Time for a New IMAC.

[wilfredo]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

My current IMAC is showing its age.  I've held off on buying a new computer but my IMAC (with MacOS Monterey version 12.7.6) is lagging behind.  I would appreciate recommendations that can handle 47.3 megapixel images with ease.  I don't see myself purchasing a 60 megapixel camera but I've learned the meaning of "never say never."  Any recommendations on specs and models for a new IMAC are welcome.  I will be looking to buy an IMAC with a 27 inch monitor.  I'm currently based in Lisbon, Portugal, having moved here from NYC.  

[luetz]

58 minutes ago, wilfredo said:

My current IMAC is showing its age.  I've held off on buying a new computer but my IMAC (with MacOS Monterey version 12.7.6) is lagging behind.  I would appreciate recommendations that can handle 47.3 megapixel images with ease.  I don't see myself purchasing a 60 megapixel camera but I've learned the meaning of "never say never."  Any recommendations on specs and models for a new IMAC are welcome.  I will be looking to buy an IMAC with a 27 inch monitor.  I'm currently based in Lisbon, Portugal, having moved here from NYC.  

The 27 inch iMac has been discontinued.  I was in the same predicament and chose the Silicon chipped 24 inch instead.  Have gotten along with the smaller screen, but would have gone the route of the Mac mini and add the peripherals if I had to do it again.  Good luck in your search for the right combination.

[jaapv]

Mac Mini with a Pro chip and at least 32 GB RAM plus a good monitor (Apple is certainly not bad, but there are far better ones on the market) should do the trick.

[stray cat]

I am in the same boat at the moment. Currently I am thinking I'll get a Mac Mini and using Luna Display (https://astropad.com/blog/step-by-step-guide-how-to-use-your-imac-as-a-monitor/) so I can keep my iMac's 2017 27" 5k monitor.

[Jeff S]

My philosophy, especially at near 75, is to buy once and forget it.  So when my 14 year old Mac Pro (which was upgradable) and NEC screen aged out, I recently replaced it with a Mac Studio M2 Ultra and Eizo display.  Might be overkill, but it’s no longer upgradable, and I expect it to last as long as I’m still able to do my photography.  It’s super fast (and tiny), even with modern gear, runs the latest O/S, and is a joy to use. More beneficial for me than spending same on a new camera.

Edited May 21 by Jeff S

[satijntje]

I replaced my 27” iMac with a Studio M2 Ultra + a  27” Studio Screen.
My wife is now a happy iMac user 🙂

[jaapv]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

As for screens, I prefer two 24" over a single 27" Image fills the main screen, all panels on the secondary one. 

[JeDiOckfenFoto]

vor einer Stunde schrieb satijntje:

I replaced my 27” iMac with a Studio M2 Ultra + a  27” Studio Screen.
My wife is now a happy iMac user 🙂

WOW ! 👍  I am playing 😉 only with a MAC BOOK Pro 16", but it is enough for me.

[pedaes]

11 hours ago, wilfredo said:

 Any recommendations

Another vote for Mac Mini Pro and screen of your choice. Mine configured with all photo files on external SSD (it is tiny and sits behind Mini).

You will notice an incredible increase in speed, especially when using AI based editing tools such as LR masks etc.

[wilfredo]

Thank you all for the responses.  I will continue to research the best option for me.  Lots of helpful feedback here. Any thoughts regarding 16gb vs. 32gb?  

Edited May 21 by wilfredo

[jaapv]

Don't skimp on RAM. Even if Silicon chips require less RAM, AI development has just started, between 2022 and now; my M1 Mac Mini 16GB (the max then)  which was fast when new, started to slow down after updates to AI editing tools just a few years of updates later. My advice: get as much RAM as you can. 

[PhotoCruiser]

Me too vote for Mac Mini or Studio and the Monitor you can fit your des, but not bigger than 28 inch.
I use only MacBooks and have a LG UltraFine 27" 5K monitor and like it a lot and a bit less expensive than the Apple Studio Display.
The above hint with using your iMac as screen is a very good idea and save you a lot of money as good monitors are expensive, but you may not need a top notch monitor for a graphic professional wh is continously printing hiw work.
Yes, absolutely at least 32GB, thats the minimum for editing work.
Chris

Edited May 21 by PhotoCruiser

[Jeff S]

4 hours ago, wilfredo said:

 Any thoughts regarding 16gb vs. 32gb?  

Yes, I got 64GB.  Again, buy once.  RAM is important.

