it soon, in favor of ARM (excuse me for not using the cringey term Apple Silicon).

Why does it matter? There will be a period where the Intel Macs are still supported and probably more stable, and it could be ~2y before your upgrade is available if it's ARM based. If you have a retina macbook pro from 2014~ it definitely makes sense to upgrade to a macbook pro 16" today. The thing will see you through another 5-6y easy.

I still run my 2014 MBP model because it still seems better to me than the newer models.

No touchbar instead classic function keys, HDMI output, 2 displayports + 2 usb3 ports, magsafe!, and most importantly a MicroSD drive i have put a Nifty 512GB card into, so i have 768GB of space of which 256 is from the SSD, - works perfectly.

Having a small SD drive is so incredibly useful when you can buy half a terabyte of extra space for $100, granted not that fast but still useful as storage.

The newer models are so incredibly expensive they make no sense to me when they remove features.

... so waiting for the ARM version.

Re: 27-inch iMac gets a major update

#256

Post by skohan » Tue, Aug 04, 2020, 5:25 PM UTC

paulpan wrote: post #202

This essentially confirms Apple's strategy to just refresh existing models/chassis without redesigns going forward; the new Apple chips will be used exclusively for redesigned/relaunches like the Macbook. Smart move since it increases the appeal of the Apple-powered Mac devices. The pricing difference will also help, as based on the expensive base configurations (RAM, SSD as others have pointed out here), it will mak…

Is there credible evidence the new devices will actually be cheaper? It hasn’t been the trend with Apple product launches

Re: 27-inch iMac gets a major update

#257

Post by rmorey » Tue, Aug 04, 2020, 5:26 PM UTC

osrec wrote: post #248

smnrchrds wrote: post #236

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They learned their lesson and made storage, RAM, etc. non-user replaceable in newer versions. You used to be able to buy a Mac from Apple and upgrade its RAM at a reasonable price on your own. Not anymore.

Why do their customers tolerate this?! I know some people love Apple (their hardware does look great), but this is extremely annoying.

Because it’s the only supported way to run macOS

Re: 27-inch iMac gets a major update

#258

Post by jonpurdy » Tue, Aug 04, 2020, 5:26 PM UTC

madengr wrote: post #129

protomyth wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Interesting how much emphasis they put on the camera, speakers, and mic People realized how crappy the camera (an well mic) was on Macs compared to other computers now that we are all video conferencing. Its sad that every PC user with a Logitech looked much better.

The original Apple FireWire webcam was very good, with a large, motorized lens. Despite boasting higher resolution, I doubt many modern webcams are as good, especially integrated ones.

How awesome would an updated iSight be today? You could fit an APC-C sized sensor (1.6x crop DSLR) with a 22mm f/2 pancake lens for some insane bokeh. Probably at around the $300 price point. Sure would be easier than hooking a "clean HDMI" DSLR or mirrorless into a HDMI input/USB adaptor...

Re: 27-inch iMac gets a major update

#259

Post by cpach » Tue, Aug 04, 2020, 5:26 PM UTC

osrec wrote: post #248

smnrchrds wrote: post #236

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They learned their lesson and made storage, RAM, etc. non-user replaceable in newer versions. You used to be able to buy a Mac from Apple and upgrade its RAM at a reasonable price on your own. Not anymore.

Why do their customers tolerate this?! I know some people love Apple (their hardware does look great), but this is extremely annoying.

It is indeed annoying and expensive. I still prefer their OS/hardware combo over anything else on the market. YMMV.

Re: 27-inch iMac gets a major update

#260

Post by snapetom » Tue, Aug 04, 2020, 5:26 PM UTC

smnrchrds wrote: post #236

avianlyric wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> What kind of magic fairy dust SSDs are they using that you can't have a sensible amount of storage space at those prices? The kind where Apple can make a 300% or more margin, knowing that people will still pay. Don't think Apple have ever sold SSD upgrades at anything remotely resembling competitive $/TB prices. Clearly they don't need too because people still buy their machines.

They learned their lesson and made storage, RAM, etc. non-user replaceable in newer versions. You used to be able to buy a Mac from Apple and upgrade its RAM at a reasonable price on your own. Not anymore.

The iMac and Mac Pro has user upgradeable RAM.

https://www.apple.com/imac/specs/