
Apple Updates iMac - techinsidr
http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2013/09/24Apple-Updates-iMac.html
======
rickdale
I own and love my 27inch iMac. It exemplifies the quote from Apple's senior
vice president:

 _“iMac continues to be the example that proves how beautiful, fast and fun a
desktop computer can be,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president
of Worldwide Marketing. "_

But as someone that doesn't like to mess with hardware too often, I am very
disappointed at how difficult it is to change a simple hard drive on this
machine, and that they don't figure out how to make it easier. My computer is
beautiful, but I have to suction off the glass display to change the hard
drive.

The other day I upgraded my PS3 to an ssd with almost zero knowledge of what I
was doing. There was a tab, a screw, and a lever. Unplug tab, unscrew screw,
pull lever, replace hard drive. Took < 5 minutes.

I understand aesthetic beautiful designs, but something about the way inside
my iMac makes me feel like its a big design flaw. I knew what I was getting
into when I bought this computer, but I was hoping in the future, updates to
the iMac would make it much easier.

I guess in the end, the beauty of the design is in the eye of the beholder.
Tough to make everyone happy...

~~~
bowlofpetunias
Who still upgrades their own machine?

I like to tinker with hardware a little, which is why every 3 years or so I
put my own home server together even though I could probably buy a cheaper
ready-made solution.

In the days of my old Apple Powerbook I've pretty much replaced everything
from memory, harddisk to optical drive, even though the latter definitely
wasn't made to be upgraded by end-uses.

But in the last 10 years I've never had to upgrade any hardware, not even the
stuff I've put together myself. The days where upgrading was a natural part of
the lifecycle of a computer are in the past.

Storage and memory has become cheaper so computers are well equipped from the
start, and the need for rapid upgrades in order to be able to use the latest
software is no longer an issue except in very small niches.

~~~
Miyamoto
> _Who still upgrades their own machine?_

Hardware enthusiasts? PC gamers? Really, what a silly question on a tech
oriented website. That's like asking who works on their car over at Jalopnik.

~~~
bowlofpetunias
Personal computers aren't interesting "tech" anymore, they are commodity
consumer products which most of us discard after a few years.

Tinkering with your own PC is rapidly becoming a niche similar to model
trains. (Or working on your own car, also completely unnecessary and doesn't
yield any new insights or advances.)

It's not about tech and curiosity anymore, just another hobby. And as such,
you'll never see discussions about it on HN, there are other forums for such
hobbyists.

~~~
Touche
I don't know what you think HN is for, but -- and maybe I'm completely wrong
on this -- hacking computers is surely part of it. We also discuss every day
computing as well, of course, but not exclusively. _That_ would be silly and
uninteresting.

------
Pxtl
I'm mostly disappointed in how poor the Win32-based hardware vendors are at
following Apple's lead. Apple is narrowing the cost gap in their hardware, and
their quality is still leaps and bounds ahead of the competitors.

If I want to buy a solid all-in-one device with a minimally usable on-board
videocard so I could fire up the occasional game (not a hardcore gaming rig
but keeping lighter fare an option) then the competitors are quite close to
Apple in cost.

It's the same in laptops - while geeks argue about performance, Apple's
devices have build-quality that blows everything else out of the water. If you
start looking at similarly-constructed competitors, Apple's prices don't seem
crazy at all.

~~~
bsimpson
The Chromebook Pixel has better hardware features than the MacBook line. (The
touchscreen and LTE are both fantastic options.) But, pricewise, it's not far
off from Apple's either.

~~~
tomp
It has a really poor harddrive (32GB) - I realize it's not meant to be used
offline, but the world is not yet fully online.

Also, what system is it running? For me, one of the main advantages of owning
a mac is the OS - nice, slick, fast, *NIX (hence good for developers), without
all the configuration hassle of Linux.

~~~
maaku
Interesting how you call OS X UNIX, as opposed to Linux.

~~~
bpaluzzi
If by "interesting", you mean "accurate"

~~~
maaku
By "interesting" I mean a BSD veneer over a Mach core is only marginally
better UNIX compatibility than Windows Services for UNIX (also POSIX
certified). Did you know you can call Mach directly to override basically all
the UNIX emulation, including access permissions?

------
tuananh
Command+F -> "Retina" -> 0 of 0 ಠ╭╮ಠ

~~~
kalleboo
I'm hoping for a timeline of:

Winter 2013: Mac Pro for sale, announced together with 30" 4K retina display

Spring 2014: MacBook Pro Retina updated to support 4K output

Fall 2014: High end iMac gets retina option

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nikolakirev
Very "quiet" update. I hope this means, that Apple will have too much other
stuff to show off at their October event (expected to be announced soon).

~~~
bbrks
Here's hoping. I've been waiting for a Retina Macbook Pro for about 8 months
now.

