Many were surprised in late 2013 (on September 24, to be more specific), when they found out that Apple would be rolling out some serious iMac updates. Typically, the company did this during a media event in October, where all Mac computers and new iPad models were first brought before the public. The 2013 iMac updates, however, came in a bit more quietly, via a press release, so, if you missed them or aren’t entirely sure what’s new with Apple’s ultra-sleek desktop computer, allow us to clue you in.
The new iMac are equipped with high performance Haswell processors from Intel, which go all the way up to 3.5GHz. The more affordable model, which sports a 21.5 inch screen also comes with integrated graphics from Iris Pro. Meanwhile, the more expensive models (i.e. the higher-end 21.5 inch version and the 27 inch model) come with graphic cards from NVIDIA 700. And you can even upgrade the 27 inch iMac to the NVIDIA GTX 780M graphics card that has a whopping 4GB of memory. It’s not just the graphics that got that much better with the 2013 iMac updates – Wi-Fi performance has triply improved, thanks to Apple’s brand new 802.11ac Wi-Fi station. In theory, these babies can take up to 1.3 gigabits per second, in terms of transfer rates.
The iMacs all come with pre-installed 1TB Serial ATA hard drives, but that’s not all there is to it. If you’re so inclined, you can upgrade them to Fusion Drives or pure flash storage. The Fusion Drive concept is all-Apple and it’s a combo of a relatively small portion of flash storage, where the frequently accessed information is kept, plus a traditional hard drive, for storing the information you don’t use that often. All types of flash storage on the iMac are now based on the PCIe system, which means they are able to achieve far higher reading and writing times.
The design of the 2013 iMac updates
The 2013 iMac updates were not groundbreaking in terms of design, at least not compared to the major design overhaul that Apple pulled in 2012. There was a more subtle upgrade in terms of design late last year, with a focus on the iMac’s already famous ultra-thinness. To get an idea of what we’re talking about, this is a desktop computer that’s a staggering 5 mm thin at the edges. The machine also comes with a completely laminated display screen, which not only adds sleekness, but also makes the optical experience far superior to that of previous models.
Other features of the 2013 iMac
The 2013 iMac comes with no fewer than four USB 3.0 ports, two Thunderbolt ports, a mini DisplayPort, dual microphones, built-in stereo speakers, a port for headphones, and a slot for SDXC cards. In terms of the operating system, Apple pulled a somewhat bold move, in the sense that the second wave of iMacs shipped were sent out with the OS X 10.9 Mavericks. This, in turn, made many speculate that this was all calculated – a move meant to force users into giving the latest iteration of their OS a try. The OS X Mavericks 10.9 has been heavily debated ever since its launch. Some users find it great that Apple is offering the OS free for download, while others choose to see this as a rather desperate move on the part of the company. However, with more than 200 new features, a completely redesigned Finder, better Safari, and better support for multi-displays, you might just find that downloading the newest Mavericks version is worth it, for you and your 2013 iMac.