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Which iMac Model Are You Buying?

Which iMac Model Are You Buying?

  • Total voters
    277
I'd also like a bit more info before making a decision - except to say that there appears no value in any 21' configuration so far.

Speaking of the 27', can someone advise on the expected price for chip upgrades? The mini only cost $100 to go from i7 2.3Ghz to i7 2.6Ghz (geekbench suggests hardly even worth it). What is it likely to cost to go from i5 3.2Ghz to i7 3.1Ghz?

Will the drive be easy enough to self replace on a 27' (like the mini)? If so, why are otherwise intelligent people talking about fusion or slow and expensive apple ssd options? Wouldn't you take the standard hdd, buy SSD to install, and have the standard hdd for external use?

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Dan! said:
Upgrading from a Dell Latitude D620, do you think would be worth getting the base 21.5" model or a higher spec refurb 2011 model, if my budget is about $1299? Also, is there a significant different between the 640M and 650M that would make it worth it spending a little more and getting the $1499 21.5"?
Click to expand...

You should at least think about a mini - if you are on that sort of budget. $799 starting price, dyi RAM upgrade, dyi SSD upgrade, decent 24' monitor - faster computer, less cost, more customisable to your needs.
 
JohnDory said:
Speaking of the 27', can someone advise on the expected price for chip upgrades? The mini only cost $100 to go from i7 2.3Ghz to i7 2.6Ghz (geekbench suggests hardly even worth it). What is it likely to cost to go from i5 3.2Ghz to i7 3.1Ghz?

Will the drive be easy enough to self replace on a 27' (like the mini)? If so, why are otherwise intelligent people talking about fusion or slow and expensive apple ssd options? Wouldn't you take the standard hdd, buy SSD to install, and have the standard hdd for external use?
Click to expand...


Going from i5->i7 should be $100-$200.

We need to wait for iFixit to get their hands on one before we know about replacing hard drives. It's not designed to be opened; the questions is whether you can still use suction on the front glass, or if you need a heat gun now.. or if there's an alternate way in. The back looks clean and serviceable once you get there, but getting there isn't going to be trivial.
 
As someone who's back and forth on bootcamp everyday with my SSD drive, I'm very happy I bought the 2011. I can't imagine waiting the extra time for windows to boot, not to mention my burner.
 
Well I initially said 21.5" in the poll, I've since decided the new iMac is not for me. I will be ordering a Mac Mini. Can't justify the price tag @ the moment, and the mid range mini is ample for what I need :)
 
The new windows 8 AIO's dont really sparkle considering the price of the iMac, the samsung looks decent:

check out johnlewis.com for the new windows AIO's and see the competition.

I personally would only buy the top end 27inch iMac with ssd and at least the 675mx as i have the 2011 base 21.5 iMac and viewing the new 2012 specs it would not be worth buying the cheaper models, id rather keep mine plus my only reasoning for the high end is ssd plus good mobile gpu otherwise i would just have the 13inch MacBook Air with loss of gaming. And no i dont want to buy a gaming pc as im not a hardcore gamer but i want modern games to be experienced properly with the simplicity and convenience of an AIO tank you please....
 
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JohnDory said:
Will the drive be easy enough to self replace on a 27' (like the mini)? If so, why are otherwise intelligent people talking about fusion or slow and expensive apple ssd options? Wouldn't you take the standard hdd, buy SSD to install, and have the standard hdd for external use?
Click to expand...

I'm hopeful Apple has designed this rev for serviceability. Sure, they don't want us poking around inside, prefer we fork over top dollar for upgrades directly from them. It just seems to me, units will fail and the easier it is for their people to service, the lower their costs.

If so, OWC will offer self-install upgrades for SSD, HD, etc. And if it's hard to open, OWC will surely offer the upgrade service like they have with the 2011 models. They have even allowed you to buy from Apple, ship to OWC for upgrades then ship to you.

Let's not panic about upgrade potential in the 21" just yet. There's a lot of money to made selling upgrades, so OWC and others will find a way.

"It also appears on first glance that this iMac may be easier to upgrade than previous generations"

http://blog.macsales.com/15276-small-apple-event-unleashes-big-hardware-updates
 
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The basic 27" I'm thinking.

This is going to be my first experience with Mac or anything Apple that isn't iOS.

I have no experience with the iMac so I know I'll need an optical drive. Aside from ripping my DVD's do Mac's purely rely on network connections to work being they don't come with an optical drive?

Is it made to have the ram user upgraded? Do I really need more then 8gb of ram? Only thing resource hungry I'd be doing is ripping DVD's to mp4.
 
27 inch high end model with some BTO

* external SuperDrive
* upgrade to the highest GPU 680MX
* potentially fusion drive ( will depend on feedback/ reviews I read here as I won't buy it probably until early January)

Won't upgrade to i7 as that is not necessary for me
 
3.4 Ghz i7 27" iMac
2GB graphics
8GB RAM (will upgrade to 32GB myself)

The only thing I am not sure about is the hard drive. I would have gotten a 256GB SSD, but now I am not sure. Fusion is new, a bit sceptical about it. The 756GB SSD would be awesome, but the price for that will be ridiculous. So not sure.
 
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