Specs for the iMac that I hope to purchase. Thoughts?

[Amnesiac1]

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• 3.4GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i7
• 16GB 1333MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 4x4GB [Still debating on whether or not to go this route -- if I decide to go with 8GB, for instance, I am worried about the RAM that I would therefore have to purchase from elsewhere (to bring it up to 16GB) and whether or not it would interfere with Apple Care. I am also concerned about the quality of the RAM that I would pick up elsewhere and whether or not it would be truly commensurate with the quality of the Apple RAM.]
• 1TB Serial ATA Drive + 256GB Solid State Drive [Given that my intention is to 'future-proof' this machine as much as possible, I'm considering going for the 2TB HD but that might be a tad excessive. I already have a 1TB portable HD and, if I run out of room, I can always just buy another portable HD.]
• AMD Radeon HD 6970M 2GB GDDR5
• Apple Magic Mouse + Magic Trackpad [Very tentative. I may end up just going for the Magic Mouse... the praise the Trackpad has been receiving is giving me pause, though.]
• Apple Wireless Keyboard (English) & User's Guide
• AppleCare Protection Plan for iMac- Auto-enroll
• Apple Remote
• Apple Battery Charger
  
  
  ...Here are the specs for my current 2007 MBP:
  
  
  
  
• 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
• 2 GB 667 MHz DDR SDRAM
• 320 GB HD
• GeForce 8600M GT

What do you think?

 

[Amnesiac1]

 

[morty192]

don't get the RAM buy after market much cheaper!

 

[kevin2223]

Looks good for a top-end. I also agree with you that it's a little hard justifying adding another 1TB for $150 (making the drive worth more than $300) when you can easily add a 3TB external for that price.

You can purchase RAM from many online sources (OWC, Crucial, and Newegg have compatible memory). It doesn't void your AppleCare, and if the RAM you install goes bad (unlikely) it is usually covered by a lifetime warranty. Make sure the RAM is "1333 MHz, PC3-10600, DDR3 compliant (also referred to as DDR3 1333), Unbuffered and unregistered."

You'll save about $400 adding RAM yourself. Also consider going to 12GB (adding 2 4GB modules), as it is only a ~$100 upgrade instead of the ~$100 additional it costs to add 4GB for 16GB total.

You'll be able to go to 32GB in the future when the 8GB modules are affordable.

The Apple SSD addition is slower than others but you will still see a performance gain and it isn't a whole lot more expensive than other third-party 256GB SSDs.

 

[Chupa Chupa]

1) RAM is RAM. Buy 3rd party. As long as you buy quality RAM like Crucial, OWC, Kingston (but not ValuRAM), etc. you'll be fine. It will not void AppleCare as the RAM is designed to be user installable. However, if you ever need warranty service remove 3rd party RAM b/c you may not get it back.

2) 1TB is probably adequate. The 2TB drive is priced fairly steep considering what they sell for retail.

3) Trackpad has somewhat of a learning curve. I have one, and even though I also have a MBP, it was weird using it w/ a desktop and also to my side vs. in front of me. I'm not a fan of mouses. Previously I used a trackball.

 

[Amnesiac1]

1) RAM is RAM. Buy 3rd party. As long as you buy quality RAM like Crucial, OWC, Kingston (but not ValuRAM), etc.

Any specific recommendations for RAM for a 2011 iMac?

 

[kfscoll]

1. Buy third-party RAM.
2. Depending on your skills and/or willingness to open up your iMac, you might want to go ahead and cough up the extra coin for the 2TB hard drive. It's a relative PITA to upgrade it yourself (you have to remove the LCD display to get to the computer's guts).
3. Consider what you're going to be doing with your computer. If you don't plan to do lots of native-resolution gaming and if you're not going to drive additional external monitors, you probably won't need the 2GB video card. That said, it's a relatively cheap upgrade, so it wouldn't hurt to go for it.

All in all, it looks like you've specced out a great machine. I've also ordered a completely maxed-out iMac (except for memory which I'll upgrade to 8GB on my own) and am totally psyched for it to arrive!

I'm using the 4GB of memory that came installed on my '11 MacBook Pro to upgrade my iMac to 8GB total (the MBP only has two RAM slots so I have to go with 2x4GB to get 8GB). I've had very good luck with G.Skill and Mushkin memory, but Corsair, Kingston, and Crucial are all also great choices.

 

[MythicFrost]

Any specific recommendations for RAM for a 2011 iMac?

