Apple's redesigned iMac is 5mm thin with edge-to-edge glass - Page 2

 

Maybe if you have your machine sitting out for public display in your house/business and want to use it as a talking point.  However, mine's tucked away in my office with loads of other technology piled around it which I need to use as part of my job.

 

I get the point about the aesthetics of the things around you affecting your state of mind and whatnot.  I love seeing well designed products (both hardware and software).

 

However, given a choice, I'd much prefer having more attention to detail paid to performance than aesthetics.  Because, when it comes right down to it, I get a bigger smile on my face seeing my machine crunch through code faster (so that I can get out and enjoy other parts of my life more), than I do seeing a couple more inches of my desktop all day. :)

That's pretty silly IMHO. There should at least be a choice. Perhaps next year they will add a 7200 rpm hybrid option, heck they have been available on the market for some time now sans Apple's software intelligence.

I'd love to see tests done for video capture rates on these drives.

 

Probably to keep the heat and noise down. Probably laptop drives in the 21.5 inch. 27 inch has 7200 rpm.

IF you use (or need in this case) to use something like DIskWarrior, one must be able to boot from a DVD or another drive. So, if we need to use utilities, optical drives are kind of still needed.  Plus, some people like to make archival DVD/CD copies of audio/video/data and there are a LOT of people, like myself, that STILL buy CDs and transfer their music to HD for lossless audio rather than dl from iTunes like content suppliers.  Some of use can hear the difference between compressed and uncompressed audio.

Gee, thanks for clearing that up. It's nice to have someone that can speak for EVERYONE.

That's not how software versioning works.

 

.tsooJ

 

There's no indication of Apple listening or not listening.

 

Remember, pretty much every imaginable feature has been demanded by at least some percentage of their customers. Ironically, that percentage is quite low in regard to fusion drives. Yes, us geeks and forum mongers are interested in ssd storage. But the general public doesn't even know what that is.

 

So in this case, if I were to hazard a guess, it would be that apple ignored the stated wishes of customers and instead chose to pursue a technology that they anticipated that customers would want, even though customers don't know it yet.

 

SCSI -> Firewire -> Thunderbolt (and prey that nothing is lost in translation) :)

Agreed. But, according to some here, you should just buy an external drive and quit complaining. I don't agree with that at all.

 

Feel free to offer a differing opinion.

(And then hit up amazon to spec out a new sense of humor)

OMG ROFL what a nightmare. OK try AppleTalk ...

 

You can boot from USB now. Apple added that boot option with lion.

 

Perhaps you have a point with CD's as compressed audio has an increased amount of distortion,

 

although iTunes offers higher bit-rates now, and some artists sell directly in lossless format... 

 

However I am willing to bet that the overall distortion generated by the iMacs sound outputs would be much greater than that in which case one would require a professional grade external sound card with cleaner output, coupled with some very high end headphones or studio grade speakers.

 

 

Not an issue that would affect many of us I would think.

That's why you should save the box .... no ?

Actually, iMac 2011 does have a mild antiglare coating. I can tell by the color shifts and by comparing it with a real, untreated glossy glass surface. By bonding the front glass to the panel, you are reducing the number of reflective surfaces by two thirds.

The Retina MBP did indeed get a significant reduction in glare. To the point where I don't think it's a big deal anymore. Even matte surfaces get reflection, in reality, it's just blurred.


It's trivial to boot from an external drive. I think it's a non-problem. I bought an external optical drive for an old iMac with a dying optical drive. A $30 external drive beat buying a $100 part and getting inside.

Loved the 'come back'.
Some folks really have a nice on line attitude don't they?

Works both ways.

Sweet redesign (especially the hybrid drive!), but I was expecting them to make the new iMac a lot thinner overall than they did - HaHa!
Edited by 1983 - 10/23/12 at 1:36pm

ABSOLUTELY *********** STUNNING IMAC UPDATE!!!!!!

 

WHAT A BLOW THE DOORS OFF DESIGN.  WHAT A DESIGN!!!  ART.  PURE ART.

 

Kepler G680MX.  WHAT A BEAST!!!  SEXY, SEXY BEAST!!!

 

Ivy Bridge 3.4 i7 turbo to 3.9!

 

8 gigs of ram.  

 

Oh man...oh man.  iMac-gasm.  

 

What a machine.  run 2560 x 1440 native np with a gpu like that.  No crap gpu?  WOW!

 

Surprised we don't have a 256 SSD as standard.  They're so cheap now.

 

(The only fly in the ointment?  Haswell!  and the Radeon 8xxxx.   ...and Retina!?)   Do you pull the trigger or wait.

 

Oh...my...word...that iMac...all that power in 80% less thickness...oh....oh....oh....:OOOOOOOO

 

Oh...Momma...

 

Lemon Bon Bon.

 

And I immediately think, "yeah, welding".

I know it looks like the removed the Optical drive but in some of the picture it is showing a slot. as if it still has the drive.

 

For those who said the optical drive is not needed, i would tend to agree, but having things back up to a CD or DVD is a fail safe, HDD fail and why pay for month storage in the cloud. They other issue is downloading program form the cloud has issue since if you have a problem with a new release and you can not tell me that it does not happen may times one the new release is out you can no longer get the older version so unless you have back up locally or somewhere else it hard to down grade. 

 

I have most all my programs on an HDD backup, but I also have them on DVD/CD just in case and they have come in handy from time to time. 

 

Also, without an optical drive you can no longer rip CD of you personal stuff. Probably what the industry wants anyway.

