Apple recently launched its highly anticipated smartphones, the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, but the launch event concluded without shedding some light on the equally anticipated iMac. This sparked speculations among gadget freaks regarding the iMac release date, specs, price and other features.
The Cupertino-based tech firm updated its iMac in 2015, and now optimistic iMac fans are hopeful that a new one will hit the store shelves sometime in October, just before the holiday season starts.
Much to the fans' dismay, a new iMac wasn't announced alongside the iPhone 7.
Fret not! It can be recalled that the iMac announcement last year took place at a separate event, days after the smartphone's unveiling. In other words, there is still a possibility that Apple could hold another technical event in October, MacWorld reported.
Recently surfaced reports indicate that the impending models will be powered by the highly lauded Kaby Lake processors and AMD's Polaris GPUs. If rumors proved to be true, the device will be powerful enough to use VR headsets with them.
Also, since Apple's event unveiled the macOS Sierra for the company's MacBook lines and iMacs, there is still a good chance that the aforesaid operating system will be preloaded with the looming iMac.
Moreover, Apple is likely to favor the latest Intel Core chips rather than AMD's Zen processor citing an array of solid features such as DisplayPort 1.2, USB 3.1 and Thunderbolt 3. That being said, there is also a possibility that the Zen chips can be used in some models as well.
In addition, the iMac 2016 models are likely to feature better performance GPUs. Both, AMD and NVIDIA have rolled out arrays of new generation graphic cards that could work perfectly with the Apple machines. If backed by these robust GPUs, the device will generate enough power to support the VR headgears and apps.
Apparently, AMD is supplying Apple with 400 series Polaris-based GPUs, according to reports on WCCF Tech.
The aforementioned GPUs are ideal to run modern games and the VR, and require less power as compared to their NVIDIA counterpart. Nevertheless, the deal between Apple and AMD still requires a confirmation from the two tech firms.
Apple's iMac lineup currently includes AMD GPUs, which comes standard for the 27-inch models. The 21-inch all-in-one model packs the Intel Iris Pro 6200.
Meanwhile, rumors are running rampant that the purported iMac 2016 might come with an initial price tag of $1,099 for the base version, and the high-end variant is expected to be up for grabs for a steeper $4,099 price tag.
