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2017 imac or 2019 imac

If I was to use the fusion and decided to get external ssd in like a year if fusion wasn’t working for me anymore would the fact I got it a year later make a difference? Will everything transfer where it needs to? Will I loose all my files on the fusion? If I was to buy an external ssd now would 500gb be enough. I really didn’t want to spend too much money.
As for the ram, if I go up to 16gb and in a few years the computer goes slow, will going up to 24gb or 32gb make a difference? Am I better buying 1 8gb and leaving 1 slot open for the future?
 
There’s a seller on eBay that sells iMacs with lots of ssd and ram but all his iMacs have cracked screens so I’m slightly worried about the quality of the iMac. He has a 2017 27inch with 2tb internal samsung 850 EVO ssd and 16gb ram, Radeon 570 4gb for £1199 plus £15 postage which is around the price I will be paying for the fusion iMac without the upgrades I add to it. Is it bad buying an iMac from someone who clearly buys faulty iMacs and fixes them. Seems like it could be a little sketchy
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He has another iMac for sale that’s description is this, should I stay away?:
Apple iMac 27 inch 2017 model. Specs - i5 3.4GHz processor, internal 3.84 TB ( 3840GB ) Intel S4500 SSD, Radeon 570 4GB graphics, 16GB 2400 RAM. Comes with Apple Magic keyboard and mouse. The machine is in excellent condition, the power button doesn`t "click" when you press, but still works fine.

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Do external hard tubes have the same effect as internal? I’m scared to open up the iMac because I’ve never done anything like that before and I don’t want to screw up it up
 
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hollyb96 said:
Ok so I should probably get an external ssd. I think I will definitely look into that. Now not sure which iMac to go with. The original 2019 iMac seller won’t post it but there’s another selling selling a 2019 iMac for the same price as the 2017. If I was to buy one of these iMacs and then add ssd which would be better to get and upgrade?

2017 27inch bought in september
- 3.4 GHz Intel Core i5 Processor
- 1 TB Fusion Drive
- 8 GB 2400 MHz DDR4 Of Memory (will upgrade to 16gb)
- Radeon Pro 575 4096 MB Graphics Card

or

2019 iMac 27inch bought in November
-3.1GHz 6-core 8th-generation Intel Core i5 processor
-Turbo Boost up to 4.3GHz
-16GB 2666MHz DDR4 dual channel memory, configurable up to 64GB
-1TB Fusion Drive¹
-Radeon Pro 575X with 4GB of GDDR5 memory
Click to expand...

Hi hollyb96,

Picking out a proper-computer-for-the-job-at-hand can be challenging, best practice, imo, to do some homework to learn what exactly one needs. Specs are a good place to start and given the choice between the two machines you mentioned...

iMac 21.5-Inch "Core i5" 3.4 (4K, Mid-2017) Specs (Retina 4K, Mid-2017, MNE02LL/A, iMac18,2, A1418, 3069): EveryMac.com:

iMac "Core i5" 3.4 21.5" (4K, Mid-2017) Specs (Retina 4K, Mid-2017, MNE02LL/A, iMac18,2, A1418, 3069): EveryMac.com

Technical specifications for the iMac "Core i5" 3.4 21.5" (4K, Mid-2017). Dates sold, processor type, memory info, hard drive details, price and more.
everymac.com everymac.com

iMac 27-Inch "Core i5" 3.1 (5K, 2019) Specs (Retina 5K, 27-Inch, 2019, MRR02LL/A, iMac19,1, A2115, 3194): EveryMac.com:

iMac "Core i5" 3.1 27" (5K, 2019) Specs (Retina 5K, 27-Inch, 2019, MRR02LL/A, iMac19,1, A2115, 3194): EveryMac.com

Technical specifications for the iMac "Core i5" 3.1 27" (5K, 2019). Dates sold, processor type, memory info, hard drive details, price and more.
everymac.com everymac.com

...the 2019 is the better specced and will be the better performer for your needs and here's why...

Comparing benchmarks (as quoted from those links) the 4-core 2017 Geekbench 4 multicore test = 13,570 and the 6-core 2019 weighs in at 21,552, the latter offering a roughly 59% speed improvement over the former and those numbers can be verified at their Geekbench source...

iMac (27-inch Retina Early 2019) Benchmarks - Geekbench Browser:

iMac (27-inch Retina Early 2019) Benchmarks - Geekbench

browser.geekbench.com browser.geekbench.com

...also, in this case, the 2019's 6-core beats 4-cores, 4.3 GHz Turbo boost tops 3.8, and the faster RAM helps, too.


