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Apple Restricts Hard Drive Replacements on New iMacs

jdurston said:
This is ridiculous. Temp is available via SMART data you need an extra cable connection.
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Which means that Apple chose to decline the "Open" standard and make it proprietary ... all to save the touch-labor for one extra cable connection?

I don't think so, because even at $50/hour USA labor rates, even it were saving 15 seconds per assembly, that's only 20 cents (<0.01% of MSRP).


This is a very disturbing precidence for Apple...maybe it is time to send an email - - no, not to Steve, but to Tim Cook: he should know better, because proprietary hardware ALWAYS costs more in your supply chain.


econgeek said:
HOLD YOUR HORSES EVERYBODY![/SIZE]

This is likely not a proprietary connector at all, but a new standard we're not familiar with.
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Yes, that sounds optimistically reasonable ... but the $64,000 question is how long are we going to have to wait until we see is published as a standard?

AFAIC, until we see these drives selling in 3rd Party shops ... and at the same basic prices as the current 'standard' SATA drives ... it is just one more piece of unnecessarily proprietary (=expensive) hardware.

-hh
 
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Maybe Apple should get out of the computer business. They don't seem terribly interested in it anymore, and they just seem to want to drive customers away. How stupid. t
 
-hh said:
Which means that Apple chose to decline the "Open" standard and make it proprietary ... all to save the touch-labor for one extra cable connection?

I don't think so, because even at $50/hour USA labor rates, even it were saving 15 seconds per assembly, that's only 20 cents (<0.01% of MSRP).


This is a very disturbing precidence for Apple...maybe it is time to send an email - - no, not to Steve, but to Tim Cook: he should know better, because proprietary hardware ALWAYS costs more in your supply chain.



-hh
Click to expand...

And what if the "open" "standard" doesn't work as well as the "proprietary" solution Apple choose?

I guess you want Apple to stick to the statue quo even if that means delivering an inferior product.
 
drake said:
Maybe Apple should get out of the computer business. They don't seem terribly interested in it anymore, and they just seem to want to drive customers away. How stupid. t
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Consumers won't be driven away because they will never know.

Nerds on the other hand might be away of it but it won't change the vast majority of their purchasing decision.
 
Rodimus Prime said:
I suggest you read the article instead of insult us because if you did you would see all the evidence you provided was from previous versions the iMac. The latest revision is were the change is. So I suggest you follow you own suggested and read it before you make yourself look like a fool.
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Where did i insult you?

idk what you are talking about, here is ONE example... this person mentions nothing about noisy fans or failing AHT

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1151632/

Just for further proof, here is one where the user reports a noisy STOCK drive

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1151893/

here is another thread with multiple people upgrading and no problems

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1148641/

still want to call me a fool?

Heilage said:
I checked the first two pages of the iMac forums a few minutes ago, and the only hard drive reference that could be found on the 2011 were one whom had fan issues, as OWC stated would occur.

I'll grant you, OWC has far from a clean track record when it comes to bashing other manufacturers (OCZ thingy is a case in point), but it really would not surprise me the least if Apple did this. However, until sufficient evidence has been provided otherwise (please, just link to some places where people have gone through with this upgrade, the buren of proof is strictly speaking with you),
Click to expand...

here are a couple... guess i could hunt down more if you want. Like I said, seems some people may be having issues, others not so much. OWC posts this as if no mac can be upgraded, which is obviously false, we have evidence right here of people doing it

another thread linking to tutorials showing how to swap the hdd for an ssd

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1150900/

and another

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1147069/
 
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xxBURT0Nxx said:
Where did i insult you?

idk what you are talking about, here is ONE example... this person mentions nothing about noisy fans or failing AHT

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1151632/
Click to expand...

In that thread, the poster does not clarify wether or not the 2TB Black drive (the one we care about, the SSD can eff off and die as to relevance) is the one that came with the iMac or aftermarket. This is crucial.
 
MSlaw said:
Greed is not really the issue. Apple runs under the paradigm "Couple the hardware with the software". With software built around consistent hardware, you get a more reliable system, it's easier to support, and a better experience overall. IBM started it in the 50s, and it worked well. Oracle bought sun for this reason. Game consoles over the years are another good example.
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If you honestly believe that preventing people from replacing their hard drives constitutes a more reliable system, I think you're out of touch with computer hardware. There's nothing unreliable about a replaced hard drive or anything that makes it need to be sold only by Apple at inflated BS prices. I put a 7200 RPM 500GB drive in my 2008 MBP and it's never run better. It's really not that hard.

MacDav said:
I agree this is a bad idea but, with the new lightpeak "thunderbolt" spec. it really is irrelevant. Your external drives are virtually just as fast as the internal drive. So you can put on any amount of storage you need at the same high speed as your internal drive without the hassle of taking apart an iMac. So who cares?
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Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought the whole idea of an iMac over a traditional computer was to get rid of desktop clutter. If you have to keep an external hard drive connected 24/7, WTF is the point of getting it in the first place?
 
Here's your proof. 1TB Seagate upgraded to 2TB WD Black with fan speeds and all. Check the whole thread for other user's experience.

