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Need help choosing an Imac for my father

M

Mousesuck

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jun 19, 2017
132
44
Hi, i need some help.
My mother wants to buy an IMac 21,5 from 2017 for my father.

The primary use is going to be for wrighting, and it is important that it is a desktop so it is already decided that it will be an Imac.

To a certain extent money is not a problem but it doesn’t make sense to buy a full upgraded iMac for the type of use that it is going to have (no gaming nor heavy computing tasks) while also keeping in mind that my parents are in their late 60s and probably they won’t buy another one in their lifetime.

So since I’m also not a computer savvy guy my main questions are:

1-If the choice was between the Imac 21,5 2017 with 16gb of ram or the 21,5 with Retina display with 8gb of ram, which one would make more sense to buy?

2-Does it even make sense to buy either of the models with 8gb of ram or should I upgrade it either way?

3-I don’t think It makes any sense to upgrade the base processor in either model but what about the storage? Would it make any sense to upgrade to the fusion drive?

Thanks ;)
 
If it's only for light use, I'd go for the stock RAM, or 16GB but go for the SSD upgrade, whatever size you can afford. To me the SSD is 100% essential on a Mac. I wouldn't have one without it regardless of what I was using it for. It will make the user experience so much more fluid and enjoyable. I wouldn't even bother with the Fusion drive. The SSD will make the need for any of the higher processors available unnecessary.
 
Mousesuck said:
Hi, i need some help.
My mother wants to buy an 2017 IMac 21,5 for my father.

The primary use is going to be for wrighting, and it is important that it is a desktop so it is already decided that it will be an Imac.

To a certain extent, price is not a problem but it doesn’t make sense to buy a full upgraded iMac for the type of use that it is going to have (no gaming nor heavy computing tasks, they will be the only users) while also keeping in mind that my parents are in their late 60s and probably they won’t buy another one in their lifetime.

So since I’m also not a computer savvy guy, my main questions are:

1-If the choice was between the Imac 21,5 2017 with 16gb of ram or the 21,5 with Retina display with 8gb of ram, which one would make more sense to buy?

2-Does it even make sense to buy either of the models with 8gb of ram or should I upgrade it either way?

3-I don’t think It makes any sense to upgrade the base processor in either model but what about the storage? Would it make any sense to upgrade to the fusion drive or even ssd?

Thanks ;)
Click to expand...
i used 8 GB ram.. it should be enough..

For my suggestion is

1. upgrade the keyboard to big one.. The base keyboard pretty small
2. Get SSD upgrade instead of ram upgrade.. If you afford then upgrade.

** base model 21 don't have ram slot to poke on unless you open all it up.. only the bigger one can be upgrade
** sorry poster.. i'm bit confuse with term "wrigthing" Are mean you create something from nothing or writing
 
Mousesuck said:
Hi, i need some help.
My mother wants to buy an 2017 IMac 21,5 for my father.

The primary use is going to be for wrighting, and it is important that it is a desktop so it is already decided that it will be an Imac.

To a certain extent, price is not a problem but it doesn’t make sense to buy a full upgraded iMac for the type of use that it is going to have (no gaming nor heavy computing tasks, they will be the only users) while also keeping in mind that my parents are in their late 60s and probably they won’t buy another one in their lifetime.

So since I’m also not a computer savvy guy, my main questions are:

1-If the choice was between the Imac 21,5 2017 with 16gb of ram or the 21,5 with Retina display with 8gb of ram, which one would make more sense to buy?

2-Does it even make sense to buy either of the models with 8gb of ram or should I upgrade it either way?

3-I don’t think It makes any sense to upgrade the base processor in either model but what about the storage? Would it make any sense to upgrade to the fusion drive or even ssd?

Thanks ;)
Click to expand...
[doublepost=1510579214][/doublepost]Upgrade to the 27 inch. Your father will be a lot happier with the bigger/better screen. 8GB of RAM. 256 GB SSD - not the fusion drive. (You can always get a cost efficient external SSD down the road if necessary.) Extended (larger) keyboard.
 
1-The retina display is well worth it IMO. Also consider you're also getting a much better graphics card with it for the price. But depending on their vision they might not really care.
2- 8bg should be just fine. I don't think 16gb is necessary for their needs.
3- You should definitely upgrade the storage! At least fusion drive but I would highly recommend an SSD. If they need more storage you can always add an external drive on TB3.
 
