2015 5K Retina iMac supports 10-bit screen color feature under OS X 10.11 El Capitan

This could come in handy if you’re doing extensive photo and video work.

Apple’s latest 5K Retina iMac supports 10-bit screen color. This feature was discovered via new driver software in OS X El Capitan, as noted in Cinema5D and German publication Mac & I. It’s not clear whether the code might support an external 10-bit monitor.

10-bit screen color helps eliminate banding artifacts while restoring gradient detail. Most external and built-in device displays are still limited to 8-bit color at most, and accordingly, OS X didn’t offer compatibility until now. Windows has had 10-bit support since 2009’s Windows 7.

Even on a 4K or 5K iMac, 10-bit color is reportedly only useful in Apple’s own Preview and Photos apps. This excludes popular professional software, namely Adobe titles like Photoshop and Illustrator, or Apple’s Final Cut Pro. The companies might be able to release compatibility updates, but neither has commented on the matter.

The 5K Retina iMac was released on October 13th of this year.

As always, stay tuned for additional details as they become available and please let us know what you think of this in the comments.

Via AppleInsider, Cinedma5D and Mac & I