When Apple announced the first 27-inch Retina 5K iMac at its special event last month, its new super high resolution desktop computer became available for purchase online that same day. Ship times for the Retina 5K iMac have since steadily slipped from 3-5 days to 7-10 days. With Black Friday and the holidays quickly approaching, though, the shipment promise for the Retina 4K iMac has stretched out to 2-3 weeks when ordering directly from Apple…While you may find the base model which starts at $2,499 stocked at your local brick-and-mortar Apple Store, the trend of extended ship times means you’ll likely want to order soon if you plan on customizing the configuration, especially maxing every spec out, and getting your shipment in time for the holidays.
Historically, Mac ship times have extended out after the initial debut when a significant change (like Retina) is introduced. Following the release of the Mac Pro at the very end of 2013, it took some four months for ship times to even reach 3-5 weeks.
When both the 21.5-inch and 27-inch iMac saw the current redesign in late 2012, an extremely low supply prompted Apple CEO Tim Cook to acknowledge the supply issue going into the holiday quarter.
Low inventory and extended ship times shouldn’t impact the overall iMac lineup going into the holidays, though, as the non-Retina 21.5-inch and 27-inch iMacs are all readily available and in stock for online ordering.
Apple’s other desktop products, the Mac Pro and updated Mac mini, are also both in stock for online shipping.
If you are in the market for ordering Apple’s Retina 5K iMac online and need sooner ship times than Apple’s promised 2-3 week estimate, you may have better luck from other retailers like Amazon, which offer 1-day shipping and $50 off the base price. MacMall also has several configurations of the Retina 5K iMac readily in stock and available for shipping.
Be sure to check out our Black Friday deals coverage on 9to5Toys for the latest bargains to expect ahead of the holidays too.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
You buying? It would be one of my best Christmas presents… if I found that under my tree!
You could just buy it at the Apple Store… There are plenty of them.
Apple overstocks it retail stores and understocks the online store during rollout of devices.
I guess that want me to drive a hundred. Lies to buy one inside their stores. ((