Apple rumored to release new iMacs with Sandy Bridge, Thunderbolt by early May - Page 2

I'd like to see the base used to recharge the keyboard and mouse.

Push the keyboard away when you're done, to touch the base and charge.
Place the mouse on the base, to charge by induction.

I love my iMac original intel. I'm looking to get a wifi iPad2. I'm going to put some serious effort in to seeing if I can run my Real Estate business from an iPad2 and my iPhone 4 (soon to be an iPhone 5). If not, I'll also get an 11" MBA.

I think the current iMac is close to perfection with the wireless keyboard, magic pad and magic mouse, snow leopard. But knowing Apple the next iMac will be thinner, faster, etc., etc.

I still look at the iMac as the "digital hub" of my home.

I too will wait for Lion to be installed. Looking fwd to iWork '11 also.

Best

Even though I do hate the glossy screens I think I have about convinced myself that I can live with one. The final push for me will be if the GPUs on the new iMacs get a nice bump up.

Also, I would imagine a Mac Pro update isn't far off as well.

-kpluck

do i detect any mini upgrades on the horizon? or even possibly some rumors.

my ppc mini is really tired but still tries to crank it out every day.

I went to the apple store recently because I was considering the possibility of an iMac in the future, and I wanted to see how big a difference it made for the screen to be glossy (currently using a matte screen monitor). It was unbearable, at least for me. There was way too much reflection, and there isn't even any natural light in this particular apple store (it's in a mall). It'd be nice if apple would consider a matte option, but it's probably a long shot.

You mean like this?

http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Repair/i...lacement/873/1

But some Apple guys will try to argue that this is just as easy:

http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Repair/i...acement/1634/1

Q4 2011.

And some lower-case letters to get around the caps filter.

Such a box would also need an internal power supply, unless you want another AC brick. Maybe some hard drive bays and quiet fans as well. Basically, it would be a small "dockable" minitower with no CPU.

I bought mine soon after they came out and it was a true Trojan. I did have to replace the power supply after seven years of hard work, then last year the fluorescent panel went and regrettably it was not worth the cost of repair. I say regrettably, because I believe it was the most ergonomic design ever for a computer. Being able to adjust the screen height, angle and pitch with just the tip of a finger was a true piece of Jonny Ive genius.

And plenty other formats.

THE xMAC! GREAT SCOTT!

Someone with a brain.

The new SB will be a nice addition. Thunderbolt is so limited right now, that's not really a feature yet.
I have the newest 27" iMac i5 quad core with 8GB ram and the ATI 5770 and it's SO fast!
Love the machine. I will be skipping the 2011 upgrade but in 2012, I will pass this one down to the wife and get the newest monster.
Great news for those thinking of buying an iMac.

I would LOVE to see Apple make a 30" iMac (wish list for 2012)

I got my iMac 2 years ago, My wife got hers last year. That is the last desktops that will grace our house.

I am very disappointed with the current iMacs. I don't know why, I just feel as though Apple is no longer interested in desktops.

After Lion comes out I will buy a 15" macbook pro and a cinema display. My iMac will become an iTunes server in the office.

I really feel that we will see the desktop death in my lifetime, and Apple will lead that charge. I would be surprised if the iMac exists in 5 years. Pros will still be around for the "Pros", otherwise get a ...book.

I don't know where this comes from.

I had a 24" iMac Core2Duo (2.8, I think) a couple of years ago and it was a fine computer. Did everything I needed it to do very quickly, Lots of screen space so I was able to view lots of things at the same time, and essentially no compromises.

While there are a lot of people who can replace their desktop with a laptop, that doesn't apply to everyone. Just the screen size is a killer for me (I don't picture carrying around a 24" laptop any time soon).

And I'm getting tired of the "Apple doesn't care about desktops any more" (which is just a subset of "Apple doesn't care about computers any more"). Clearly, they do - and they continue to update their desktops at roughly the same pace that they've used for years. It may not seem like as much because the improvements are modest in each generation (largely due to the fact that computers are so much faster than most people need that "oh, another speed bump" isn't a big deal any more), so it may not seem like they're interested, but computers are an essential part of Apple's ecosystem. They would be foolish to neglect any part of the ecosystem - and there's really no sign that they're ignoring desktops, either.

