Hard drive crashed. Which option should I choose?

[devburke]

So the HD on my parents' late 2006 iMac crashed recently. They're not under any kind of warrantee now. As far as I can see, my options are

1. Have Apple fix it, and probably pay a pretty good amount of money
2. Order one and try and replace it myself (although it's not user-replaceable, so it could get messy)
3. Just buy an external, install the OS, and run from that

Option 3 would probably be cheapest and easiest, but I was hoping for some advice on the practicality of that one. Would performance be really bad? Anything else I should keep in mind?

I'm really not looking to buy a brand new Mac here. My parents are NOT big enough into computers to blow that kinda money cuz a HD crashed.

 

[Hamoodi]

So the HD on my parents' late 2006 iMac crashed recently. They're not under any kind of warrantee now. As far as I can see, my options are

1. Have Apple fix it, and probably pay a pretty good amount of money
2. Order one and try and replace it myself (although it's not user-replaceable, so it could get messy)
3. Just buy an external, install the OS, and run from that

Option 3 would probably be cheapest and easiest, but I was hoping for some advice on the practicality of that one. Would performance be really bad? Anything else I should keep in mind?

I'm really not looking to buy a brand new Mac here. My parents are NOT big enough into computers to blow that kinda money cuz a HD crashed.

Since your parents do not want to buy a new iMac, which I would not want to do either, call Apple and see if you could get a quote on how much it would be too fix. And how big was the HD on your parent's Mac? If it was, let's say, 500GB you should get one that size or bigger. Hope I helped!

 

[Dresevski]

iFixit.com should have a guide on how to dissemble the computer. Take a look at that and decide if you feel at all comfortable with doing what it takes. In my opinion it will be easier to execute than you think looking at the steps. Then get a large HDD from newegg.com and install it yourself. You will end up with some good experience, a larger/better HDD and save money-all pretty good things.

If you don't feel comfortable find a local authorized service provider or tech shop who can do it, probably cheaper than Apple. They'll even let you give them the drive to install!

 

[devburke]

Since your parents do not want to buy a new iMac, which I would not want to do either, call Apple and see if you could get a quote on how much it would be too fix. And how big was the HD on your parent's Mac? If it was, let's say, 500GB you should get one that size or bigger. Hope I helped!

To be honest they don't need any space. They have a few photos kept on there, but the only time any HD space was used was before I got my own computer for college, so a small HD will be plenty for them. I'm planning on taking it to the Genius Bar just to see what they say. Maybe I'll get lucky and they'll help out anyway (it's been known to happen). Although I've heard you get one "freebie" sometimes with the Apple Store, and I'd hate to waste it on something as cheap as a hard drive.

iFixit.com should have a guide on how to dissemble the computer. Take a look at that and decide if you feel at all comfortable with doing what it takes. In my opinion it will be easier to execute than you think looking at the steps. Then get a large HDD from newegg.com and install it yourself. You will end up with some good experience, a larger/better HDD and save money-all pretty good things.

If you don't feel comfortable find a local authorized service provider or tech shop who can do it, probably cheaper than Apple. They'll even let you give them the drive to install!

Maybe I will end up doing this. I'm relatively comfortable going inside a computer. I haven't done it a ton, but back in our XP days I opened up the dell to install CD burners and USB 2.0 ports. A couple years back I helped my dad's friend upgrade an old PowerPC, which included opening it up and installing more memory, and possibly a hard drive (I'm not sure about the hard drive, but if I did, it was user-replaceable back on her computer). This would be advantageous over an external, right?

 

[robgendreau]

Maybe I will end up doing this. I'm relatively comfortable going inside a computer. I haven't done it a ton, but back in our XP days I opened up the dell to install CD burners and USB 2.0 ports. A couple years back I helped my dad's friend upgrade an old PowerPC, which included opening it up and installing more memory, and possibly a hard drive (I'm not sure about the hard drive, but if I did, it was user-replaceable back on her computer). This would be advantageous over an external, right?

It's definitely not that hard for anyone that knows the difference between a torn screw and a Philips. I followed the instructions from ifixit, and it worked great. They sell the tools, and their hard drive prices were competitive, and you know for sure they'll work in your iMac. Just make sure not to tug too hard on anything, document your progress with snapshots just in case, and don't do it over a messy floor if you're prone to dropping those itty bitty screws….

Rob

 

[xkmxkmxlmx]

I have replaced 3 drives on my 06 iMac. Using ifixit's guides, it was a snap.

Seriously, anyone can do it that can follow simple instructions (it has detailed pictures even!).

Just go in with some patience and the right tools and you will have no problem whatsoever.