{"id":8915,"date":"2024-06-03T13:03:51","date_gmt":"2024-06-03T17:03:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tcn.tidbits.com\/?p=10481"},"modified":"2024-06-03T19:36:25","modified_gmt":"2024-06-03T23:36:25","slug":"sorry-apple-isnt-going-to-update-the-27-inch-imac-with-apple-silicon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.macworks.com\/blog\/sorry-apple-isnt-going-to-update-the-27-inch-imac-with-apple-silicon\/","title":{"rendered":"Sorry, Apple Isn\u2019t Going to Update the 27-inch iMac with Apple Silicon"},"content":{"rendered":"

Are you a 27-inch iMac owner wondering when Apple will release a new model with speedy Apple silicon? We hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the answer seems to be an unequivocal \u201cNever.\u201d Late last year, Apple confirmed to The Verge<\/a> that it would not be making an Apple silicon version of the 27-inch iMac. Technically, that leaves open the possibility of a 32-inch iMac, for instance, but that feels like wishful thinking given the $5000 cost of Apple\u2019s 32-inch Pro Display XDR<\/a>. How did we get here, and where should 27-inch iMac owners look next?<\/p>\n

Apple introduced the 27-inch iMac with 5K Retina display in 2014 and updated it several times before discontinuing it in 2022. It was hugely popular due to its large, gorgeous screen and a price that made the guts of the Mac seem cheap when paired with such a nice screen. An 8-year run isn\u2019t bad, but once Apple introduced the powerful Mac Studio<\/a> and the 27-inch Studio Display<\/a> (also a 5K Retina display), the company felt there was no room for the 27-inch iMac in the lineup.<\/p>\n

Apple isn\u2019t necessarily wrong. One of the reasons 27-inch iMac owners are so attached to their Macs is that they can\u2019t upgrade the computer and keep using that lovely screen, which remains one of the best available. Target Display Mode<\/a> (which lets you use some much older iMacs as an external display for another Mac) never supported that model of iMac, and although the $80 Luna Display<\/a> dongle does let you use a 27-inch iMac as a screen for another Mac, its tradeoffs may be hard to accept<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In the new world order, an Apple silicon Mac paired with a Studio Display provides a fast, capable Mac you can swap for a newer one when necessary and an extremely nice display you can use across multiple Macs. It\u2019s not uncommon for an external display to last a decade or more, whereas many businesses upgrade their Macs every 3 to 5 years. A Studio Display could easily outlast two or three Macs.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut, but, but,\u201d we can hear you spluttering, \u201cwhat about the 24-inch iMac with Apple silicon?\u201d It may seem odd for Apple to drop the 27-inch model but keep a smaller iMac around. The reason is that the 24-inch iMac<\/a> is meant to be a low-cost Mac that doesn\u2019t skimp on display quality. It has a 4.5K Retina display that\u2019s just a little smaller than the 27-inch iMac\u2019s 5K Retina display while matching its quality. (Those numbers refer to the number of horizontal pixels on the screen\u20144,480 or 5,120\u2014although the actual resolutions nearly everyone uses are half that to get crisp text at a readable size.) A Mac mini<\/a> paired with an inexpensive external display would be cheaper than a 24-inch iMac, but you would have trouble getting a comparably good display for so little. The 24-inch iMac is perfect for a receptionist\u2019s desk or a family\u2019s kitchen computer, and its M3 chip will seriously outperform the Intel chips in the now-discontinued 27-inch iMac.<\/p>\n

So, let\u2019s assume you\u2019ve been holding onto your 27-inch iMac, but it\u2019s finally time to move on. The calculus of what to buy has changed due to the excellent performance of the Apple silicon Macs, even on the low end, and the existence of the Studio Display. Here\u2019s what we recommend for different needs:<\/p>\n