Simple question - new iMac hard drive configuration

Hi folks,

I have an older i5 27" iMac, and am considering upgrading to the latest i7 model. I plan on going SSD for my OSX drive with a 2TB secondary drive.

I think the answer to this is obvious - but the new iMacs (unlike mine) have two physical drive bays, correct? I don't want to pay the insane $600 upcharge for the SSD through Apple, when they're about 1/3 of that price online. (Same with RAM).

Is there anything extra I'll need to add the second drive after the fact? (cables/temperature sensors/etc)

Cheers!

Be very aware it is a highly technical job installing or changing hard drives. The later model iMacs use special heat sensor cables and if these are interfered with the fans ramp hop to full power and stay there.


http://gizmodo.com/5801275/you-cant-upgrade-the-hard-drive-in-the-new-imacs

There aren't 2 drive bays with cables, only one. When Apple fit the SSD, it squeezes in under the optical drive. If you bought your iMac without the SSD and looked under the optical drive, you would only see 3 bushes. Apple fit a mounting plate to hold the SSD there, then 2 additional cables, power and data for the SSD that locate to the rear of the logic board. As already mentioned, if you replace the stock hard drive with a larger one, you risk having the fans run flat out all the time, not nice.

harryb2448 said:

Be very aware it is a highly technical job installing or changing hard drives. The later model iMacs use special heat sensor cables and if these are interfered with the fans ramp hop to full power and stay there.


You Can't Upgrade the Hard Drive in the New iMacs

Click to expand...

Thanks much! (To both of you, that's exactly what I was looking to know.)

Would smcfancontrol be able to (for lack of a better way of putting it) "override" the fan settings either way?

No doubt you will get other responses but SMCFanControl is software to avoid. Your Mac knows what fan speeds it requires.

Going from a Mac Pro to a new iMac notice the boot up is much slower than the SSD in the Mac Pro of course. To get around this purchased an iBox uninterrupted power supply and never turn the iMac off unless a requirement for software update. iBox was offered on eBay Australia and bidders did not know what it was and got it for less then $10.00.