I have a mid-2007 iMac. 2.0GHz Core 2 Duo, 4GB 667MHz RAM, and some crappy ATI graphics card. I upgraded it from its original 1GB RAM a few years back when I was running snow leopard (2011 or 2012). It made it really smooth. However over the last few years, it has slowed down. I have about 30GB free on its 250GB HDD. Anything inexpensive I can do without upgrading the hardware? It has seriously become unusable, and I am not buying a new Mac any time soon.
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iMac (Mid 2007) Speed Increase?
- Thread starter CostlyTrick
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Might be worth just backing everything up, and doing a full re-install of OSX, but with a full disk surface scan before doing so.
Most likely the hard-drive that's causing your woes just now, could be on it's way out.
Most likely the hard-drive that's causing your woes just now, could be on it's way out.
How much are you prepared to spend for upgrades?
What OS X version are you running now?
Yours can run Yosemite, but 4GB, plus the other hardware you have might not give you a decent running Yosemite system.
You could:
upgrade your RAM - your iMac can go up another 2GB, for a total of 6GB.
Replace your old HDD with a nice SSD, which will be, by far, the best change you can make - if you think the cost is worth the benefit.
Make sure your cooling inlets are all clear (the little round inlet in back above the power connector often is missed! ) Not really a "speed tip", but something to look at - no cost!
And, if you really don't care to put much money into 7-year old hardware, then you may be better off by downgrading to Snow Leopard, or maybe Mountain Lion for now, if you want to stay closer to current.
What OS X version are you running now?
Yours can run Yosemite, but 4GB, plus the other hardware you have might not give you a decent running Yosemite system.
You could:
upgrade your RAM - your iMac can go up another 2GB, for a total of 6GB.
Replace your old HDD with a nice SSD, which will be, by far, the best change you can make - if you think the cost is worth the benefit.
Make sure your cooling inlets are all clear (the little round inlet in back above the power connector often is missed! ) Not really a "speed tip", but something to look at - no cost!
And, if you really don't care to put much money into 7-year old hardware, then you may be better off by downgrading to Snow Leopard, or maybe Mountain Lion for now, if you want to stay closer to current.
Might be worth just backing everything up, and doing a full re-install of OSX, but with a full disk surface scan before doing so.
Most likely the hard-drive that's causing your woes just now, could be on it's way out.
Would you mind linking me to somewhere that could show me the best way of doing this?
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How big is the performance difference in Yosemite vs. Mountain Lion?
I don't know if I can quantify that difference, but - for you, it may be the difference between "unusable" and "useable"
You might find that numerical info at one of the benchmarking sites...
I am really thinking that if your hard drive is original with your iMac (7 or 8 years old), then that may be a good choice to simply replace your hard drive. An SSD would be ideal, but you would need to balance the expense against the possible benefits - SSDs are much cheaper than a couple of years ago, but still a hefty expense if you also want to get more space.
If you want a noticeable speed increase, then consider the SSD. You WILL end up with a Mac that feel faster than when it was new (more than added RAM will show). Won't be as fast as the same upgrade on a 2011 or 2012 model, but still noticeable...
As always, an SSD and max RAM. The Samsung 850 series are great and 6GB should be your RAM limit which is 50% more than what you have now.
1) Upgrade to 6GB of RAM
2) Install an SSD to replace the spinner
3) Do a full reinstall of OS X
Those 3 things will make your 2k7 iMac last a few more years. I did all these on a 24" 2007 iMac.