Apple rumored to release new iMacs with Sandy Bridge, Thunderbolt by early May

Posted:
in Future Apple Hardware edited January 2014
Apple may release a new line of iMac all-in-one desktop computers by the end of April or the first week of May with Sandy Bridge processors and the new high-speed Thunderbolt port, but no major cosmetic changes, according to a new rumor.



Brian Tong of CNet reported the rumor Tuesday on his Twitter account (via MacNews.de). Citing anonymous sources, he said that the new iMacs will be "en route by ocean" to the U.S. around the start of May, and the machines will be upgraded with Intel's latest-generation Sandy Bridge processors.



"We'll see if this pans out, but I'm highly confident in my source," Tong wrote. Aside from the anticipated inclusion of a Thunderbolt port, no other specifics were given.



The inclusion of both Sandy Bridge processors and Thunderbolt ports on the new iMac lineup are expected. But the alleged ship date, by the first week of May to the U.S., is new information.



The iMac lineup was last updated in July of 2010, when the all-in-one desktops were outfitted with Intel Core i3, i5 and i7 processors, along with ATI Radeon graphics. Those machines retained the same design first introduced when the iMac was given an edge-to-edge glass screen in October 2009.



Intel's Sandy Bridge processors debuted on Apple's new line of MacBook Pros in February with the high-end 15- and 17-inch systems sporting quad-core CPUs.



The new MacBook Pro models also marked the debut of Thunderbolt, a new input-output technology developed by Intel with collaboration from Apple. Featuring two bi-directional channels with transfer speeds up to 10Gbps each, it delivers PCI Express directly to external high performance peripherals such as RAID arrays, and can support FireWire and USB consumer devices and Gigabit Ethernet networks via adapters.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 109
    Great, another hardware upgrade.. No one can keep up with the latest and newest gizmos available..
  • Reply 2 of 109
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member
    This one is obvious. Whether it's end of April or early May or some other date, it's coming soon - and Thunderbolt will clearly be on every new system.



    I was looking at a new iMac, but decided to wait for the next update. I actually expect it a bit earlier - around Mid-April, but any time between now and June 1 won't surprise me.
  • Reply 3 of 109
    nondualnondual Posts: 78member
    Finally some iMac news! I won't be able to get these, probably.....but this is still the only Mac line I'm interested in right now. I can get just as psyched up for the 'Post-PC' line of stuff as anyone else, because what's $300-$500 every year or so? But when it comes to replacing my iMac, that's a once-per-3-to-5-year proposition....
  • Reply 4 of 109
    jmmxjmmx Posts: 341member
    I would believe this one. I think Apple wants to move quickly on Thunderbolt to take advantage of its early mover advantage. The fact that the new processors seem to also be very major upgrades is also appealing. Thunderbolt, however, is arguably the most significant upgrade for some time. Anyone working on video or with large graphics files knows the need for faster hard drive access.



    I got new MBP (15" matte screen i7) just last Sept. so I am out luck here for a while.
  • Reply 5 of 109
    ipedroipedro Posts: 63member
    I love the current iMacs but I'm beginning to long for a new design. This one has been around for years now, only changing from white plastic to the aluminum and black glass currently used.



    My favourite iMac was the "lamp" but something like that might not happen again because there's no more computer to hide in the base like they did with the lamp iMac. It's ever more comfortably fitting right behind the screen, lending for a very clean all in one look.



    What do y'all think the next iMac will look like? Less chin perhaps? More like the cinema displays? Maybe we'll see an articulating neck like the lamp iMac after all, once OSX Lion's full screen apps and more iOS like UI begin to open up OSX for touch leading to an iMac that can move horizontal for an ergonomic touch experience.
  • Reply 6 of 109
    christophbchristophb Posts: 1,482member
    Eager to see new displays with Thunderbolt support.
  • Reply 7 of 109
    kiweekiwee Posts: 102member
    My current iMac is about a year old.

    The thing that would make me upgrade is a matte-screen.



    The gloss is just unbearable..

    I have to close all the blinds in my apartment when watching a movie..



    It bugs the crap out of me.
  • Reply 8 of 109
    ouraganouragan Posts: 437member
    Quote:

    Apple may release a new line of iMac all-in-one desktop computers by the end of April or the first week of May with Sandy Bridge processors and the new high-speed Thunderbolt port, but no major cosmetic changes, according to a new rumor.





    Sounds promising... Love the quad-cores, especially the Core i7 with 8 logical cores to chew up data. Great for medical research with the World Community Grid http://www.worldcommunitygrid.org/.





