
IFixit iMac teardown reveals dual mics, difficult RAM upgrades and glued-on LCD - Quekster
http://9to5mac.com/2012/12/01/ifixit-imac-teardown-reveals-dual-mics-difficult-ram-upgrades-glued-on-lcd/
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neya
Ughh..this is terrible! I wanted to buy one badly, but considering how
expensive it is, and considering the fact that I can't upgrade anything on the
21" models despite being expensive, I just decided to go for an Alienware X51
instead. By no means it's a fair comparison, but it fits me needs perfectly
(3d Modeling and Rendering + some occasional gaming) and is completely
upgradeable, including the GPU!

~~~
tobylane
I'm also put off, though I'm thinking of going for maxed out Mini plus Cinema
Display.

I wonder why they're doing this with desktops. Having a MBA in a upright stand
[1] isn't the look to be aiming for with desktops, even all-in-ones. Ram
upgrades aside chasing smaller seems to be done entirely reasonably and
successfully.

What's the need for spring loaded cpu sockets? Is that to make sure you get
soft contact with the bottom?

[http://www.accessoryvillage.co.uk/images/products/010500_0.j...](http://www.accessoryvillage.co.uk/images/products/010500_0.jpg)

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jws
I've been using the mini+display option for a while. I got tired of recycling
perfectly good LCDs just because the computer expired. It's more money up
front but if you get two minis to the display you are ahead.

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sneak
Both the current iMacs and the previous generation support functioning as a
display only via the thunderbolt/miniDP port as an _input_.

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philk
I'm not really sure the direction they're taking the iMacs is optimal. Yes,
they look lovely but ultimately they're a desktop and not portable in the
first place. With a notebook I'll sacrifice upgrades for portability, with a
desktop portability is irrelevant.

I suppose they're doing it largely for the style but surely Jonathan Ive and
co can make a beautiful iMac that's a couple of centimetres thicker.

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SoftwareMaven
The _VAST_ majority of people look at their computers the same way they do
their DVD players, microwaves, and vacuums: they are a "unit" that they buy,
plug in, and use until it's time to buy a new one. I've built more computers
than I can count, but, due to the flattening out of the "end-user performance
experience" (eg: there are very few upgrades I could do to a PC to make it
faster without needing to replace everything), I'm becoming one of them.

Apple has recognized this and is using that knowledge to throw away old
assumptions and put the resultant "compromise space" into beautiful products
that people are proud to display in their home.

Sounds like a smart plan to me, but I can understand why there is a small
percentage of the market who still sees their PC as a conglomerate of
components. I'm pretty convinced Apple is not the company for people like
that.

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ChuckMcM
Totally agree with this, it isn't a computer to most people, its a TV. When is
the last time you "upgraded" your TV without buying a completely new one?

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daigoba66
Well... to most people it's still a computer and not a TV. That's why they buy
both :). But they purchase computers like TVs (a single product with
practically no user serviceable parts).

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ChuckMcM
True people buy both, although most people who buy a device that you and I are
calling a 'computer' those people are buying it strictly as information
consumers, and to a lesser extent codified information producers (like
instagram or uploading a youtube video). They will never change its
configuration, or attempt to program it in any way. It is an information
appliance, like a TV, except with a keyboard and a web cam.

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DIVx0
I've been waiting to buy an iMac for my house/kids but I held off until I saw
a teardown and how hard it would be upgrade the RAM / HD. Glad I did, having
to unglue the screen just to get to these components is a non-starter for me.

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sneak
Just buy it with adequate RAM and HDD from Apple. If you need to upgrade
later, buy a bigger one and dump the old one on Craigslist or eBay.

Save the screwdrivers (or heatguns) for people who enjoy spending their
limited time dicking about with computer internals. Specialize!

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CrazedGeek
Installing more RAM or a new HDD is hardly an intensive or complex process on
a system designed to be upgradeable. On pretty much any tower and certain
laptops, it would take three minutes, tops.

