Best 'non-retina' iMac advice.

[glennoconnell]

I think it's time I upgraded from my 13 Inch 2010 MacBook Pro.

So I'm looking to get an 21 inch iMac. Just for home use. Watching some movies, browsing the web, maybe some games.

I was looking at buying brand new, but I'm just not that interest in 4k/5k right now. All my media is in 1080 and my internet provider can barely handle that. Just seems a bit of a waste on me.

So I thought I would be better off getting a pre-owned, non-retina iMac.

If I was buying a new retina iMac from Apple today, I would probably just get the base model given the price. But I thought with the money I'd be saving buying pre-owned, I could get an older model but with some of the optional memory and processor upgrades installed.

Would rather get a higher end, but older iMac, instead of a lower end new iMac? If that makes sense.

Just from looking at specs on wikipedia, the late 2013 21-inch iMac sounds like it would be best for me (ideally with the optional processor and memory upgrades.


Just some tips or advice would be great. I'm no expert on these things!

 

[Radriar]

Personally I would go with the new iMac if it is at a comparable price to the 2013 iMac you are looking at, with the latest iMac likely to be equal if not faster than even an upgraded 2013 iMac.

I would however suggest potentially upgrading the 2010 macbook pro to an budget ssd (the 2010 macbook only offers sata 2) if you feel comfortable doing so and possibly a ram upgrade of which should bring it up to speed for the tasks outlined.

Another option to consider would also be purchasing an apple refurbished unit directly from apple and see what they have to offer, with the macs on offer still having a one year apple warranty and generally being in like new condition.

All the best with your purchase

 

[Tomorrow]

I'm not sure how going from a 2010 MacBook Pro to a USED iMac is much of an "upgrade." What's wrong with getting a new machine? Otherwise, I'm not sure how much better the specs would be over what you have.

 

[R1PPER]

whatever you do, make sure you put a 512 SSD in it.

 

[Yebubbleman]

If you're going with a non-retina 21.5" iMac and the lack of a discrete GPU is not something that matters to you, then you might as well go with the current gen as they do still sell a non-retina 21.5" iMac. Otherwise, I'd say that going the Apple Certified Refurbished route is almost always a better idea than going the pre-owned route.