Decision Decision.....

[SundayDuffer]

It's time to upgrade to an iMac 27in.

Been looking 2 models:

1. iMac 2011 Quad-Core i5 2.7GHz, 4GB RAM, 1TB HDD, AMD Radeon HD 6770M,. New. $1614. But i will want to upgrade (thru third party) the ram to 12G. $100 more. I definitely will want an additional 240GB SSD Vertex 3 (will do the upgrade myself via ChargedPC's method) $500 more. Roughly the total will come to about $2300 with accessories for the upgrades.

2. iMac 2010 i7 2.93Ghz Quad Core Processor i7, 2TB HDD and an additional 256GB SSD, 16G ram, Radeon HD 4670 1GB GDDR3 SDRAM...this runs about $2300 used.

What do you think i should do? I know about the risk of messing up by doing the upgrades myself. Frankly, Im leaning toward the 2010 because i wont have to do anything. But then again, time is what i have right now, obviously if i go with the 2011, i would need to shop for a ssd, cables, rams. And of course i will have to go thru with the upgrade process. It will be fun and it will also frustrates the heck out of me. On the same note, i know Thunderbolt will be very cool in 2 or 3 years from today.

Your thoughts?

Thx.

 

[roland.g]

The 2011 iMac you mentioned is $1,699 not $1,614, and yet that doesn't sound like a EDU discount. Not sure where that price comes from. But what I don't get is that with the Charged PC method you describe you would be looking at $500 to add the 240 SSD, whereas for $600 through Apple you can get the HDD + 256 SSD option. Seems like the extra $100 is worth the no hassle, and still gets you the newer machine with SSD. Of course if you are getting it with an EDU discount, you would be looking at $540 for the HDD + SSD option. Sure there is also tax, etc. in there. But if your $1,614 price for the machine is a stock config discounted elsewhere and you can't get the SSD BTO, then I guess you are looking at a $186 difference.

Things to think about between the 2010 i7 and the 2010 i5.

The 2011 will include FaceTime HD, Thunderbolt ports, and a free Lion upgrade. As well as the GPU difference, etc. And unless the used machine has Applecare for 2 more years already purchased, your 2011 option comes with a 1 year warranty, though your SSD self upgrade kinda negates that.

 

[SundayDuffer]

Roland, thanks for the input. You made great sense. Thx.
The $1614 price is from bhvideophoto dot com. On sale with free shipping and no tax.
Anyhow, i will give it some more thoughts. thx.