Poll: *** The official M3 24” iMac thread (it has the M3 chip and everything!) ***

[visibleman]

AIO's in general are a pretty dying breed of form factor I think. Can just use a ipad/laptop or mac mini with a much nicer monitor if you need the screen real estate

There's a reason why iMac's aren't dying...
iPad's and tablets aren't comparable to an iMac, certainly not for business or education. Laptops (MBA etc) + comparable monitor is a lot more expensive than an iMac. And you're not really saving a huge amount (we worked it out to be ~£200) with a Mini + comparable monitor combo, we currently dish out U2723QE's at work (IMO, the current 24" iMac is still marginally better for bleed and reflection), whilst also being a bit more cumbersome in looks, which can be important for a certain type of business, and setup, using an iMac + DEP/ADE you essentially drop ship one box to staff and it's very easy for them to setup.

If they were truly 'dying' and not a money maker, Apple would drop them rather than keep pedalling new models. Where AIO's are almost non-existant is in the PC world as there's limited choice, with most being poorly spec'd, or they're really, really expensive, a la Microsoft Studio.

 

[Capitano]

There's a reason why iMac's aren't dying...
iPad's and tablets aren't comparable to an iMac, certainly not for business or education. Laptops (MBA etc) + comparable monitor is a lot more expensive than an iMac. And you're not really saving a huge amount (we worked it out to be ~£200) with a Mini + comparable monitor combo, we currently dish out U2723QE's at work (IMO, the current 24" iMac is still marginally better for bleed and reflection), whilst also being a bit more cumbersome in looks, which can be important for a certain type of business, and setup, using an iMac + DEP/ADE you essentially drop ship one box to staff and it's very easy for them to setup.

If they were truly 'dying' and not a money maker, Apple would drop them rather than keep pedalling new models. Where AIO's are almost non-existant is in the PC world as there's limited choice, with most being poorly spec'd, or they're really, really expensive, a la Microsoft Studio.

actually they are dying shown by their sales figures and the fact they rarely upgrade them.

And after its just come out that the imac pro 27 has been scrapped, its only a matter of time before the regular imac gets scrapped too. Unless of course they plan on updating the design massively

 

[b0rn2sk8]

The iMac Pro is not a good or even relevant analog. I doubt the it sold in any meaningful volume outside the initial rush.

The ‘pro’ audience have a far better solution anyway studio + studio display. I don’t know why anyone would buy an ‘new’ iMac Pro over that combo for serious work.

 

[Feek]

And after its just come out that the imac pro 27 has been scrapped,

The iMac Pro was discontinued some years ago. Apple have simply confirmed that they’re not working on a 27” iMac. That doesn’t mean that there won’t be another larger iMac, either 30” or 32”.

 

[visibleman]

actually they are dying shown by their sales figures...

Got a source for this?

...and the fact they rarely upgrade them.

As for Apple rarely upgrading them, Apple have either updated them yearly or every two years - https://everymac.com/systems/apple/imac/index-imac.html.

Unless of course they plan on updating the design massively

They introduced a substantial redesign for 2020 for the new Apple Silicon variant, why do they need to update the "design massively" again?

And after its just come out that the imac pro 27 has been scrapped, its only a matter of time before the regular imac gets scrapped too.

The last 27" iMac was released in August 2020 and, as @Feek said, they discontinued the (Intel) 27" back in March last year and just confirmed there wouldn't be a 27" in the current design/Apple Silicon..

However, there's plenty of rumours that a 32" iMac will be released in the next few years - https://www.macrumors.com/2023/10/17/32-inch-imac-coming-in-2025/, https://www.macworld.com/article/349270/imac-pro-release-date-display-price.html, https://www.theverge.com/2023/7/9/23788627/apple-imac-32-inch-mac-os-retina-apple-silicon, https://macback.co.uk/blog/2024-release-date-possible-for-apples-32-inch-imac/ etc

 

[Stu999]

Got a source for this?

https://www.tomshardware.com/software/macos/sales-of-macs-down-34-year-over-year-but-apple-is-optimistic#:~:text=MacOS-,Mac%20Sales%20Crater%3A%20Down%2034%25%20Year%2DOver%2D,Year%2C%20But%20Apple%20Is%20Optimistic&text=According%20to%20Apple's%20FY23%20earnings,over%2Dyear%20in%20Q4%20FY2023.

 

[Feek]

https://www.tomshardware.com/software/macos/sales-of-macs-down-34-year-over-year-but-apple-is-optimistic#:~:text=MacOS-,Mac%20Sales%20Crater%3A%20Down%2034%25%20Year%2DOver%2D,Year%2C%20But%20Apple%20Is%20Optimistic&text=According%20to%20Apple's%20FY23%20earnings,over%2Dyear%20in%20Q4%20FY2023.

That's an awful article. For example, two headlines, one after another.

Sales of Macs and iPhones Disappoint​

But iPhones and Services Prosper​

Somewhat contradictory. If you read into the article, the reason iMac sales are down is because they were so huge the previous years due to the switch over to Apple Silicon. It's natural progression, sales of the new devices were enormous and that level is completely unsustainable.

 

[Stu999]

@Feek, yes and I don’t know if several billion dollars of revenue is exactly “dying” either.