OWC, I say. Don't buy any RAM from Apple. I also suggest 1TB internal drive and externals if necessary (unless you know you'll use that up, i.e, heaps of HD video, movies, etc.). And, if you ever play games, go the Magic Mouse. I've got both, and I mainly use the trackpad for gestures.

 

[Amnesiac1]

I've changed my mind and will probably be getting 8GB of RAM directly from Apple.

The reasons:

- I don't want to scratch my screen by laying it down on something, even if it is a soft cloth. I'd rather not do that right away and risk messing up the screen, as that would be irritating!

- The incompatibility issue. Folks have complained about how adding onto the 4GB of RAM that every iMac comes with can occasionally cause incompatibility issues if the RAM you are adding does not 'sit well' with the RAM Apple selected.

- 16GB may be overkill, but 8GB seems like it should be sufficient. If I need more, I'll upgrade to 12 or 16.

 

[archer75]

8gb on sale on newegg now for $75. Don't buy from apple. Ram is ram. It's not rocket since and it's very easy to install.

I'm thinking of making a video of my 8 year old installing it just to show you people how simple it is.

 

[Amnesiac1]

8gb on sale on newegg now for $75. Don't buy from apple. Ram is ram. It's not rocket since and it's very easy to install.

I'm thinking of making a video of my 8 year old installing it just to show you people how simple it is.

But I don't want to scratch my screen. Plus, compatibility issues do occur. Why not just get the RAM from Apple so as to avoid any incompatibility issues and the risk of scratching your screen by laying it face down (BTW -- could I not install the RAM without flipping it over. That is, just drag my iMac forward and bend down and unscrew it from below the monitor with the iMac sitting upright as per usual?).

 

[archer75]

But I don't want to scratch my screen. Plus, compatibility issues do occur. Why not just get the RAM from Apple so as to avoid any incompatibility issues and the risk of scratching your screen by laying it face down (BTW -- could I not install the RAM without flipping it over. That is, just drag my iMac forward and bend down and unscrew it from below the monitor with the iMac sitting upright as per usual?).

There should'nt be any compatibility issues. If there is it could be bad ram. Send it back and get some more. But if you read reviews and you see that other people have used it in their macs then you know it will work.

You won't scratch your screen. Lay it down on a flat surface on a lint free cloth. No worries.
I'm even going to snag some latex gloves from work so as not to smudge the screen with my finger prints. And that's being paranoid for me.

If you buy ram from apple you are getting raped. With a squash. It's like getting raped with a squash and you don't want that. You'll never walk right again.

 

[tsugaru]

I've changed my mind and will probably be getting 8GB of RAM directly from Apple.

The reasons:

- I don't want to scratch my screen by laying it down on something, even if it is a soft cloth. I'd rather not do that right away and risk messing up the screen, as that would be irritating!

- The incompatibility issue. Folks have complained about how adding onto the 4GB of RAM that every iMac comes with can occasionally cause incompatibility issues if the RAM you are adding does not 'sit well' with the RAM Apple selected.

- 16GB may be overkill, but 8GB seems like it should be sufficient. If I need more, I'll upgrade to 12 or 16.

1 - then install the RAM while the machine is still covered in the plastic wrap. Unless you go out of the way to scratch the screen, you won't.

2 - I have used Patriot and Corsair RAM mixed with the Apple (Samsung or Hynix) RAM on previous and current Macs, it works fine, as long as you buy the right stuff (which isn't hard, every vendor now has compatibility lists for compatible components

3 - just buy 2x4GB sticks of RAM and add it to your current 2x2GB sticks. 12GB is a good middle ground, unless you want to go to the full 16GB.

 

[Amnesiac1]

3 - just buy 2x4GB sticks of RAM and add it to your current 2x2GB sticks. 12GB is a good middle ground, unless you want to go to the full 16GB.

No, I think I'd feel better with 12GB... but where to purchase it? I want to put in 12GB so that I can have the maximum number of slots left (that is, the maximum number that is possible to have left after installing 12GB). So, how to do that?

 

[mrfoof82]

No, I think I'd feel better with 12GB... but where to purchase it? I want to put in 12GB so that I can have the maximum number of slots left (that is, the maximum number that is possible to have left after installing 12GB). So, how to do that?

