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IMac purchase question

Porterhouse

Porterhouse

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Aug 13, 2011
381
179
USA
Yes, it’s yet another purchasing question! 😏.

I’ve been reading through this forum for a while, and before I click the buy button, I hope to get a few thoughts from those of you that know more than I do about these matters.

First, I know that whatever I get will be faster than what I have now, which is a 2017 13” MP 3.1 Ghz w/256 GB. Although I’ve had a plethora of iPads and iPhones, the MBP is the first Mac I’ve purchased, and I wouldn’t go back, but when I bought my MBP, I had no idea what I was doing.

Needs: I’m teaching online and will be through the summer. Additionally, I tend to keep several programs open at once, mostly browser based. I do very little video editing, but I watch and grade speeches online. I’m looking at a 27 inch iMac with the idea of it lasting at least five years. I know I can upgrade the RAM once I get it, and I figured I would get at least 1 TB of SSD. I’d like to run at least two additional monitors off it, though neither (at the moment) is 4K.

Right now, I’m lost between 6 core and 8 core (basically the last two options.) What would be best for me? I don’t want to be regretting the purchase in a year or two, but I also want to be as financially conservative as possible.

Thanks in advance for any advice you can provide!
 
I think 6-core with 1TB SSD would be great for your usage, and upgrade RAM yourself to 16GB or 32GB.

It does not sound like what you do is very CPU or GPU intensive, and the 6-core i5 and Radeon 5300 and 1TB SSD will still give a snappy response.

For working online make sure you have fast reliable internet connection and good Wi-Fi.
 
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Agree with @wilberforce, with some additional thoughts:

- the 10 Gigabit Ethernet is a worthwhile $100 option, to give you that capability if you have faster Ethernet at some point in the future and want to take advantage of it.

- I have heard great things regarding the nano-texture glass. I know, it is expensive. If I was purchasing a new iMac (I have a late 2014 model now), I would go for it, particularly if planning to use the iMac for a long period of time (as you are).

Good luck!
 
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Porterhouse said:
Yes, it’s yet another purchasing question! 😏.

I’d like to run at least two additional monitors off it, though neither (at the moment) is 4K.
Click to expand...

May sound weird to you, but I prefer a simpler configuration:
One 27" monitor (of the iMac); and
One 48" 4K OLED TV from afar

If you want to save money, the Mac mini M1 (yes, new ARM chip) ~ $699 is very prominent, you can hook up 3 4k monitors to it.
 
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Nguyen Duc Hieu said:
If you want to save money, the Mac mini M1 (yes, new ARM chip) ~ $699 is very prominent, you can hook up 3 4k monitors to it.
Click to expand...

I was just wondering about the Mac mini. It looks like I’m going to have to get a new phone, so that cuts back on my iMac plans. However, the Mac mini might be the answer as I have several monitors already as well as a Magic Keyboard.

I would definitely upgrade the storage, but I’m also curious about whether 8 GB of memory would last for a few years. Obviously, there’s no point in overbuying memory, but one of the things I found attractive about the iMac was being able to install it myself.
 
<<the Mac mini M1 (yes, new ARM chip) ~ $699 is very prominent, you can hook up 3 4k monitors>>

The M1 Mac mini only supports 2 external monitors, 1 using TB3/USB-C, the 2nd using HDMI.
If you want more you have to use a USB DisplayLink convertor, which adds significant addition cost.
 
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OP wrote:
"I would definitely upgrade the storage, but I’m also curious about whether 8 GB of memory would last for a few years. Obviously, there’s no point in overbuying memory, but one of the things I found attractive about the iMac was being able to install it myself."

I'm not sure how the m1 Minis handle display memory (VRAM?), but in the 2018/20 Intel Mini, 1.5gb of the installed RAM is "roped off" for display usage.

That cuts down the available memory (for the OS) to about 6.5gb (in the 8gb version).

In the Intel Mini, "upping the RAM" to 16gb seems to result in better overall performance.

Again, things may work completely different on the m1 Mini.
But if I was buying one of the new m1's to use with multiple displays, I'd get 16gb and be done with it...
 
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Porterhouse said:
I was just wondering about the Mac mini. It looks like I’m going to have to get a new phone, so that cuts back on my iMac plans. However, the Mac mini might be the answer as I have several monitors already as well as a Magic Keyboard.

I would definitely upgrade the storage, but I’m also curious about whether 8 GB of memory would last for a few years. Obviously, there’s no point in overbuying memory, but one of the things I found attractive about the iMac was being able to install it myself.
Click to expand...

Don't worry, 8GB will serve you good for at least several years. 1080p video editing is running smooth as well. Just don't push it too hard with 4k, 8k video rendering.
If it doesn't, you call always sell it to some others with a discount, and purchase the new model that on sales at that time.
 
I’ve since realized I’d have to buy a camera too for all the Zoom meetings I’m hosting too. Argh! I love Apple, but I hate their price point!
 
Nguyen Duc Hieu said:
You can use your iphone as the webcam, or Airplay the Zoom session on your iphone to the big screen. No need to buy an extra webcam and take away 1 USB port.
Click to expand...

I thought of those options. To record the sessions, I’ve got to use the computer. I might be able to rig something with my iPad using Sidecar, but I haven’t even tried it yet.
 
I would go with your original configuration. Even though the Silicon iMacs will come out sometime next year, the existing Intel Imacs are solid performers. I had a 2013 27" for 7 years without a problem. My teen is still even using my 2011 Imac. The Imac solves the camera problem very nicely. I would also recommend a decent external hard drive for TimeMachine Backup purposes. The 6 core will probably be fine. Assuming you go with your original proposal and you use it for those purposes, I'd guess you get an easy 5 years out of it.
 
Thanks! I have to admit, the probability of a complete redesign has given me pause, but I’ve got to do something. I love my MBP, but it’s getting quite slow with all the usage, particularly since March.
 
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