Apple updates iMac with Haswell CPUs, 802.11ac Wi-Fi & GeForce 700 series graphics

Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
Apple on Tuesday issued an update for its all-in-one iMac desktop, bringing Intel's latest-generation Haswell processors, speedy 802.11ac Wi-Fi, and Nvidia's new GeForce 700 series graphics.

iMac


The new iMac also sports faster PCIe flash storage options to boost performance. It comes in the same thin design debuted by the company last year.

"iMac continues to be the example that proves how beautiful, fast and fun a desktop computer can be," said Philip Schiller, Apple?s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. "Inside its ultra-thin aluminum enclosure, the new iMac has the latest Intel processors, faster graphics, next generation 802.11ac Wi-Fi and faster PCIe flash storage."

The entry-level 21.5-inch iMac features a 2.7-gigahertz quad-core Intel Core i5 processor and new Iris Pro integrated graphics. It starts at $1,299.

The high-end 21.5-inch model and both 27-inch models feature quad-core Intel Core i5 processors up to 3.4 gigahertz and Nvidia GeForce 700 series graphics with twice the video memory and up to 40 percent faster performance than the previous generation.

Apple's new top-of-the-line iMac is a quad-core Intel Core i7 processors up to 3.5 GHz and Nvidia GeForce GTX 780M series graphics with up to 4 gigabytes of video memory. It starts at $1,999.

iMac


The updated iMac also supports next-generation 802.11ac Wi-Fi. When connected to an 802.11ac base station, iMac delivers wireless connectivity up to three times faster than the previous generation 802.11n.

Apple's new iMac also features support for PCIe-based flash storage that makes Fusion Drive and all-flash storage options up to 50 percent faster than the previous generation. Fusion Drive option combines the large storage capacity of a hard drive with the high performance of flash to deliver shorter boot times and faster access to apps and files. Customers can configure their iMac with a 1-terabyte or 3-terabyte Fusion Drive, and all-flash storage options are now available in configurations up to 1 terabyte.

iMac comes standard with 8 gigabytes of memory and a 1-terabyte hard drive, and customers can choose to configure their iMac with up to 32 gigabytes of memory and up to a 3-terabyte hard drive. iMac also comes with two Thunderbolt and four USB 3.0 ports for connecting to external storage and other high performance peripherals.

iMac


iMac also meets Energy Star 5.2 requirements and achieves an EPEAT Gold rating. The desktop features LED-backlit displays that are mercury-free and made with arsenic-free glass. iMac includes PVC-free components and cables, contains no brominated flame retardants, and uses highly recyclable materials and material-efficient packaging designs.

iMac ships with OS X Mountain Lion, bringing Messages, Notification Center, system-wide Sharing, AirPlay Mirroring, Dictation, Game Center and Gatekeeper security.

Pricing & availability

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The new iMac is available today through the Apple Online Store, Apple?s retail stores and select Apple Authorized Resellers. The 21.5-inch iMac is available with a 2.7 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.2 GHz and Intel Iris Pro for a suggested retail price of $1,299 (US); and with a 2.9 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GT 750M for a suggested retail price of $1,499 (US).

The 27-inch iMac is available with a 3.2 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 755M for a suggested retail price of $1,799 (US); and with a 3.4 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.8 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 775M for a suggested retail price of $1,999 (US). Additional technical specifications, configure-to-order options and accessories are available online at apple.com/imac.

How to save

Readers who use links in the AppleInsider Mac Price Guide (iMac snippet below) can then manually apply coupon code APPLEINSIDER02 on MacMall's iMac product pages to instantly save an additional 3%, yielding the lowest prices anywhere. Additionally, MacMall only charges sales taxes in California, Illinois, New York, Tennessee, Minnesota, Georgia, North Carolina, and Wisconsin.

Internet orders for Apple's newly updated iMacs will be processed by MacMall in the order they are received, and the reseller currently indicates that they will be able to start shipping 3 of the 5 models on Wednesday (tomorrow). We'll continue to update the Mac Price Guide with additional models and retailers throughout the week as the units begin to show up in their inventory systems.

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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 161
    moxommoxom Posts: 326member
    Nice :)
  • Reply 2 of 161
    Apple once again pulling ahead of the "competition". Another nail in the coffin of PCs.
  • Reply 3 of 161
    Can we hear from the guy who was boasting yesterday about how Microsoft beat Apple to the punch because they claimed that a product to be realeased a month form now might have Haswell?
  • Reply 4 of 161
    Apple has quite a few launches lined up until the end of the year...

    1. Mavericks
    2. Mac Pro
    3. Haswell Macbook Pro Retina (possibly early 2014?)
    4. iPad
    5. iPad Mini

    No iWatch and iTV until next year I think.
  • Reply 5 of 161

    Twice the battery life of the old iMac.

  • Reply 6 of 161
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by anantksundaram View Post



    Can we hear from the guy who was boasting yesterday about how Microsoft beat Apple to the punch because they claimed that a product to be realeased a month form now might have Haswell?