If you go with the 21.5" model I would definitely upgrade the RAM to at least 16 GB and upgrade to an SSD as well. If they're going to be using this computer for years to come you want to future-proof it some and the best time to upgrade the RAM on the 21" is at time of purchase.

If you end up getting the 27" just upgrade to an SSD, the RAM in this model can be easily upgraded by the user (if needed).
 
My vote is base 27" with 256 SSD. The larger screen will help visibility and you can scale text larger and still have lots of room to work. His older eyes will thank you.
 
OP:

I think that 8gb of RAM will be "enough" for the life of the machine, given the uses you mentioned.

BUT...
Don't get the fusion drive version.
Instead, get the 256gb SSD option.
It's "build-to-order", so you'll have to order it (can't just walk into the store and buy it).

The SSD will probably last longer without problems than will a platter-based HDD.
Also, an SSD will keep running at full speed for the life of the Mac (provided they leave enough "free space" on it, but I sense that you'll be monitoring the situation).

I believe the 256gb SSD adds only $100 to the cost.
Easy enough to live with.

Final thought:
tyche's suggestion above makes sense.
How is your parents' vision?
As they get older, they may want a display with "larger" type (not "clearer", but LARGER).
The 27" display offers enough extra space with which to set this up for them.
Of course, cost is a consideration.
But I think they'll like the 27" once they have it!
 
Mousesuck said:
Hi, i need some help.
My mother wants to buy an 2017 IMac 21,5 for my father.

The primary use is going to be for wrighting, and it is important that it is a desktop so it is already decided that it will be an Imac.

To a certain extent, price is not a problem but it doesn’t make sense to buy a full upgraded iMac for the type of use that it is going to have (no gaming nor heavy computing tasks, they will be the only users) while also keeping in mind that my parents are in their late 60s and probably they won’t buy another one in their lifetime.

So since I’m also not a computer savvy guy, my main questions are:

1-If the choice was between the Imac 21,5 2017 with 16gb of ram or the 21,5 with Retina display with 8gb of ram, which one would make more sense to buy?

2-Does it even make sense to buy either of the models with 8gb of ram or should I upgrade it either way?

3-I don’t think It makes any sense to upgrade the base processor in either model but what about the storage? Would it make any sense to upgrade to the fusion drive or even ssd?

Thanks ;)
Click to expand...

16gb of ram will never be needed by them so don’t worry about that, 8gb is just fine.

The display is the most important part of any computer in my mind and a good one is a massive part of how pleasurable they are to use go with 4K for that print like text and your father will love it.

Get fusion or ssd preferably the 2TB fusion (128gb ssd vs 32gb ssd in the 1TB fusion) but a 256gb ssd with external storage can be an even better setup assuming your father would even fill 255gb. This is important it is the single biggest reason for modern computers feeling so quick to use.
 
alien3dx said:
i used 8 GB ram.. it should be enough..

For my suggestion is

1. upgrade the keyboard to big one.. The base keyboard pretty small
2. Get SSD upgrade instead of ram upgrade.. If you afford then upgrade.

** base model 21 don't have ram slot to poke on unless you open all it up.. only the bigger one can be upgrade
** sorry poster.. i'm bit confuse with term "wrigthing" Are mean you create something from nothing or writing[/QUOTE

Yeah sorry, I meant writing
Thanks
Click to expand...
[doublepost=1510588428][/doublepost]Thank you very much to all of you. I’ll take in consideration your advices and give the input to my mother.

Have a nice day
 
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Base 27"
If he'll be writing a lot, he'll appreciate the large retina screen. And you don't really need any RAM/SSD upgrades if all he'll do is writing.
 
Precursor said:
Base 27"
If he'll be writing a lot, he'll appreciate the large retina screen. And you don't really need any RAM/SSD upgrades if all he'll do is writing.
Click to expand...

Even if I was using the computer to do next to nothing I'd still never order one with a spinning drive.
 
Smellmet said:
Even if I was using the computer to do next to nothing I'd still never order one with a spinning drive.
Click to expand...
is not so bad spinning drive. My 2 old laptop using ssd and new imac using spinning.Only loading time on startup not much effect since mostly i on sleep mode..
[doublepost=1510661990][/doublepost]
Precursor said:
When I'm 60 and writing a lot i'll appreciate a big and clear screen much more than a fast ssd.
Click to expand...
i doing code.. and using two monitor 2 inchi.. yeah.. big size important compare just to load issue..
 
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