Upgrading To 2020 iMac, Several Questions

[Brandy-Boi]

Over the last 6-ish months my 2015 iMac has been slowly crapping out, it takes way too long to turn on, opening things as simple as a normal png can take a minute, thumbnails won't load, opening a couple tabs while web browsing can chug, there's been so many issues with it and it's getting unbearable. I've been getting into video editing, audio recording/editing and other activities for both casual use and for a job, and with what I'm getting into I think it's about time to finally upgrade. I'm the type that only upgrades when I absolutely need to, and I've been researching the new 2020 iMac since it came out.

My 2015 iMac is a base model for the 4K version, it's barely 6 years old at this point so it's shocking that it's acting this way especially when I haven't been doing anything too heavy. I've put it through just about every process recommended by both Apple and other users online to try and fix it or speed it up but nothing works, and according to the diagnostics nothing was detected wrong so it was suggested it could be hardware failure if nothing bad is happening on the software side. Nothing is wrong with my Wifi either, I've checked off every possible issue so between this and my new work it's about time I get something better.

I know Silicon iMacs are on the way either towards the end of the year or in early 2022, but I don't think I can wait that long. Plus I have other issues with Silicon, like wanting to use Bootcamp and being able to buy 3rd party ram for the 2020 iMac (since Apple will probably not let users buy their own ram for Silicon which we know they overcharge on customizing for the Intel Macs). Not to mention I typically don't like to buy the first generation of new tech like this. I don't need the absolute best thing there is, I just need something that runs nice and can handle an upcoming workload.

So I'd like some feedback from others who've gotten the new 2020 iMac, how is it running and how does it preform for you? Below are the specs I'm going for:

• Standard glass
• 3.6GHz 10-core 10th-generation Intel Core i9 processor, Turbo Boost up to 5.0GHz
• 8GB 2666MHz DDR4 memory
• Radeon Pro 5700 XT with 16GB of GDDR6 memory
• 4TB SSD storage
• Gigabit Ethernet
• Magic Trackpad 2
• Magic Keyboard - US English

Since I want this computer to be strong I'm beefing it out, I rarely upgrade and never built or picked out parts for a computer before so I'm hoping this'll last me a long time. 8BG of ram won't be enough, I'm thinking getting two 32 sticks (64GB) to put in and mix with the Apple ram. What are some good brands to recommend for ram?

I'm also trying to figure out if I should get this directly from an Apple Store or Best Buy, is there much of a difference between the two? I know BB is an authorized seller but my concern was if they offer the same trade in rates for the iMac I'll be replacing.

As for transferring data, I regularly back up the Time Machine to an external drive. The instructions for the backup/transfer of data to a new iMac seem self explanatory but is there anything else to be aware of?

Aside from that, are there any other tips someone can recommend? I've never had a computer this strong before and I plan to put it to good use!

 

[Basic75]

I've put it through just about every process recommended by both Apple and other users online to try and fix it or speed it up but nothing works

Have you completely wiped the drive and installed the operating system from scratch?

 

[Basic75]

I know Silicon iMacs are on the way

It's "Apple Silicon". Nearly all microchips from all manufacturers have been, and are, based on silicon.

 

[Silencio]

I'm pretty happy with the 2020 iMacs and I expect they'll still be useful, productive machines for quite a number of years, especially if you use Boot Camp regularly.

While it's better to over-spec a system if you plan on keeping it a long time, are you sure that 4TB of storage and the Radeon Pro 5700 XT aren't overkill for your needs?

I also would not mix Apple RAM with third party RAM. Just buy the system with the stock 8GB and buy a third party 4x16GB kit to take you up to 64GB.

You can restore your old system to the new one from Time Machine via Migration Assistant, but you could also be migrating over software issues that are affecting your current system. I think if your current system is not fully known good, it's better to start off clean on the new system.

 

[Brandy-Boi]

I'm pretty happy with the 2020 iMacs and I expect they'll still be useful, productive machines for quite a number of years, especially if you use Boot Camp regularly.

While it's better to over-spec a system if you plan on keeping it a long time, are you sure that 4TB of storage and the Radeon Pro 5700 XT aren't overkill for your needs?

I also would not mix Apple RAM with third party RAM. Just buy the system with the stock 8GB and buy a third party 4x16GB kit to take you up to 64GB.

You can restore your old system to the new one from Time Machine via Migration Assistant, but you could also be migrating over software issues that are affecting your current system. I think if your current system is not fully known good, it's better to start off clean on the new system.

Howdy, thanks for the detailed response! I never got any email notifications so I apologize for the late reply.

I plan on storing a lot of files, rendering videos maybe up to 4k as well as some light gaming and streaming with friends. While Macs aren't particularly known for gaming this machine can do it pretty well from reviews. I'm not planning on making it a gaming machine but it's one of the many things I plan to do on the side. There's a lot I'm planning to do with that computer once I get it, never had one that powerful before and since I rarely get to upgrade I might as well beef it out. I have the budget for it and want it to last a long time.

As for the ram, is it possible for me to just buy two 32GB sticks and replace the current two 4GB sticks for an even 64GB if mixing it's recommended? That way down the line I can buy another 32x2 and max it out. As long as it can run on two ram sticks at a time it should be fine yea? It's my first big computer so I might as well make it special lol.

 

[piimacmn]

I bought a referb stock i7 2 weeks ago from the Apple refurb store. Would like to have had a 1TB option but all that was there was the 512GB SSD. Was $350 off so I thought a pretty good deal. Not any great performance needs at my time of life but wanted to keep using my Quicken and Access (XP version--really!) running under VMware Fusion so needed intel. Had to upgrade to Fusion 12, but it's free and works really well for my usage except I can't get onto the internet yet like many people are experiencing, and I don't need the internet from Windows anyway. Just migrated my apps and data from my clone of a late 2009 iMac running Mojave. I have big doubts that there will be an ASi iMac version till late 2022. But in any case this machine should be getting updates for another 5 years or so and will still be working well for several years after that. By then I'll probably be dead! At least that's my rationale, and I recommend a referb machine if one becomes available. I use an external Samsung T5 SSD for the bulk of my data and that works very well. I'd prefer a T7 but I've had the T5 for several years.