Redesigned iMacs due as soon as next week?
updated 02:50 pm EDT, Thu September 24, 2009
New iMacs said imminent
Apple could be on the verge of launching its increasingly rumored redesigned iMacs as early as next week, a new rumor suggests today. A pair of sources for AppleInsider say the company has already been assembling the new all-in-ones for the past two weeks and that large-scale buyers have been given discounts in an effort to clear excess stock. These would only last one week.
Updates wouldn't come later than mid-October in this view and would be less expensive than existing models. In recent years, Apple has tended to reserve any fall Mac updates for the same month.
It's assumed the new design would still share design cues from the LED Cinema Display and should be thinner; the 24-inch panel currently uses a unibody or unibody-like design that renders it slimmer than the iMac in most respects, although some of this stems from the absence of computing parts inside.
Multiple internal upgrades have previously been floated as possibilities and could include a Blu-ray option, AV features better suited to pros or enthusiasts, and upgraded graphics. In the time since the iMacs adopted NVIDIA's GeForce 9400M chipset, rumors have circulated that Apple will use two sequel chipsets, though both of these weren't expected to show until early next year.
Intel's new Core i7 mobile processors are purportedly ruled out, however, as the claimed leak only points to dual-core chips. So far, these chips are only available in quad-core form and aren't necessarily faster depending on the task. They're also known to be relatively expensive. More viable dual-core i7 and i5 chips aren't anticipated until early 2010 and might leave Apple using upgraded Core 2 processors instead.
This better not be true
09/24, 02:57pm (1 reply) reply
No quad-core = epic fail
Arty50
Grizzled Veteran
Joined: May 2000
Well...
09/24, 03:06pm reply
I would not hold your breath for a quad-core unit. Heat is a major factor in the current design being so thin. The iMac G5 and it's "super computing" power saw many iMacs just drop dead from bulging capacitors which were likely caused by the excessive heat.
MacAssemble
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Jan 2008
waiting...
09/24, 03:06pm reply
come on, emac-san... you can hold out another week or two, ne? ne?
darkelf
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Nov 2003
meh
09/24, 03:06pm reply
been years for the desktop... ef the imacs. when are the desktops going to be redone?
van rijn
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Joined: Sep 2002
@Arty50
09/24, 05:05pm (1 reply) reply
People who use the term epic fail = grand disapointment
eldarkus
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Feb 2004
Capacitors != heat
09/24, 05:26pm reply
Those were just plain old bad build quality. Dell had entire lines of machines with the same caps that were going bad. Over the course of a summer, I watched most every Windows box in a school district get shipped to Dell for testing and mobo replacement due to those capacitors.
Zaren
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Joined: Aug 2001
28" quad core...
09/24, 05:52pm reply
...and blueray capable would indeed tempt me...
bobolicious
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Aug 2002
duh
09/24, 05:52pm reply
You know, Arty, anyone who uses the phrase "epic fail" is not going to be taken seriously. Why don't you have an original thought?
And oh yeah, watch how many million iMacs Apple sells with 2 cores.
elroth
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Jul 2006
Quad Core SRSLY
09/24, 06:35pm reply
If they aren't quad core, it would deter me from taking a bite. I am on the verge of buying, but I dont want to get stuck with a model I will have for 3 years or so, and only the two non SMT cores.
I am under the assumption that more and more system and 3rd party software will be taking advantage of Grand Central Dispatch over the coming years and want to set myself up for that era.
I, for one, would be disinclined to buy this round of iMacs if there wasn't a quad core option, but that's just me.
Ravensign
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Jan 2001
Damn - I just bought
09/24, 06:53pm reply
Damn - I just bought an iMac. It is to replace one stolen from the workplace so it's not as if I had much choice in the timing. But still ... damn.
martinX
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Joined: Sep 2008