Apple Announces 5K iMac Retina

[ZoetMB]

Apple just announced the new iMac Retina with a 27" 5120 x 2880 display. Along with other improvements, the new iMac costs $2499, a $700 increment over the older non-Retina model.

Of course, there's no BD player in that computer.

Also, the new Mac-mini is reduced to $499. Those are frequently used in home theaters.

[Kirsty_Mc]

Wow... I wonder if this means there is a new thunderbolt monitor on the way .

[ZoetMB]

Originally Posted by Kirsty_Mc

Wow... I wonder if this means there is a new thunderbolt monitor on the way .

I thought they were going to announce that right after they showed the new iMac, but (obviously), they didn't. This actually surprises me. Build an iMac without the guts and you have a new monitor. But maybe they'd have to price it so close to the price of the iMac that it wouldn't make sense.

[Shadowself]

The real reason is constrained supply.

Apple makes higher margins on the iMac than on displays. When supply catches up they'll likely announce and start shipping 5K displays compatible with the Mac Pro. I expect Apple to sell every 5K iMac as fast as they can make them for the first couple months or so.

As a corollary, Dell has announced a 5K display. It is supposed to ship "before Christmas". The rumored price for Dell's 5K display is $2,500 -- the exact same as the lowest model 5K iMac. Clearly that rumored price is high.

Likely Apple bought up all 5K panels that LG makes for the first few months. Thus Dell has to wait -- or wait until another manufacturer starts shipping equivalent panels.