Wishlist: -No chin -No external power brick -Height adjustable stand
You prefer to have the power supply internal where the components would necessitate a thicker iMac not to mention the heat generated from the power supply inside your iMac?
There are so many advantages to having the power supply external and I, for one, like that the ethernet plugs into the brick instead of the back of the iMac. One less cable cluttering my desktop. If Apple could do the same with the MBP 14/16 brick through the Magsafe connector, that'd be cool!
Biggest advantage is the ease to replace the power brick should it fail. If internal, you're screwed.
I just think Apple could try harder and get the equation right, internal power supply, still thin and manage the heat. I miss Steves sense of perfection.
At the bottom back, behind whatever's there currently. If it has to be thicker still, so be it.
Sounds like a recipe for crappy speakers.
Why would it have any effect on what speakers they use?
He's a consummate Negative Nelly, everything framed in the negative, including a sunny day after a long storm, he'll find some way to complain. Get used to it, or block him.
Well, after reading this thread I can be absolutely sure of one thing, and one thing only, regarding the iMac; whatever Apple do they are f*cked. You can please some people, some of the time…
I have no problem with colours, as long as they're tasteful. The abortion of the 24" with bright/pastel/white all in one was a horror show. Plus, they'd need to add at least one grown-up colour too, ideally black/dark grey.
As for the chin, what's it for? Its main job used to be to hold the big apple logo, but since they bizarrely dropped that on the 24", it's just there to annoy people now. If they need space, make it thicker. Who cares how thin it looks from an angle you never look at it from?
I was very excited about the initial 32" rumours, but honestly think that 27" is as big as necessary really. Just get rid of the chin and bezels, put it on a proper stand and make it as fast as hell. Thanks.
I did some quick mockups of a 'fix' to the horrible 24" when it came out. Maybe the tapered side profile is odd in retrospect, but I stand by the single anodised colour and swapping the chin for thickness, as well as putting a small logo back. Scaling this up and going with dark metal/black bezel would be fine for the 27" too.
I think a colorized version of the Pro Display XDR would be better. It's about 1" thick. Doing a straight geometric scaling from 32" to 24" gets you 0.75". Use the same magnetic latching system for the stand and the VESA mount, and there you go. You can probably get away with 0.6", basically the thickness of the MBP. This isn't too far away from the thickness of the 0.43" iMac 24, and it may be thick enough for USBA and Ethernet ports.
I agree with Apple's color decisions on the iMac 24 though. The off-white makes looking at the display less stressing. Black also works well too. If there is bright color framing around the display, it's a bit distracting to me. The chin is there for branding. Not great for multiple monitor setups of portrait orientation
Perhaps a couple of interesting things they could do is vanta black framing/bezels, or the reverse, all glass framing without bezels, front cam and sensors can float. I imagine they would be fingerprint hell and always end up as a no go.
At the bottom back, behind whatever's there currently. If it has to be thicker still, so be it.
Sounds like a recipe for crappy speakers.
Why would it have any effect on what speakers they use?
He's a consummate Negative Nelly, everything framed in the negative, including a sunny day after a long storm, he'll find some way to complain. Get used to it, or block him.
Huh? Block me? Are you confusing me with someone else? This is my 12th comment ever, where have I been so unpleasant?
It is always amusing to see how many people are so offended by the iMac's 'chin' and bezels. The design works, and that is where the motherboard is located, especially in the new 24" iMac. The replacement 27" iMac will surely follow since it will likely use a modified MacBook Pro 16" board with either the M1 Pro and/or M1 Max CPU. 32" displays are too large for most workspaces, so I don't know why people think a larger 5K display would make any difference. Unlikely to be 6K. Apple needs people to blow $6K for their XDR display. They won't put it in the iMac.
I bet the new iMac will have a notch. That seems to be Apple's new visual trademark. Clearly unnecessary, but for some reason, Apple put it on the new MacBooks. The new 24" iMac feels very cheap for being so thin. It is also very easy to tip over if you try to tilt the display from the top. Headphone/external speaker jack on the side is messy looking. Ethernet in a power supply is a kludge. So you know that is coming to the larger iMac. The M1 Max will be the only good thing about the new iMac. The rest will be pastel colors, too thin, not enough ports, and the same fixed height stand (of course VESA Mount solves the fixed height problem).
