Apple’s upcoming iMac refresh is expected to super-size the display, with more leaks underscoring an increase in panel size is on the cards for the new all-in-one. Believed to be in the pipeline for later in 2021, the new iMac looks set to mark the further expansion of Apple Silicon, the company’s homegrown chips.
It’s certainly been some time since the iMac as we know it today was significantly updated. The last refresh came in mid-2020, though that only affected internal components, with new Intel processors among other changes.
The external design, though, and the two screen sizes – 21.5-inches for the more affordable iMac, and 27-inches for the more powerful version – date back to 2012. Recent leaks have tipped an altogether more noticeable revamp is in the pipeline, however. That would pick up on Pro Display XDR aesthetics, as well as slimming the bezels and cutting away the “chin” of the all-in-one.
That’s what established Apple leaker l0vetodream has lent credence to, 9to5Mac reports, with suggestions that the new iMac screen will be “really big, bigger than the biggest one.” By way of contrast, the Pro Display XDR has a 32-inch panel. However it’s also significantly more expensive, at $4,999 without a stand, given the Retina 6K resolution and high color accuracy.
A more affordable display in the new iMac could offer to bridge the gap somewhat. Apple could opt for Retina 5K resolution, for instance, on a 32-inch panel, giving users more space but compromising somewhat on the color profiles and Extreme Dynamic Range. In the process, it could effectively fill the gap left by both the discontinued iMac Pro and the current iMac 27-inch.
Driving it all is expected to be Apple Silicon, though that may well not be the same chipset as the Apple M1 found in the current Mac mini, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro 13. While that chipset has proved surprisingly potent in comparison to Intel’s counterparts, the larger size of the iMac and the potential for more active cooling – not to mention more ambitious demands from users – could allow Apple to slot in an upgraded version.
At the same time, the iMac update could also arrive alongside a new Apple display. That’s something else which has been rumored in recent months, offering a more affordable option than the Pro Display XDR. The absence of a mainstream replacement to the old Apple Thunderbolt Display has been a lingering source of frustration to Mac users who want a bigger screen and would prefer to stick with Apple hardware, but who were instead pointed in the direction of the somewhat problematic LG UltraFine display instead.
