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AR86

macrumors member
Original poster
Dec 7, 2014
66
1
Terrible thing happened today, was at my local shopping centre today and happened to walk past the apple store and like a magnet it pulled me in even though I was running late. I was planning on ignoring the computers and just checking out the headphones they had in but as I was leaving I saw IT a Titan sitting on it's throne with it's eye ecstasy screen.....yes i'm talking about the 27" 5k Retina iMac.

Now all I keep thinking is I HAVE TO get it :eek:
 

itsOver9000

macrumors 6502
Mar 29, 2013
374
329
B.F., KS
Haha good catch. I should probably update it to whatever icon apple has for SSD now lmao.

macbookpro-retina-storage-icon-2013


that, I suppose.
 

AR86

macrumors member
Original poster
Dec 7, 2014
66
1
Amazing how these things go, I started off more or less set on the 21.5" with a budget of below to £2k now i'm set on the 27rImac looking at almost a 3k spend
 

azure247

macrumors 6502
Sep 9, 2008
255
25
Go 27. I had both at one point and returned the 21 because it is too small. I do casual things too and I appreciate being able to have to side-by-side browsers opened so I can multi-task.
 

minimalism

macrumors member
Nov 28, 2013
73
5
Go for bigger screen. Internal specs can somewhat be upgraded in time such as RAM and external storage space.
 

ixxx69

macrumors 65816
Jul 31, 2009
1,294
878
United States
So i've been pretty much set on getting the 21.5 iMac with the following specs;

3.1ghz (Turbo to 3.9) i7 processor
16GB Ram
1TB Fusion Drive
NVIDIA GeForce GT 750M 1GB



27" model...

3.4GHz (Turbo to 3.8GHz ) i5 Processor
8GB Ram (kept to a minimum as its easy and cheaper to install extra on the 27" model)
3TB Fusion Drive
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 775M 2GB

...

CPU: either will be more than adequate for your needs. the i5 lacks hyperthreading, but you won't miss it for what you'll be using the computer for.

RAM: 8GB will be enough for your needs for the next few years... and if you get the 27", you can always add more later.

SSD/Fusion Drive: I'm a proponent of pure SSD myself, and 256GB is plenty for basic usage. You're only going to run out if you amass a huge video or photo library... in which case you get an external drive for that. Eliminating the internal hard drive component will also reduce noise and heat. However, if that criteria doesn't meet your needs, a Fusion drive is a good compromise.

GPU: Again, either will be fine for your needs. None of your usage will benefit noticeably from a faster GPU. You didn't mention "video games", but that will obviously benefit from the higher end card.

Screen: The 27" wins hands down - more screen real estate, and while the new 5K retina screen is amazing, the non-retina is no slouch.

Conclusion: There's no reason not to get the 27" iMac unless it won't fit on your desk or won't fit in your budget.

Enjoy the new computer when you get it! :)

I am pretty sure most people just compare their new SSD iMac to their say 2007/8/9 iMac with a HDD and say the HDD is so slow in comparison. The HDD is not slow in comprision, it's their 5+ year old iMac is slow in comparison to their new one.
Martin, I respect that everyone's entitled to share their "personal experience", but you're so wrong on this SSD thing that it hurts. I would suggest keeping this one to yourself, because you'll only invite ridicule from experienced users and confuse newer users. But I'm glad the HDD is working out for you! :)
 

AR86

macrumors member
Original poster
Dec 7, 2014
66
1
Not many people read through the updates so i'll post it up here;

Going with the Retina Imac, I know I stated my absolute peak budget was around £2k but after seeing it in person i'm going to have to make it work so i'll just delay the purchase by a couple of months which i'm cool with.

So the spec I have in mind is;

Upgraded i7 CPU
Upgraded M295x GPU
8GB Ram (will increase myself at a later date)
256GB SSD (will add one some external storage via usb 3 or TB)
 

yjchua95

macrumors 604
Apr 23, 2011
6,725
233
GVA, KUL, MEL (current), ZQN
Not many people read through the updates so i'll post it up here;

Going with the Retina Imac, I know I stated my absolute peak budget was around £2k but after seeing it in person i'm going to have to make it work so i'll just delay the purchase by a couple of months which i'm cool with.

So the spec I have in mind is;

Upgraded i7 CPU
Upgraded M295x GPU
8GB Ram (will increase myself at a later date)
256GB SSD (will add one some external storage via usb 3 or TB)

You've got it pretty well thought out.

That said, I might just upgrade the RAM to 16GB (Apple inserts 2x8GB) so that if you want to upgrade to 32GB, you can just buy another 2x8GB.

If you buy 8GB (2x4GB), you'll have to buy 4x8GB sticks and slot them in.
 

ixxx69

macrumors 65816
Jul 31, 2009
1,294
878
United States
You've got it pretty well thought out.

That said, I might just upgrade the RAM to 16GB (Apple inserts 2x8GB) so that if you want to upgrade to 32GB, you can just buy another 2x8GB.

If you buy 8GB (2x4GB), you'll have to buy 4x8GB sticks and slot them in.
By the time the OP needs 32GB of RAM, s/he'll need a new computer. No reason to spend extra money "future-proofing" for something so unlikely, especially when they're already breaking the bank as it is.
 

AR86

macrumors member
Original poster
Dec 7, 2014
66
1
By the time the OP needs 32GB of RAM, s/he'll need a new computer. No reason to spend extra money "future-proofing" for something so unlikely, especially when they're already breaking the bank as it is.

To be fair I think a couple of months down the line I will pick up another 8gb of ram just to make things super comfortable so 2 additional 4gb sticks to fill up the capacity with a total of 16gb but no way am I going to spunk away extra cash and max everything out unless I run across some free ram.
 
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