Apple April 20 event - New iMac and iPad Pro with M1 chips, 'AirTags' and a new iPhone color

[Blademaster91]

I don't quite understand the new imac design, and those colors are interesting I guess but it makes the imac look like a kids toy, not something a professional would use.

But why make that power plug stick out so much from the rear, and why are the bezels white? It looks worse than the previous imac IMO.

Also no upgradeable ram, and no USB A which it should have room for, seems pointless to have a desktop yet need a dongle to plug a regular USB drive into. And ethernet being integrated into the power adapter is just kinda weird.

[FakeNSA]

1 minute ago, NotTheFirstDaniel said:

The chin is where the motherboard is. I mean they COULD'VE gotten rid of the chin and moved the motherboard literally anywhere else, but that would've made it .2mm thicker!

 

I'm just mad that they didn't put their logo on it like the older iMac. That would've made it look more like an intended design than a waste of space.

I think your issues will be solved with the iMac Pro that's rumored to come out later this year.

 

Something that makes me a bit confused is that the new Magic Keyboard is I think the ONLY wireless keyboard on the market that has biometric authentication. Yet it has no backlighting... Apple's design decisions are crazy.

 

Something that *actually* looks like an innovation though is the new color calibration feature on the Apple TV. I know calibrators exist, but to have it just be with your phone and an Apple TV (two things you might already have when you're going to buy a new TV), pretty "magical".

For some users, absolutely.

However, the vast majority of office users use "standard" machines, what would have been an i5 and 16gb of ram, before Apple Silicon.

As such, most people who have an imac of this class today, will be moving to this model, and thus will experience... inconvenience due to apple's design decisions.

But hey, it could have been far worse!

[avg123]

2 minutes ago, FakeNSA said:

For some users, absolutely.

However, the vast majority of office users use "standard" machines, what would have been an i5 and 16gb of ram, before Apple Silicon.

As such, most people who have an imac of this class today, will be moving to this model, and thus will experience... inconvenience due to apple's design decisions.

But hey, it could have been far worse!

i think they are intending the imac pro fpr office users. they havent refreshed the imac pro, meaning it will come later this year with better specs and more ports

[mon1ka]

11 minutes ago, SeanChronicR said:

15 minutes ago, avg123 said:

firing

The chin is an iconic part of the look of the iMac

Imac with a buttchin when Apple? 

 

10 minutes ago, Laborant said:

 

I mean... the trusty iPad Air would be sufficient... right?

If you're just using apps like photoshop as you said, you should be fine. 4 of my friends use ipad airs for drawing and they love it. 

[SeanChronicR]

2 minutes ago, Blademaster91 said:

I don't quite understand the new imac design, and those colors are interesting I guess but it makes the imac look like a kids toy, not something a professional would use.

But why make that power plug stick out so much from the rear, and why are the bezels white? It looks worse than the previous imac IMO.

Also no upgradeable ram, and no USB A which it should have room for, seems pointless to have a desktop yet need a dongle to plug a regular USB drive into. And ethernet being integrated into the power adapter is just kinda weird.

I'm not sure how to say this without sounding judgey but as far as the colors are concerned... totally fits in with their uh "demographic*" like I can just imagine imagine the modern open "hip" office like at the hootsuite HQ in Vancouver I suppose

 

*dirty hipsters, graphic artists and peoples who homes look like a Apple Store

[mon1ka]

2 minutes ago, avg123 said:

they havent refreshed the imac pro, meaning it will come later this year with better specs and more ports

Trashcan: eternal

 

2 minutes ago, avg123 said:

i think they are intending the imac pro fpr office users.

I agree, it's their style first function later line up. Tho maybe that's my bias speaking 

[Flannelist]

17 minutes ago, avg123 said:

but why does it still have a chin? WHYYY? could have easily gotten rid of it since the speakers are down firing, not front firing

I'm honestly not even sure what the rest of the machine even has in it? If the logic board from the event is actually what it looks like, it's tiny and is mostly in the bottom third? quarter? of the display. Okay so, the whole logic board is like the same size as one in a macbook now because m1. And external power supply (if I saw that right, was watching on mute with the captions on at work) So the rest of the internals are just empty space?

[NotTheFirstDaniel]

3 minutes ago, Blademaster91 said:

I don't quite understand the new imac design, and those colors are interesting I guess but it makes the imac look like a kids toy, not something a professional would use.

