Apple iMac (27-inch, Late 2012) vs Apple iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020)

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iMac (27-inch, Late 2012) compared with iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020)

	AppleiMac (27-inch, Late 2012)	AppleiMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020)
Overview
Released
Released	December 2012	August 2020
Performance
Processor
Processor	Intel Core i5-3470S, Intel Core i5-3470 or Intel Core i7-3770	Intel Core i5-10500, Intel Core i5-10600, Intel Core i9-10910 or Intel Core i7-10700K
CPU cores
CPU cores	4	6, 8 or 10
CPU threads
CPU threads	4 or 8	12, 16 or 20
Graphics
Graphics	NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660M (512 MB GDDR5), NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675MX (1 GB GDDR5) or NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680MX (2 GB GDDR5)	Radeon Pro 5300 (4 GB GDDR6), Radeon Pro 5500 XT (8 GB GDDR6), Radeon Pro 5700 (8 GB GDDR6) or Radeon Pro 5700 XT (16 GB GDDR6)
Memory
Memory	8 GB, 16 GB or 32 GB	8 GB, 16 GB, 32 GB, 64 GB or 128 GB (better)
Storage
Storage	768 GB to 3 TB	256 GB to 8 TB (better)
CPU
CPU	2.9 GHz quad-core Core i5 or 3.2 GHz quad-core Core i5, both with Turbo Boost up to 3.6 GHz; the upper model supports a 3.4 GHz quad-core Core i7 with Turbo Boost up to 3.9 GHz	Six-core Core i5 at 3.1 GHz (Turbo Boost 4.5 GHz) or 3.3 GHz (4.8 GHz), or eight-core Core i7 at 3.8 GHz (5.0 GHz). Upper two bases configurable to 3.6 GHz ten-core Core i9 (5.0 GHz). Exact CPU identities follow Geekbench. Apple specifies a 5.0 GHz Core i7 limit in this iMac, while Intel lists 5.1 GHz for the chip itself.
GPU
GPU	NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660M with 512 MB GDDR5 on the 2.9 GHz model; GTX 675MX with 1 GB GDDR5 on the upper model, configurable to GTX 680MX with 2 GB GDDR5	Radeon Pro 5300 with 4 GB GDDR6 on the two Core i5 bases. Upper base has Radeon Pro 5500 XT with 8 GB GDDR6, optionally Radeon Pro 5700 with 8 GB or 5700 XT with 16 GB GDDR6.
Memory type
Memory type	1600 MHz DDR3; 8 GB (two 4 GB modules), configurable to 16 GB (two 8 GB) or 32 GB (four 8 GB); four user-accessible SO-DIMM slots	2666 MHz DDR4; 8 GB standard as two 4 GB modules. Four user-accessible SO-DIMM slots; configurable to 16/32/64/128 GB on every base.
Storage type
Storage type	1 TB or 3 TB 7200-rpm hard drive, 1 TB or 3 TB Fusion Drive, or 768 GB flash storage; all storage options are available with either base processor	Lower base: fixed 256 GB SSD. Middle base: 512 GB/1/2 TB SSD. Upper base: 512 GB/1/2/4/8 TB SSD.
Display
Screen size
Screen size	27″	27″
Resolution
Resolution	2560 × 1440	5120 × 2880 (better)
Panel
Panel	IPS LCD	IPS LCD
Brightness
Brightness	–	500 nits
Display type
Display type	LED-backlit display with IPS technology and support for millions of colours	LED-backlit Retina 5K display; IPS panel confirmed by EveryMac. Apple does not publish native refresh rate in the specification sheet.
Display features
Display features	Fully laminated glass and anti-reflective coating; Apple does not publish brightness or refresh rate in this model's specification sheet	Wide colour (P3), one billion colours and True Tone; standard glass or optional nano-texture glass
Connections
Ports
Ports	2 × Thunderbolt, 4 × USB-A, SD card slot, Ethernet, headphone jack	2 × Thunderbolt 3, 4 × USB-A, SD card slot, Ethernet, headphone jack
Ethernet
Ethernet	1 Gb/s	1 Gb/s
External displays
External displays	Up to 1	Up to 2 (better)
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi	802.11n	802.11ac
Bluetooth
Bluetooth	4.0	5.0
Camera
Camera	FaceTime HD	1080p FaceTime HD
Back ports
Back ports	Four USB 3 ports, two Thunderbolt ports with Mini DisplayPort output, SDXC card slot, Gigabit Ethernet, headphone and optical digital audio output; DVI, VGA and dual-link DVI require separately sold adapters	Four USB-A ports; two Thunderbolt 3 USB-C ports with DisplayPort, Thunderbolt up to 40 Gb/s and USB 3.1 Gen 2 up to 10 Gb/s; UHS-II SDXC, Gigabit Ethernet and 3.5 mm headphone jack; Kensington lock slot. Optional 10Gb Ethernet supports 1/2.5/5/10Gb connections. Thunderbolt 2, HDMI, DVI and VGA require adapters.
External displays
External displays	Built-in display at full native resolution alongside one external display up to 2560 × 1600; extended desktop and video mirroring	One 6K or 5K external display, or two 4K displays; two 6K displays require Radeon Pro 5700 or 5700 XT. All listed external modes run at 60 Hz.
Speakers
Speakers	Stereo speakers; supports Apple iPhone headset with microphone	Stereo speakers
Microphones
Microphones	Dual microphones	Three-mic array with directional beamforming; supports Hey Siri
Keyboard and mouse
Keyboard and mouse	Apple Wireless Keyboard and Magic Mouse; optional Magic Trackpad	Rechargeable Magic Keyboard and Magic Mouse 2; optional numeric keyboard and Magic Trackpad
Design and power
Type
Type	All-in-one	All-in-one
Weight
Weight	9.54 kg	8.92 kg (better)
Width × depth × height
Width × depth × height	650 × 203 × 516 mm	650 × 203 × 516 mm
Operating system
Operating system	macOS	macOS
Size and weight detail
Size and weight detail	Dimensions include the stand; weight varies by configuration and manufacturing process	Dimensions include the stand; weight varies by configuration and manufacturing process. A built-in VESA mount version was also available.
Power supply
Power supply	100–240 V AC, 50–60 Hz, single phase	100–240 V AC, 50–60 Hz, single phase
Noise
Noise	Apple's operator-position sound pressure: 15 dB at idle on the 2.9 GHz model, 14 dB on the 3.2 GHz model; 15 dB during hard-drive access on both	–
Materials
Materials	Recyclable aluminium and glass enclosure; arsenic-free display glass and mercury-free LED backlight	Recyclable, low-carbon aluminium enclosure; arsenic-free glass and mercury-free LED backlight
In the box
In the box	iMac, Apple Wireless Keyboard, Magic Mouse and power lead; OS X Mountain Lion and iLife were included at launch	iMac, Magic Keyboard, Magic Mouse 2, power lead, Lightning to USB cable and polishing cloth