  • Reply 9 of 109
    It might be time to replace my 17" G4 Imac lampstyle.....it's like 12 years old now, but still working great.

    My wife mostly uses it...I took her to the Apple store last week to look at the new imacs....even the 21.5 inch one she thought was huge...

    I knew the imacs were up for an upgrade soon...we'll see....



    Frank
  • Reply 10 of 109
    nondualnondual Posts: 78member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by faithfulFrank View Post


    It might be time to replace my 17" G4 Imac lampstyle



    Ya think?
  • Reply 11 of 109
    mj1970mj1970 Posts: 9,002member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jragosta View Post


    This one is obvious. Whether it's end of April or early May or some other date, it's coming soon - and Thunderbolt will clearly be on every new system.



    Definitely. They want to get it out there. They want to create the incentive for an ecosystem of devices to grow. The next step will be to start dropping other ports (USB, FireWire, etc.) in lieu of this one.
  • Reply 12 of 109
    nkalunkalu Posts: 315member
    I thought they were having issues with Sandy Bridge?
  • Reply 13 of 109
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by kiwee View Post


    My current iMac is about a year old.

    The thing that would make me upgrade is a matte-screen.



    The gloss is just unbearable..

    I have to close all the blinds in my apartment when watching a movie..



    It bugs the crap out of me.



    I have 3 white iMacs (two 24" and one 20") in my house. If Apple starts making iMacs with anti-glare screens again, I will be happy to spend the money to replace my white ones.



    Are you listening, Apple?



    Love my 2 24" white ones. Wish they could access 8GB of RAM. All they need is an EFI firmware update.
  • Reply 14 of 109
    bdkennedy1bdkennedy1 Posts: 1,459member
    USB 2 has kept me from upgrading. Now with the Thunderbolt port I can upgrade my 2007 iMac, but I'm going to wait to see how Apple handles the iPhone and iPad. I am sick of waiting 15 minutes to sync with USB 2.
  • Reply 15 of 109
    rtm135rtm135 Posts: 310member
    sweet. just in time for my tax refund. as long as lion is pre-installed, i'm in.
  • Reply 16 of 109
    debusohdebusoh Posts: 85member
    Yeah, I don't get the apple love fest with the glossy displays. Alienating a lot of users out there. My wife needs a new laptop and the 13" Macbook Pro or one of the Macbook Airs would be great, but you can't get it with a matte display. Pretty arbitrary on Apple's part.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by kiwee View Post


    My current iMac is about a year old.

    The thing that would make me upgrade is a matte-screen.



    The gloss is just unbearable..

    I have to close all the blinds in my apartment when watching a movie..



    It bugs the crap out of me.



  • Reply 17 of 109
    lorrelorre Posts: 396member
    Even by Apple standards, these upgrade cycles are starting to get crazy long. It's like all computers are now on a yearly update cycle. Dell gives you minor spec bumps on a monthly basis.



    But, I guess it's good for Apple they can "afford" this approach and thus have nice profit margins towards the end of the cycle, and it's also nice for early purchasers that have "the latest and greatest" for a long time.
  • Reply 18 of 109
    tinktink Posts: 395member
    tick, tick, tick, tick................



    My Dual 2Ghz G5 work hoarse will soon be put out to pasture for a wellllllllll deserved retirement!

    I hope there is a design tweak to allow easy access to the hard drive, not just the ram, tough.





    tick, tick, tick, tick................

    27" i7 8gb ram......

    tick, tick, tick, tick................
  • Reply 19 of 109
    joshajosha Posts: 901member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by kiwee View Post


    My current iMac is about a year old.

    The thing that would make me upgrade is a matte-screen.

    The gloss is just unbearable..

    I have to close all the blinds in my apartment when watching a movie..

    It bugs the crap out of me.



    I totally agree. It will take a non glossy screen for me to buy any PC. So for now it continues to be the Mac Mini with a separate non Apple matte display.
  • Reply 20 of 109
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Lorre View Post


    Even by Apple standards, these upgrade cycles are starting to get crazy long. It's like all computers are now on a yearly update cycle. Dell gives you minor spec bumps on a monthly basis.



    The amount of speed bump you get in a few months is useless. Heck, even the speed bumps you get in a year are irrelevant for 95% of users. The vast majority of computer users are fine with a year old computer - and would hardly even notice the speed gains on going with a newer computer.



    Most Macs are upgraded on a roughly 9 month cycle:

    http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#MacBook_Pro



    Doing so more frequently wouldn't really gain much. After all, the current top Mac (since last summer) is a 2.93 GHz i7 quad. How much faster could they release today? Maybe 3.2 GHz i7 quad? Just not a big deal for very many people.
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