Apple updated the iMac with Retina 5K—iMac 5K for short—on Tuesday, rejiggering the line with lower prices. The company added a new entry-level model that starts at US$1,999, and it dropped the price of the high-end model from $2,499 to $2,299.
iMac with Retina 5K
iMac 5K has a resolution of 5,120 x 2,880, which is essentially a 4K resolution with a bonus 1K for fun. This allows video editors to work with 4K resolution files and still have room for palettes and whatnot on the desktop. For mortals, it's just acres and acres of awesome.
To achieve the lower starting point, Apple added a model with a 3.3 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 processor with Turbo Boost Speeds up to 3.7 GHz and AMD Radeon R9 M290 graphics. That's slower than the 3.5 GHz Core i5 processor still used in the higher-priced model. The processor on the high-end model can be upgraded to 4.0GHz Quad-core Intel Core i7 with Turbo Boost up to 4.4GHz—the entry-level model does not offer a processor option.
The entry level model also features a conventional 1TB hard drive, rather than the 1TB Fusion Drive used in the pricier model. Both models feature storage options that include a 3TB Fusion Drive, 1TB of Flash storage, and other options.
Apple also updated the graphics card in the new models to the AMD Radeon R9 M290X graphics with 2GB of RAM, and both start at 8GB of RAM for the CPU. Both models can be upgraded to 16GB or 32GB, and they both come with four USB 3.0 ports and two Thunderbolt 2 ports
The updated models are available now from the Apple Store.