“Assuming last minute snags are avoided, the coming weeks should bring new iMacs, rounding out Apple’s 2008 hardware introductions as the company enters the holiday shopping season with one of its strongest product portfolios ever,” AppleInsider reports.
“Our little 2008 hardware roadmap — published back in August and reprinted below — has thus far panned out quite nicely, clearing the way for new iMac models to edge their way to market sometime in the next four weeks,” AppleInsider reports.
“People familiar with the company’s plans have said changes to the iMac family will largely consist of performance improvements and technology refreshes,” AppleInsider reports. “And while there’s admittedly been few concrete details to go by since the August report, this week’s notebook overhauls offer a window into the future of the iMac line, which sports an architectural resemblance to the MacBook lines.”
More details about the upcoming iMacs — including CPU upgrades, the addition of DisplayPort, and perhaps a move to faster NVIDIA graphics — in the full article here.
The addition of the DisplayPort seems a given since Steve Jobs in the laptop event of last week said all models would be moving to DisplayPort.
Let’s hope they still have FireWire!
i hope they put a cup holder this time… why not go all the way and have a coffee cup warmer too for the cold winter, cuz i am gonna buy a iMac instead of my heating bill.
What is firewire?
And let’s not forget the 17″ Lapper too people, damn!!!!!!!
It would be cool if there was something special in it too!
-Pi
Given the current thinking over in Cupertino, I’d doubt iMacs will continue to have a Firewire port, since they’re considered consumer machines for the most part.
I’m waiting for a new desktop machine as my G5 Quad is getting a little long in the tooth now.
If the possibility of the new iMac’s lacking any Firewire ports wasn’t bad enough, Macworld UK included the following statement within their article pertaining to the new iMacs > (http://www.macworld.co.uk/mac/news/index.cfm?newsid=23219)
“Speculations suggests that this upgrade (new Intel chip – Centrino 2 platform (codename Montevina) may be necessary to take advantages of new features in Snow Leopard, the next version of Mac OS X, scheduled for release in 2009.”
Wonder how that sits with current Mac owners (Intel, of course, as it is probably expected that any PowerPC Macs would not eligible for Snow Leopard).
I just want my new iMac to wake up from sleep mode, Apple can’t get it fixed. When the iMac goes into sleep mode the only way to wake it up is press the power button, mouse or keyboard will not wake it up. Wish they had some answers for this problem.
@MacintoshSoftwareList.com
“What is firewire?”
Something to do with fuses and causes an incendiary reaction!
I might get a DisplayPort for my DisplayBoat, put right next to my DisplayHome.
If you/Macworld UK is right ill be pretty pissed. I just purchased a 24 inch iMac 3.06 which replaced my PowerMac G5 assuming ill be all set for Snow Leopard……
That would be real weak….
I’m guessing perhaps the 20″ (if that size stays) might lose fire wire and the 24″ might just have FW800, kind of like the mac book lost it and the MB Pro kept only FW 800.
I have one of each of those and have never thought about adding another monitor, so I’m not too sure what display port would do for me on an iMac. Now, if it goes the other way and you can finally use the iMac as an external screen, that would be cool.
Display port on a new Mac MINI would make a lot of sense. A new mac MINI with the insides of the new macbook would be cool. I like FW on my mini for hdd’s but could lose it if I had to.
A refreshed 2.4Ghz Mac Mini with the Nvidia graphics chip (and Firewire) would be just peachy.
This news is a bit of a personal bummer. I just took delivery of a 24 inch iMac on Friday. Just when you buy something….the new model becomes available.
Well, since this is ready to turn into another one of those “Save the FireWire” threads (I believe it is No. 17 or 18 since Tuesday), here’s my own contribution.
There are no performance differences between MacBook and MacBook Pro anymore. They are, for the most part, identical. If MacBook had FireWire, MacBook Pro wouldn’t sell at all (would you spend $700 just for less than two more diagonal inches???).
FireWire was dropped from MB so that MBP would sell better.
There is an important differentiating factor betwen two iMac sizes: the screen size (well, duh). Since the difference between the two models was exactly the same before, and the 24″ model still sold well, there is no reason to make the 20″ model less appealing by dropping FW. It isn’t like they’re going to completely re-design the logic board because of this Display Port.
I’m saying this again: the low-end notebooks (the MB) will continue to be the ONLY Macs without FW. All other Macs will continue to have it, until it becomes evident that only one in 100 owners actually ever connects anything to those FW ports. Only then will the begin dropping it from MBP/iMac line. The Pro may even then continue to have it.
As for the DisplayPort, it may have a promising future at this point.
Skypilot:
You may want to return it and get a new one, if they release it before your 15- or 30-day return period is over.
“would you spend $700 just for less than two more diagonal inches???).”
my girlfriend would…..
Interesting. Do a lot of people who buy iMacs get a second monitor? I have two 23″ displays on my G5 tower, but anyone have an idea what percentage of iMac users attach an extra monitor?
Also, the 24″ new display has the same resolution as my 23″ displays. Is this the expanding universe in action?
@ Predrag:
“There are no performance differences between MacBook and MacBook Pro anymore”
Really? I can run most of the latest 3D games on a Macbook?
I’d say a decent, discrete 3D video card is a significant performance difference between MB and MBP.
@Predrag
“FireWire was dropped from MB so that MBP would sell better.”
Gee, ya think bringing the price of the Macbook Pro back to something resembling reality might help?
$1,999 for a 15″ laptop with far less features than the average Win 17″ laptop that sells for under $1,000 is insane.
Galloway
I used to keep a second monitor hooked to my iMac Core Duo.
It was great for having Windows on one screen (through Parallels) and OS X on the other (that was for my girlfriends college class, which required the Windows version of Office).
I could also play a DVD in full screen for my young grandson to watch a movie with me while I babysat rather than me being in the living room or he being by himself (Veggie Tales are great only so many times).
I could also have full screen EyeTV going while surfing.
Didn’t seem like much of a system hit, either.
What about the mini? I’ve been waiting a while now to get another mini (would be my third mini), but only if it has FW. Both my current minis have at least two FW drives connected to them.
Say, anyone has any idea when new MacPro updates would be coming? January perhaps??
Yes, January sounds about right.
It will, however, only have a monochrome video output.
If you want 256 colors, you will have to get the MacSuperPro.
If you want millions of colors, you will have to pony up for a MacSuperDuperPro.
You can’t stop progress…..
I could handle the dropping of FireWire as long as it came with either more 2 USB ports or a lower price tag.
We’ll all get used to it in the long run, but in this case less is not more.