Ever since Apple’s 21.5-inch all-in-one was superseded by the colorful 24-inch iMac in 2021, we’ve been wondering one thing: when is the 27-inch iMac getting the same treatment? Unfortunately, insiders now claim that the answer to that question could well be “never.”
Following the retirement of the Intel-powered 27-inch models from Apple’s online store, sources have told 9to5Mac that Apple isn’t planning on releasing a larger screened iMac in the near future.
Unsurprisingly, the site doesn’t name its tipsters, but it does claim that it’s the same source that gave correct information on the Mac Studio and Studio Display ahead of launch, so it seems extremely well grounded and certainly worth taking seriously.
Of course, others with good track records have suggested that a larger iMac is definitely on the cards. Display analyst Ross Young — who currently boasts a 92.9% accuracy rating on AppleTrack — predicted a 27-inch 2022 iMac with a 120Hz mini-LED panel last October, and he was still predicting a summer launch as of this week, albeit with a possible get out:
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But the 27" MiniLED panel has started production. So, we expect it to launch in June with the Mac Pro...March 10, 2022
He’s not alone. Before his Twitter account vanished in January, the reliable leaker Dylandkt revealed a lot of details about a potential iMac Pro, going as far as to outline the ports on the computer. And as recently as last month, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman was also predicting a “larger iMac Pro” for 2022 with both M1 Pro and M1 Max configurations alongside six other Apple computers.
End of an era?
The removal of the larger Intel iMacs from Apple’s store could still be a sign that the company is clearing the way for an imminent Apple Silicon rebirth. The trouble is that it’s exactly the same course of action you’d take if you’d decided that larger all-in-one desktops had had their day.
If that is the case, then there are a number of possible reasons. Maybe Apple has concluded that the size increase for the smaller iMac (from 21.5-inches to 24) means that a larger model is no longer necessary. Perhaps the company wants to funnel people towards the new Studio Display, either connected to a Mac mini or Mac Studio. Maybe the sales data just shows that people aren’t that interested in large all-in-one computers any more, and Apple wants out.
It’s also possible, of course, that this is just temporary. 9to5Mac’s sources only ruled out a larger iMac in the ‘near future’ after all. And who knows what the next five years could bring?