I never buy first generation products. Never bought the first Power Mac and never bought the first Intel Mac. I will be happy using my Intel Mac for years to come while more native software becomes available and better hardware products roll out in the next few years. The 1999 iMac colors looked great. These pastel colors are awful.
At the bottom back, behind whatever's there currently. If it has to be thicker still, so be it.
Sounds like a recipe for crappy speakers.
Why would it have any effect on what speakers they use?
He's a consummate Negative Nelly, everything framed in the negative, including a sunny day after a long storm, he'll find some way to complain. Get used to it, or block him.
Huh? Block me? Are you confusing me with someone else? This is my 12th comment ever, where have I been so unpleasant?
No, not you, I've already blocked the trolls on this site (e.g. crowley), sorry for the confusion, you're good, keep posting and welcome to the site - there are lots of good people and some have some amazing knowledge and it's fun to read their insights.
I have no problem with colours, as long as they're tasteful. The abortion of the 24" with bright/pastel/white all in one was a horror show. Plus, they'd need to add at least one grown-up colour too, ideally black/dark grey.
As for the chin, what's it for? Its main job used to be to hold the big apple logo, but since they bizarrely dropped that on the 24", it's just there to annoy people now. If they need space, make it thicker. Who cares how thin it looks from an angle you never look at it from?
I was very excited about the initial 32" rumours, but honestly think that 27" is as big as necessary really. Just get rid of the chin and bezels, put it on a proper stand and make it as fast as hell. Thanks.
I did some quick mockups of a 'fix' to the horrible 24" when it came out. Maybe the tapered side profile is odd in retrospect, but I stand by the single anodised colour and swapping the chin for thickness, as well as putting a small logo back. Scaling this up and going with dark metal/black bezel would be fine for the 27" too.
It is a good thing you don't work for Apple. Your mockups are lame. If you are wondering what the chin is for...it houses the motherboard and the speakers. No one wants colored bezels. So you basically took Apple's awful 24" design and made it 100x worse. If all you people hate the chin, buy a Mac mini and whatever display you want. I guess you all like finger prints all over your display if you grab the computer to try and adjust it, if it is lacking the 'chin'. The fixed display stand is the worst design of all, and Apple has been using it since 2005. That's why my 27" iMac has the VESA Mount.
The best iMac design is still the iMac G4 from 2002 to 2004. That was a thing of beauty, with an LCD display that can be moved in any direction with ease.
At the bottom back, behind whatever's there currently. If it has to be thicker still, so be it.
Sounds like a recipe for crappy speakers.
Why would it have any effect on what speakers they use?
He's a consummate Negative Nelly, everything framed in the negative, including a sunny day after a long storm, he'll find some way to complain. Get used to it, or block him.
Huh? Block me? Are you confusing me with someone else? This is my 12th comment ever, where have I been so unpleasant?
Willy has some sort of grudge against me because I speak my mind. He prefers that everyone fawn over Apple all the time and keep quiet about the things that aren't working.
If you are wondering what the chin is for...it houses the motherboard and the speakers.
Nobody's wondering what's in the chin currently. The question I'm asking, which appears to be harder to understand than I first realised, is why the chin is the best place for these things, as opposed to behind the screen. Like in, for example, every phone, every iPad, every TV etc etc. I don't care how thick an iMac is - the 24" is proudly claimed to be 11.5mm thick, which is very impressive. But that requires having everything squashed flat inside and needs the motherboard and speakers hanging out the bottom in a chin. What I'm saying, and I appreciate this is entirely subjective, is that I'd personally prefer it to be 23mm thick and not bother with a chin. Because I look at the front all day and never at the side.
But it's not a big deal. I think what was worse with the 24" was removing the apple logo and making the chin just look so odd.
No one wants colored bezels. So you basically took Apple's awful 24" design and made it 100x worse. .