 

[jeffk]

The iMac won’t die. Many of AppleTV+’s shows have office scenes and they can’t be showing Windows PCs on people’s desks.

 

[visibleman]

https://www.tomshardware.com/software/macos/sales-of-macs-down-34-year-over-year-but-apple-is-optimistic#:~:text=MacOS-,Mac%20Sales%20Crater%3A%20Down%2034%25%20Year%2DOver%2D,Year%2C%20But%20Apple%20Is%20Optimistic&text=According%20to%20Apple's%20FY23%20earnings,over%2Dyear%20in%20Q4%20FY2023.

It's Mac's as a whole and that's in a current downward trend of slowing sales (back to pre-covid) in the whole personal computing sector, ie - it's not just Apple affected.

I've yet to find anything that specifically states iMac sales are down (that's outside of the norm) and therefore "dying" as @Capitano is suggesting. I'm all ears if anyone has a source that shows that though

The iMac won’t die. Many of AppleTV+’s shows have office scenes and they can’t be showing Windows PCs on people’s desks.

Exactly!

 

[Capitano]

They introduced a substantial redesign for 2020 for the new Apple Silicon variant, why do they need to update the "design massively" again?

changing the colours whilst still having that fat ugly chin isnt a design overhaul

 

[Capitano]

might be just me then, the point of an imac seems a bit pointless when you can get a macbook or a mac mini

 

[visibleman]

changing the colours whilst still having that fat ugly chin isnt a design overhaul

It's to house the logic board to help reduce thickness of the device and the 2020 design was a complete overhaul compared to previous model(s) of iMac. Although i'm still not sure how the design is connected to the iMac supposedly dying and another redesign will somehow prevent that happening

might be just me then, the point of an imac seems a bit pointless when you can get a macbook or a mac mini

Must be given they're still selling and preferable (in some situations) over a MacBook or Mac Mini.

 

[Feek]

I feel the 'chin' issue is largely from people who haven't owned and used an iMac. I've been using iMacs since 2011 and when I'm using the computer, I don't even notice it. I moved the iMac from my shack to my office last year when I got the Studio and the Studio display. When I'm in the shack, I don't think 'oh thank goodness, I'm not looking at the chin' and when I'm in the office using the iMac, I've never once thought 'oh, I wish I was in the shack using a display without the chin'.

It's completely and utterly irrelevant. It's never been a problem.

/edit - Just texted my mate Andy who bought an M1 iMac earlier this year to replace a very old Intel iMac and asked him what he thought of the chin. His reply: "what chin?"

 

[Capitano]

No matter how Apple spins it, people have stopped buying Macs

After a 34-percent drop, sales are basically back where they were before Apple silicon (and the pandemic) arrived.

www.macworld.com

big yikes!

 

[b0rn2sk8]

Shock horror, Apple isn’t some kind of magic force that can buck the general trend of the PC market.

Have you seen PC shipments lately? They are literally in the toilet and no one is shipping the kind of volumes they were during peak pandemic.

There is a reason you can get a very good 1tb NVME drive which cost >£150 in early 2020 for £55 these days and that despite the £lol inflation.

Edit: it’s pretty much only GPUs which are bucking the general trend and that’s only because nvidia is selling as many cards as they can make to the AI market. Consumer sales are well down by comparison.

 

[Emlyn_Dewar]

£1,399.00 and it comes with 8gb RAM.
Desktop sales down everywhere, but if I was looking to recommend a desktop for friends/family it wouldn't be this.

I do think it looks good though.

 

[b0rn2sk8]

As much as apples ram and SSD upgrade rates annd ‘pro’ machines starting with 8gb of ram is a disgrace.

But back in the real world, 8gb of ram has near zero impact on normies who buy these iMacs.

My wife still uses an ancient Intel MacBook Air which only has 4gb ram and it’s perfectly fine.

 

[visibleman]

It's completely and utterly irrelevant. It's never been a problem.

It is a bit of a non-issue, even the G5 was fine and that was a thicc boy. Although i don't understand why they decided to chase thinness with the current design as they could have potentially tucked the logic board away behind the display and removed the chin/made the surround a lot smaller.

Desktop sales down everywhere, but if I was looking to recommend a desktop for friends/family it wouldn't be this.

What equivalent AIO would you recommend that isn't an iMac though?

Granted, if footprint (and OS) isn't an issue then a traditional desktop is definitely more bang for buck but you're left a bit out if you need something decent that's compact.

At work we did look at Dell MFF's with a vesa mount for something similar to an iMac but, once spec'd and priced with monitor, again, you're not far off an iMac.

No matter how Apple spins it, people have stopped buying Macs

After a 34-percent drop, sales are basically back where they were before Apple silicon (and the pandemic) arrived.

www.macworld.com

big yikes!

Already explained a few posts above. However, have you got any financial statements, or any source to be honest, to collaborate your statement that (specifically) iMac's are 'dying'?

 

[LiE]

I know this is the thread for the M3 iMac but I've just bought the base M1 iMac for my wife's salon to use on reception.

It's a good price, especially since the VAT can be reclaimed, effectively costing the business £666.66.

Even at £799.99 that's really good value for a general purpose device.