Death knell tolls for 17-inch iMac
Apple's pending iMac update will spell the end of the day for the 17-inch iMac, the most affordable computer in the line. The refreshed iMac, currently on track to arrive by the end of June according to sources, will feature just 20- and 24-inch models.
Context & Ripple Effects
Think Secret's report rests entirely on unnamed sources: as of May 21, both the end-of-June arrival and the 20-/24-inch-only lineup are unconfirmed claims, and the broader record argues against treating any single Apple rumor as settled — widely circulated Apple rumors have repeatedly proven untrue or so premature they never materialized, even with national news coverage behind them.
The timing is what gives the report weight: the FCC cleared the iPhone for U.S. sale on May 17, and Leopard has slipped again to January, so Apple heads into summer with a delayed OS, a phone launch pending, and — if these sources are right — a desktop line about to shed its cheapest rung.
First-order effects
- If the sourced timeline holds, the 17-inch iMac — the line's most affordable configuration — disappears by the end of June, leaving prospective buyers a choice between 20- and 24-inch models or a different machine altogether.
- Both the date and the lineup change remain unconfirmed sourcing, so Apple's official positioning could still differ when the refresh is announced.
Second-order effects
- A two-size lineup lifts the price floor of Apple's consumer desktop business, pushing entry-level buyers down into the rest of the company's lineup rather than the iMac's low end.
- Channel partners and resellers holding 17-inch stock face a markdown cycle once the refresh confirms, since the outgoing size instantly loses current-model status.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern holds, the 'smallest iMac' becomes a perpetually retiring category: display sizes ratchet upward as Apple trades entry-level reach for higher-margin configurations, a structural choice rather than a one-off cull.
The trend: Apple's consumer desktop line is consolidating around fewer, larger configurations, with the entry-level price point ceded rather than defended.