Again, entirely subjective. I don't particularly want coloured bezels, but then I'm not in the market for the entry-level 24". If, however, I was and I fancied a blue iMac, then I'd much prefer one with anodised dark blue everywhere than just on the back, light blue on the front and white on the bezels.
Personally I'd like black all over, no colour or white. But it's subjective. I covered all this in my post though.
I guess you all like finger prints all over your display if you grab the computer to try and adjust it, if it is lacking the 'chin'.
I for one would be happy to stop obsessing about the chin, but one last point here. I've owned two different 27" iMacs for 13-odd years now, and don't recall ever grabbing it by the chin. Also if, for example, the bezel was made of anodised aluminium, as per my rough mockups, then the top corners would be fine for 'grabbing' and adjusting the display. The logic of requiring 3 inches of chin just in order to move the display once a year is, to be honest, stretching things a little too far.
If there was no chin, where the hell would I put all my Post-its? Obviously not on the screen.
And while we are all making wishes... 30" 5K5 iMac, with chin, external supply. 3.5mm analog jack and SD slot on the side. Where you don't have get to the back. Silver and gray are nice colors, if you need more choices, get a 24". Or paint it. The current base works fine 90% of the time. If not, VESA!
Wishlist: -No chin -No external power brick -Height adjustable stand
I don't get, and have never got, this obsession with "no chin", "no bezels", and all that nonsense. As for the external power brick, I think that ship has sailed. I'm guessing hey want to use the new MagSafe adapter for it, and that isn't just a dumb power plug. Plus, if they moved the power supply back to being internal, then they'd probably have to give it a bigger chin, so there goes your first wish.
Height adjustable stand they might do, or they might just sell a plate so you can install it on a monitor arm.
Exactly this, and the chin provides benefits in that it allows space for the electronics, much better speakers than would be possible otherwise, etc. I also like it as a user -- it's a place for sticky notes and a place to grab the iMac to tilt the screen without touching the screen.
I'm agnostic on the external power brick except that I think that putting the Ethernet port there is a great idea. For many people, the power cord and the Ethernet cable are the only things plugged into iMacs. Those use-cases benefit from reducing that to one cable coming out of the back, especially since that one cable is itself a design element.
For twenty years, Apple has introduced iMac in two display sizes, each major redesign has seen both screen sizes increased. I will be surprised and disappointed if the upcoming bigger iMac isn’t enlarged from 27-inches.
Wishlist: -No chin -No external power brick -Height adjustable stand
I don't get, and have never got, this obsession with "no chin", "no bezels", and all that nonsense. As for the external power brick, I think that ship has sailed. I'm guessing hey want to use the new MagSafe adapter for it, and that isn't just a dumb power plug. Plus, if they moved the power supply back to being internal, then they'd probably have to give it a bigger chin, so there goes your first wish.
Height adjustable stand they might do, or they might just sell a plate so you can install it on a monitor arm.
I agree. Removing the chin would make the iconic iMac look like the run-of-the-mill PC monitors. No thank you. These chin-haters really need to get over it.
The power supply I could go either way. Making it internal would definitely increase the thickness of the monitor. Keeping it in a separate power brick would remove a big source of heat from the unit itself, and in the event of a component failure, it's much easier to replace an external brick than have to crack the monitor open to service it. If I could choose, I think I would go with an external brick. Apple is really good in this area anyways.
There is nothing iconic about the chin.
What has always been iconic about the iMac is its modern design in the face of everything else. The chin was necessary before. Not now. Form follows function.
An iMac with zero bezel and a sleek minimal stand with articulating arm would be amazing. Pure screen. No chin. No bezel. No junk in the way. That would be ultramodern.
The 24 inch iMac looks old snd outdated already. The color scheme of thick white bezels And brandless chin contribute to that.
Time to stop copying the past and do something new snd exciting again.
Wishlist: -No chin -No external power brick -Height adjustable stand
You prefer to have the power supply internal where the components would necessitate a thicker iMac not to mention the heat generated from the power supply inside your iMac?
There are so many advantages to having the power supply external and I, for one, like that the ethernet plugs into the brick instead of the back of the iMac. One less cable cluttering my desktop. If Apple could do the same with the MBP 14/16 brick through the Magsafe connector, that'd be cool!
