Despite the vast number of innovations Apple incorporates into each new product, Cupertino has been emphasizing the Retina display for the past few years.

The display, with its truly stunning visuals, has become a true marketing gimmick for the company. It was successfully used in the iPhone and then the iPad. Retina also gave a powerful boost to sales of the Retina MacBook Pro. This fall, Apple bet on Retina display in the iMac. And it paid off.

The new iMac features 14.7 million pixels, packed into a 27-inch display with a 5120 x 2880 resolution. The new iMac has four times more pixels than a standard model of the same size, yet uses 30% less energy. To achieve this, the company used more modern LED technology (and therefore more energy-efficient) as well as a special chip that coordinates the pixels.

Honestly, to truly understand the awesomeness of the new iMac Retina 5K, you need to compare it to the standard iMac. At first glance, it might seem like there's no difference. And if you look at the computer from a meter away, that's true. The full magic of the Retina display unfolds the moment you sit down and start looking at text and icons. It's not as huge a difference as between the iPhone 3G and the iPhone 6, but the picture is much better. And most importantly, your eyes will feel it. Working with Retina will be much easier for them.

The difference in screen size is most noticeable when you either get very close to the screen or zoom in. The difference is colossal, and here you can clearly see how Apple has improved its display. It's a different story, though, because you don't often sit and read highly enlarged text.

High-resolution photos or videos, however, are a completely different matter. Below are two images. The first is of a standard iMac, the second is of the iMac Retina 5K. Someone who regularly works with high-quality content will immediately notice the difference. And they'll definitely choose the more modern version.

The iMac Retina 5K is an excellent choice for those who want a powerful computer with a great display, but don't need a Mac Pro and two 4K displays. The iMac all-in-one desktop delivers both a powerful display and excellent hardware: the base model comes with a quad-core Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM, a 1TB Fusion Drive, and AMD graphics. Additionally, the device now features two second-generation Thunderbolt ports.

The configuration is incredibly powerful, but it can be further enhanced if desired. Every component of the iMac can be upgraded, with a 3TB Fusion Drive or a 1TB SSD, a new processor, and 32GB of RAM. The maximum configuration increases the price by 60%.
Mac Pro vs. iMac Retina 5K

With such powerful hardware, the iMac should be able to handle a number of demanding tasks quickly. Benchmarks have already been published online proving that the top-of-the-line iMac Retina 5K can outperform the standard Mac Pro. A Cinebench CPU test also showed that the Retina 5K achieved 142 points in a single-core test, while the Pro achieved 133.

Another small test showed that the new iMac won't be faster than the Mac Pro when processing a song in Logic Pro X, but it will handle the task faster than the standard iMac. The results were 50, 72, and 89 seconds, respectively. Importing a 5-minute 1080p video took the new iMac 69 seconds, while the Mac Pro took 54 seconds and the older iMac 90 seconds.

However, these results are quite obvious. The entry-level Mac Pro is $1,500 more expensive than the iMac Retina 5K. These computers are in different price ranges, although they can be used with the same tasks. The Pro will simply perform them much faster, but not everyone is willing to pay for that.

For its price, the iMac Retina 5K is an excellent choice. 4K displays are currently available for the same price as a full-fledged Apple computer. And unless you're filming Avatar, it's an excellent choice for both everyday work and the complex tasks of a photographer or musician. Its main feature is the incredible Retina 5K display. It's perfect for both home use (Retina is perfect for the whole family) and for work, where you need to sit in front of a screen all day.