I personally added a SSD and replaced the 7 wire cable with a standard 4 wire y-splitter. AHT passed just fine. And yes, it is the 27" 2011 iMac purchased 7 days ago.

https://forums.macrumors.com/posts/12549810/
 
Screw You Apple! :apple:

drake said:
Maybe Apple should get out of the computer business. They don't seem terribly interested in it anymore, and they just seem to want to drive customers away. How stupid. t
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The Cloud Man!! It's in the Cloud!!!!! :apple:
 
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Heilage said:
In that thread, the poster does not clarify wether or not the 2TB Black drive (the one we care about, the SSD can eff off and die as to relevance) is the one that came with the iMac or aftermarket. This is crucial.
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here you go - https://forums.macrumors.com/posts/12548147/
peregrines said:
my system has been delivered with a seagate 1tb drive.
the one i built in today is a 2TB western digital.
will be back home in 3,5 hours and check with istatpro how the fans are working. while installation of snowleopard i didnt notice any noise besides the optical drive.
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-edit- beat me to it.. :D

So Rodimus Prime, still want to tell me I'm a fool???!
 
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Apparently some Dutch guy managed to replace the hdd in his 2011 iMac without any problems: http://translate.google.com/transla...kers.net/forum/list_message/36015618#36015618 Read the following pages of that same thread. The users there are also calling the OWC article BS. I think OWC hasn't done any additional testing at all. They simply wrote the blog article without properly checking anything (they checked it with the only 2011 iMac they had but not with multiple iMacs). The issue needs further investigation as some users report having no issues at all. This makes the issue flaky. Could be the same thing as with the ssd problems in the 2011 MBP (not every 2011 MBP has the issue).

Also found this post http://forums.appleinsider.com/showthread.php?p=1863159#post1863159 which basically says the same thing. If you read that post it seems that using the correct SATA power cable is crucial. And only after looking at the username of the post above me I noticed it is the same person :) thnx for the additional info maxinc!
 
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Liking my iMac more and more

Looks like the late 2009/early 2010 i7 iMacs were the steal! I'm all the happier to have an iMac with a Mini DisplayPort (not thunderbolt) that I can hook up to my gaming rig and a HDD cable that didn't freak out when I installed a larger drive. The optical drive did, but, well... I guess SMC fan control is going to be even more popular. XP

:apple: Kira
 
KiraDouji said:
Looks like the late 2009/early 2010 i7 iMacs were the steal! I'm all the happier to have an iMac with a Mini DisplayPort (not thunderbolt) that I can hook up to my gaming rig and a HDD cable that didn't freak out when I installed a larger drive. The optical drive did, but, well... I guess SMC fan control is going to be even more popular. XP

:apple: Kira
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No, with the 2011 the Apple has actually made it easier for people to upgrade. the OWC report doesn't tell the whole story. There are drives out there which are compatible and don't require special Apple Firmware.
 
first, thanks maxinc!!

next
dyn said:
Apparently some Dutch guy managed to replace the hdd in his 2011 iMac without any problems: http://translate.google.com/transla...kers.net/forum/list_message/36015618#36015618 Read the following pages of that same thread. The users there are also calling the OWC article BS. I think OWC hasn't done any additional testing at all. They simply wrote the blog article without properly checking anything (they checked it with the only 2011 iMac they had but not with multiple iMacs). The issue needs further investigation as some users report having no issues at all. This makes the issue flaky. Could be the same thing as with the ssd problems in the 2011 MBP (not every 2011 MBP has the issue).
Click to expand...

I wouldn't be surprised at all. OWC's solution if you buy one of their ssd's and it does not work is to take the machine to apple and ask for a replacement. OWC Greg (works for OWC) stated that if one was having problems not to ask owc customer service but to ask apple for a replacement machine. Sounds to me like they tried to install the drive, there is some sort of problem, so they instantly wrote an article stating apple botched the upgrade-ability of the system.
 
With this news, I will never buy another Mac. Replace my hard drive twice and a CD drive once in 3 years. I will NEVER have Apple replace it. Do they think they're are Gods?????
 
ptysell said:
And what if the "open" "standard" doesn't work as well as the "proprietary" solution Apple choose?

I guess you want Apple to stick to the statue quo even if that means delivering an inferior product.
Click to expand...


You have a fair point, but the counterpoint is that if such a minor relocation of the thermal sensor (and its associated system management software) is enough to make the difference between an iMac running okay or cooking, then pointing the finger of blame at the sensor is the wrong engineering answer.

The correct engineering answer is that product's thermal management system's design is fundamentally flawed for having an insufficient design margin for the operating environment.


-hh
 
Bigtree said:
With this news, I will never buy another Mac. Replace my hard drive twice and a CD drive once in 3 years. I will NEVER have Apple replace it. Do they think they're are Gods?????
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These are just false rumours / incomplete information as the new iMac are definitely upgradeable and a lot easier than 2010 models. Check the few messages above!!!
 
Now I'm just curious how many more posts until an update is posted :)) I am amazed what sort of impact a report like this can have. Almost 300 tweets ... lol
 
maxinc said:
Now I'm just curious how many more posts until an update is posted :)) I am amazed what sort of impact a report like this can have. Almost 300 tweets ... lol
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372 as of now... unfortunately it probably won't be updated, but we can hope!!!!
 
Seriously. This is a WTF moment.

I have supported Apple since 2003, and continue to do so, but it just boggles the mind sometimes with these unnecessary restrictions.
 
xxBURT0Nxx said:
Where did i insult you?

idk what you are talking about, here is ONE example... this person mentions nothing about noisy fans or failing AHT

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1151632/

Just for further proof, here is one where the user reports a noisy STOCK drive
7
Click to expand...

you insulted everyone posting not me.

Also that link is to the previous generation. Not the most recent rev of the iMac which this is limited 2. The one released not very long ago.
 
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