I suspect that only the base model's 256GB is soldered. This would explain why the base model cannot be configured with a larger SSD.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
2020 iMac Benchmarks Surface Online [Updated]
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I suspect that only the base model's 256GB is soldered. This would explain why the base model cannot be configured with a larger SSD.
Ok.. I'm pretty sure most of you people are as annoyed as me about the soldering. When I got my 2019, I opened it up and upgraded the HD with an SSD and a bigger pci-e SSD. Why not at least leave the PCI-E in place in a machine that has the space for it. the T2 chip? well, seriously.. I don't care. Does that mean the Mac Pro doesn't have a T2 chip? As I saw in one of the comments, future machines will indeed probably have everything fixed tight with solder..
A week ago I had to repair a 2008 MacBook Pro. Replace the drive and battery with a little handle. Flip it and you have access to the parts that wear out first. When I wanted to open a 2017 MacBook Pro I had to use a plectrum and use all kinds of actions that made me sweaty before I even accessed the inside.
Replace a screen on a 2008? no problem, just a couple of screws and a couple of cables. 2017? About 36 pentalobe screws.
Say what you want, but this is just making my blood boil
A week ago I had to repair a 2008 MacBook Pro. Replace the drive and battery with a little handle. Flip it and you have access to the parts that wear out first. When I wanted to open a 2017 MacBook Pro I had to use a plectrum and use all kinds of actions that made me sweaty before I even accessed the inside.
Replace a screen on a 2008? no problem, just a couple of screws and a couple of cables. 2017? About 36 pentalobe screws.
Say what you want, but this is just making my blood boil
Bit disappointed at the 3.8GHz 8-Core model I just ordered only getting just 1141/7006 - I get 1089/4373 on my current 2017 iMac.
The SSD speed will make up for it I guess compared to the 3TB fusion card (200MB peak read/write for large files....)
iMac (27-inch Retina Mid 2017) - Geekbench
Benchmark results for an iMac (27-inch Retina Mid 2017) with an Intel Core i7-7700K processor.
browser.geekbench.com
The SSD speed will make up for it I guess compared to the 3TB fusion card (200MB peak read/write for large files....)
With the read and write speeds of thunderbolt 3, just like the MacBook Pro 16 if you start out with a good amount of SSD storage built in like 2TB of SSD storage, you can add more storage external and SSD storage is getting smaller everyday so I don't see the need of upgrading internally any longer. Plus if a external SSD goes bad you just swap it and restore from Time Machine with a quick swap of the hardware. This is why large server farms swap RAID drives out, because it is faster.
As others have noted, both the iMac Pro and the Mac Pro have socketed SSD modules with the T2 chip.
There are some packaging and performance advantages to soldering the modules to the systemboard, but it does mean more systemboard inventory since you have to stock for each size, but then Apple has been doing that for a decade on the MacBook family, so it actually costs Apple more to solder than to not.
Seems weird to do it on only one model since you'd still have to have separate system boards: one with the soldered 256GB and then another with a socketed version for all other capacities. If you are going to solder one, might as well solder them all (as Apple does with the MacBook family).
Errr ... what?! This is getting just plain ridiculous ...
I mean, in all my computer lifetime (30+ years) i've had 1 RAM stick falling on me ... so i'm all for soldered memory.
But an SSD? C'mon ... that's where my data is ...
0/10 - won't buy ...
Maybe up front, but once you factor in ridiculous repair costs, replacing entire computers that could previously have been cheaply upgraded, etc, they're still coming out ahead.
This article talks about 2 microphones but per Apples tech specs page: "Studio-quality three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and directional beam-forming"
For SSD’s, no. In short, data stored to SSD’s follow different rules than SSD’s. BUT, don’t take my word for it
It took me a couple google searches to come to know this, but the info’s out there! 
I feel your pain.....I recently had to replace an extremely swollen battery in my 2015 MBP. Really poor design.
Seems like a drag that SSDs are soldered despite some folks claiming there are upsides.
I apologize in advance if this has been discussed previously, but will these 27” iMacs run Mojave if a person wipes pre-installed Catalina?
I apologize in advance if this has been discussed previously, but will these 27” iMacs run Mojave if a person wipes pre-installed Catalina?
You destroy the whole device. Apple profit wins.
Ya. Apple’s response to the ‘right to repair’ argument. Keep making it harder or more expensive.
" The 3.1GHz iMac gave a Geekbench Single-Core Score of 1090 and a Multi-Core Score of 5688"
The scores are good news - this means Apple cannot piece meal the features and performance and their ARM Macs will need to handly beat these scores - I know they will claim they will be using less power but people getting a desktop don't care about that
The scores are good news - this means Apple cannot piece meal the features and performance and their ARM Macs will need to handly beat these scores - I know they will claim they will be using less power but people getting a desktop don't care about that
The 21.5” didn’t get updated. While I can’t recall if the 2019 was soldered or socketed, it likely hasn’t changed.
I am suspicious of geekbench. Cinebench has the 10700 at 4640 while my 9900K does 4150.
Which is quickly recouped by the insane markup they charge for their slow SSD's
NVME top of the line SSD's have been easily doing 3,000 MB/sec for some time now. Ridiculous that Apple charges top dollar and saddles it with 2nd tier TLC NVME speeds when you're paying for Samsung top tier MLC performance and durability.
I had a nasty feeling that the SSDs on these imacs would be soldered. I've really upgraded my previous imacs even though most are too scared to do it. My 2012 imac 27 originally came with a paltry 1TB fusion drive
It's been upgraded to a 1 TB SATA SSD with a connection kit to the original SSD socket and a 8TB HDD. Memory is also at 32gb for 75% less than what Apple would've charged back then.
10th Generation Core uses the 400-Series PCH (new socket LGA-1200), so the motherboard is all new. They are not repackaging the iMac Pro major components, if they did do that, then the flash NAND blades would be socketed, not soldered. Besides, none of the iMac Pro's USP is the same or compatible with the iMac's due to the Xeon have 3x the number of PCIe 3.0 lanes to work with.
The logic board is all new and will allow for drop in of a Rocket Lake-S CPU in 2021, should Apple need one last iteration of the Intel iMac before introducing an AplSi iMac in the 27"-32" size.
Radeon 5300 is comparable to 590 which is on the lower end. For the price it should at least include a 5600XT.
SSD performance seems mediocre and about half of what's available on the market and about a third of upcoming Samsung 980 Pro. Also, not big on the idea that you have to throw out the whole machine when SSD degrades or goes bad.
SSD performance seems mediocre and about half of what's available on the market and about a third of upcoming Samsung 980 Pro. Also, not big on the idea that you have to throw out the whole machine when SSD degrades or goes bad.
FWIW, we just received word from a source with access to Apple's repair manuals who says that the SSD is indeed socketed and not soldered. So we'll have to wait for more information and see if there's a difference among models or if the original report was incorrect.
My money clip is soldiered to my pocket on this minor refresh.
Transistors degrade over time as well due to things like diffusion, electromigration, and dielectric breakdown. These degradation processes are accelerated at high temperatures, high voltages, and high switching frequencies, hence the need for CPU thermal limits and the desire to keep CPUs as cool as possible during operation.
You are half right though - flash memory does degrade with use over time. Anecdotally, Ive been using SSDs for over 10 years now, and have experienced far better reliability and longevity with SSDs than any hard drive I’ve ever used.
I’ve come to terms with soldered SSDs. Thunderbolt 3 lets me use external SSDs that are just as fast as the internal drives anyway, and I don’t have to open up the machine to swap the drive. By the time the internal SSD breaks the machine will likely be long obsolete.