Reddit mentions of Dell Ultra HD 5K Monitor UP2715K 27-Inch Screen LED-Lit Monitor

a similar panel for comparison

As configured by you (i7, 3TB HD, 4GB video card), the cost comes to $3099.00. I added in 16GB of memory over the stock 8 since that's pretty much standard for most builds, anymore.

5k Dell Monitor: $1,439.99

Retail i7-4790: $307.00

Gigabyte GA-Z97-HD3 Motherboard: $102.95

Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB Kit: $66.99

Corsair Carbide SPEC-01 Mid Tower Case: $48.99

Silverstone Tek 500W 80+ Gold PSU: $79.99

EVGA GeForce GTX 960 4GB Video Card: $229.99

CM Storm Devastator KB/Mouse Combo: $29.99

Total Cost: $2305.89

Video card was a bit of a toughie since the iMac uses a notebook GPU, so I went with something a bit faster, but comparable. This is a complete system with comparable to better specs.

Given the price difference, may as well go with a 980Ti for that extra graphics oomph or tack on some water cooling.

Edit: Woops! Forgot storage and OS!

WD Blue 3TB HD: $98.70

Samsung 850 EVO 120GB (configured as cache drive): $66.99

Windows 10 Home: $119.00

Revised Total: $2590.58. Still cheaper and could still sub out the 960 for a 980Ti and be under cost.

You installed SMBup which according to this replaces Apple's native NetBIOS and SMB services with Samba. Then you post about how bad network shares work for you in el crapitan. Honestly the Apple docs on setting up file sharing do work. With the caveat of course that you're still depending on the default implementation of services in OS X. Once you've changed how something operates in the OS with the addition of 3rd party software/services it really isn't a fair judgement of the OS if the "it just works" way of accomplishing your goal is now broken. You're blaming Apple and El Crapitan for a problem you created. Grow the fuck up. And after you return your iMac since that's clearly what you want to do, you can pick up one of these for all your 5K needs.

I never owned Mac And I'm not talking here based on experience, I know they use a high-quality panel with flicker free no PWM with high resolution and HiDPI (pixel-double scale, like scaling factor by x2). but since Mac uses a different algorithm to scale and display the picture on the screen they don't get the same problem as windows, windows never do scaling right which breaks the way it displays text and makes everything smaller than it should. not mentioning it can't handle color space as Mac. in short words even if you put that Retina display on windows it will not give the same picture as it used to on Mac.
So back to the question, just look for the same panel as Retina display and find the monitor you want, I made a quick search for Apple iMac with Retina 5k and looks like this one uses LG Panel LM270QQ1-SDA2 and based on tftcentral database, you can find all the monitor that uses the same panel and this one was similar Dell UP2715K which uses LM270QQ1 https://www.amazon.com/Dell-Monitor-UP2715K-27-Inch-LED-Lit/dp/B00OKSFXZU

here is how to find a similar panel as Apple iMac 27:
Go to http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/panelsearch.htm and search for LM270WQ1 then you will find all the monitors that share the same panel, look at this chart
http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/articles/monitor_panel_parts.htm

Like
https://www.amazon.com/Achieva-Shimian-QH2700-IPSMS-Backlight-Resolution/dp/B00D3DA15U/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

After my research looks like Mac uses a custom version of each panel that ends with xxx.SDA so you just have to find the same panel from the above chart with glossy coating which I think mac uses and find the display you want. I couldnt find any popular monitor that share same spec as Mac one have.

You can actually by a 5k monitor for PC

Dell has been selling them since before the iMac had em. Still pricey though. The one I linked is actually about 2 years old now. I am guessing there is a newer model but I haven't bothered to Google for it.

Let's see.

For $1999 you can buy middle iMac with 27" 5K display.

• 3.2GHz quad-core Intel Core i5, Turbo Boost up to 3.6GHz (i5-6500, according to wiki
  
  
• 8GB 1867MHz DDR3 SDRAM - two 4GB (meh)
  
  
• 1TB Fusion Drive (it's 1Tb HDD + 128Gb SSD for cash)
  
  
• AMD Radeon R9 M390 with 2GB video memory (which is 20% slower than 750Ti)
  
  OR for $1999 you can buy:
  
  $1099 5K Dell monitor + $900 parts.
  
  You can easily fit i7-6700 (for editing) + RX460 (which is better than M390) or even RX480/GTX1060 into.

iMac Retina has 5k, as does a Dell monitor. 8k is next. If you can afford it.

I think that's the real killer here, Apple makes really nice displays and this one is big and high res, if you were to buy an equivalent display from someone else it would be well over 1k, this dell one is $1,300 , when you consider that, this is probably on par with any other small form factor prebuilt with similar specs.

EDIT: And that dell is $1,300 used. IDEK what it would cost new.

>a $1800 iMac is a 5K screen with a shitty laptop strapped to it, when a $1800 PC is a high end gaming PC or a workstation.

