rob55

GeorgeBMac said:

I read all these specs and prices -- and what runs through my mind is that I can get equivalent or better specs at far lower prices on a standard Windows machine.

But then I remember that the iMac comes with Apple's software and ecosystem --- which, while "free" to us is not free to Apple.  They charge us for it through their hardware -- which makes their hardware prices seem high.

I have a Windows PC I built about a year after I got my late 2012 iMac, and it cost about $1,600 (Corsair case, Corsair power supply, Intel motherboard, i7 CPU, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD, 3TB HDD). I was looking at upgrading the guts with an i7-9700K ($400), new motherboard ($180), new RAM (16GB for $125), cooling solution ($100), and reusing the SSD. That's over $800 before a new graphics card and a nice monitor on par with the 5K screen of the iMac. Presumably, the i9 BTO option in the new iMac is the 9900K which goes for $525. As you say, you can get same or better specs for less on the Windows side, but therein lies my issue. It's a Windows machine. I work on Win 10 Pro machines at my job, and I'm just not a fan. 

I think I will finally upgrade my late 2012 iMac. The 27" model with 8-core i9, 8GB RAM, and 1TB SSD + extended keyboard = $2,939 with the institutional discount but before AppleCare and tax. If it's confirmed that the RAM is user-upgradeable, then that config. will work, otherwise, I'll have to add more RAM to the BTO equation.

llsorens said:

Can the RAM be upgraded on these new iMacs by the user

This could indicate that it might be, because the cover was released the same way on previous iMacs. Certainly not definitive though.

airnerd said:

This has gotten really bad lately. Over the last few months I will get a daily call from someone who has my same area code and first 3 digits, so I know it is a spam call so I just ignore it.  

However, there are others that the iPhone should be able to pick up.  I have started to see a lot of fake "your apple account is compromised" calls and they are all from a 1-800 number that scrolls across the top instead of being in a fixed position.  I've seen others where the font is really small, so obviously being spoofed.  

It has gotten pretty bad for me as well, so much so that I automatically enable the Do Not Disturb feature at 6:00 PM daily. My favorites are allowed through, as are repeat calls. Seems to work pretty well for me so far. 

I know only one other person in my exchange, and that's my wife. Thus, I know that literally every other call I receive from the same exchange is a scam/spam call, and ignore them as a stand course of action. My approach is, if you're not in my contact list, you're getting ignored. If you really want to talk to me, leave a message, and I'll decide if i want to call you back.

theothergeoff said:

  gatorguy said:

In a related note... I got a call from another user in my exchange (XXX-XXX-nnnn) who said I called them... I'm wondering if you start 'blocking' calls if the robocallers start using YOUR phone number (thinking it's dead/disconnected, and a good candidate for spoofed robocalling).  [If I were evil... I would].  Anyone else hearing that condition happening?

Well, I can't confirm that the caller called from my exchange, but I've definitely received a couple of calls from people asking why I called them. One of them actually left a profanity-laced voicemail. While this evidence is anecdotal at best, it would seem that what you described may be happening. 

I've always operated on the assumption that if you answer these suspected scam/spam calls, your number gets flagged as being live, and then the frequency of said calls increases. It's one of the main reasons why I think the Pixel 3's Call Screen feature is the wrong approach. These robocalls should never be answered. I know there's a way to have a white list of known and trusted numbers, but it's kind of a workaround via the Do Not Disturb feature. Apple should simply implement a more direct white list method unless they've done so already, and I'm just not aware of it).