iMac Pro (8-core, 32GB RAM): same great screen, RAW video editing is a big plus, awesome space gray color, good value, but no access to RAM, upgrades are costly
Apple's new, high-end iMac Pro packs a ton of power into a svelte, all-in-one desktop machine.
Context & Ripple Effects
The iMac Pro went on sale December 14 starting at $4,999 in 8-core and 10-core trim, after early videographer reviews already flagged strong performance and value. This AppleInsider verdict lands in that wave and adds the practical caveat: the machine's strengths — the display, space gray design, and RAW video editing — come bundled with zero user-accessible RAM.
First-order effects
- Creative professionals buying the iMac Pro must lock in their memory configuration at purchase; the sealed chassis removes the post-sale RAM upgrade path that previous pro desktops allowed.
- Videographers get workstation-class RAW video editing in an all-in-one form factor, validating the $4,999 entry price against separate Mac-plus-display setups.
Second-order effects
- Apple converts the closed design into build-to-order revenue: by March 2019 its configurator offered a $5,200 option for 256GB of RAM, meaning every buyer who wants headroom pays Apple's margin rather than a third-party memory vendor's.
- Third-party RAM and upgrade vendors lose the pro-desktop segment Apple seals off, pushing their business toward machines that remain serviceable.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern holds, pro Mac hardware consolidates around factory-configured machines where Apple owns the entire upgrade economics — a structure the later M3 and M4 consumer iMacs extend by keeping even base configurations non-expandable.
- Sealed pro desktops raise the stakes for buyers to forecast workloads years ahead, shifting purchasing behavior toward higher-spec initial orders and making Apple's configurator pricing a de facto tax on future-proofing.
The trend: Pro desktop computing is moving from user-upgradable towers to sealed, factory-configured machines where the manufacturer captures the entire aftermarket for memory and components.