Should I wait or go for it?

Hi all, new forum user here.

I'm tempted to get a new iMac 27" i7 but I don't know whether it is worth getting one now or waiting until later in the year, which is when the newer versions are rumoured to be released.

I currently have a 20" intel core2duo, the last of the white ones, which is starting to run slowly and has issues with me running Photoshop, Illustrator and Indesign at once. A newer machine would obviously solve this, but is it worth me making do or would you guys advise going for it now?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

There are a lot of people that wonder this! Welcome to the forums!!

The best thing to do, is to just jump in if what is available now suits you. You can forever play the waiting game... Tomorrow there will always be something better! If you'd be happy with the current model (I LOVE mine, and it is a lightning fast machine) then there is no sense waiting and torturing yourself It's not like the new ones are going to be 20 times faster or different. Just a simple refresh, no doubt. But if you really want to, sure, you can wait. Might even get the current model cheaper when the refresh comes out!

thechunkeymonk said:

Hi all, new forum user here.

I'm tempted to get a new iMac 27" i7 but I don't know whether it is worth getting one now or waiting until later in the year, which is when the newer versions are rumoured to be released.

I currently have a 20" intel core2duo, the last of the white ones, which is starting to run slowly and has issues with me running Photoshop, Illustrator and Indesign at once. A newer machine would obviously solve this, but is it worth me making do or would you guys advise going for it now?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

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HA! That's my situation EXACTLY! I have one of the last white C2Ds that the hard drive died in a couple of months ago, and am now running off a 160gb backup drive. So, I'm looking to upgrade, too - but do I wait or what?

I actually bought a refurb i3 just before Christmas but it had problems right out of the box, so I sent it back and got a refund.

What ClockworkWorld says makes a lot of sense, but while I've loved my white iMac, I remember the feeling when the new aluminium models came out shortly after I bought it.

The problem is, how long to wait, because you never know how long it's going to be. Also, rumour sites are making claims they can't possibly know for sure: "updated iMac WILL focus on resolution ... WILL feature Sandy Bridge" (whatever that is - who cares?).

The indications are March. So it could be four weeks. Could be eight.

Hi CwW, thanks for your quick response.

I'm sure my question is a very common one on these forums! The new iMac would be a flying machine compared to my current one, and I've no doubts about that, i'm just aware that this model has been around for a while and I'd be really annoyed if a newer version came out within a couple of months!

But like you say, its unlikely that a newer version is going to be light years ahead of this model, so in that respect I'm not losing out too much I suppose.
And with Apple you never know when they're gonna release something new until they do it, so its pointless trying to second guess them!

Right! I mean, it just depends on what you're looking for really I'll feel bad inside of course if the new ones come out and they have something I really want, like a higher resolution for example, as MartinS referenced is a rumor. But for me, the simple fact is, the machine I bought is excellent. I have no doubt it will serve me well for at least a few years. I mean, how much pleasant usage have you gotten out of your current iMac?

You could buy one now, and in a few weeks a total surprise could come. Or you could wait until November and they won't refresh them at all, or very little, then all that time was wasted... That's why I went ahead and jumped, I just recently ordered the MBP for my wife, knowing a refresh is around the bend. You just never know, and if you're pretty sure you'll be happy with what is currently offered, there's no reason not to go ahead with it (in my opinion )

I know exactly where you're coming from Martin, I must admit I was a bit gutted when the look of the computer changed soon after buying my current iMac.

Like you say, SandyBridge is the biggest change rumoured at the moment, but thats just had a setback which could delay the release of the iMac too. What are you planning on doing? DO you think you'll wait until March/April or not?

I suppose by waiting until then you pretty much are making the choice to wait until a new one comes out full stop, as it makes the previous 2 months of waiting pointless otherwise?!

Yeah, ultimately comes down to how I'd feel, rather than how well the 2 machines would compare.

There will probably be very little difference between the 2 in terms of performance - especially when compared to my current machine's performance!

I just need to decide how much I care! Should be simple but I'm really split on this one!

It's easy to feel that way! I mean, the fact is, if you buy one now, chances are after the refresh, whenever that may be, it won't be far from the same price as the current models. So any changes, however minimal, might be worth waiting for. But at the same time, rumors are just rumors! There may be very little change. Technology sucks in this way, it's just impossible to know! There's nothing simple when it comes to dropping a couple grand on a new machine But, like I already said, in my humble opinion... If you decided to go with the current one, I can promise you won't be let down as far as it is concerned. It's an awesome machine

I posted my experience regarding the refurb unit I bought elsewhere on this forum, so won't post here. Let's just say it put me off refurb Macs, even though there's a very appealing 27-inch quad-core i5 on the UK refurb store right now. I've since learned that numerous users with iMacs have had similar problems to those I experienced which they don't seem to be able to resolve: iMac won't wake from sleep and random kernel panics, among others. (My i3 was REALLY bad - I used it for less than 24 hours!)

I'm hoping that such issues will be ironed out with hardware tweaks in the next refresh, which is really why I'm waiting. If there's an upgrade in the resolution that would be a bonus, but I'm not sure I can see that happening.

I'm a writer/editor, so my use is not particularly processor-intensive, but I use it day-in, day-out, so I can do without the hassle of transferring data then having to send the unit back. I also like X-Plane, so any graphics card upgrade would also be welcome as far as I'm concerned. At the moment my set-up is far from ideal, and feels a little Heath Robinson (US users may have to google him!).

I think I'll wait a couple of months, pay some off my credit card in the meantime, and see what happens. I did this with the iPhone and my patience was rewarded.

What I can say for sure is that during the brief period it worked, the 27-inch iMac wowed everyone in the house...

So have you got it on good authority that something is definitely coming in March? I've been trying to find any information that might help but they're bloody sneaky!

MartinS said:

I posted my experience regarding the refurb unit I bought elsewhere on this forum, so won't post here. Let's just say it put me off refurb Macs, even though there's a very appealing 27-inch quad-core i5 on the UK refurb store right now. I've since learned that numerous users with iMacs have had similar problems to those I experienced which they don't seem to be able to resolve: iMac won't wake from sleep and random kernel panics, among others. (My i3 was REALLY bad - I used it for less than 24 hours!)

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Sorry to hear you had problems with your iMac I can't say I've experienced even one of those problems under intense and heavy daily use, but hopefully whatever caused them for yours will get remedied

thechunkeymonk: nothing "official", but the indications are that a refresh is due.

ClockworkWorld: yeah, I was gutted to be honest. I've bought refurb stuff before – although not a Mac – and it's been great. I also felt a bit of a chump having spent a heap of money on this kit then having to send it back.

This is interesting, but again it's important to bear in mind they have NO IDEA whether new Macs will include Sandy Bridge.

Which in any case just makes me think of Sandy Cheeks from SpongeBob SquarePants...

Hmm, that is interesting, thanks for the links. I'd heard about the issues with Sandy Bridge (agreed - ridiculous name) but wasn't sure how much it would impact on the release.

I hadn't seen the buyers guide list though - it does make me think that on the whole its probably worth waiting, although I'm not the most patient of people, so it might prove difficult!

thechunkeymonk said:

I'm not the most patient of people, so it might prove difficult!

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Yeah, I'm kind of the same!

But, the problems I had with that i3 really put me off.

No doubt I'll wait until the end of March, buy one, then they'll refresh in the first week of April...