[The thing is, that 5k display is about $1,600 by itself]
(http://www.amazon.com/Dell-Monitor-UP2715K-27-Inch-LED-Lit/dp/B00OKSFXZU) so the internals are pretty much free. Now if you bought the actual display then you'd have to compare the imac to a sub $200 pc where you're you're not going to be able to match its specs or form factor. About the only mac 'not worth it's price' is the mac mini, which you can get much better parts for the price at the trade off of the form factor of the mini, which is tiny in comparison to about any pc you could build.

Switching to a 10-bit workflow requires both a 10-bit capable GPU like a Quadro and a 10-bit display. The AOC display you've found on pcpartpicker is actually an 8-bit display using something called FRC (frame rate control) to emulate 10-bit output. Source

If You're looking to go 4k (or 5k), 10 bit & IPS for your monitors You also need to pay quite a bit more for it - in which case the iMac doesn't even seem that expensive anymore.

Dell has a 5k IPS 10-bit monitor for $1,539.99

Your monitor is a problem - you've selected a gaming model with a TN panel and very poor color quality. This is a bad choice for graphics work. You're price shopping against a 5k iMac, which has one of the very best displays available anywhere. You either need to price it against another 5K monitor and erase your price advantage, or you need to pick a 4K IPS model with 100% color gamut (probably at least $500) and compare it to the equivalent 4K iMac for a $1,000 savings.

Suddenly, you're going to have a very hard time matching the Apple prices.

Even if you can still match the prices, you really shouldn't do this. You've got three totally separate issues here, any one of which could backfire on you:

1. Unless you're exclusively full-time IT, you don't want to recommend computer hardware at work. Request for yourself, sure, but not recommend for others. That's because if there's ever an issue, you can get blamed. If there's ever a crash or bug, someone will point the finger and say "This is all /u/impulsenine's fault; it would never have happened on a Mac". Even if they're wrong, there's nothing you can do about it at that point.
   
   
2. Even if you're exclusively full-time IT, you don't want to build custom computers for business applications. This is an extension of my first point, but mostly comes down to hidden costs. Business spending is different from personal spending, because you're looking for a particular return on investment rather than just trying to spend as little as possible. It's going to take you a full day, minimum, to built, install, test, and refine your custom system. That's an extra $175 at the median graphic designer's salary, but you might even need to account for it at your client billable rate, which is likely closer to $100/hr. Suddenly you need to include $800 of extra cost in your build. And the same thing applies every time there's an issue that would have been covered by a warranty on the Apple, but isn't. Hell, if your motherboard or GPU has an issue and needs to be replaced under the component manufacturer's warranty, by the time you RMA the item and wait for shipping, you'll have lost enough productive time to buy a whole iMac. There's an old IT saying, "Nobody ever got fired for buying IBM." Business systems need business warranties, with advance part replacement or next-day on-site techs.
   
   
3. If everyone in the office is using Mac OS, you shouldn't interfere with that, because any little incompatibility or training issues will be your fault. Not "blamed on you" like item #1. Literally your fault. You can use a Windows system in that environment, which is great. I would be perfectly capable of getting work done on a Mac in my office's Windows environment, too. But my ex-boss wasn't, even though he insisted on trying. Just because you can do it doesn't mean it's going to be a smooth transition for anyone else, and you don't really want to push that transition.

The price of a stand-alone 5k monitor is a little over half of what that machine costs. The lower grade video card, 290x is almost $500. Processor with a mid-range MB can run about $500. 32GB of 1600 ram, cheaper 8GB sticks are about $75 each totaling $300.
So far, we're totaling $3300 without taking into account the hard drive, which are always cheap unless SSD, external peripherals, a good tower and power supply and OS license.

This machine with the current setup is a little over $3700 with everything.

Dat 5k really hikes the price up for any machine, Apple or otherwise.

I love my thunderbolt display but I couldn't imagine buying one at $1000 now. There are so many better monitors available. It's insane that Apple hasn't even considered at least doing a price drop.

I do not recommend the Magic Mouse. It is small and somewhat uncomfortable to hold. The touch surface is cool but not nearly as useful as a better sized mouse. The magic trackpad, however, is excellent and if you are use to using a trackpad from being a heavy laptop user, it is an excellent device.

As for a monitor recommendation, Dell puts out some nice 4k displays.

There is a void from Apple not releasing a newer Thunderbolt monitor and other vendors have filled it. Asus, Dell, and LG all have quality offerings. This article is a little old but a good starting point.

Your guess is as good as mine when it comes to the ETA. My guess is the end of the year for both the new Intel chipset and AMD chipset.

