Apple iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2011) vs Apple iMac Pro (2017)

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iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2011) compared with iMac Pro (2017)

	AppleiMac (21.5-inch, Late 2011)	AppleiMac Pro (2017)
Overview
Released
Released	August 2011	December 2017
Performance
Processor
Processor	Intel Core i3 3.1 GHz (iMac Late 2011)	Intel Xeon W-2140B, Intel Xeon W-2150B, Intel Xeon W-2170B or Intel Xeon W-2191B
CPU cores
CPU cores	2	8, 10, 14 or 18
Graphics
Graphics	AMD Radeon HD 6750M (256 MB GDDR5)	Radeon Pro Vega 56 (8 GB HBM2), Radeon Pro Vega 64 (16 GB HBM2) or Radeon Pro Vega 64X (16 GB HBM2)
Memory
Memory	2 GB, 4 GB or 8 GB	32 GB, 64 GB, 128 GB or 256 GB (better)
Storage
Storage	250 GB	1 TB to 4 TB (better)
CPU
CPU	3.1 GHz dual-core Intel Core i3 with 3 MB shared L3 cache. The English specification and maker education price list confirm dual-core i3; conflicting translated regional processor descriptions are not used. Exact Intel SKU unestablished.	Xeon W at 3.2 GHz with 8 cores (Turbo Boost 4.2 GHz), 3.0 GHz with 10 cores (4.5 GHz), 2.5 GHz with 14 cores (4.3 GHz) or 2.3 GHz with 18 cores (4.3 GHz). Exact W-B CPU identities follow Geekbench. The 8/10-core versions launched first; Macworld reports later January 2018 availability for 14/18-core options. Apple changed the standard configuration to 10 cores in August 2020.
GPU
GPU	AMD Radeon HD 6750M with 256 MB GDDR5.	Radeon Pro Vega 56 with 8 GB HBM2, optionally Vega 64 or Vega 64X with 16 GB HBM2. Vega 64X is a later option included in Apple’s current specification sheet, absent from the launch reviews.
Memory type
Memory type	1333 MHz DDR3; 2 GB standard in one module, configurable to 4 GB (two 2 GB) or 8 GB (two 4 GB).	Quad-channel 2666 MHz DDR4 ECC; 32 GB standard, configurable to 64/128/256 GB. The current maker sheet includes the later 256 GB option; launch reviews cover up to 128 GB. No user-accessible memory door.
Storage type
Storage type	250 GB 7200 rpm Serial ATA hard drive; slot-loading 8x SuperDrive with 4x double-layer burning.	1 TB SSD, configurable to 2 or 4 TB
Display
Screen size
Screen size	21.5″	27″
Resolution
Resolution	1920 × 1080	5120 × 2880 (better)
Panel
Panel	–	IPS LCD
Brightness
Brightness	–	500 nits
Display type
Display type	LED-backlit glossy TFT active-matrix LCD with millions of colours. Panel technology, brightness and refresh rate are not published.	LED-backlit Retina 5K display; IPS panel confirmed by EveryMac. Native refresh rate omitted because Apple does not publish it in the specification sheet.
Display features
Display features	–	Wide colour (P3); supports one billion colours
Connections
Ports
Ports	4 × USB-A, SD card slot, Ethernet, headphone jack	4 × Thunderbolt 3, 4 × USB-A, SD card slot, Ethernet, headphone jack
Ethernet
Ethernet	1 Gb/s	10 Gb/s (better)
External displays
External displays	Up to 1	Up to 4 (better)
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi	802.11n	802.11ac
Bluetooth
Bluetooth	–	5.0
Camera
Camera	FaceTime HD camera	1080p FaceTime HD
Back ports
Back ports	Four USB 2.0 ports on the computer, plus two on the wired keyboard; Mini DisplayPort, FireWire 800 at 7 W, SDXC card slot, Gigabit Ethernet, headphone/optical output and audio line-in/optical input. This education model has no published Thunderbolt or Bluetooth specification.	Four USB-A ports; four Thunderbolt 3 USB-C ports with DisplayPort 1.2, Thunderbolt up to 40 Gb/s and USB 3.1 Gen 2 up to 10 Gb/s; UHS-II SDXC, Nbase-T Ethernet supporting 1/2.5/5/10Gb and 3.5 mm headphone jack. Thunderbolt 2, HDMI, DVI and VGA require adapters.
External displays
External displays	Built-in display and one external display up to 2560 × 1600 simultaneously; extended desktop or mirroring.	Two 5120 × 2880 displays at 60 Hz with one billion colours, four 3840 × 2160 displays at 60 Hz with one billion colours, or four 4096 × 2304 displays at 60 Hz with millions of colours, alongside the built-in display
Speakers
Speakers	Stereo speakers with two internal 20 W amplifiers; microphone and support for Apple iPhone headset microphone.	Stereo speakers
Microphones
Microphones	–	Four microphones; supports Hey Siri
Keyboard and mouse
Keyboard and mouse	Wired Apple Keyboard with Numeric Keypad and Apple Mouse with scroll ball.	Space grey Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keypad and Magic Mouse 2; optional space grey Magic Trackpad 2
Design and power
Type
Type	All-in-one	All-in-one
Weight
Weight	8.8 kg (better)	9.7 kg
Width × depth × height
Width × depth × height	528 × 188.5 × 451 mm	650 × 203 × 516 mm
Operating system
Operating system	macOS	macOS
Size and weight detail
Size and weight detail	Maker reference weight; actual weight varies with configuration and manufacturing process.	Dimensions include the stand; weight varies by configuration and manufacturing process. Optional VESA mount adapter kit.
Power supply
Power supply	Maximum continuous power 205 W; 100–240 V AC, 50–60 Hz.	100–240 V AC, 50–60 Hz, single phase
Materials
Materials	–	Recyclable aluminium enclosure; arsenic-free glass and mercury-free LED backlight
In the box
In the box	Education institution model with Mac OS X Lion and iLife. August 2011 month precision follows contemporary MacRumors ordering coverage and 9to5Mac shipment scheduling, corroborated by the maker price list dated 8 August; that price date is not treated as a first delivery day.	iMac Pro, space grey Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keypad, space grey Magic Mouse 2, Lightning to USB cable and power lead