Any of the modules linked below will work. Get the density you want. Apple ships Macs with Micron (Crucial), Samsung and Hynix memory -- i.e. modules that are produced by the memory manufacturers (most other manufacturers integrate sourced memory into their own modules, i.e. Patriot, G.Skill, etc.).

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...0006178 600000414 600006157&IsNodeId=1&name=9

The recommendation is if you need to send the computer in to AppleCare, always remove third-party memory. Sometimes Apple does refuse to look at the computer if it has third-party memory. Oddly enough, Apple almost never balks at hard disks that were not shipped with the computer.

Since you are ordering an iMac with an SSD, please consider adding your info to the 2011 iMac w/ SSD Shipment Tracker.

 

[Amnesiac1]

ASometimes Apple does refuse to look at the computer if it has third-party memory.

Thanks for the help. Ugh, it's unfortunate that Apple does this... I wish they had a 12GB option. I don't want to have to uninstall the RAM every time an issue crops up!

 

[Amnesiac1]

Okay, so if I order this....

A) Is it a good choice, brand wise?

B) Will it work on a 2011 iMac?

C) If I were to install this, I would leave the Apple RAM in there and simply add this onto it, right? And that wouldn't cause any problems, compatability-wise?

 

[archer75]

Okay, so if I order this....

A) Is it a good choice, brand wise?

B) Will it work on a 2011 iMac?

C) If I were to install this, I would leave the Apple RAM in there and simply add this onto it, right? And that wouldn't cause any problems, compatability-wise?

If you want to pay more it's fine. It doesn't matter what brand you use.

It's not really apple ram as they don't make it. And you can mix and match brands without issue.

 

[mrfoof82]

Okay, so if I order this....

A) Is it a good choice, brand wise?

B) Will it work on a 2011 iMac?

C) If I were to install this, I would leave the Apple RAM in there and simply add this onto it, right? And that wouldn't cause any problems, compatability-wise?

A) Yes. As previously stated, Apple ships Macs with Micron (Crucial), Samsung and Hynix memory. Crucial is Micron's consumer-facing brand-name (Micron only sells to OEMs and integrators, not consumers). The only difference between Apple Micron memory and Crucial Micron memory is Apple's will have an Apple Logo (Micron does this for all manufacturers), and Crucial's will have a Crucial logo.

B) Yes. That's why I linked those to you.

C) Yes.

 

[Dresevski]

Okay, so if I order this....

A) Is it a good choice, brand wise?

B) Will it work on a 2011 iMac?

C) If I were to install this, I would leave the Apple RAM in there and simply add this onto it, right? And that wouldn't cause any problems, compatability-wise?

^^That's what I ordered!^^

There's a sale on Corsair memory today on Newegg though...you could get your 16GB for ~$150 shipped I believe. Check the forum for all the other RAM threads and you'll find someone's post about this deal.

 

[Amnesiac1]

Okay. Awesome. Thanks so much.

 

[Amnesiac1]

^^That's what I ordered!^^

There's a sale on Corsair memory today on Newegg though...you could get your 16GB for ~$150 shipped I believe. Check the forum for all the other RAM threads and you'll find someone's post about this deal.

Yeah, but 16GB may be overkill so I think I'll start with 12GB. Anyway, I wanted to another relatively cheap 2x4 could bring me up to 20GB, right? 12GB seems like the right place to start...

 

[Dresevski]

Yeah, but 16GB may be overkill so I think I'll start with 12GB. Anyway, I wanted to another relatively cheap 2x4 could bring me up to 20GB, right? 12GB seems like the right place to start...

No. You have 4 slots for the sticks on the bottom of the screen. So you're starting with 2x2GB and adding 2x4GB to the open slots. From there you would either replace the 2x2GB with 2x4GB or spend a **** ton of money on 2x8GB.

So from 12GB you do the math and see that you can hit 16, 24 or 32GB (which is the max). You probably have no need for more than 12GB...

 

[Amnesiac1]

So from 12GB you do the math and see that you can hit 16, 24 or 32GB (which is the max). You probably have no need for more than 12GB...

Right, so buying this (Crucial 8GB (2 x 4GB) 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600) Laptop Memory Model CT2KIT51264BC1339) and adding it onto my stock Apple 4GB of RAM from the get-go is a good idea, right?

 

[archer75]

Right, so buying this (Crucial 8GB (2 x 4GB) 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600) Laptop Memory Model CT2KIT51264BC1339) and adding it onto my stock Apple 4GB of RAM from the get-go is a good idea, right?

Save $15 and get the corsair.