Regarding the compute test scores of the Radeon Pro 575 vs the 575X, they're a wash as seen here...

Radeon Pro 575 - Geekbench Search - Geekbench Browser:

Radeon Pro 575 - Geekbench Search - Geekbench

browser.geekbench.com browser.geekbench.com

Radeon Pro 575X - Geekbench Search - Geekbench Browser:

Radeon Pro 575X - Geekbench Search - Geekbench

browser.geekbench.com browser.geekbench.com

...so they should not factor greatly in your considerations.


I do have a few questions for you to help this discussion along...

1. what video format are you looking to edit (1080 HD, 2160 UHD/4K)?
2. What video editing software are you considering (QuickTime, iMovie, Final Cut Pro X, Adobe Premier, BlackMagic DaVinci Resolve, etc.)?
3. What camera will you be using to capture your video (iPhone, particular camcorder, particular DSLR or MILC)?
4. What type of videos are you looking to created (simple 1-or-2-or-10 cut home movie clips, short but more complex multi-cut videos, say, for youtube, semi-to-very complex editing for story or documentary videos, etc.)?

...my point here being, the more data-intensive your needs, the more computing horsepower you'll need. Here's an article discussing iMacs and video editing choices that I recommend giving a good read...

Configure a 2019 iMac for Video Editing | Larry Jordan:

I hope this all was helpful and please keep us posted as to how your decision is coming along.

:)
Jimmy G

NOTE: I have no affiliation with any of the above links, they are provided for educational purposes.
 
1. I will be editing 1080p HD videos.
2.To start I will probably use iMovie but once I get better at editing I will use Final Cut Pro.
3. I will be using a canon dslr camera, I currently have a 600d but I’m hoping to get an 80d.
4. I will be making YouTube videos. There will be probably about 3 hours of footage per video that I’m hoping to cut down to about 10-20 minutes
 
I keep missing out on buying them because I’m being indecisive. Here are my current options:
2017 27inch bought in september
- 3.4 GHz Intel Core i5 Processor
- 1 TB Fusion Drive
- 8 GB 2400 MHz DDR4 Of Memory (will upgrade to 16gb)
- Radeon Pro 575 4096 MB Graphics Card

Or

-3GHz Intel Core i5.
-8GB 2667 MHz DDR4 memory
-1TB Fusion Hardrive
-Radeon Pro 570X 4 GB Graphics

and I’ll upgrade whichever I buy to 16gb ram and get an external ssd
 
hollyb96 said:
1. I will be editing 1080p HD videos.
2.To start I will probably use iMovie but once I get better at editing I will use Final Cut Pro.
3. I will be using a canon dslr camera, I currently have a 600d but I’m hoping to get an 80d.
4. I will be making YouTube videos. There will be probably about 3 hours of footage per video that I’m hoping to cut down to about 10-20 minutes
Click to expand...

For those needs any of the iMacs you've been looking at should suffice quite nicely, my thoughts being (working within your budget)...

1. the newer 2019 models vs 2017 as they'll have longer shelf-life before becoming EOLed by Apple...

2. 2TB Fusion (with 128GB built-in SSD) vs 1TB Fusion (with 32GB SSD)...

3. minimum 16GB RAM...

...again, as your budget allows.

Here's and example (Posted for educational purposes, I have no affiliation) of how to compute your storage needs...

Video Space Calculator - Digital Rebellion:

Video Space Calculator - Digital Rebellion

www.digitalrebellion.com www.digitalrebellion.com

...your "1080p HD videos...about 3 hours of footage per video" weighing in at around 63GB.

So, time to quit tire-kicking and getting a machine to get going?!

Keep us posted as to what you decide and how you make out! :)
 
So I ended up going with the 2017 one because it was within my budget and the best price. Then the seller sent it out and I agreed to pay postage after he sent it because we weren’t sure what it would cost. He told me his quote was £45 and I thought it would be £16. Then he sent it and I got a message saying it was £91 and he never even asked if the price was ok first before sending it so I had to pay him ughhh
I could’ve probably got a 2019 for a little more money but what’s done is done so I’m just going to update the 2017 as best I can. I’m going to up the RAM to 16gb and get 1tb external ssd. If anyone has any other suggestions that would be great. Thanks for all your help:)
 
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hollyb96 said:
i need a lot of storage and ssd is more expensive than what i can afford. If i was to get an external ssd boot drive what is that used for? Will that mean that the fusion drive will no longer work? So i cant store up to 1tb of files? Thanks for your help:)
Click to expand...
If you get the SSD you would use it as the main drive, you can use the Fusion for storage.
You only get 32gb of SSD which is no where near enough.
 
