Apple Adding Late 2012 iMacs to Vintage and Obsolete Products Pilot Program at End of January

In an internal memo distributed to Apple Authorized Service Providers, obtained by MacRumors, Apple has indicated that Late 2012 model 21.5-inch and 27-inch iMacs will be added to its vintage and obsolete products list on January 30.

newimac
Vintage and obsolete products are typically no longer eligible for repairs or replacement parts from Apple or Apple Authorized Service Providers, but the memo states Late 2012 model iMacs will be eligible for Apple's pilot program that will permit extended service through January 30, 2021 worldwide, subject to parts availability.

Other products in the pilot program include the iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, Mid 2012 models of the MacBook Air and Mac Pro, and Mid 2012 to Early 2013 models of the MacBook Pro. The program began in January 2018 and was expanded in August.

Vintage products are those that have not been manufactured for more than five years, according to Apple.

Related Roundup: iMac
Buyer's Guide: iMac (Neutral)
Related Forum: iMac

Popular Stories

iOS 26 Feature

iOS 26.1 to iOS 26.4 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Saturday October 18, 2025 11:00 am PDT by
iOS 26 was released last month, but the software train never stops, and iOS 26.1 beta testing is already underway. So far, iOS 26.1 makes both Apple Intelligence and Live Translation on compatible AirPods available in additional languages, and it includes some other minor changes across the Apple Music, Calendar, Photos, Clock, and Safari apps. More features and changes will follow in future ...
ios 26 1 liquid glass opaque

iOS 26.1 Beta 4 Lets Users Control Liquid Glass Transparency with New Toggle

Monday October 20, 2025 10:57 am PDT by
With the fourth betas of iOS 26.1, iPadOS 26.1, and macOS 26.1, Apple has introduced a new setting that's designed to allow users to customize the look of Liquid Glass. The toggle lets users select from a clear look for Liquid Glass, or a tinted look. Clear is the current Liquid Glass design, which is more transparent and shows the background underneath buttons, bars, and menus, while tinted ...
iphone air thickness

Apple Said to Cut iPhone Air Production Amid Underwhelming Sales

Friday October 17, 2025 8:29 am PDT by
Apple plans to cut production of the iPhone Air amid underwhelming sales performance, Japan's Mizuho Securities believes (via The Elec). The Japanese investment banking and securities firm claims that the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are seeing higher sales than their predecessors during the same period last year, while the standard iPhone 17 is a major success, performing...
iOS 26

iOS 26.0.2 Update for iPhones Coming Soon

Friday October 17, 2025 7:35 am PDT by
Apple's software engineers continue to internally test iOS 26.0.2, according to MacRumors logs, which have been a reliable indicator of upcoming iOS versions. iOS 26.0.2 will be a minor update that addresses bugs and/or security vulnerabilities, but we do not know any specific details yet. The update will likely be released by the end of next week. Last month, Apple released iOS 26.0.1,...
Apple iPad Pro hero M5

New iPad Pro Has Six Key Upgrades Beyond M5 Chip

Saturday October 18, 2025 10:57 am PDT by
While the new iPad Pro's headline feature is the M5 chip, the device has some other changes, including N1 and C1X chips, faster storage speeds, and more. With the M5 chip, the new iPad Pro has up to a 20% faster CPU and up to a 40% faster GPU compared to the previous model with the M4 chip, according to Geekbench 6 results. Keep in mind that 256GB and 512GB configurations have a 9-core CPU,...
iPhone Siri Glow

Some Apple Employees Have 'Concerns' About iOS 26.4's Revamped Siri

Sunday October 19, 2025 7:39 am PDT by
iOS 26.4 is expected to introduce a revamped version of Siri powered by Apple Intelligence, but not everyone is satisfied with how well it works. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said some of Apple's software engineers have "concerns" about the overhauled Siri's performance. However, he did not provide any specific details about the shortcomings. iOS 26.4 will...
HomePod mini and Apple TV

Apple's Next Rumored Products: New HomePod Mini, Apple TV, and More

Thursday October 16, 2025 9:13 am PDT by
Apple on Wednesday updated the 14-inch MacBook Pro, iPad Pro, and Vision Pro with its next-generation M5 chip, but previous rumors have indicated that the company still plans to announce at least a few additional products before the end of the year. The following Apple products have at one point been rumored to be updated in 2025, although it is unclear if the timeframe for any of them has...
maxresdefault

Here's How the iOS 26.1 Transparency Toggle Changes Liquid Glass

Monday October 20, 2025 1:55 pm PDT by
With the fourth beta of iOS 26.1, Apple added a toggle that makes Liquid Glass more opaque and reduces transparency. We tested the beta to see where the toggle works and what it looks like. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. If you have the latest iOS 26.1 beta, you can go to Settings > Display and Brightness to get to the new option. Tap on Liquid Glass, then...
m4 macbook air blue

M5 MacBook Air Coming Spring 2026 With M5 Mac Studio and Mac Mini in Development

Thursday October 16, 2025 3:57 pm PDT by
Apple plans to launch MacBook Air models equipped with the new M5 chip in spring 2026, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Apple is also working on M5 Pro and M5 Max MacBook Pro models that will come early in the year. Neither the MacBook Pro models nor the MacBook Air models are expected to get design changes, with Apple focusing on simple chip upgrades. In the case of the MacBook Pro, a m...

Top Rated Comments

shaunp Avatar
89 months ago
At this rate the 2013 Mac Pro will be 'vintage' yet still on sale....;)
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
first-to-tea Avatar
89 months ago
This should be illegal. Products should be supported for repair up to 10 years, no less. 7 years is simply unacceptable. This especially is important since Apple suggests its business is “environmental”. More repairs will ensure a more sustainable outcome for the environment.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
2ilent8cho Avatar
89 months ago
Well thats 2 of my devices going Vintage this year then. Shame they will not be offically supported hardware wise still for repair as they both don't miss a beat and perform as good as the day i bought them.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheFluffyDuck Avatar
89 months ago
2012 iMac was the worst Apple computer I have ever used. The hard drive was so slow to the point of being unusable. Being a university computer I couldn't rip it open and put in an SSD as much as I dearly wanted too. So slow and crappy it took 2-5min to load MS office. I just defaulted to my MBP. It became a paper weight on my desk. I dont know what they were thinking still shipping with 5600 rpm hard drives. Such a bottle neck.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
marzer Avatar
89 months ago
My 2012 iMac is the best Mac I ever owned. Core i7, Fusion drive, GTX 680MX GPU which is still a good performing graphic card today (probably the best GPU ever put in an iMac). My 2017 iMac with the Radeon 580 Pro doesn’t feel as smooth, wasn’t a huge leap in performance given the 5 year difference, but my son won’t trade with me, he prefers the 2012’s Nvidia card for gaming.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
varsity Avatar
89 months ago
2012 iMac was the worst Apple computer I have ever used. The hard drive was so slow to the point of being unusable. Being a university computer I couldn't rip it open and put in an SSD as much as I dearly wanted too. So slow and crappy it took 2-5min to load MS office. I just defaulted to my MBP. It became a paper weight on my desk. I dont know what they were thinking still shipping with 5600 rpm hard drives. Such a bottle neck.
As a Mac repair technician (not at all affiliated with Apple) the 2010-2012 iMac or Macbook with an SSD is an amazing upgrade. If you still have it I would recommend you pop one in. You should rally consider this as we do these all the time for our customers with amazing results. As for Apple moving to put these iMacs in a vintage status this is ridiculous and just a move to boost their profits by selling new and not repairing good machines. Terrible for the environment and harmful to independent small business.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)