 

These EXACT words were said over 20 years ago when the iMac G3 came out, yet they still sold like hot cakes. The same will happen to these iMacs.

 

Not that Apple even marketed this at professionals, because most "Pros" shouldn't A) be buying "lifestyle" devices in the first place for actual work, and B) will need much more power than the M1 has to offer (especially graphically since there are no eGPUs that work on M1), but if you're a professional and the color green or blue is too distracting for you, I don't think the colors on the computer are the issue. And even if this was a common complaint, they still sell a silver iMac, the same color as the one they replaced.

4 minutes ago, Blademaster91 said:

Also no upgradeable ram, and no USB A which it should have room for, seems pointless to have a desktop yet need a dongle to plug a regular USB drive into.

The 21.5" iMac did not have upgradable RAM. It was only the 27" iMac.

 

USB-A I could see being an issue. I think at the end of the day, people who already own Apple devices don't care about ports anymore, but for any potential switchers, it could be a point of contention.

9 minutes ago, Blademaster91 said:

And ethernet being integrated into the power adapter is just kinda weird.

Could just be that Apple couldn't fit an ethernet jack into that small of an enclosure. Or that they don't want lots of cables hanging out of the computer. I'm surprised that they didn't just make a USB-C power supply because theoretically the M1 peak power usage is like what, 50W? Why did they bring MagSafe to the iMac and not the MacBook?

 

[NotTheFirstDaniel]

3 minutes ago, Flannelist said:

So the rest of the internals are just empty space?

I'd assume it would have heat pipes for passive airflow. I really don't think Apple wants the fans on this machine spinning.

[avg123]

4 minutes ago, NotTheFirstDaniel said:

I'm surprised that they didn't just make a USB-C power supply because theoretically the M1 peak power usage is like what, 50W? Why did they bring MagSafe to the iMac and not the MacBook?

 

they did put magsafe on the new imac. the power port is magnetic

[AndreiArgeanu]

3 minutes ago, NotTheFirstDaniel said:

I'd assume it would have heat pipes for passive airflow. I really don't think Apple wants the fans on this machine spinning.

Nope, I'd imagine it has Apple's patented Wireless Heatpipe™ design paired with those two fans.

[NotTheFirstDaniel]

1 minute ago, AndreiArgeanu said:

Nope, I'd imagine it has Apple's patented Wireless Heatpipe™ design paired with those two fans.

The CPU is literally on the complete opposite side...

[The_russian]

Any word on if the new iPad Pro will be able to have an external monitor in extend mode instead of mirror? If I remember correctly the current iPad Pro supports external monitors but you can only mirror the screen, which kind of defeats the purpose of a second display for most people.

[Flannelist]

Just now, NotTheFirstDaniel said:

I'd assume it would have heat pipes for passive airflow. I really don't think Apple wants the fans on this machine spinning.

Rewatched the video, and they actually show a cross section of the internals. No passive cooling that i see anyways. And I'm not surprised, Apple's thermal solutions typically don't impress me much. I know the M1 is supposed to run pretty cool anyways. Trying to trace cables and stuff, looks like antennas and the like. And maybe something for additional speaker oomph? I can't tell from this picture. But doesn't look like cooling to me.

 

[Blademaster91]

6 minutes ago, NotTheFirstDaniel said:

These EXACT words were said over 20 years ago when the iMac G3 came out, yet they still sold like hot cakes. The same will happen to these iMacs.

 

Not that Apple even marketed this at professionals, because most "Pros" shouldn't A) be buying "lifestyle" devices in the first place for actual work, and B) will need much more power than the M1 has to offer (especially graphically since there are no eGPUs that work on M1), but if you're a professional and the color green or blue is too distracting for you, I don't think the colors on the computer are the issue. And even if this was a common complaint, they still sell a silver iMac, the same color as the one they replaced.

Well yeah thats true, its still going to sell, although it appears Apple wants to segment the "lifestyle" and "pro" machines. If you want the space grey imac you're probably going to be forced to buy the imac pro.

But the thing that makes it look awful IMO is the lack of a logo on the front, the white bezel combined with a plain front just make it look boring, or some concept design that shouldn't have been approved.

6 minutes ago, NotTheFirstDaniel said:

The 21.5" iMac did not have upgradable RAM. It was only the 27" iMac.

