Apple Launches iMac Haswell Refresh: PCIe SSDs, 4GB GPU Options & Faster Wi-Fi

Updated: September 24, 2013

As of this morning, Apple is now offering a new line of iMacs available directly through the online store, featuring improvements in the processor, graphics card, Wi-fi adapter, and newer flash storage options.

They’ll now all be featuring 4th generation quad core processors, with the basic 21.5” iMac having a 2.7 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 processor, while the 27-inch iMacs and High end 21.5-inch iMac can have up to 3.4 GHz.

As far as the graphics cards go, the baseline model includes Iris Pro Graphics as an integrated graphics card, while higher models can be customized with Geforce 700 series grapphics cards going as high as the GTX 780M for maximized performance for those looking to game or do some heavy 3d modeling. The iMacs also include the newest generation of 802.11ac Wi-Fi, which if paired with the proper base can lead to what Apple estimates to be 3 times the speed of the previous generation.

“iMac continues to be the example that proves how beautiful, fast and fun a desktop computer can be,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. As we said earlier, these new options are currently already available via Apple’s online store, and should be made available shortly at Apple stores and other approved retailers.

Storage options are numerous, including new and improved PCIe flash storage that apple claims can increase the speed of flash and fusion based storage devices by 50%. An all flash storage model is available at 1TB of storage, while Apple is also offering their fusion drives that combine the speed of a flash drive with the capacity of a hard drive available in both 1TB and 3TB options. While the standard option includes 8GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive, options are available to upgrade these to as high as 32GB of RAM and a 3TB hard drive, with all models coming with 2 Thunderbolt ports and 4 USB 3.0 ports.

Source: Apple

apple Ca Haswell iMac news NVIDIA

danzo

Still I could probably buy a car and my dream ultimate gaming rig with like quad 780′s for around the same price! hahah
- Joey English
  
  The persistent “But prices, omg — gaming computer, duh” argument. As someone who has a thin 27″ i7/680MX sitting right next to a Z87 gaming rig, I can tell you first hand your assumption is ludicrous — although I’m guessing you already knew that, considering your quad 780′s would burn through 80% of the price of the iMac — and the comparison is unwarranted.
  
  The iMac clocked in around $2500, with a 680MX, 1TB Fusion Drive and 32gb of ram (aftermarket). The PC is equipped with a Z87 Sabertooth, a water cooled 4770k, an eVGA 780GTX Superclocked edition, a 240gb SSD/1TB HDD, 32gb of Corsair Vengeance, a Wireless N adapter and a Viewsonic VP2770 27″ IPS — a comparable panel to Apple’s own.
  
  The PC was definitely more expensive.
  
  But I’m not the idiot comparing a gaming PC to an iMac — the very reason I own both is because I know where the line in the sand is drawn; I would never own an iMac for gaming, just as I wouldn’t move my development workflow to a Windows machine. Obviously if you can’t afford both, or have no need for two machines, pick which one is best for your needs and roll with it, rather than making asinine comparisons.
  - Deadly Pillow
    
    no
    - Joey English
      
      yes
  - Cameron
    
    Yeah, you’re right. You won’t find something as thin but what’s the point of having something thin and light if it’s just going to sit in the same place on the desk?
    There’s literally no point in it unless you have literally no space at all and in which case you shouldn’t be able to afford an iMac anyway.
    The only reason people buy these silly iMac’s is because Apple tell you they are good and useful and you believe them.
    - Joey English
      
      I never mentioned anything about the thickness of the machine beyond stating it was the model I owned — the size is a non-factor for me and had nothing to do with my incentive to purchase. And I love the assumption that because I own an iMac I somehow have Apple wool pooled over my eyes. For the purposes of my workflow, an iMac and MacBook Pro are the right machines for the job. Just like when it’s time to fire up Crysis 3, Battlefield 3 or Fez, the PC is the right machine for that job. Take your platform loyalty elsewhere.
      - Cameron
        
        What? So presumably you don’t buy Macs for their specs then if you already have a gaming PC. What is the purpose of buying one? You could buy a same spec’d machine for a considerable amount less and if I’m honest OSX sucks so badly, not as bad as windows 8 but it sucks none the less.
      - Joey English
        
        If you’re not going to attempt to read and absorb the information that’s being given to you, than don’t bother to reply. You both completely ignored and totally missed the point where I described how I use both platforms, and why; you’re still spewing out the canned PC fanboy price vs. performance defense, when you haven’t even gotten it through your thick skull that you’re talking with someone that’s platform agnostic. Carry on if you’d like, but I limit my replies to people with poor reading comprehension to one, so you’ve already overstayed your welcome…
      - Cameron
        
        But you’ve just done the same thing… I asked you why as they’re more expensive and they have no advantages over windows and you ignored it.
      - Jaron
        
        He buys a Mac for the same reason I do as well.. The operating system! You can try to bash Macs all you want but one thing that is going to be always better on the mac is the streamlined operating system in my opinion. I am the same way as Joey I have a Macbook pro for the media and workstation but windows for the gaming
  - Keven Brochu
    
    No, the ViewSonic monitor is not comparable to the Apple’s panel. It’s a lot better and uses a much more expensive panel, there is no comparison.
    
    The ViewSonic is a color-calibrated (Delta-E < 3) professional 10-bit (1.07 Billion colors) monitor with fully adjustable stand(tilt, height, swivel and pivot to portrait mode).
    The Apple panel has no color calibration, is a standard 8-bit (16 Million colors) panel and the iMac has no other adjustment other than tilt(which is useless).
    
    I'm not saying Apple use a bad panels in the iMac, but the ViewSonic monitor you mentioned is just not playing in the same league.
    - Joey English
      
      Actually, if you want to split hairs it’s a native 8-bit panel with FRC. Can it be used in an end-to-end 10-bit workflow? Sure, but I would never buy a Viewsonic for that work either; I’d put my money into an Eizo, which I’ve owned before and used for color sensitive work before I moved full time into development.
      
      So in this case, it is comparable, in that it’s pricing and features (in the context they’re being used) are similar to the Apple display included in the iMac. It’s a 27″ IPS with tolerable input lag.
      
      Keep in mind, I wasn’t trying to make a direct comparison between the hardware; it’s obvious more money was spent on the PC. So it seems you’re simply pointing out the specification disparity for everyone else’s benefit, but I’m not sure how that’s relevant to the argument I was trying to make.
  - Milo Waldren
    
    you should win a award for that comment
Bmykytyn

Where does it say that it’s Pci-e Flash storage on their site? I couldn’t find that info anywhere, or are you assuming that it’s Pci-e since it’s 50% faster now??
Deathtomacs

Pathetic
http://www.youtube.com/user/playman350 Nixonium

You have to go 27″ to get at least 3GHz on an i5, and you still get a 1GB mobile-grade graphics card and only a 1TB hard drive. No SSD.
Step up your game, dammit.
David Mclean

#merry_christmas and lots of luck.