2011 I mac refurb $979, or 2012 new $1299

[SlickShoes]

Originally Posted by AgRacer

Where is everyone seeing the option to add SSD and more RAM to the refurb units? All I get is "Add to Cart".

They are doing it themselves after the machine arrives, or having a third party do it. Still works out cheaper than buying any upgrade from Apple.

[darkanddivine]

Originally Posted by tuccillo

That pretty much sums it up. It was a no-brainer for me. I bought a refurbed 2011 21.5" for $979. It is easy to get sucked into the mindset of "it will be a really nice machine if I add this to it". Pretty quickly you are just shy of $2000. Apple pretty much gouges you on the memory upgrade: $200 to go to 16 GBs. This works out to $160 of pure profit (incremental cost of 8GB to 16 GBs is roughly $40). On my refurbed 2011, 4 GBs to 12 GBs cost me $36.

Indeed. The 2011 machines with the 7200RPM drives were perfectly fine for the kind of light use a Pro might throw at it in their spare time on a weekend, and that or perhaps the option up was definitely an option for many years. With the new machine having a 5200RPM drive, for the first time you have a fairly expensive machine that looks like it isn't great for much Pro use. In actual fact if you don't need/want fusion, the base 27" is a better bet than the 21", as it works out cheaper than the small model upgraded.

For what it's worth I have no problems with those who need or want the new iMac, it looks lovely, it's just a shame it isn't really too great for those of us in the position of doing a bit of our Pro work at home. I'm guessing they wanted to aim that at a small family media PC type market this time.

I would never buy upgrades just because they are a nice to have I just need a decent machine to do the jobs I have fun on in my spare time. There really is very little option room on the 21" this time, and if you are in the market for something in the 21" size, the refurb is a decent spec, and when compared to the nearest new realistic upgrade massively cheaper. As you rightly say, with that in mind it's a complete no-brainer.

[comatose81]

Originally Posted by AgRacer

Where is everyone seeing the option to add SSD and more RAM to the refurb units? All I get is "Add to Cart".

They're doing it themselves after they receive it.

As for me, I thought about getting a refurbished 2011 iMac, but the design of the 2012 is just too awesome to pass up. The price is absurd, and I'll probably have to explain to my future son or daughter why we have no money to buy food, but oh well... I'm sure there is a forum for people who can't afford food to talk about their expensive gadgets.

[majkom]

Originally Posted by Yebubbleman

The 2011 21.5" iMac never officially supported 16GB of RAM let alone 32GB, so your ability to order it with 16GB of RAM is still a good addition (albeit at an annoying price hike).

Whaaaat? my imac 2011 is rockin hard almost two years without any problem with 16 gigs RAM... do not mislead...

[Yebubbleman]

Originally Posted by mainemacuser

I'm thinking that an external Blu-Ray burner is the way to go. They have USB 2.0 models for around $100 or less. I'd like to hear from folks who went that direction.

It does seem to be the best way to finally get Blu-Ray on an iMac. I wonder if the DVD Player application has support for it.

Originally Posted by majkom

Whaaaat? my imac 2011 is rockin hard almost two years without any problem with 16 gigs RAM... do not mislead...

Reread what I said. I never said that you couldn't do it. I said that Apple didn't support it. Sadly, there's a difference.

[rpg51]

You have to add the SSD and RAM yourself or have it done by a third party.

[majkom]

Originally Posted by Yebubbleman

It does seem to be the best way to finally get Blu-Ray on an iMac. I wonder if the DVD Player application has support for it.



Reread what I said. I never said that you couldn't do it. I said that Apple didn't support it. Sadly, there's a difference.

There is no difference, why to mentioned it is not "officily supported"? It works, so there is no reason to mention it...

[Yebubbleman]

Originally Posted by majkom

There is no difference, why to mentioned it is not "officily supported"? It works, so there is no reason to mention it...

If you have a problem and you take in the iMac to either an Apple Authorized Service Provider or a Genius Bar, they have the right to tell you that you having a RAM capacity that they don't support is causing you your problem and thusly deny you service. Trust me, I know this **** because I work in one. I'm glad that it works for you. But it's not supported by Apple and a lazy or jerk-off technician could use that as an excuse to deny you service. Jus' sayin'. No need to get so pissy or offended by it.

[mcpix]

In addition to the price difference, I think it ultimately comes down to "legacy" issues.

Do you need/want a ODD? Yes you can add an external drive, but as many have mentioned that defeats the purpose of an AIO machine. I occasionally burn blu-ray discs on my iMac and I always hate finding a spare outlet for the external drive and finding a space for it on my crowded desk.

Do you need/want firewire? Yes, Apple offers a thunderbolt to firewire converter, but it doesn't always work with bus powered devices and some users have reported slower transfer speeds.

Do you need/want an audio in port? I just noticed this was missing from the new iMac. There are probably some USB alternatives, but I often transfer old cassettes to CD and would really miss this feature.

So, if you don't need any of these things, the new iMac should work great for you. If you only need one or maybe two, it might work depending upon your specific equipment. If you're like me and need all three, buy a refurbished 2011 iMac.