Would an upgrade from a 2009 3.06 ghz C2D imac to a late 2012 w fusion be worthwhile?

[Whackintosh]

I'm looking at possibly upgrading to a base 21 inch model with fusion drive (vs my current 7200 rpm drive in my 2009 machine). I'm assuming the performance difference would be considerable, especially given the quad core CPU and more up-to-date everything?

[highlightshadow]

I just went from an early 09 2.93Ghz C2D and difference is very noticeable and i didn't even go fusion

[jchase2057]

Originally Posted by Whackintosh

I'm looking at possibly upgrading to a base 21 inch model with fusion drive (vs my current 7200 rpm drive in my 2009 machine). I'm assuming the performance difference would be considerable, especially given the quad core CPU and more up-to-date everything?

It all depends on what you do with your machine. Some simple upgrades may be all you need.

[ser968]

Originally Posted by jchase2057

It all depends on what you do with your machine. Some simple upgrades may be all you need.

+1 on that. I've been looking for an excuse to buy a new iMac for over a year now, but in the long wait for the new models to come out, I added memory and installed an SSD and the computer flies! It is very hard for me to justify spending $3k on a new iMac when my almost 5-year old computer is running perfectly.

I don't do heavy lifting on the computer - it is the family's media computer, so iphoto, ripping, etc. Could it be faster with handbrake? Absolutely, but I'm fine with how I use it now.

[Whackintosh]

Thanks, everyone. I use it mostly for writing and web surfing (I know, the lowest spec'd air can do these tasks perfectly well) but also for the odd bit of photoshop and FCP video work. I do find that my 2009 machine beachballs more often than I'd like these days, even with 8gb of ram.

My current 2009 model is on the Seagate recall list so I'll be bringing it in soon to get my drive swapped out, and it seems like this would be the perfect time to upgrade my system, if I'll be doing it at all in the near future.