At Apple’s European press event in Berlin this week, Siliconrepublic.com got a close up look at the new 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K Display.
The new iMac with Retina 5K Display was launched this week alongside the new iPad Air 2 and the iPad mini 3 tablet computers, which also boast Retina technology.
The new desktop, which runs OS X Yosemite which has also been released for free on the App Store, features a 14.7m pixel display and has a resolution of 5,120 x 2,880.
That is the equivalent of 67pc more pixels than a 4K display.
All 14.7m pixels are driven by an Apple-designed timing controller (TCON). The display also uses highly efficient LEDs and organic passivation to improve display but at the same time reduce power consumption by 30pc.
The new desktop comes with a 4GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor with speeds up to 4.4GHz. Each machine comes with an AMD Radeon R9 M290X graphics processor that can deliver up to 3.5 teraflops of computing power.
The desktop comes with a standard 8GB of memory and a 1TB Fusion Drive for the first time
The new 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K Display went on sales this week and ships with a 3.5 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.9GHz, AMD Radeon R9 M290X graphics and a 1TB Fusion Drive for a suggested retail price of €2,699, including VAT (€2,194.31 excluding VAT).
First impressions of the 27-inch iMac with 5K Retina Display
First look at the new iMac with 5K Retina display
Have you ever been mesmerised by a detailed painting or photograph where every detail comes to life in the most vivid way possible? Maybe one of those Chinese paintings that seem to move as you walk past?
Well, looking at photographs of city skylines or exotic birds or animals on the 5K screen of the new iMac is exactly like that. You feel rooted to the images, possibly seeing things you never thought possible.
What’s exciting about the new iMac is the sheer speed and fire power of the machine.
Apple has managed to retain the slim profile of the latest generation iMac yet has managed to pack it chock-full of high-end componentry.
Everything moves at a blistering fast speed and this is nowhere more evident than if you are cycling through videos in Final Cut Pro. Everything is instant … even faster than instant if that makes any sense.
The 27-inch iMac with 5K Retina Display is possibly also the perfect entry device to showcase Apple’s latest operating system Mac OS X Yosemite in all of its glory. You can get a better sense of perspective on how Spotlight works, how Finder allows you to pick up where you left off on other devices linked via iCloud and also the new fonts and icons that Apple has chosen for the new OS.
All-in-all, the machine sets a whole new standard that rescues desktops back into relevance at a time when most eyes are focused on mobile devices.
The 5K display is apparently seven times higher definition than the best HD TVs currently on the market and one can only hope that these leaps forward may contribute to that fabled Apple television we’ve all been dreaming of for a long time.
As usual, only Apple really knows. But one things for certain, a new standard has been established.
