The iMac 2017 may go for power and speed by having the Intel Kaby lake i7-7700K, which was not yet available when the Microsoft Surface Studio launched so Apple may still sway Mac users from migrating to the competition. Moreover, the Virtual Reality potential of the iMac, a first for Apple may be the final game-clincher for the long overdue device that is now surrounded by many other rivals offering the same basic features.

The iMac 2017 has not been upgraded since the current 27-inch iMac With Retina 5K display launched in October 2015. Nonetheless, Apple has more or less confirmed its arrival based on Tim Cook's previous pronouncements that "great desktops" are part of its roadmap. Though Cook may be referring to an iOS and MacOS hybrid and not a Mac brand, fans have been expecting an iMac refresh. This is further fueled by a Best Buy posting, now removed, listing a $3,199.99 27-inch Kaby Lake-powered iMac with 32GB of RAM and 2TB Fusion Drive.

However, recent rumors suggest that Intel may be replaced by the AMD Ryzen 7 processors with more computing power-per-watt and aligning well with Apple's new design philosophy. The folks at Cupertino now values power efficiency over performance pointing to an AMD and Apple imminent marriage until Microsoft Surface Studio came in the picture. The Surface Studio though a dream-come-true device for artists and designers is severely underpowered, which is something the iMac 2017 could leverage on by sticking it with Intel for performance and speed boost, MacWorld reported. In this way, Mac users who have not migrated to Microsoft yet may still be enticed to stay with the iMac.

Apple will have to pitch better features and new innovations to capture its niche market of designers and video creators fully optimizing its illustrious display, particularly for ultra pixel-heavy content. The most logical step is to beef up performance with Intel's Kaby Lake processor and pack in more power to its graphics processing unit with AMD's Polaris 10 or 11. The AMD GPUs also bring the potential of a VR support, a feature that has long been demanded from Apple devices and the iMac 2017 may be the very first to do so according to PC Advisor. The 27-inch iMac 2017 will get the most significant upgrades starting with an OLED Touch Bar borrowed from the MacBook Pro. It will also have a full flash storage, USB Type-C, Thunderbolt 3 ports and Touch ID. It will be lighter and slimmer but more powerful and fast, which will be expected to be announced at Apple's March event.

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Topics IMac 2017, Apple, AMD Ryzen, Microsoft Surface Studio