Biggest advantage is the ease to replace the power brick should it fail. If internal, you're screwed.
LOL
Like the iPhone/iPad/MB Pro battery?
come one dude.
The iMac has had a built in power supply forever and it’s been great. The new floor litter thing just plain sucks. At the least apple should make it plug directly to the outlet. Not have an extra cable while your power supply takes up residence… on the floor. Of all places.
Internal is best and sleekest. It’s out of the way. Power should never be an accessory to your computer.
Power supplies can spread out. There is room to do this even now. But some noob in the engineering department wanted to throw this idea out there and somehow their dad approved it
At the bottom back, behind whatever's there currently. If it has to be thicker still, so be it.
Sounds like a recipe for crappy speakers.
Why would it have any effect on what speakers they use?
Backfiring, stacked with the display and other components? Not optimal, even if the actual speaker array is the same.
Negative.
Speakers still pointed down. No bsckfiring. And you can route/channel the sound in the metal to exit in the same location. Literally no issue. Even without the routing, a tiny sliver of metal isn’t going to impact the sound at all, especially since it’s not obstructions or changing the sound waves, dynamics, or reverberation in any way whatsoever.
I personally love the no chin Or bezel idea. But the current stand is fine. Needs an articulating arm like the OG iMac or pro display though.
I hope the larger iMac is exactly like the 24", but with black bezels, and a couple deep color options. I actually like the chin. It helps anchor the screen, and makes a great place for the electronics and speakers to go. Thickening the entire thing just to squeeze the speakers behind the screen makes no sense. Most people don't want to bother with, or clutter their space with external speakers.
I would be shocked and appalled if there was a notch on a 27"+ monitor.
The external power brick with ethernet cord is a brilliant and elegant design; Apple's not getting rid of that.
If Apple is going to put FaceTime on there, I hope they develop some fun filters for video chatting, like the ability to make it look like I'm wearing an eye patch, with a parrot on my shoulder doing silly things while I'm chatting with someone. Arrrgg!
BTW, I appreciate StationGrey's mock ups, although I disagree with the changes, still interesting to see them mocked up, thanks!
Comments
I agree with Apple's color decisions on the iMac 24 though. The off-white makes looking at the display less stressing. Black also works well too. If there is bright color framing around the display, it's a bit distracting to me. The chin is there for branding. Not great for multiple monitor setups of portrait orientation
Perhaps a couple of interesting things they could do is vanta black framing/bezels, or the reverse, all glass framing without bezels, front cam and sensors can float. I imagine they would be fingerprint hell and always end up as a no go.
I bet the new iMac will have a notch. That seems to be Apple's new visual trademark. Clearly unnecessary, but for some reason, Apple put it on the new MacBooks. The new 24" iMac feels very cheap for being so thin. It is also very easy to tip over if you try to tilt the display from the top. Headphone/external speaker jack on the side is messy looking. Ethernet in a power supply is a kludge. So you know that is coming to the larger iMac. The M1 Max will be the only good thing about the new iMac. The rest will be pastel colors, too thin, not enough ports, and the same fixed height stand (of course VESA Mount solves the fixed height problem).
I never buy first generation products. Never bought the first Power Mac and never bought the first Intel Mac. I will be happy using my Intel Mac for years to come while more native software becomes available and better hardware products roll out in the next few years. The 1999 iMac colors looked great. These pastel colors are awful.
Obviously not on the screen.
And while we are all making wishes...
30" 5K5 iMac, with chin, external supply.
3.5mm analog jack and SD slot on the side. Where you don't have get to the back.
Silver and gray are nice colors, if you need more choices, get a 24". Or paint it.
The current base works fine 90% of the time. If not, VESA!
It's not rocket surgery...
I'm agnostic on the external power brick except that I think that putting the Ethernet port there is a great idea. For many people, the power cord and the Ethernet cable are the only things plugged into iMacs. Those use-cases benefit from reducing that to one cable coming out of the back, especially since that one cable is itself a design element.
Like the iPhone/iPad/MB Pro battery?
come one dude.