Apple’s insanely thin new iMacs may be gorgeous and powerful, but many of the design decisions that Apple made on the new desktops leave cause for concern – such as using proprietary SSDs, making it extremely difficult to replace RAM on 21.5-inch models, taking steps to prevent users from upgrading and repairing their own iMacs and more (1, 2, 3), all for the sake of making it slightly prettier.
Today, MacTrast has received exclusive confirmation from Apple about yet another design concern that will leave many users disappointed. According to a message received from Apple representative Laura Metz, the new iMacs do not support VESA mounting of any kind, making it impossible to use them with wall mounts, articulating arms, or other mounting solutions.
Apple representative Laura Metz, in response to my email inquiry about the matter:
Hi Glenn,
Thank you for your inquiry. The new iMac is not VESA mount compatible at this time.
We appreciate your feedback on this feature and will take it into consideration.
Thanks,
Laura
Apple has supported VESA mounting across its line of iMacs and Cinema/Thunderbolt displays for quite some time – and the exclusion of mounting options will come as a huge disappointment to many power users (especially those who have already invested hundreds of dollars in mounts), as well as businesses who mount iMacs for display or kiosk purposes.
There are already third-party solutions in the works that latch directly to the new iMac’s stand – but many consider leaving the stand in place to be tacky. It also doesn’t work well in all mounting situations – like a wall-mounted kiosk.
Suspicions have been circulating for a while that the new iMac’s stands can’t be readily removed and swapped for mounting hardware, due to a footnote on Apple’s VESA mount at their online store noting incompatibility with the new 27-inch iMac. With today’s confirmation, those suspicions are now facts. Form over function strikes again. Very disappointing indeed.
