Apple Upgrades iMac and iMac Pro: More Cores, More Graphics, More Memory

Apple has introduced its updated iMac all-in-one desktop computers to use Intel's latest generation processors with up to eight cores plus AMD’s latest Pro graphics, and its iMac Pro to be equipped with more memory and a faster GPU. Since Apple upgrades its iMac product line every couple of years or so, the company has every right to claim that its top-of-the-range AIO PCs are now up to twice faster than their predecessors.

The new 21.5-inch and 27-inch Apple iMac AIO desktops come in the same sleek chassis as their predecessors and use the same 4K and 5K display panels featuring the P3 color gamut and 500 nits brightness. The systems are offered with Intel’s latest Core processors paired with up to 32 GB of DDR4-2666 memory, SSD storage or a hybrid Fusion Drive storage (comprising of NAND flash used for caching and a mechanical HDDs), and a discrete AMD Radeon Pro GPU. Optionally, customers can equip their new iMacs with Intel’s eight-core Core i9 as well as AMD’s Radeon Pro Vega 48 8 GB GPU.

Since the new Apple iMac AIO desktops inherit quite a lot from their ancestors, they feature the same set of I/O capabilities, including a 802.11ac Wi-Fi + Bluetooth adapter, a GbE port, two Thunderbolt 3 connectors, four USB 3.1 Gen 2 ports, an SDXC card reader, a 3.5-mm audio jack, built-in speakers, and a webcam.

Apple’s latest 21.5-inch iMac with Intel’s quad-core Core i3 “Coffee Lake” processor and AMD’s Radeon Pro 555X 2 GB graphics adapter will start at $1,299. Meanwhile, a more advanced 21.5-inch iMac with Intel’s six-core Core i5 chip and AMD’s Radeon Pro 560X 4 GB graphics will start at $1,499.

Apple’s 27-inch iMacs with Intel’s six-core Core i5 CPUs will cost from $1,799 to $2,299 depending on the configuration. Once upgraded to Intel’s eight-core Core i9, AMD’s Radeon Pro Vega 48 8 GB, and 16 GB RAM, the price of the system will increase to $3,349.

Also updated is the iMac Pro, which uses Intel's Xeon-W line of processors. The biggest jump in this line of products is the DRAM capacity, with Apple now offering a 256 GB DDR4 option. In order to get this option, users will have to pay an extra +$5200 above the cost of the default 32 GB configuration, which a number of users have voiced is a lot of money, considering the equivalent 4x64 GB memory layout can be purchased for around $2500. Also offered is an upgrade to the Radeon Pro Vega 64X, although details on what this card has (aside from 64 compute units) has not been disclosed at this point. Based on the '12 TF Single Precision' metric on the Apple Store, it appears that the frequency has increased by 9% over the '11 TF Single Precision' Radeon Pro Vega 64 model. The price difference between the two is $150.

A fully kitted out iMac Pro now stands at $15700, with an 18-core Xeon-W, Vega 64X, 256GB of DDR4 ECC memory, and a 4TB SSD. The base model is $4999, and comes with an 8-core Xeon-W, Vega 56, 32 GB of DDR4 ECC memory, and a 1TB SSD.

Related Reading:

• Apple Starts iMac Pro Sales on Dec. 14
• ASUS Launches Zen AiO 27 Z272SD: New Design, 4K, Six-Core CPU, dGPU, 32 GB RAM
• Apple Updates The iMac Line With a 21.5" Retina Model

Source: Apple