~~~
statusgraph
Do you mean MacBook Air? The Pros have been retina for a while :)

~~~
rickyc091
MBPR refresh probably. I'm in the same boat :(

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chmars
I ordered an iMac three days ago, it has not been shipped. Is there any change
that I will get an updated model?

(No, I do of course not demand an updated model for me, I am happy if I get
what I ordered and paid.)

~~~
rickyc091
You have 14 days to return an apple product, opened or unopened, no questions
asked. They will definitely upgrade your device to the latest model if you
bring it in, done it for a macbook laptop before.

~~~
chmars
Thanks, good to know!

(I actually checked on the local Apple website if you are correct since my
home country is not known for being consumer friendly. In this case, however,
it is Apple being consumer friendly …)

------
MattBearman
Somewhat related: Anyone know if they're going updating the displays soon?

I'm about to buy a 27" Thunderbolt display, but I don't wanna drop £900 on a
screen only for a better one to be released one month later...

~~~
ChikkaChiChi
Depends on what feature you are looking for.

For laptop users, the displays still require you to use a dongle for Magsafe2.
I consider this unacceptable.

If you are waiting for a Retina screen, you're screwed. IMO this soft launch
indicates no Retina iMac is forthcoming in the near future.

~~~
MattBearman
I've got a late 2011 (non-retina) MBP, so old style magsafe connector suits
me. There's been a lot of hints at a 4k screen to match the new Mac Pro.

Not looking for any features in particular, I've just got a bad habbit of
buying something just before it gets updated :s

~~~
jpmatz
Could you please buy it now?

~~~
MattBearman
Care to elaborate?

Edit: no wait, just got it! I'm having a slow day today :)

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johnbellone
There is yet a solid date on 10.9 release (sometime in October?) and Apple is
updating the iMac line. From the article it says they are shipping with
Mountain Lion - I hope that the machines that ship have a free upgrade path to
10.9 because I would hate to have to put out another $20.

~~~
Samuel_Michon
> I hope that the machines that ship have a free upgrade path to 10.9

They will, Apple takes care of that via their Up-to-Date program.

When Mountain Lion was announced Apple gave free upgrades for people who
bought a computer in the 45 days preceding the release:
[http://www.macrumors.com/2012/07/25/apples-os-x-mountain-
lio...](http://www.macrumors.com/2012/07/25/apples-os-x-mountain-lion-up-to-
date-program-experiencing-early-hiccups/)

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jsvaughan
It is me, or is Haswell taking a very long time to become available
everywhere? The Haswell Mac Air came out 3 months ago, (June 10th), but you
still can't get it in a MBP or a Thinkpad, and can only now get it in an iMac.

~~~
tedunangst
Haswell is more different than ivy bridge. More changes, more verification.
Apple and thinkpad lines are also the slowest updating, IMO. They keep
existing models around for a lot longer than the two weeks it seems acer or
asus do.

------
fortepianissimo
It might be wiser to wait until Mavericks is shipped.

~~~
ropiku
See above, Apple usually gives free upgrade to people who bought a computer in
the 45 days preceding the release.

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Shivetya
as was known when these new thin models launched, always wait for the second
iteration. They are significantly better performance wise.

~~~
_pius
_... always wait for the second iteration. They are significantly better
performance wise._

In fairness, you could give the same advice about practically any technology
purchase one will ever make.

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jokoon
I love how those iMac can run windows. the hardware is nice, and it runs
windows, since laptop PC hardware is not that good.

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gxespino
They make it hard to upgrade because they want you to bring it in and get it
done = added revenue.

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ChikkaChiChi
Is Apple getting gunshy about iterative releases? Back in Steve's day this
would have been tacked on to at least the launch of something like the new Mac
Pro.

~~~
vvhn
That's quite a selective "Back in Steve's day" memory. A lot of spec bumps
like this one for Macs and Macbooks happened exactly through press releases
like these.

~~~
wmeredith
>> That's quite a selective "Back in Steve's day" memory.

Is there any other kind?

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eugeneross
Oh you Apple. You sneaky bastards. I still love you though...

