Let me start by saying that I am a long time windows user mainly for its gaming. I've stopped playing all the games and now I want to switch to a mac. I found a mid-2015 i3.3 i5 with 32gb ram 1tb SSD. for 800. What do you guys think? Let me know what your advice is. Thank you.
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I need your advice.
- Thread starter matek07
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On the one hand, it is about 5 years old. On the other...a new Mac with that much RAM and storage would be pricey. That sounds like a pretty good place to start, if you want/need that much RAM and storage.
Important that it is SSD...you may not be aware as a new switcher, but Apple has gone all-in optimizing for solid-state storage. HDs are no longer acceptable as of about MacOS 10.14.
How do you plan to use it? Could you get away with 16GB and 500GB...on a newer, less decked out Mac?
Important that it is SSD...you may not be aware as a new switcher, but Apple has gone all-in optimizing for solid-state storage. HDs are no longer acceptable as of about MacOS 10.14.
How do you plan to use it? Could you get away with 16GB and 500GB...on a newer, less decked out Mac?
You might want to check those specs. The mid-2015 MacBook Pro maxed at 16GB of RAM and was not upgradable as the RAM is soldered to the board. There is no mid-2015 Mac Pro, which COULD have 32GB of RAM but wouldn't have had an i5 chip in it.
Or is this an iMac?
Need to be specific in what you're discussing...
Or is this an iMac?
Need to be specific in what you're discussing...
Good catch. I breezed right by that. 27" iMac fits the specs...even had an optional 1TB SSD. But the base model was 1TB HD. Seems more likely unless...somebody cracked it open to upgrade.
yes, sorry it is a 27" imac hope that helps. I don't want to spend more than 1k. I am looking to get best bang for the buck. I would use it mainly for email web browsing possibly some video editing but nothing crazy.
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I also thought about the screen on my windows ive been using a 27" 1080p 144hz which is great I really enjoy the refresh rate. I know that the IMAC will only put out 60hz but it is retina. Has anyone gone from a high refresh rate to 60hz and retina? I am wondering about eye strain and damage long term if there is any. Thank guys.
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I also thought about the screen on my windows ive been using a 27" 1080p 144hz which is great I really enjoy the refresh rate. I know that the IMAC will only put out 60hz but it is retina. Has anyone gone from a high refresh rate to 60hz and retina? I am wondering about eye strain and damage long term if there is any. Thank guys.
32GB is overkill for basic needs, but better too much than not enough.
I can't speak to eye strain or damage....but we have nearly 3000 Macs at work, and the only complaints I ever hear about screens is glare from the glass. Not many, but a small percentage don't like it. I only hear of talk refresh rates for gamers running high FPS. Let's see what others think.
Okay, thanks! Would you say the one I’m looking at is somewhat future proof or should I be looking for a newer one?
I would say that this is a good deal for a 27" 5K iMac, if it does have 32GB and a 1TB SSD, assuming it is in good condition. I would verify that storage is, in fact, SSD not HD.
But at 5 years old, it is a trade-off as far as future-proofing. Sometimes Macs get support for up to 10 years (are capable of running the latest OS), but more like about 8 years is more common. But that can be tricky to predict.
Apple has a history of making substantial changes every so often that leaves a chunk of older Macs behind...unsupported. One of the last big jumps was switching file systems from the venerable HFS+ to APFS.
At some point, when you cannot update, then the clock is ticking. After a Mac is a couple OS versions behind (about 2-4 years) it is not unusual that one can no longer run the latest browsers....and then you can see issues with web: pages not loading or security requirement problems.
This is hard to predict. I just gave away an old 2008 iMac (Core 2 Duo) that could only run OS 10.11 (4 versions old), and can no longer run alot of current software, but will still run the latest FireFox....so still useful for basic stuff with older software. So in this example, at 12ish years old, still running well, but at reduced capability with regard to software that can be run, and maybe 1-3 more years of use, depending on browser support for the old OS.