+1

Oh please Apple, get off of this glossy kick, give us the option!

+1. Love my 17' white matte iMac. I guess my next mac it's gonna be a mac mini with some third party matte display.

Hopefully the mini gets a good processor upgrade this year.

Will it be too much to ask for I wonder, for the iMac to actually get some modern components in it? USB 3 and blu-ray are LONG overdue, and where are the 3.4ghz i7s?

The current iMac is like a time capsule with old components of various vintages thrown together. The optical drive (circa 1998) is hilariously outdated.

As you can't seem to understand that this will never happen, go buy a PC.

I've had a Blu-Ray/HD DVD drive in my Mac Pro for a long time. I play 1080p movies from the disks while booted into OS X. It's not that hard.

It's possible. Apple isn't going to add DRM to the OS, so do it the workaround way or buy a PC.

Why don't you just get an anti-reflection film? Not as nice as a matte screen out of box, but it does add some protection to the screen.

http://www.macyourself.com/2009/08/1...i-glare-matte/

Apple won't offer USB3 now they have Thunderbolt, and they will get rid of optical drive in a few years altogether.

Other than the optical drive, I don't think anything in an iMac is really outdated. Still I have never felt the optical drive as a limiting factor as old as it is. As a middle of road performer, iMac never was going to live on the bleeding edge. But calling the components "vintage" is really pushing the envelope of credibility.

No, that's the port that Intel and Apple came up with, so that's what a "Thunderbolt port" looks like.

I'm sure Acer and Dell could come up with a larger port that would be compatible with the existing full-sized DisplayPort connectors. It would actually be up to Intel, not Apple.

More likely that Sony or someone would try to develop a smaller connector (though if the 4-conductor FireWire cables were any gauge, Sony would probably try to remove the power connector in the process).


From your lips to Steve's ears! I don't understand why we still don't have 802.11n WiFi sync to iTunes in 2011. It can't be that hard.

double post

So, what would you prefer? Apple hold back technology from their products just because you think you need to keep track of hardware updates?

Here's a thought - don't try to keep up. When you need a product, evaluate what's out there and buy based on that.

Thunderbolt is, for all intents and purposes, largely an external PCI bus. It will be very easy to make Thunderbolt-compatible drives. As easy or easier to build than USB 3.0 drives.


You'll get access to USB 3.0 through Thunderbolt. Either a terminated cable (i.e. at end of the daisy chain) or through a breakout box. It's completely plausible that an external hard drive will get a USB 3.0 connector port (or two) in addition to the two Thunderbolt ports.

As far as Bluray is concerned, Apple is never going to let them dictate built-in Blu-ray DRM into OSX.

Have you tried one of the many anti-glare films for iMacs that are available?

I sympathize with those wanting matte screens. I prefer them myself. However, I think I know why Apple has chosen to stick with glossy.

When Apple eventually rolls out a new iMac with a touch interface (via Lion and ported iOS apps), that's when the glossy screen will be needed. Just like iPhones and iPads need finger-slidey glass for their screens, so will these new touchable iMacs.

Because of Apple's penchant for consistency of design, they probably foresaw this need and decided to maintain the glossy screen standard until its eventual need. Just a guess though.

There is never going to be a touchscreen iMac.

Especially if you move beyond one bay in the external enclosure.

With todays modern dual core processors you can do RAID through the SATA ports and have performance well beyond what you would get over Thunderbolt. I see far to many starry eyed guys looking at TB as the ultimate in drive expansion support. That may very well be true relative to other external I/O solutions but it isn't exactly cost effective when compared to internally installed drives.

It seems as if some here think I'm ruling out external storage solutions totally. That isn't the case at all. What I'm saying is that it is expensive and not as reliable as an internal solution. Also it generates unnecessary clutter. This should be fairly obvious.

