I have a iMac 5k 27" late 2015, - i5 3.3 Ghz - M395 - SSD. I was wondering if the type of use of an iMac affects it's wear/lifespan. I can imagine that the temperature of components can affect the lifespan. Is this correct?
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iMac lifespan
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If the iMac is constantly incurring high temps, I'm sure that can have some impact but I think overall, the iMac should still last several years. The 2015 is still just a baby 
Certainly overheating is one of the classic threats to proper operation of a computer, which is why they're designed to disperse heat or cool themselves actively, e.g. with built-in fans.
Unless there's a failure in a particular component of an iMac, I've generally known them to last for five to ten years if you want to keep them that long. And unlike with mobile devices, iMacs don't critically rely on a battery – a component which has a predictably limited lifespan, even if it's a long one. Also, this decade, raw processor speed hasn't increased a great deal – if you upgrade soon, it's probably not likely to be for sheer speed in number-crunching power unless there's some sort of breakthrough coming up.
Unless there's a failure in a particular component of an iMac, I've generally known them to last for five to ten years if you want to keep them that long. And unlike with mobile devices, iMacs don't critically rely on a battery – a component which has a predictably limited lifespan, even if it's a long one. Also, this decade, raw processor speed hasn't increased a great deal – if you upgrade soon, it's probably not likely to be for sheer speed in number-crunching power unless there's some sort of breakthrough coming up.
My late ’12 iMac still goes strong. I run a video server that converts on demand on it 24/7 since January 2013. That’s about 5 years of always on use.
Thanks for the replies! Most electronic product nowadays are made to last only a few years. Good to read that the iMac is not in that category and can last many years, if used properly.
We have a 10 2009 21" imacs 27" and a 2012 imac at the newspaper I work for which is used for graphic design photography and motion graphics and its still going strong used 5 days a week 8-10 hours a day.
Not one has had any technical intervention since they were purchased.
The iMacs throttle themselves down when they get too hot protecting itself. TBH lifespan isnt something I would worry about.
Not one has had any technical intervention since they were purchased.
The iMacs throttle themselves down when they get too hot protecting itself. TBH lifespan isnt something I would worry about.
MY 2009 and 2011 iMacs (both top spec) have been passed to family members and are going strong and more than enough for normal use.
With iMacs, longevity can be a crapshoot.
Some folks have problems early on.
But I have a 10-year-old white Intel iMac that boots every time (although I don't use it much these days).
It's like what Forrest Gump said about the box of chocolates.
Just use it and be happy!
Some folks have problems early on.
But I have a 10-year-old white Intel iMac that boots every time (although I don't use it much these days).
It's like what Forrest Gump said about the box of chocolates.
Just use it and be happy!
If the temps rise, the fans kick in, and if the fans are broken, the machine will fail. Barring that, there is little your "use" of it is going to do to make it last any longer or shorter than it might otherwise.
My 2009 27" iMac is still going strong and will continue to do so for many years I'm sure.
The bigger annoyance is software obsolescence of the machine. At some point you won't get any more OS updates and newer versions of the applications will want newer versions of the OS and you can't run them. In one particular case on my machine, I can't run Docker. Now upgrading just for a single application is silly, but once the applications start piling up, you'll upgrade anyway.
My 2009 27" iMac is still going strong and will continue to do so for many years I'm sure.
The bigger annoyance is software obsolescence of the machine. At some point you won't get any more OS updates and newer versions of the applications will want newer versions of the OS and you can't run them. In one particular case on my machine, I can't run Docker. Now upgrading just for a single application is silly, but once the applications start piling up, you'll upgrade anyway.
I have an 24" iMac from January 2008 which was a late 2007 model. It was our family iMac. It is still running fine, but is slow on start up. It quit receiving updates from Apple in 2017. I still have it, but have other iMacs.
Late 2009 21,5", still going without upgrades (except RAM) but plan to upgrade next year to a 27" cause well it's about time for a speed boost. That and because I finally have some money to spare.