     

    If you're talking about me I specifically said r-Macbook Pro, and I was hardly 'boasting' considering I called the surface a POS-2 (as it is). How could they beat Apple to the punch when the Air already is Haswell? Pretty idiotic. It was a factual observation we are 15/16 months without a real refresh. Everyone else's high end portables are Haswell, it's time. The battery life will be fantastic I'm sure.  

  • Reply 7 of 161

    I'm surprised Apple haven't chosen to go for a Mac centric event to get a little more focus back on there computing line.

     

    Just a small event where they could Launch new macbook pro's, these new iMacs and the Mac pro as well as Mavericks at the same time.

     

    Kinda odd to have a silent update without waiting for Mavericks when Mavericks is just around the corner.

     

    With the iPhone still taking up all of Apple's media attention, I would have thought I would have made sense to have a slightly bigger gap and then launch all these products together to help gain some publicity for the computing line.

  • Reply 8 of 161
    asciiascii Posts: 5,936member

    GeForce 780M - sweet, the fastest mobile GPU on the market (without going to SLI/Crossfire).

     

    No Thunderbolt 2 and no 4K display but I think the Mac Pro will have these though :-) Well we already know it will have TB2.

  • Reply 9 of 161
    Great. Now where the hell is the MacBook Pro refresh?
    Thanks.
  • Reply 10 of 161

    New MBP will be here soon, you can't rush perfection.  Plus there may be a few surprises as far as the refresh goes.

  • Reply 11 of 161
    Wow, no event for this release? ;-)

    Was the Mac Pro 2013 that runs on ten 64-bit A7 processors released also? :)
  • Reply 12 of 161

    Great! Now I have no reason to wait....except getting the money together! :)

     

    P.S. What a beautiful machine! :)

  • Reply 13 of 161

    Currently unavailable in the UK Apple store.

     

    I am considering this vs a Mac Pro (dependant on Price vs Performance of the entry level to a spec'ed up iMac)

  • Reply 14 of 161

    If you're talking about me I specifically said r-Macbook Pro, and I was hardly 'boasting' considering I called the surface a POS-2 (as it is). How could they beat Apple to the punch when the Air already is Haswell? Pretty idiotic. It was a factual observation we are 15/16 months without a real refresh. Everyone else's high end portables are Haswell, it's time. The battery life will be fantastic I'm sure.  

    I wasn't referring to you. Calm down.

    But now that YOU bring it up.....
  • Reply 15 of 161
    I love how according to Phill Schiller's quote, he avoids using words like 'practical','functional','versitile', 'flexible' and 'expandable'. Unfortunately these are drawbacks of the mac desktop lines....
  • Reply 16 of 161
    Apple has something up their sleeve... Unexpected announcement coming?
  • Reply 17 of 161

    I've tried to do some research into the Iris Pro (and what version they're using in the entry-level iMac), but while I thought it was initially a downgrade from the dedicated NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M with 512MB, it seems most are saying it's at least equal, if not slightly better. Hard to believe Intel's integrated graphics have gotten so good so fast. Anyone care to weigh in with their thoughts on the change?

  • Reply 18 of 161
    saareksaarek Posts: 1,520member

    Such a shame that the Fusion drive is not standard.

  • Reply 19 of 161
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    No Macbook Pro announcement. Perhaps waiting for Mavericks? Maybe a space gray version? I assume then these will be coming at a special announcement? Maybe with iPads and MacPro?
  • Reply 20 of 161
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member
    I love how according to Phill Schiller's quote, he avoids using words like 'practical','functional','versitile', 'flexible' and 'expandable'. Unfortunately these are drawbacks of the mac desktop lines....

    Really? In many ways, this is more expandable than any previous iMac - and possibly more than any previous Mac Pro. You can easily add several large RAID boxes via Thunderbolt and suffer no performance loss. On previous computers, you had to use Firewire, USB, or eSATA - all of which limit performance. You can add a nearly infinite number of external PCI cards with expansion boxes. There are very few things that you'd want to do that you can't expand via TB.

    Ad the rest of your rant is simply silly. Not practical? Not functional? Considering that the iMac out of the box does what 95% of users need, how is that not practical?
    smiles77 wrote: »
    I've tried to do some research into the Iris Pro (and what version they're using in the entry-level iMac), but while I thought it was initially a downgrade from the dedicated NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M with 512MB, it seems most are saying it's at least equal, if not slightly better. Hard to believe Intel's integrated graphics have gotten so good so fast. Anyone care to weigh in with their thoughts on the change?

    As always, YMMV. There's no doubt that Intel has made great strides in their graphics performance. That performance will, however, depend on exactly what you're doing. Best to look for benchmarks using the app (and, ideally, the functions) that you will be using. It may be perfectly adequate on Photoshop, but not on hard core games. Or vice versa.
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