Other considerations are less obvious. For example all modern CPU support chips have multiple SATA controllers in them. So for the most apart supporting internal drives is free. Well except for a slightly beefed up power supply and space considerations. As mentioned above the extra cores in modern CPU's makes it very easy to support things like RAID on those ports, so even though you have a slower interface with SATA, you have more of them to work with resulting in superior performance. Or alternatively you have that TB port available for more interesting things.

In the end I just don't buy the idea that external storage expansion is the way to go in a desk top machine. It is simply an expensive approach to a problem that can be handled in a proper chassis.

Honestly I wish people would let this rest, Blu-Ray is dying and isn't worth supporting.

As for USB 3 I'm certain it will come to the Mac when Apple uses a chip set supporting it. Frankly it is a highly over rated upgrade to USB, but at least I can see some reasons for it.

As to the i7's they have to be available before Apple can ship them.

It isn't that bad. As to the optical drive, all I can say is that it always works at advertised speeds. That is something you can't say for high speed drives. More so because I hardly use the optical I don't want apple wasting money on that sort of hardware when they could be putting other components into the machine.

That's as naïve as saying, "The iPod classic will never be discontinued."

OS XI will redefine the means with which a computer is interacted and the virtual layout of said interface. Can't do it on a vertical screen, though they're still needed.

Screen at an angle. Sliding stand takes the machine from 5 degrees tilt to 90 degrees tilt. 5's for touchscreening, 90's for media playback.

If the rumors about a 24" iMac being added to the mix don't pan out, then I hope the updated 21.5" iMacs get the i7 option and they drop the i3 altogether. Surely if they can squeeze it into the 13" MacBook pro...they can fit it in the 21.5" iMac. Also thunderbolt is a given. But Id like to see the ability to add an extra SSD drive in the 21.5" model like you can in the 27".

Lastly, I hope the ability to use the 21.5" as an external monitor is added like in the 27" model. Because Once the iMac becomes obsolete, it'd be nice to have the option to use it as an external monitor with either a new iMac or a MacBook pro down the road.

Can't wait for these updates. I want an iMac as my main computer/hub at home.

Some are saying updates will come as early as April....but Im thinking May is the month.

When is LION suppose to be "officially" released?

"Summer", meaning October.

I am also curious as to what the next design could be other than no chin at all.

The lamp design was fun. Don't forget the the chin on the first aluminum mac was bigger than the current design. I'm also glad they switched to 16:9 from 16:10.

I hate that they've switched from 16:10 to 16:9. It's not a TV. If I wanted 16:9 or 2.39:1, I would have bought a TV.

Personally, I think the current design of the iMacs is the perfect evolution. As far as form factor goes, I for one don't particularly want a radical new design.

For me updating the insides and adding thunderbolt ports are far more important to me on my wish list.

If anything, I'd like to see an additional iMac size....like the rumored 24"....otherwise I would just want to see Sandy Bridge and i5/i7s across the board. Plus perhaps the ability for the 21.5" iMac to act as a second monitor like the 27" can. As well as the ability to add a second SSD like you can in the 27".

Better graphics and CPU of course.

Maybe even a small SSD drive standard across the board to load the operating system and key programs for fast start up and run times. But maybe that's pushing it.

The rest of my wish list centers around the release of LION.....in particular... Typeface INDEPENDENCE! :-)

I don't mind the 16:9...in fact I kinda like it. If the rumors about a 24" iMac being added to the line up are true, that'll look the best of the bunch in that ratio IMHO.

I also don't mind the glossy screen. I prefer it over a Matt screen.

So all in all I hope the form factor doesn't change at all really. It's the inside I care about.

We shall see. :-)

But one of the Tick iMacs while you still can, Tock ones are always loud and noisy.

Keep dreaming. I certainly will.

/agree


just to make a point to all those demanding USB3 ... INTEL the company behind the USB spec STILL hasn't rolled out a chipset with 3.0 baked in.. Now, since we all know that Apple has based all of it's Intel based mac's on intel designs... Not having USB isn't that shocking.

Source


Well I'll not get too wordy on this ... However I certainly could... Apple seems to always release optical drives that are rip locked... Perhaps this has changed in the recient past but every apple branded optical going back to my trusty silver G4 have this wonderful feature.