[zeitz]

12 hours ago, Jeff S said:

My philosophy, especially at near 75, is to buy once and forget it.

Jeff, I know both you and I are fine with subscription services, such as Adobe Photo software.  So my Apple hardware is the same - a 2 year lease.  The terms are very flexible, and I can change out my equipment at any time during the lease.  Every two years I take my Mac to my value-added Mac dealer; I pick the new model with the correct chip set, RAM and data drive; the dealer clones my files and hands me the new computer.

[Jeff S]

5 minutes ago, zeitz said:

Jeff, I know both you and I are fine with subscription services, such as Adobe Photo software.  So my Apple hardware is the same - a 2 year lease.  The terms are very flexible, and I can change out my equipment at any time during the lease.  Every two years I take my Mac to my value-added Mac dealer; I pick the new model with the correct chip set, RAM and data drive; the dealer clones my files and hands me the new computer.

Interesting approach. Cost structure wouldn’t bother me, but the change process would. Not being a tech guy (know enough to be dangerous), I have my tech savvy friend assist with major hardware upgrades, making sure everything in my system “talks” with everything else nicely, software and hardware. It always seems straightforward going in, only to run into a few complications, for which I’m glad to have the help.  I would dread going through that repeatedly.

[zeitz]

3 hours ago, Jeff S said:

but the change process would.

Since one is always starting with a recent computer, I never experienced any issues.  I give my computer to the Mac Value-Added dealer in the morning.  By the afternoon he gives me the new computer cloned with all my files and all the app files installed.  I have about 500 GB on my internal data disk; my real file storage is on external drives.  Plug everything back in; it all works.  Adobe asks you if this computer replaces a previous one.  After confirming yes, the software works.  Sometimes the version of macOS is one version old, but that quickly updates.  Another advantage is that you always have active Apple Care.  My dealer also moves all "New Computer for Life" boxes to the front of the queue if one wants something done.  It is remarkably seamless.

[lincoln_m]

Wilfredo,

if you are going for a used/refurbished iMac 27" (Apple don't make new 27" iMac anymore sadly I wish they made a 32" iMac) then I'd suggest a 2020 or later iMac version as they will be OK to update to the new macOS 26 in September 2025.

My 2019 iMac 27" Retina 5k (3.7GHz 6 core i5 Intel chip) macOS Sequoia 15.5 now has 24GB of RAM (8GB + 16GB) and the AMD Radeon 580X has 8GB of RAM so I guess that's sort of equal to an Apple Silicon MAC mini/studio with 32GB of unified (CPU & GPUs use the same RAM). The Intel i5 and i7 chips had a GPU inside but Macs didn't use that because it was rubbish and used the AMD GPUs instead. Remember how bad the MacBookPros 13" with Intel Silicon but no extra Graphics cards were?

I haven't personally tried the new Apple silicon Macs with my Lightroom Classic setup as there isn't really a comparison chart to compare Intel + AMD GPUs with Apple M* silicon so one has to rely on YouTube reviews. The speed of the GPUs in M* chips is often compared for Video editing and H.264 etc codecs so it's not really relevant for us Still Photography guys. If I upgrade from iMac I'll probably have to go for a £3k+ Mac Studio because I can't risk a £2k+ Mac Mini being not as fast as my current setup. With a new screen and extras that's easily £5k to upgrade so it had better be even faster in comparison to the iMac.

For 47MP RAW images then I'd say 32GB is a minimum and as others have said 64GB is better. If you get a refurbished iMac (I think all 27" Retina iMacs can be upgraded memory wise, my 2019 could but you'd need to check if getting later iMac. The 24" Apple silicon iMac like other Apple Silicon Macs can't be upgraded RAM or SSD after its been configured at Apple so you need to get the correct one at time of purchase.

My iMac 2019 seems fine when editing M10 24M pixel DNGs and also editing 220MB (37M pixel) film scan DNGs in TIFF format in Adobe Lightroom (sorry you didn't say if/what library/photo editing software you use). Even doing spotting/clone stamp  on the 37MP (220M Bytes) film scans is quick enough to manually erase dust spots, but for that I don't usually have the Generative AI switched on. I use a fast 1000MB/s 2TB external SSD for holding the Libraries/Catalogs for editing and other slower SSDs and 4TB HDD for backup. 

Basically you'd be using 47MP images that would require 2x CPU/GPU speed and 2xRAM compared to my 2019 iMac with 24Mp Leica M10 files.

I hope that helps you decide? 16GB Nooo! 32GB maybe as a minimum. 48-64GB should be fine. 

Lincoln