On the other hand, I'm currently dealing with an easier-to-upgrade-than-this-
one iMac (late 2006). I'm having an incredibly irritating time sticking
plastic cards into odd places, finding multiple different sized Torx screw
bits, and prying various pieces off, all to replace a failed HDD.

If only one or two components don't suit your needs, spending money on an
entire new computer is just a waste.

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rayiner
The practicality of piecemeal upgrades is overstated, especially with external
storage. I've never wanted to upgrade my GPU without also upgrading the CPU
(so its not CPU-bottlenecked), which usually necessitates a new motherboard
anyway and these days usually new RAM too (DDR-XYZ).

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jasonlotito
Upgrading RAM is something I've always done. The cost difference between
getting it from Apple and getting it from New Egg or a local shop was always
dramatically different.

Also, being able to upgrade the hard drive vastly improves the performance and
capabilities as well. This is especially good when you can then turn around
and hand off the laptop to a relative or a non-techy who will benefit from the
device.

The resale value is never enough to pay for the upgrade costs, unless you are
almost upgrading every time a new model comes out.

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sneak
Except that now with the new design it means it's cheaper to just buy the RAM
from Apple once you factor in the value of your own time spent heatgunning off
the front glass and removing the logic board to get to the RAM slots.

Things change.

As time passes and Apple designs more and more sealed enclosures, hopefully
your skills and income are similarly increasing and you can stop caring about
this stuff and just order it with the ram you want.

Life is short. Do you really want to look back on your deathbed and remember
that you know what DIMM pin configurations and signaling speeds were? I sure
as fuck don't— I'd much rather spend the time hacking cool stuff.

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jasonlotito
> Except that now with the new design it means it's cheaper to just buy the
> RAM from Apple

That's an artificial price increase. It's not that the RAM has gotten cheaper,
but that the ease of doing it is no longer there with this iteration.

> Things change.

You say that as if it has meaning or bearing. Things always change. Change
does not mean it's better.

> As time passes and Apple designs more and more sealed enclosures

Yes, they make trade-offs. They sacrifice things in one area for things in
other areas.

> hopefully your skills and income are similarly increasing and you can stop
> caring about this stuff and just order it with the ram you want.

An increase in income does not mean I suddenly become stupid with money and am
willing to pay more for what amounts to a style change. As for caring, it's
precisely _because_ I care that not being able to easily add in RAM is an
issue.

> Life is short. Do you really want to look back on your deathbed and remember
> that you know what DIMM pin configurations and signaling speeds were?

And do you want to look back on your deathbed and know that you spent extra
money on something simply to pay for style instead of making sure that your
disabled son was taken care of?

Don't starting pretending to know someone else's reasons for wanting things,
or that you can offer sound financial advice (you can't). Shit, it's like your
applauding their decision to remove valued features of their product for
something far fewer people cared about.

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coin
Off topic, buy I really wish that 9to5mac would just serve up the normal
desktop version content, instead of the mobile version. On my first gen iPad
their website is utterly unusable.

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rhizome
I was going to complain about not simply posting the ifixit link, but ifixit's
site design is so terrible I had to go through the entire "guides > mac repair
> imac > imac model" click path to find it, after having to think about what
of "guides," "answers," etc. it might be under.

Ifixit seems to be trying to push their retail sales over their content, so
thanks 9to5mac...I guess.

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Shivetya
The only issue I take with the new iMacs, which is only on the twenty seven
inch not reviewed here, is that there is ONE SSD option for 768g and it cost
$1300.

Where are the 256 or 512 options?

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Osmium
There's also the 128 GB option that comes with the $250 fusion drive. If you
don't want the fusion drive, you could always reformat it to be two separate
drives instead.

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joejohnson
I wouldn't mind losing the ability to upgrade myself if I could have one of
these slim iMacs. You can always pay the Apple tax if you want upgrades.

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jrockway
Premium computers still come with spinning disks? Quaint.

