I just want some feedback on this. I am considering getting an iMac, but I want to see what Apple comes out with over the next few months. My parents are upgrading their late 2012 27” iMac and I offered to take it off their hands. As most of you know, you can only get it up to Mojave now, but it still runs amazingly well. Are there any big restrictions that I might run into besides not being able to use latest OS?
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2012 27” iMac - Am I Crazy?
- Thread starter Scarboose
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The 2012 iMac will actually run Catalina natively, so you can go a bit newer than Mojave. If you want to dabble with unsupported, people have also had success with Big Sur and Monterey, but I can’t speak to that personally. They’re great Macs and still run well if you have an SSD and upgrade the RAM (supports up to 32GB). I only recently replaced mine, and really the only reason that I did was because I needed a laptop. I still found it a fast, responsive, and pleasant computer to use, but I also had pretty much maxed out it’s specs when it was new.
I would say if you’re considering one now, the biggest thing to think about is how you’ll use it. These Macs have dedicated nVidia GPUs, so they still handle most graphical tasks decently. If your parents’ has a hard drive or a fusion drive, you’ll for sure want to replace that. But otherwise, for normal computer usage, browsing, productivity stuff, as long as the software you want to use works on Catalina it’s a very usable and I dare say fast Mac. Aside from current OS support, it has older wifi and Bluetooth hardware, so if you are using wireless, the connections aren’t as fast. It also doesn’t support some Mac OS features like Sidecar or Unlock with Apple Watch because of this. And, of course, the screen is 2560x1440. It’s a great looking display, but it is not the retina 5K display that came a couple of generations later.
I know you said it was coming from your parents, so I assume you’ll get it at a good price, but that’s also a factor, especially if it’s a lower spec model that you’d need to buy an SSD or additional RAM for right off the bat.
I would say if you’re considering one now, the biggest thing to think about is how you’ll use it. These Macs have dedicated nVidia GPUs, so they still handle most graphical tasks decently. If your parents’ has a hard drive or a fusion drive, you’ll for sure want to replace that. But otherwise, for normal computer usage, browsing, productivity stuff, as long as the software you want to use works on Catalina it’s a very usable and I dare say fast Mac. Aside from current OS support, it has older wifi and Bluetooth hardware, so if you are using wireless, the connections aren’t as fast. It also doesn’t support some Mac OS features like Sidecar or Unlock with Apple Watch because of this. And, of course, the screen is 2560x1440. It’s a great looking display, but it is not the retina 5K display that came a couple of generations later.
I know you said it was coming from your parents, so I assume you’ll get it at a good price, but that’s also a factor, especially if it’s a lower spec model that you’d need to buy an SSD or additional RAM for right off the bat.
I am using that exact iMac. It is upgradable to Catalina so long as the dead HDD of the Fusion Drive is physically removed.
Memory is user upgradable to 4x8GB 1600MHz DDR3 SODIMM.
You can boot from the USB3 port using an external USB3 SSD.
There are 3rd party patches that lets you use macOS Big Sur and even Monterey. Stability and ease of upgrading is not guaranteed.
I am scheduled to replace it with a base model 2022 iMac 27" or larger display.
Why a base model? Because any M1 Pro would be superior to any Intel Mac from 2012-2022
What would suck though is no USB-A 10Gbps ports. I need at most 2. Its nice that it will have mostly USB4 40Gbps ports.
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I must have misread it then! Using a still supported OS is a win I would say! Now I don’t feel as crazy for doing this. My plan is to connect an external drive via TB for now and run off of that. I frankly just want this machine for probably the rest of 2022. Apple would give them $120 for it so I’m just paying that and it should do the trick for just managing my apple ecosystem. I think QHD is all you really need in a monitor, unless youre doing intense graphical design or 4k gaming lol THANK YOU for your insight On this! Very helpful!
I’m basically doing exactly what you said ? I probably won’t touch the ram, but I will attach an external as I’ve seen that will be faster and then replace this guy with whatever apple comes out with later this year. Great minds think alike
With how old the SODIMMs are my guess is you can get it for cheap as brand new or used. I'd get used considering how old our iMac are. 32GB memory is the base requirement for Google's Chrome
An advantage of cracking open your iMac is that you can clean out the 1 decades worth of accumulated dust clogging it.
If you have the 3TB model then it qualifies for a replacement. If the repair job will be done locally then ask the Apple Genius working on it to install your SSD instead of the 3TB HDD. Give them incentive to do it for you. Be aware you'll need the temp sensor that OWC sells.
TBH I should have replaced my Fusion Drive when I got the OWC kit last 2017. So that I can enjoy 2TB SATA SSD of bliss for the last 5 years. Just in time for the SSD's warranty to end and the 2022 Apple Silicon model will be out.
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That article indicates that the program ended in 2015 or 3 years after purchase so no more replacements.
It's interesting as I found a good 2012 for sale for $200 but the owner said that it has HDD errors but it will boot. I was thinking of offering $150 and taking my chances. Worst case is that I would have to open it up and add a thermal sensor and SSD. The 2012s have USB 3.0 so I could just hang an external SSD off of it but I think that I would have to replace the HDD if it died as the iMac may not start up with a dead HDD.
A-Tech RAM is about $50 for 16 GB on these old systems. Crucial charges double that. I noticed that Max Tech (YouTube channel) uses A-Tech so I am trying them. Crucial has been making a ton of money the past couple of years as RAM demand has been insane. I have noticed a number of 2013 models for sale too. I find the 2013 a bit less attractive - it has the new body and I think that it runs cooler but, if you're going to pay that much, then my preference is to just go for a 2014 and get the really nice display.
Small tip: if you're going to increase RAM, get 1600 Mhz, even if your iMac only requires 1,333 Ghz or less. Prices are often quite close and sometimes 1600 Mhz is cheaper. You'll be able to use this RAM in 2014 iMacs and earlier. If you buy a 2010, you can take your RAM with you if you later upgrade to a 2011, 2012, 2013 or 2014. The 2015 requires 1867 Mhz but prices go up for those.
Those iMacs are being offered at $500 at the local stores in HCM City.
I would love to have one at 300$, but their prices never go down that low.
There's a 2012 i7 for sale for $200 in my local area and it's been for sale for a week. I'd jump on it but I can't justify it (already have 3 iMacs). These old systems are surprisingly usable with a little TLC.
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I got it setup at home and even on Catalina, still runs well! You can tell it's on an HDD though, ha!
RAM is easy enough to upgrade, but I'm nervous to bust it open to replace the hard drive. Right now my read and write is ~150 each. I'm pretty sure an external USB 3 SSD would be an improvement over that. How much of an improvement would an internal SSD be though? Any insight? Is it worth it?
RAM is easy enough to upgrade, but I'm nervous to bust it open to replace the hard drive. Right now my read and write is ~150 each. I'm pretty sure an external USB 3 SSD would be an improvement over that. How much of an improvement would an internal SSD be though? Any insight? Is it worth it?
You'd get SATA 3 speeds I think. I'm happy running my 2010 on the HDD. I never shut it down so everything is cached. Right now I have 18.42 GB Memory Used, 3.79 GB Cached. You really wouldn't know that it's running on an HDD just using it.