R.I.P. 17-inch Apple iMac?

Apple Store“Apple’s pending iMac update will spell the end of the day for the 17-inch iMac, the most affordable computer in the line. The refreshed iMac, currently on track to arrive by the end of June according to sources, will feature just 20- and 24-inch models,” Think Secret reports.

“The decision to axe the smallest iMac comes as display prices continue to track downwards, making the cost difference for Apple between a 17-inch display and a 20-inch display almost negligible,” Think Secret reports.

“Eliminating the low-end iMac will also improve logistics for Apple, which will need to track and stock considerably fewer parts,” Think Secret reports.

Full article, including the rumor that Apple’s 23-inch Apple Cinema HD Display may soon grow an inch, here.

55 Comments

  1. @ Chris, how refreshing to read from an individual who knows his fish & chips?

    I have had that experience on many an occasion. I buzz along to a printer with the file, printer brings up the file on his/her monitor,
    monitor is set to printers eye which in many cases is not the same as the clients, client ends up asking for hue & saturation changes only to end up with Bullshit.

    That is where the Pantone system comes into its own.

  2. @Crabapple:

    Yes, the eternal struggle between designer and color tech! Aye, how it gives both sides fits! Thank goodness the technology is becoming cheap enough that it appears I may live to see the day when both can see the same thing and have reasonable expectations about the final output. The technology is affordable, now it’s just about education.

  3. Chris’s sermon has been, well, lengthy… but ultimately you’re complaining about existing “issues”. This is about FUTURE products.

    It’s all complete conjecture at this point. We’ll know for sure soon enough.

  4. @ Chris, should we write a book?

    Title: Client, Designer, Print & Film

    Sub title: Colour technology on modern media.

    You write one chapter, I write the next with a few anecdotes sprinkled here & there.

  5. I think the 17″ iMac should be used for education. It is a nice size for youngsters. My son loves using daddy’s 24″ iMac, but he would be just as happy on a 17″. They should drop the price to $799.

  6. 17-, 20-, 23-, and/or 24-inch. Whatever. Make them all 24-bit active matrix LCDs. Oh, and bump up processor and bus speeds, too, while you’re at it. Lower the price and throw in two dozen kolaches and we have a deal.

  7. @Cpt. Obvious…

    Yes, you are correct, and like I said, I hope for a future where a consumer-grade monitor is the same as a pro-grade monitor. We don’t know exactly what is in the pipeline, to be sure, but I am entrenched enough in the industry to be able to make an educated guess, to add to the “complete conjecture” my belief that that time is not quite yet here. Also, BMW has been unable to produce a product as high of a quality as their $80,000 vehicles at the $20,000 price point, but I am hoping for that as well. The quality of the low end keeps going up (usually), but the quality of the high end continues to go up as well.

    Sorry about the long diatribe, just trying to provide some insight for those who may care. For those who don’t, they (you) are free to not read.

    @Crabapple: Either title sounds great! There is probably a good market for it!

  8. 1. Apple may keep the 17 inch iMac for education sales only. No speed revisions etc.
    2. Sales of the 17 inch may be quite lame warranting the elimination of the product.
    3. Component prices may be low enough to offer a 20 inch for nearly the same price of a 17 inch, especially if consumer quality screens are used.

    MW cut

  9. Chris
    lessons are always appreciated
    and as Plant would say
    “it’s time to ramble on”

    No Squirt
    I guess this also means there isn’t going to be a Rip Torn commemorative iMac 17″?

    MDN, enough bait and switch…..

    just noticed MW……plant!

  10. Apple should keep a 17-inch low-end model. It’s an ideal size and screen resolution for a lot of users. However, if the new iMac design gets rid of the “plastic” area below the screen, then I suppose a 20-inch iMac would physically be about the same size as the current 17-inch iMac, so that would be OK.

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