 

I am still weighing in on this decision.

Easy... I do what I've always been doing.  I use an external superdrive for those 1-2 times a year I need to use it.  After that, I pack it up and put it in my drawer.  Case closed.  :)

Just because some folks are stuck in the 90's or early 2K means my system has to natively support old stuff?

Here's a link to buy Apple's superdrive.  $79.00. http://store.apple.com/us/product/MD564ZM/A/apple-usb-superdrive

Works like a charm.  I think a regular no-name brand will work too but I haven't checked that.

 

You're right.  While my two grandma's have moved on to higher ground years ago, my 70+ year old mom has never asked about getting a photo album on CD so she can insert it into her iPad.

One can hope. :)

Look buddy, I know where you're coming from.  I've been through the 80's to current to see all that tech go to dust.  There's always the few purists that raise issues when something they use goes to the museum.  You have options.  They are just not the way you'd like it.

I'd bet money that in a couple years, all the other PC makers will no longer include optical drives in their AIO desktop machines too.  What then?

Edited by sflocal - 10/23/12 at 3:13pm

 

 

 

Yes. Very ugly.

I work at an Apple Specialist and the design of these things must be unbelievable. They shrunk every major component by an insane amount - power supply, fans, heat sinks... all must be positively micro to fit in a unit this size.

It's a wonder this unit doesn't melt the instant you turn it on.

Very impressive job, Apple.

So what he's saying is we should buy the applecare :P

It looks like the vents on the back and bottom will be much better than my oven of an iMac now with the little slit up top.  I cant wait to put my hand on the back of one at the Apple store prior to ordering one.  That will be the true test for me.  :)  Applecare is so cheap regardless for the iMac- considering.

 

Honestly- if the fusion drive is 5400... I likely won't get it.  My wife does photography, so thatll be moving pictures constantly and bog down I'm sure.... 7200 1tb will be better than a flash/5400 in that case I think...

Hopefully the fusion is 7200 on the 27"

The answer is obvious, he should simply use silver duct tape and stick that external DVD drive on the back of the iMac!

Awww ... show me what meanness you had in store for me; I can take it :)

 

Seriously, it's not a matter of thinness but rather the process getting there. There are two aspects to the process: First, Apple had to develop innovative manufacturing processes. Second, it's the process of introducing impossibly thin devices ALL ACROSS their product lineups!!

 Yup.

 

 

Retina Display MBP 15" - 0.71" (18 mm)

iPhone 5 - 0.3" (7.6 mm)

iPod Touch - 0.24" (6.1 mm)

rMBP 13" - 0.75" (19 mm)

iPad Mini - 0.28" (7.2 mm) 

 

All launched within 6 months!!! http://www.ankleskater.com/pagemaker.php?id=ASBG20121023165100

It turns out there is more ventilation than the small group of slots in the back:

http://images.apple.com/imac/design/images/evolution_hero.jpg

Some of that is speaker grille, but I'm betting that half of them are for air intake.

It looks like they did make the whole unit thinner. I thought it was the same thickness but more rounded back. The back is slightly more rounded though.

http://images.apple.com/imac/design/images/evolution_2005.jpg

 

Apple uses a NumVersion struct, 1 or 2 digit for a major version and a single digit for a minor version which could if 10.9 happens cause a change to 11.0

it is the chimney effect that works well, the reason they do not need high power fans. As you know hot air raises so as the unit heats up it draws in cool in from the bottom.

I agree on the thickness, and I think its kind of a shame that they tweaked the illustration, and then Schiller goes through the carefully elaborate turning onstage, to give the appearance that you are seeing it more "side-on" than you really are, and then to avoid showing you the bubble.

As for the card, it's no different from what I do now for thumb drives or any usb external, so, if anything, I'd have wanted one usb3 on the side...not possible now though.

While I really love this new look, the question that worries me is what will happen when you use it for a long raytracing task that uses all the four cores to the max... will the CPU temp rise to 90ºC like in recent Macbooks (water evaporates at 100ºC) and will fans rotate at max speed like if it was a laptop rather than a desktop? As I said, I love this look, but I expect my desktop to be able to accomplish long and intensive CPU tasks without being worried with the CPU temp. If it's noisy when doing hard work, I'll be afraid of pushing it too much, and it won't be very useful.

 

The same applies to last generation games, or even not so last generation, like "Sims 3". Will they melt the CPU?

 

I hope the Mac Pro isn't the only choice for people who need all cores at 100% during long periods of time.

Just because you need gas economy more than aerodynamics does not mean you cannot appreciate a Porsche. I accept that this might not stir your loins. But I hope, for your sake, that you are able to recognize there is more innovation here than just aesthetics.

**** tweaks.

 

It's stunning.  To house an i7 and a G680MX there had to be a bit of a bulge somewhere.

 

Just wow.  

 

Still stunned by the design.

 

What a machine.

 

Whew.

 

Lemon Bon BOn.

 

Well, not micro but there's quite a bit of work done for sure.

 

 

Someone gets it ... or at least part of it!

Guess it's a man machine ;)

 

Who cares? Why would you be surprised that the port's no longer on the machines at all?

 

You can just as easily NOT buy an optical drive at all.

 

So every desktop should have every port ever created simply because it's large enough to contain them all. Got it.

 

Sure they do. 

Sorry but that's hot air in itself. Heat does not rise fast enough on its own to keep such a tight enclosure and fast running CPU cool. The stack effect, if that's what you're thinking of, does not work well here.