Agreed. I faced a similar situation earlier this year when Firefox Dynasty ended and I could no longer find a current/secure web browser for a 2011 Mac running Sierra.
I spent about $1100 (a little less, since it was from Costco) to replace it with a new M5 MacBook Air. I could’ve gone for the $600 Neo, but I decided the Air would have more longevity.
A new Mac isn’t a trivial purchase, but depending on your requirements, it might be in the realm of possibility. The big deal is that if you need more than the basic amount of RAM and storage, the larger configurations can get much more pricey.
Then you might be able to get by just fine with the entry-level configuration Mac mini, MacBook Air or Neo. A quick breakdown of the entry-level models:
MacBook Neo (A18 Pro) - $600 MSRP
8 GB RAM
256 GB SSD
Mini (M4) - $800 MSRP
16 GB RAM
512 GB storage
MacBook Air (M5) - $1100 MSRP
16 GB RAM
512 GB storage
All can accommodate your external SSD, for additional storage, and all will probably be faster than what you have today.
Of course, even $600 is a lot to spend if your budget isn’t prepared to do so. But these are some relatively low-cost options.
And, of course, you can also get used/refurbished Macs for even lower prices.
Thanks. Yeah, I know, it’s all about money in the end. I will probably either buy a new iMac (the most cost effective solution for me since I don’t use laptops much) or a Mini + Display. The iMac would be less costly since the Mini + Studio Display would put me over $2400, which is a big chunk of change for a PC. My needs are not great, mostly text-based, word processing, some Excel stuff, some other text-based apps (terminology research), not much in the way of image manipulation. Any new Mac will be much faster than this machine, so that’s not an issue. And I believe the new iMacs have 16GB RAM these days. The problem is I very much dislike being forced to upgrade when I could be doing other things. Not the first time MS has done something like this.
Why do you need a Studio Display? There are lots of great displays from other vendors for a lot less money. I’d look for a 27" 1440p or 4K display from a well known vendor like Dell or Acer.
The image may not be as nice as Apple’s 5K and 6K displays, but it should be just fine for your needs and will cost a lot less.
Thought about it. But I would like a display that matches the quality of the other hardware. And I do need crisp text for work. I’ve been following the many discussions here about displays and it looks like the most compatible (if you want the Retina effect) display is a 5k. There was an earlier link to compatible displays but they are most often $1,000 and up. The Studio Display is of much higher build quality than most others I’ve seen, although I haven’t really looked very hard.
I agree completely that the Apple displays are among the best you can buy. Whether or not you consider it worth the expense is a personal decision, and I will make no attempt to change that opinion.
With respect to sharpness and resolution, I’ll summarize what I’ve previously written in various threads:
macOS’s UI elements look best at an effective resolution of about 100-110 ppi.
On a 27" screen, a 1440p resolution panel’s native resolution is about 109 ppi - right in the sweet spot.
A 5K 27" screen is double that resolution. That is, about 220 ppi. Which at 2:1 retina scaling, is also in that sweet spot. And with the added sharpness that retina scaling will give you.
There are third-party 5K displays. They’re not cheap, but they don’t cost as much as Apple’s displays. Again, this is a matter of personal preference.
With a 4K screen, it requires non-integer scaling to produce that effective 110 ppi. This puts a bit of a load on your GPU, but that shouldn’t be a problem unless you’re doing GPU-intensive work (like video processing or gaming).
You can, of course, run a 4K panel with 1:1 or 2:1 scaling, but the former will make objects too small for comfort and the latter will make them too big. Your preferences may vary, of course.
For whatever it’s worth, I run my 13" MacBook Air with non-integer scaling. Its native resolution is 2560x1664 (about 235 ppi). 2:1 retina scaling is (effective) 1280x832 (117 ppi). The macOS default resolution is (effective) 1470x956 (135 ppi, 1.7:1 scaling). I have configured it for (effective) 1710x1112 (157 ppi, 1.5:1 scaling). I think it looks great with any of these configurations and pick the one that makes all the on-screen objects a comfortable size.
As for the quality of third-party displays, they vary widely across brands and models. I personally think that for non-gaming purposes, an IPS panel (less expensive) or OLED (more expensive, better contrast) from a good quality manufacturer will work just fine. But again, preferences are personal.
Thanks for the breakdown, appreciate the information. Ultimately, I’ll make a decision based on my budget and needs. I’m leaning towards an iMac for the combination of cost, simplicity, and display quality. Perhaps not ideal in terms of modularity but I’ve always felt they were good value for the money.