Apple set to launch new low-end 21.5" iMac with dual-core 1.4GHz Intel Core i5 CPU

Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited June 2014
With Apple's online store down Wednesday morning, the company appears set to debut a new iMac desktop, with one last-minute leak revealing alleged specifications of a new low-end 21.5-inch model, sporting a slower and more affordable dual-core 1.4-gigahertz processor.




The alleged details come from a picture that appears to show the specifications printed on an iMac box intended for sale in France, revealed on Wednesday by Macplus. The details also show the same resolution 1,920-by-1,080-pixel LED display, 8 gigabytes of RAM, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, and a 5,400rpm hard disk drive.

The technical readout also reveals that the new iMac will apparently feature a 1.4-gigahertz Intel Core i5 processor with 3 megabytes of L3 cache and integrated Intel HD Graphics 5000. Given the details on the new chip, it is likely the dual-core Intel Core i5-4260U, which launched in the second quarter of 2014 and offers Turbo Boost speeds up to 2.7 gigahertz.

In comparison, the company's previous low-end model boasted a much beefier 2.7-gigahertz Intel Core i5 with 4 megabytes of cache, featuring Turbo Boost up to 3.2 gigahertz.

iMac


The alleged specifications suggest that the new model will simply feature a lower-end processor, allowing Apple to achieve a new, more affordable price point with its all-in-one desktop.

Well-connected analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities first revealed earlier this year that Apple had a new low-end iMac in the works. He said that the new, cheaper iMac would allow Apple to better compete with desktops from companies like HP and Lenovo, which are seeing significant sales growth in emerging markets like China.

Availability of iMacs slipped in recent weeks, suggesting that an update was incoming. The company already refreshed its MacBook Air lineup in April with slightly faster processors and lower prices, making the new notebooks the most affordable of their kind in Apple's history.

French blog MacGeneration was the first to reveal that an iMac update would debut this week.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 37
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member

    Joining the race to the bottom? Why? How will Yosemite run on a half-speed processor?

  • Reply 2 of 37
    saareksaarek Posts: 1,520member
    lkrupp wrote: »
    Joining the race to the bottom? Why? How will Yosemite run on a half-speed processor?
    It'll run just fine, considering it has the same requirements as Mavericks that runs great on my 2008 Aluminium MacBook.
  • Reply 3 of 37
    starbird73starbird73 Posts: 538member
    lkrupp wrote: »
    Joining the race to the bottom? Why? How will Yosemite run on a half-speed processor?
    Chances are they wouldn't release this if the answer was "slow as $#!t"
  • Reply 4 of 37
    darkvaderdarkvader Posts: 1,146member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by lkrupp View Post

     

    Joining the race to the bottom? Why? How will Yosemite run on a half-speed processor?




    It'll run fine.  It's fine on a Core 2 Duo, that's what I've seen it run on so far.  This isn't a high end graphics workhorse, it's a K-6 education and low spec business desktop.  The receptionist needs a Mac, but doesn't need anything beyond Pages, Safari, and the phone system control software.

     

    Apple is hopefully realizing that market share DOES matter, and you don't walk away from a market.

     

    Now if Apple does this right, it'll be $699, we haven't seen an iMac at that price in years, and it's about time it comes back.

     

    Now, give me a new XServe, dammit.  I need new servers to go with those workstations.

  • Reply 5 of 37
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    Wonder what the price reduction will be? And does this mean Apple is clearing the way for retina products this fall? Yosemite, like iOS 7, was really designed with retina in mind. Maybe this fall we'll get retina iMacs and Airs?
  • Reply 6 of 37
    [quote]Well-connected analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities first revealed earlier this year that Apple had a new low-end iMac in the works.[/quote]

    Advertisement?
  • Reply 7 of 37
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    darkvader wrote: »

    It'll run fine.  It's fine on a Core 2 Duo, that's what I've seen it run on so far.  This isn't a high end graphics workhorse, it's a K-6 education and low spec business desktop.  The receptionist needs a Mac, but doesn't need anything beyond Pages, Safari, and the phone system control software.

    Apple is hopefully realizing that market share DOES matter, and you don't walk away from a market.

    Now if Apple does this right, it'll be $699, we haven't seen an iMac at that price in years, and it's about time it comes back.

    Now, give me a new XServe, dammit.  I need new servers to go with those workstations.
    I can't get to Apple's store right now but the cheapest iMac on bestbuy.com is $1,100. I can't see Apple reducing the price by $400. Even the cheaper MacBook Airs were only reduced $100.
  • Reply 8 of 37
    darendinodarendino Posts: 126member
    Will it be able to run Adobe CS6 and FCPX?
  • Reply 9 of 37
    lkrupp wrote: »
    Joining the race to the bottom? Why? How will Yosemite run on a half-speed processor?

    Why wouldn't it?
  • Reply 10 of 37
    Should run fine. If you could throw a solid state hard drive in it, would be nice and fast. The SSD in my opinion is the biggest single speed factor in todays computers.
  • Reply 11 of 37
    newcodenewcode Posts: 24member
    Store is back, new iMac is £900 UK or $1,100 US.
  • Reply 12 of 37
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Rogifan View Post





    I can't get to Apple's store right now but the cheapest iMac on bestbuy.com is $1,100. I can't see Apple reducing the price by $400. Even the cheaper MacBook Airs were only reduced $100.

     

    Think $999, the magical “under $1000 price point.”

  • Reply 13 of 37
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    New iMac starting at $1099. $100 cheaper than the price I saw at Best Buy.
  • Reply 14 of 37
    darendinodarendino Posts: 126member

    UK Store open - £899

  • Reply 15 of 37
    darendino wrote: »
    Will it be able to run Adobe CS6 and FCPX?

    nobody knows because the requirements for those apps are TOP SECRET ;)
  • Reply 16 of 37
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    lkrupp wrote: »
    Think $999, the magical “under $1000 price point.”
    Actually it's $1099. I figured it would probably be $100 cheaper, just like they did with the Airs.
  • Reply 17 of 37
    andysolandysol Posts: 2,506member
    rogifan wrote: »
    Actually it's $1099. I figured it would probably be $100 cheaper, just like they did with the Airs.
    Was the low end 1199? I thought msrp was $1,299? So it's $200 less expensive.

    Would've loved $999- but then again, I'd love $99 :p still saves me a couple hundred- and 3rd parties will have it close enough to $1k. Perfect for our office out in Hawaii that literally just checks mail and runs pages and FileMaker.
  • Reply 18 of 37
    gunner1954gunner1954 Posts: 142member
    With 8GB of memory Mavericks and Yosemite should run just fine. Maybe slow by the standards of us with faster machines, but to the thousands of secretaries, school children, and Windows XP switchers the new iMacs will be just fine. As for price? $999 is two hundred dollars less expensive than the current starting point and would fit right in with the baseline MacBook Air price drop from $999.
  • Reply 19 of 37
    gunner1954gunner1954 Posts: 142member
    From Apple Website

    $1099

    21.5-inch: 1.4GHz
    Specifications
    1.4GHz dual-core Intel Core i5
    Turbo Boost up to 2.7GHz
    8GB memory
    500GB hard drive1
    Intel HD Graphics 5000
  • Reply 20 of 37
    fithianfithian Posts: 82member
    $1049 Educ. otherwise $1099.
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