 

USB-A I could see being an issue. I think at the end of the day, people who already own Apple devices don't care about ports anymore, but for any potential switchers, it could be a point of contention.

Ah,ok but still the 21.5" mac was the only cheap option, but idk who was buying those besides maybe schools.

I guess I'm not the target audience for a mac then, having a few ports is still nice for a USB flash drive, or being able to use any standard wired mouse or keyboard.

6 minutes ago, NotTheFirstDaniel said:

Could just be that Apple couldn't fit an ethernet jack into that small of an enclosure. Or that they don't want lots of cables hanging out of the computer. I'm surprised that they didn't just make a USB-C power supply because theoretically the M1 peak power usage is like what, 50W? Why did they bring MagSafe to the iMac and not the MacBook?

The proprietary power plug is magnetic, although yeah I agree a USB-C power supply would've been better. Although cables hanging off the back doesn't seem like a concern to me, not with that large power plug hanging off the back.

[avg123]

6 minutes ago, Flannelist said:

 

 

So much empty space at the top!!! they could have literally kept the design same and just shifted everything up a couple of inches and gotten rid of that chin 

[Waltz157]

Also wish the iMacs came with higher memory options. The 8GB shared between the CPU and GPU doesn't seem enough for some more intense workloads/applications. I'm also curious to see if the newer iPad Pro will have greater availability than the iPad Air. My housemate recently bought an Air but it took him months to find one because they were sold out everywhere.

 

I like the colors, I think they're fun.

[agatong55]

Not a Mac fan, but can someone explain to me why there is only a 8 and 16 gig option of these? 

[NotTheFirstDaniel]

6 minutes ago, Waltz157 said:

I'm also curious to see if the newer iPad Pro will have greater availability than the iPad Air.

The iPad Pro is 100% going to be a paper launch.

 

Chip shortage + display panel shortage, and the new iPad Pro uses Mini LED displays. I would be surprised if these things don't sell out in minutes.

[Waltz157]

1 minute ago, NotTheFirstDaniel said:

The iPad Pro is 100% going to be a paper launch.

Figured as much - can't say I was going to buy one but I'm sure others out there will be disappointed.

[NotTheFirstDaniel]

20 minutes ago, The_russian said:

Any word on if the new iPad Pro will be able to have an external monitor in extend mode instead of mirror? If I remember correctly the current iPad Pro supports external monitors but you can only mirror the screen, which kind of defeats the purpose of a second display for most people.

The iPad Pro mirrors AND extends, but it will only extend on an app by app basis, and only if the app supports it. Usually for video editing so you can see a preview on your monitor and get the timeline on your iPad.

[NotTheFirstDaniel]

2 minutes ago, Waltz157 said:

Figured as much - can't say I was going to buy one but I'm sure others out there will be disappointed.

I was looking at an 11" iPad Pro but I waited until today because I knew if Apple launched it at the same starting price, the 2018 ones would become a lot cheaper. I still think vey little has changed between now and 2018 to make either the 2020 or 2021 iPad Pro a better purchase.

[JoseGuya]

If WWDC brings macOS to the M1 iPad, its an insta buy from me. Pls papa Tim!!

[n0stalghia]

27 minutes ago, NotTheFirstDaniel said:

The iPad Pro is 100% going to be a paper launch.

 

Chip shortage + display panel shortage, and the new iPad Pro uses Mini LED displays. I would be surprised if these things don't sell out in minutes.

Highly unlikely. After all chip manufacturers reduced their % of TSMC's production after Covid hit, Apple bought a lot of it up. It's the only manufacturer that had no problems. Remember, the M1 MacBook Pros released in November 2020, after GPUs were already long gone, and there was no shortages.

[Commodus]

1 hour ago, Laborant said:

I expected to buy an iPad as my first Apple-Device ever for "supercharged Illustrator-Photoshop-Fresco-experience" (and reading my newspaper). Now I'm really thinking about, if the "drawing tablet" really needs more processing power than my "Work from Home"-PC. Luckily, my privately owned gaming PC is still more powerful *phew*
My inner nerd even wants the full 16 Gigs of RAM. But that's so expensive for a tablet.. 

 

I mean... the trusty iPad Air would be sufficient... right?

The iPad Air will be more than enough unless you intend to live on your iPad. No 12.9-inch screen, but it'll be fast and otherwise cover the bases.