I barely got 3 years out of my 2014 iMac, and it was serviced 3 or 4 times before it totally died.
I can only tell you from experience.
My iMac, I gamed on for many many hours when I first got it, within the Two years and Apple care, they replaced most of It under warranty as over time heat killed most of the components. Within 12 months it was already showing issues.
Since getting it replaced and moving it to family duties and not longer getting pushed CPU / GPU wise, it's been a rock, issue free.
This has been my experience with many macs, if you push them hard daily, heat will kill them overtime. For family use, they will last years.
My only issue is the disposable nature of the new ones, bad luck, and something going wrong, and it gets very expensive
My iMac, I gamed on for many many hours when I first got it, within the Two years and Apple care, they replaced most of It under warranty as over time heat killed most of the components. Within 12 months it was already showing issues.
Since getting it replaced and moving it to family duties and not longer getting pushed CPU / GPU wise, it's been a rock, issue free.
This has been my experience with many macs, if you push them hard daily, heat will kill them overtime. For family use, they will last years.
My only issue is the disposable nature of the new ones, bad luck, and something going wrong, and it gets very expensive
Much like how long is a piece of string?
I change my iMac every second model and as a general rule when I sell them they last for a total of about ten years. Never had any Mac that turned its toes up completely and had to be dumped. Still use my '91 LC Original with OS 7.0.1 with my Apple Camera. Had one hard drive replaced and that's it.
I change my iMac every second model and as a general rule when I sell them they last for a total of about ten years. Never had any Mac that turned its toes up completely and had to be dumped. Still use my '91 LC Original with OS 7.0.1 with my Apple Camera. Had one hard drive replaced and that's it.
For almost all electronic equipment the rules are:
- leave it on 24h/day,
- don't drop it,
- don't spill liquid over it,
- update all software regularly,
- don't let the environment heat up or cool down quickly.
I guess iMacs last longer than your taste. That's long.
;JOOP!
Yes thank god. It was great of Apple to fix it 3 times and then replace it with a 3 year newer machine too. So Apple Care is worth it for the iMac IMO. But the heat problems are ridiculous. Apple is very bad with thermals. The 2017 machine they gave me as a replacement has an i7 and the CPU will spike up to 90C-100C and the fans stay on low... Apple is so obsessed with thin quiet machines that it's becoming self destructive and shooting themselves in the foot.
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If the iMac is constantly incurring high temps, I'm sure that can have some impact but I think overall, the iMac should still last several years. The 2015 is still just a baby
I hope you have good fortune with your 2015 because my 2014 shot itself through the head
BummersI hope you have good fortune with your 2015 because my 2014 shot itself through the head
My iMac has been rock solid, median temps are between 35 to 45 for my typical usage.
just my 2 cents...
Owned macs all my life. finally retired my iMac 2007 and bought a high end 21.5in iMac 2017.
Fully expect this to last another 10 years
Owned macs all my life. finally retired my iMac 2007 and bought a high end 21.5in iMac 2017.
Fully expect this to last another 10 years
I have had my iMac since late 2012. It was the first of the new thinner models launched. I have had the 3TB fusion fail on me twice but it was quickly replaced by Apple, one through a recall and the other on EU Consumer Law. Apart from that, it runs fine for me still on Logic Pro and other Pro Audio Apps. I've always said the sweet spot to upgrade on a iMac is around 4/5 years. Strike whilst the irons hot and it's still serviceable.
That's some good advise! I always switch my iMac in 'hibernate' when not using it. Is that what you meant by 'leave it on 24h/day'?
I have a 2007 20" iMac with a 20" cinema screen attached.
Great machine and other than tad slow as it still using HDD it is ok.
started to hang randomly but very rarely.
considering it's age I don't blame it.
it is used every day after work and weekends can be on for up to 12 hours a day.
does not seem to get excessively hot either.
Great machine and other than tad slow as it still using HDD it is ok.
started to hang randomly but very rarely.
considering it's age I don't blame it.
it is used every day after work and weekends can be on for up to 12 hours a day.
does not seem to get excessively hot either.