Apple announces 27″ iMac with Retina 5K display available today for $2,499

iMac Retina 5k display

Thirty years after the first Mac was unveiled, Apple has announced its highly anticipated 27″ iMac with Retina Display. The desktop’s display, which comes in at 5120×2880 native resolution, features a stunning 14.7 Million pixels, and is available starting today at $2,499.

To put these numbers in perspective, the display has 7 times more pixels than standard 1080p Full HD. That’s four times the pixels of the old 27″ iMac’s display, and 67% more pixels than a 4K display. In fact, it allows for full 4K video editing with room to spare.

iMac retina display

With such a high resolution, you’d like the power usage would be driven up to be significantly higher than the previous 27″ iMac. Not so, Apple has made it so that the display is actually 30% more power efficient than before. The power savings is partly due to Apple’s use of highly efficient LEDs.

One thing that potential buyers should consider are the way that these Retina Displays work. While technically capable of running full resolution at 5120×2880, the real benefit of such a display is seen when it runs in pixel-doubled mode at 2560×1440. While this means that you don’t benefit from the added real-estate that such a display might bring to the table, it means that text and other on screen assets are razor sharp, which is something Retina Displays are renowned for.

Of course, the iMac is more than a display. It features the following standard hardware:

  • 3.5GHz Intel i5 (upgradable up to 4GHz i7)
  • AMD Radeon R9 M290X graphics (configurable with AMD Radeon R9 M295X graphics)
  • Thunderbolt 2
  • 1TB fusion drive (up to 3TB)
  • 8GB RAM (up to 32GB)

All of this costs $2,499 at the low end of the spectrum. Build to order options will, of course, raise the price substantially.

iMac line up

What do you think about the new iMac? Is it compelling enough to get you to bite?

If the 5K is too pricey to you, you can opt for a 21.5-inch iMac, or a standard 27-inch iMac for $1,099 and $1,799 respectively.