Short version for a 2015 Mac: I would guess about anywhere from 4-8 years of good usability, with diminished functionality after that, with regard to the ability to run current software.
I tend to think of the computer cost as the cost to purchase divided by the years of use.
- Used for $800, and you get 7 years out of it: $115 per year (assuming the value is $0 after 7 years).
- New for $2500, and sold @ 5 years: $340 per year (assuming the value is $800 after 5 years)
Last thing (this is all speculation): Apple is likely to move to their own ARM CPUs starting in the next year or two. When they do, the clock might start ticking on all older Macs (all using Intel X86 CPUs) with regard to OS update support. The general notion is when the switch happens, we might expect about 5 years of support for old (non-ARM) hardware. But only a guess on when ARM hits, and how long X86 support lasts. Some folks think it will be longer than 5 years with a phased multi-year multi-year migration, with high-performance Macs taking much longer to make the CPU switch. If so, lack of X86 support becomes a moot point: you would likely be ready for new Mac (more than 8 years from now) before support stops.
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Okay thank you for the valuable info.
I’m still searching for one. Recently I came up on this one 27” 5k iMac 3.7GHz 6-Core Processor with Turbo Boost up to 4.6GHz 2TB Storage Retina 5K Display for around $1500 I know it’s above my price range by a little. What’s your take ?
I’m still searching for one. Recently I came up on this one 27” 5k iMac 3.7GHz 6-Core Processor with Turbo Boost up to 4.6GHz 2TB Storage Retina 5K Display for around $1500 I know it’s above my price range by a little. What’s your take ?
My first thought is that it has the same issue of a spinning HD, which will not be satisfying now, and won't age well as time goes on (Apple will likely continue to leverage optimizing for solid-state storage speed).
It stinks that even today, much less over the last few years, so many iMacs have HD installed, and not SSD.
As a tech, I would look for a good deal on an iMac that either has SSD, or a small/failing HD, with the plan to replace the HD with an SSD.
But it is not a simple, consumer-friendly job....so most folks would probably need a tech to do it, which would cost about an hour of labor plus parts (SSD and adhesive strip kit for the monitor like this one). I would even consider a year or two older model for less $$, leaving about $200 aside for the HD upgrade. I get that most folks would not want to do that...they want to turn it on and go.
Depending on where you live, often in more urban areas there are independent tech shops that could to the drive swap for you. You might check and see if there is a good tech shop around you and get an estimate. Here is an example in the LA area. If you have access to a good local repair source, there will many more used iMac options with HDs.
It stinks that even today, much less over the last few years, so many iMacs have HD installed, and not SSD.
As a tech, I would look for a good deal on an iMac that either has SSD, or a small/failing HD, with the plan to replace the HD with an SSD.
But it is not a simple, consumer-friendly job....so most folks would probably need a tech to do it, which would cost about an hour of labor plus parts (SSD and adhesive strip kit for the monitor like this one). I would even consider a year or two older model for less $$, leaving about $200 aside for the HD upgrade. I get that most folks would not want to do that...they want to turn it on and go.
Depending on where you live, often in more urban areas there are independent tech shops that could to the drive swap for you. You might check and see if there is a good tech shop around you and get an estimate. Here is an example in the LA area. If you have access to a good local repair source, there will many more used iMac options with HDs.
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My second thought...
If you find an iMac you like with an HD, you could simply boot to external. Fast and a good value. You could still use the internal drive for storage, so no waste. If you don't mind losing a port, and having the external clutter.
A poster just mentioned doing this with a new iMac over here, and is very happy. He is using somehting like this for his boot drive.
If you find an iMac you like with an HD, you could simply boot to external. Fast and a good value. You could still use the internal drive for storage, so no waste. If you don't mind losing a port, and having the external clutter.
A poster just mentioned doing this with a new iMac over here, and is very happy. He is using somehting like this for his boot drive.