iMac 2017: It has been a while since the Apple iMac has seen a significant upgrade. The last iMac to be announced was back in 2014, and while buyers appreciated the new device’s beautiful hardware upon its subsequent launch, they soon figured out that it came at the cost of its performance.
Two years on, the expectations from Apple about the upcoming iMac device are still soaring. But while the Cupertino, California-based company has demonstrated a lot of unique products in 2016, no news about a refreshed iMac lineup was heard. Now that we are nearing the end of the year, speculation is rife that Apple will take the iMac leaps forward in the coming year. Here are a few of the things that we know about the iMac 2017: its possible release date and rumored features.
iMac 2017 Release Date
The reason for zeroing in on 2017 is not simply because the new iMac did not make an appearance at any of the Apple events held this year. But as we all know, Apple, in celebration of its tenth year anniversary, is already expected to have some huge reveals in 2017. It would be the perfect opportunity for the company to reintroduce its iMac lineup in a whole new avatar. Needless to say, a number of rumors already indicate that the next generation iMac computers are already in development. With the iMac 2017, we are looking at a possible announcement during mid-2017 around Apple’s September event. The device may eventually go on sale in the last quarter of 2017.
iMac 2017 Rumoured Features
Not much is known about the iMac 2017 except for a few speculations that have been doing the rounds since the last device in the range came out. Here we round up a few notable ones among them.
iMac 2017 Processor: The 2015 model of the 27 inch iMac saw a massive upgrade to a Retina 5K display along with the integration of Intel’s Skylake chip. This year, Intel has already announced their new seventh generation Core i series chip called the Kaby Lake with 14nm architecture. The new processors are capable of powering ultra thin devices while boosting PC performance by 12 to 19 percent, and at the same time handling 4K UHD content far better than the previous generation Skylake.
But while the company had mentioned that the chip would be behind some of the thinnest laptops in the world, the desktop front was left unclarified. However, the Kaby Lake lineup for desktops is likely to be revealed sometime early next year, according to the announcement made by officials. This suggests the possibility that Apple will incorporate the new series of processors to power the iMac 2017 owing to the convenience of timing.
Another possibility is that Apple will skip the Kaby Lake series entirely and wait to upgrade the iMac 2017 with the upcoming Cannonlake chip from Intel that will be built with 10nm architecture. Along with a new processor, we think it we should be able to see a significant upgrade in storage. Up until now, the iMacs that we have seen have come with 8GB of RAM. But considering the fact that it has been a while since we have seen a major upgrade in the iMacs, we expect to see the new iMac 2017 to come with 16GB of DDR storage. And this source suggests that it might just happen in 2017.
VR support for iMac 2017: Some other rumors state that the new iMac 2017 will come with VR support. One of the primary upgrades in the iMac 2015 was visuals-oriented, and now Apple has the opportunity to step into the growing VR market with the upcoming iMac 2017. According to iTech Post, the next-gen iMacs will come with VR technology aided by an AMD Radeon RX GPU.
iMac 2017 to come with Touch Bar? Apple recently launched the 2016 MacBook Pro with a cool new upgrade. The new laptops feature a Touch Bar on top of the keyboard which adapts itself to functions according to what is running on the screen. A report on BitBag speculates that the same could become a feature in the iMac 2017. Similar to the MacBook Pro 2016, the iMac 2017‘s keyboard will feature the Touch Bar at the top and will have the capability of adapting and performing with any software that the user runs on the screen. While the integration of the Touch Bar into the upcoming iMac 2017 is merely a speculation based on the latest MacBook Pro, it may not too much of a stretch to consider it a possibility. After all, Apple is expected to bring a major overhaul in terms of design and specs of the devices it will add to its lineup. The fact that the Touch Bar is already an existing feature in some of Apple’s devices helps to add more fuel to the fire.
iMac 2017 Price
Little is known about how Apple is planning to price their newest range of iMacs. But going by this year’s releases, the iMac 2017 will see a significant hike in its prices. The MacBook Pro 2016 is one of the most expensive laptops available in the market, despite its lack of significant upgrades in performance abilities (they still run on Intel’s Skylake chip). Additionally, Apple has hiked the prices of many of its existing range of devices, including the Mac mini, the iMac 4K, and the iMac 5K. The existing range of iMacs is priced between $1,099 (for the 21.5-inch variant) and $1,999 (for the 27-inch 5K one).
It is safe to say that the new iMac 2017 will be priced significantly higher than that, owing to all the notable upgrades it is expected to bring.
In conclusion, the iMac 2017 is definitely something we are looking forward to. While most of the mentioned features are speculations (Apple is famed for maintaining top-notch secrecy about its upcoming devices), some of them do seem practicable. The timing is just right for Apple to deliver something big in its range of desktops, and we can’t wait to see what the company achieves with the iMac 2017. Stay tuned for more updates.