Here's the thing though, I honestly don't think even with 3x 1440p monitors you'll be able to make use of 4 way SLI/CF. It will be cheaper, quieter, less power hungry (need 1500 watt PSU for that or 1600), and a LOT less heat if you stick to 2 way. The problem with going 4 way is that you're going to be roasting your GPUs unless you do a custom water cooling setup. All around, it could end up being a huge pain in the ass for you. If you're really serious about rendering and such, 2 way Titan Xp (newest model) would probably be the ultimate setup that will still get fully utilized (to some extent, SLI has shitty support in lots of games). While I wouldn't get a Titan card, considering the 1080ti (but I don't render), it would at least be MORE than capable of pushing that number of pixels with ease and it wouldn't require extremely insane configurations.

I know it sounds awesome, but in practice, every quad/tri SLI/CF setup out there has always been marred by problems.

I also understand the desire in the future to bump to say...5k monitors, or even 8k, but that's a longshot that will likely require a complete system revamp by then. No current card on the market or even SLI config can tackle 8k, not even 4 way SLI Titan Xp. It just simply hasn't been written yet into the drivers, or in any way would be properly utilized outside of maybe 1 or 2 games.

Right now, the ultra high end I would suggest for work (for Mr. Bleeding edge) would be something like this -> https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OKSFXZU/?tag=pcpapi-20 But it's not meant for gaming in the slightest. The tech simply doesn't exist there yet. For gaming+work I'd look at say... 2 or 3 of these with 2x Titan Xp -> https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236717&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-PCPartPicker,%20LLC-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

Well, probly 2x since those fuckers are HUGE. You're going to run out of eyeballs and deskspace here.

Eh, 4k? Why not 5k.

Exactly. Sure its expensive but throw together a similar PC with one of these and you'll be nearing the apple price. It's designed for video editing as you can work with a full 4k frame and still have space for the editor toolbars and whatnot. It's by no means a gaming computer

https://www.amazon.com/Dell-Monitor-UP2715K-27-Inch-LED-Lit/dp/B00OKSFXZU

Weird question, depends on your needs. I really don't get your setup either way tho. Okay, desktop + laptop is reasonable, but why laptop + iPad? If you can do your stuff on a laptop/iPad, why buy desktop?

Ideally, neither of those as it seems like a giant waste. Get the 15" MacBook Pro (the $2,499.00 model with Radeon R9 M370X) and a decent display, such as Dell P2715Q (or UP2715K if you really want 5K for some weird reason).

Same total price ($3100 for cheapest iMac/MacBook Pro vs $3020 for 4K or $3600 for 5K), but you get better CPU/RAM, which is more useful for developing than a marginally better graphics card. iMac is often a shitty investment for pretty much anybody.

https://www.amazon.com/Dell-Monitor-UP2715K-27-Inch-LED-Lit/dp/B00OKSFXZU/

It's not exactly cheap, but 5k is already here...

Here's my quick build on it, not perusing for price savings. I could probably shave a few hundred off (i.e. going for air cooling instead of liquid), but if I were going to build one for me, this is how I'd do it. Cost ended up being about on par (~$2,850) for a more powerful machine (GTX1080 > Radeon Pro 580)

Case - $49.99

CPU - $295.00

Motherboard - $114.99

RAM - $126.99

PSU - $129.67

GPU - $576.62

Storage - $139.50

Liquid cooling - $107.99

Display - $1,299.99

Total:
$2840.74

Ways to shave some off -
Look at other monitors, I didn't really hunt too much here as I'm not an expert in that field, so I just looked for a "true" color 5k. I think HP's would fit that bill at around $900 (so $400 cheaper), but I could be wrong, so I went with the more pricey one.

Go with the GTX1070 (saves about $100) or the GTX1060 (saves about $300).

Nix liquid cooling and just go with air cooled (save $107.99)

Which puts a "budget" build of this at ~$2,400, $2,000 if the HP monitor works. Plus, since it's all on Amazon, if you have their store card, -5%, so, that puts us at ~$2280 (-400 if the HP monitor fits the bill) for the budget build and $2,698.70 (-400 if the HP monitor counts) for how I'd actually build it if I were doing it for me.

On the Mac mini? yeah. That was a massive mistake, and the old quad core minis are still extremely popular (people sell them for a nice fraction of the original price).

It's like, the do a good job on phones, and make nice laptops (although those haven't been updated in a while now, so what the fuck apple), but they seem to have completely abandoned making decent desktops, except for the screens. That 5K display is gorgeous, and it's the same one used in this Dell Monitor

I really wish they'd get their heads out of their asses. Maybe revamping the entire lineup like they are about to do now is what it'll take.

If they do it right, we'll see nvidia's mobile pascal chips used across the line, along with it being built into their external 5K displays, so that adding a second display also adds an external GPU (via thunderbolt) with the screen. Then, I could finally go to my dream setup of a nice laptop with a great monitor and external GPU.

Edit: why the hell was this downvoted?

What if I wanted one?

I could build 2 similar computers with the 3.7k$ left.