Roxy.music said:
If you get the SSD you would use it as the main drive, you can use the Fusion for storage.
You only get 32gb of SSD which is no where near enough.
Click to expand...

Does the external drive need to have its own power supply or can it be a drive that gets its power via the cable to the iMac?
 
On the subject of the 2017 iMac smeone is selling one with this markdown the screen as in this photo
1591872399308.png
plus the fact they are asking £1,250 for it? Who in there right mind is going to pay that price for it with a fault like that?It was on ebay.
 
:rolleyes:
Roxy.music said:
On the subject of the 2017 iMac, someone is selling one with this markdown the screen as in this photo View attachment 923220plus the fact they are asking £1,250 for it? Who in their right mind is going to pay that price for it with a fault like that? It was on eBay.
Click to expand...
I just saw someone selling 2017 5k 3.5 32gb 3tb for only £1,000 on the Facebook market place with a 12-month guarantee. The guys not very talkative he seems to have gone, he is the other side of London I don,t drive so would have to use public transport. Shame he is not nearer.
Delivery available and Postage available on next day delivery as if I am going to send money for something I have not seen? Anyone else used Facebook Market place? Plus it comes with Softwares: Logik Pro X, Photoshop, Premiere Pro, Microsoft Office, Chrome. He properly left because I was asking too many questions. It sounds too good to be true at that price.
 
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Roxy.music said:
:rolleyes:
I just saw someone selling 2017 5k 3.5 32gb 3tb for only £1,000 on the Facebook market place with a 12-month guarantee. The guys not very talkative he seems to have gone, he is the other side of London I don,t drive so would have to use public transport. Shame he is not nearer.
Delivery available and Postage available on next day delivery as if I am going to send money for something I have not seen? Anyone else used Facebook Market place? Plus it comes with Softwares: Logik Pro X, Photoshop, Premiere Pro, Microsoft Office, Chrome. He properly left because I was asking too many questions. It sounds too good to be true at that price.
Click to expand...
Yeah, if he becomes unresponsive, I'd pass, if I were you.
 
honestone33 said:
That makes it worse! Definitely pass. Also, just to let you know, our oldest son lives in Richmond, a suburb of London. My wife and I have been to London quite a number of times.
Click to expand...
I have given it a miss especially for the price he was asking for it.
Very nice area of London Richmond.:)
 
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honestone33 said:
Yes, a nice area. But definitely expensive! I still prefer the Pacific Northwest and the Seattle area.
Click to expand...
Yes, it is, but anywhere in London costs an arm and leg. not that I could afford to buy anyway, I live in a small Private rented flat.
 
hollyb96 said:
So I ended up going with the 2017 one because it was within my budget and the best price. Then the seller sent it out and I agreed to pay postage after he sent it because we weren’t sure what it would cost. He told me his quote was £45 and I thought it would be £16. Then he sent it and I got a message saying it was £91 and he never even asked if the price was ok first before sending it so I had to pay him ughhh
I could’ve probably got a 2019 for a little more money but what’s done is done so I’m just going to update the 2017 as best I can. I’m going to up the RAM to 16gb and get 1tb external ssd. If anyone has any other suggestions that would be great. Thanks for all your help:)
Click to expand...
91 pounds is over the top, did you get it from another country? :rolleyes: You should have asked him to give
you a price for the postage before he sent it out. Even his quote for 45 pounds sounds over the top let alone 91 pounds?:rolleyes: I take it you are in the UK. He should have got back to you anyway.
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hollyb96 said:
I keep missing out on buying them because I’m being indecisive. Here are my current options:
2017 27inch bought in september
- 3.4 GHz Intel Core i5 Processor
- 1 TB Fusion Drive
- 8 GB 2400 MHz DDR4 Of Memory (will upgrade to 16gb)
- Radeon Pro 575 4096 MB Graphics Card

Or

-3GHz Intel Core i5.
-8GB 2667 MHz DDR4 memory
-1TB Fusion Hardrive
-Radeon Pro 570X 4 GB Graphics

and I’ll upgrade whichever I buy to 16gb ram and get an external ssd
Click to expand...
The way to go.:)
 
A seller has even put the price of the base modal 2017 5k up by £99? :oops:on eBay I could get that modal for a lot less than that on a refurbished site with one year guarantee. After a lot of thought, I have decided to go for the "Core i5" 3.0 (5K, 2019 with 16gb 1tb
new but with extra 8gb of ram.1 year warranty not from Apple.:) The odd thing was when I paid at the checkout it was just for the delivery charge?:rolleyes: They said they would get back me when it is processed. Why did they not take the money for the computer there? Has that happened to anyone else?

 
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