New iMac with M4 • Hacker News Board

Re: New iMac with M4

#171

Post by vundercind » Mon, Oct 28, 2024, 4:12 PM UTC

dijit wrote: post #128

epolanski wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You just reminded me of how stupid the plug beneath the MM was...You never needed to charge it, till you needed it and couldn't use the mouse.

There are so many legitimate reasons to hate the magic mouse. Ergonimics, the polling rate, the way the glass gets greasy, the scratchy hard plastic on the bottom. Truly, inferior to the Logitech MX Master in all ways except looks. (which is subjective). But it takes literally a few seconds to get a days worth of charge out of the mouse, Apple clearly don't want you to leave it plugged in to use as a wired mouse: why…

Yeah this is something I thought was amazingly dumb until I used one, but it’s not actually a problem. Even a little.

Re: New iMac with M4

#172

Post by wtallis » Mon, Oct 28, 2024, 4:12 PM UTC

simonw wrote: post #144

As someone who mucks around with running LLMs and other large models on my computer the 32GB maximum RAM is a show-stopper for me. I'm on a M2 with 64GB at the moment and I'm already regretting not going for 96 or even 128. I want to be able to run a large model AND other apps at the same time.

> I'm on a M2 with 64GB at the moment and I'm already regretting not going for 96 or even 128.

You're using a M2 Max, not a M2. Two (big) steps up the chip product stack from what's used in the iMac.

Re: New iMac with M4

#173

Post by yborg » Mon, Oct 28, 2024, 4:12 PM UTC

Mainsail wrote: post #7

Side note, is there anyone that uses a Magic Mouse? It looks uncomfortable to use for an extended period of time and curious if that's true.

I guess it's what you're used to and how large your hands are. For me, I've use it since it came out and prefer it to any other mouse, once you get used to the touch top surface using mechanical button/wheel seems archaic. It's also a lot easier to keep clean without a scroll wheel.

That said, the change to the rechargeable version was a huge unforced error apart from the deserved mocking for the charge port location because the mouse also reports low batt condition about 10 minutes before it actually dies, I don't know what the thinking there was.

Re: New iMac with M4

#174

Post by dagmx » Mon, Oct 28, 2024, 4:12 PM UTC

simonw wrote: post #144

As someone who mucks around with running LLMs and other large models on my computer the 32GB maximum RAM is a show-stopper for me. I'm on a M2 with 64GB at the moment and I'm already regretting not going for 96 or even 128. I want to be able to run a large model AND other apps at the same time.

You have a higher tier M2. This is the base M4.

The comparison is apples to oranges.

Re: New iMac with M4

#175

Post by traceroute66 » Mon, Oct 28, 2024, 4:12 PM UTC

wffurr wrote: post #141

What's with the green iMac picture? https://www.apple.com/newsroom/images/2024/10/apple-introduc... It only shows two USB-C ports while further down the marketing material talks about "all four USB-C ports". EDIT: the low-end 8-core model for $1300 only has two ports. It also has what looks like a rear-facing camera in the stand cutout. What is that for? EDIT: It's the magnetic power connector. I did not expect that…

> What's with the green iMac picture?

The picture is of the base model.

The upper model is featured on their main website[1], which shows this image [2]

[1] https://www.apple.com/imac/ [2] https://www.apple.com/v/imac/q/images/overview/closer-look/c...

Re: New iMac with M4

#176

Post by jeffbee » Mon, Oct 28, 2024, 4:13 PM UTC

It sucks that the TB4 ports still point out the back of the machine like that. It has never made sense! Every Thunderbolt cable has a bulky active electronic assembly that is at least a few centimeters long, followed by a cable strain relief. I hate having my cables hanging out like that. It seems like it would be possible to build a little port hutch on the back, with the ports pointing straight down.

Re: New iMac with M4

#177

Post by flemhans » Mon, Oct 28, 2024, 4:13 PM UTC

simonw wrote: post #144

As someone who mucks around with running LLMs and other large models on my computer the 32GB maximum RAM is a show-stopper for me. I'm on a M2 with 64GB at the moment and I'm already regretting not going for 96 or even 128. I want to be able to run a large model AND other apps at the same time.

When I first scanned your sentence I assumed you were gonna write that 32 GB is now the minimum, not the maximum.

Re: New iMac with M4

#178

Post by 39896880 » Mon, Oct 28, 2024, 4:13 PM UTC

graeme wrote: post #138

jfoster wrote: post #76

I could never justify getting an iMac. All the downsides of a laptop & desktop in one; not upgradeable and not portable. Leaves me wondering how many of these Apple actually sell. A Mac Mini with a separate screen feels like it makes far more sense.

The iMacs very much aren't their main seller. A couple of key demographics use it though: * Families with a shared computer in a common room. Super simple to setup, no fiddling, low price. In the video Apple showcased this use case. My parents have an M3 imac and it works great. They had their last iMac for ten years. * Businesses buy these for reception areas and customers see the Apple logo on the back. Easy soluti…

Education as well. Main reason why that headphone jack has stuck around I suspect.

Re: New iMac with M4

#179

Post by briandear » Mon, Oct 28, 2024, 4:13 PM UTC

observationist wrote: post #51

mmastrac wrote: post #10

If 32GB is the max, why not just make that the one and only model and get rid of this weird segmentation. That's a ridiculously low minimum and only just barely adequate. 8GB was practically criminal. Or -- and I know this is crazy -- slottable RAM on a device that is designed for things other than portability. Wild, I know.

Arbitrary markup based on whatever they can maximally extract from their consumers is the name of the game. Product segmentation is just one of a variety of tools used to that purpose.

Isn’t that the name of every game?

Re: New iMac with M4

#180

Post by george_probably » Mon, Oct 28, 2024, 4:13 PM UTC

kbolino wrote: post #122

hggigg wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Very easy. You sell it on eBay and buy a Logitech MX Master.

Does the Logitech MX Master come with a driver that overcomes Apple's "unintentional" hobbling of non-Magic mice?

It does - it two different ways! The scroll wheel ratchet can be disabled (which is how I use it) or MX Options can override Smooth Scrolling. Or both.