New iMac or 2011 refurb model

[Angelus]

Hello everyone, I recently posted a thread about replacing my MacBook pro. The end result was the suggestion of getting a Mac mini or an iMac. Personally I'm swaying in the direction of an iMac cos it just seems better suited to my needs.

If I'm gonna get an iMac, then my preference would be for a 27" 2011 model. Ever since I purchased my Macbook Air i've fallen in love with SSDs. Considering the difficulty involved in installing an SSD in the 2011 imacs, if I want one the BTO option would be best in my opinion. The only downside of course is the premium involved. Now with some configuration on the apple store I can get a new 2011 27" iMac, 2.7GHZ quad core i7, 4GB RAM, 1TB/256 HDD/SSD combo with Radeon HD 6770M 512MB for 3489 NZD.

I've noticed on the refurb site that there are 2011 27" iMac 3.4GHZ quad Core i7, 4GB RAM, 1TB HDD, Radeon HD 6970M 1GB running for 3049 NZD.

I have no problem purchasing a refurb model but my main question is which represents the best buy. I know there's a difference of 400 NZD but it may be worth it for the SSD. Which one do people think offers the best longevity. One has the benefit of an SSD but the other has a faster processor and graphics card.

Decisions, decisions....
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Cheers.

 

[jackoatmon]

It really depends on what you want to do.

If you wanna bootcamp and game, get the one with the 6970m in it for sure.

If you do a lot of like video encoding or something, get the SSD. The refurb is a way better computer, but SSDs can be a big deal in cases where write speed is an issue. Unless you have write speed issues or for some reason can't stand waiting the extra 0.00001 seconds for things to boot, personally I say go for the latter for sure. Cheaper and wayyyy better.

Then just get a thunderbolt SSD external later and use it.