So I've read all 27 pages of this thread. Didn't expect the plot twist around page 15, but with stories like this, I suppose it's typical.
To provide some context, I've owned two iMacs in my time as a mac user; an Early 2001 G3 iMac and a 20" Early 2006 iMac (First Generation of Intel; Core Duo, not Core 2 Duo), which I eventually replaced with the Mac mini Server in my signature, which I use as a normal Mac (with the hard drives RAID 0ed and running the client version of Snow Leopard). I'm saving up for a 15" MacBook Pro which I'll probably be able to afford right around the time that the current (Early 2011) generation is refreshed, at which point I might revert the Mac mini Server back to it's originally marketed purpose as a server. I MIGHT be inclined to get another iMac if (a) I found myself using a (primary) Mac under conditions that didn't require as much mobility and (b) Apple finally gave that thing some sort of Blu-Ray drive. Though I'm not confident that either will actually happen.
I work as an Apple Certified Macintosh Technician for an Apple Authorized Service Provider. I've seen all of these machines (save for the 2011 models) naked more times than anyone really needs to. I don't bring that up as a means of comparing my Apple e-penis to anyone else's, just to merely say that I've been inside these machines and I can offer contextual experience to the table.
That having all been said, if you:
(a) Are upset by the story:
On the one hand, it legitimately sucks. As owners of the machine we paid for, we should be allowed to put in whatever hard drive we want. Assuming the story is correct, the fact that we can't without causing our fans to rev at maximum speeds or causing Apple Hardware Test (AHT) to fail, is downright terrible. Apple already charges an arm and a leg for the hard drives that it sells at the time of purchase, but even for replacement drives for when the hard drive inevitably fails with the machine out of warranty, that's another arm and a leg. At my work, with other Macs and older iMacs, we are able to throw in an after-market hard drive and the customer not only has the option to get a bigger drive to replace their failed drive, but it's way cheaper than what Apple charges for an exact replacement to the stock failed drive. With that option gone, users have to pay Apple's premium for a replacement hard drive and that is legitimately terrible. Even for those who want to upgrade their own drive, while it is relatively difficult and often ill-advised, they should still be allowed to crack open their iMac and upgrade their hard drive.
But on the other hand, if you bought an iMac on the pretense that it's an easily upgradable computer, you either haven't been paying attention since October 2005. The iMac is Apple's most un-upgradable Mac in the line by far. Don't get me wrong, I love its external design. But it has by far the worst internal design of any Mac since the Intel switch first began. Incidentally, it's also the most prone to overheating. Trust me, they NEED those sensors, because those drives (let alone every other component in that machine) get really hot. As was stated earlier in the thread, 95% of the people who buy iMacs are the last people you'd ever see trying to, let alone wanting to upgrade or replace a component to begin with. It's designed for people who want the power of anywhere from a low-end 15" MacBook Pro and a Mac Pro, but don't care about or need the accessibility of either machine. If you're in the remaining 5%, and a Mac Pro is overkill, build a Hackintosh! You get a much better machine for the money and have none of the problems inherent in the design of the iMac. Though bad design or not, lack of upgradability or not, out-of-warranty customers should have the option of going with a less expensive aftermarket alternative.
(b) Are all set to move back to Windows due to this story:
So, let me get this straight, you're going to switch back to Windows because Apple has made their most un-upgradable Mac even more un-upgradable? It's not like Apple doesn't make other Macs (all of which don't have this issue). If you're really set to move back to Windows due to this, you never had a good reason to be using a Mac to begin with.
(c) Are blaming OWC for causing a needless frenzy:
I have one question for you: Why would OWC stand to gain by causing a frenzy among Mac users due to NOT being able to make an upgrade product due to this discovery? I'll even give you all a bonus question: Have any of you who have balked at their claims considered that?
(d) Haven't had the problem happen to you (assuming you are absolutely positive that you are using one of the Mid 2011 iMacs:
Have you considered that this might not affect every Mid 2011 iMac? Just a thought...
(e) Are convinced that this due to the rise of iOS devices:
Come on, surely you can come up with better crackpot conspiracy theories than that.
(f) Reconsidering your (forthcoming or recent) purchase of a Mid 2011 iMac in light of this story:
As terrible as this move is, it only affects the iMac, which, again, is by far the most user-hostile machine to access and service the internals of. I'm skeptical that this is anything beyond Apple trying to eliminate the hassle of failed sensor cables which were proprietary to the specific manufacturer of the hard drive. Were it an attempt to lock those of us out from replacing the hard drives on our MacBook Pros, I see no reason why we wouldn't have seen something like that on the Early 2011 models. It's not like the two machines weren't being developed at the same time or anything like that.
Beyond that, the iMac, for the money it retails at is overpriced. Again, you can get a faster, better, more powerful and more upgradable Hackintosh that you can replace the hard drives (or any other component of) for way less than you would an iMac. Even if you wanted an Apple branded machine, a MacBook Pro isn't much slower, and has much easier access to change out the hard drive; not to mention the fact that while it is thin, itself, it isn't always on the verge of melting itself like the iMacs always are.
In short, yes it sucks, but if it really sucks that much, you were in the market for the wrong Mac anyway.
