21.5 iMac 2012 vs 2011

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Hi All,

Started my switch to apple with an iPhone 4s beginning of year, followed by an iPad 3 6 months ago (ouch), and i am now looking to get an iMac.

My question is....... there will be some deal to be had on the old iMac for a short period of time. Will i be better purchasing old or new?

Needs:
Amatuer photo video editing
Email, web etc (everything can do this :) )
No gaming
Will back up to Time capsule

Any questions, please ask.

Many thanks.
 
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It depends. Do you NEED a built-in DVD drive? If yes, then bear in mind that the 2012 models won't have one. Although in all honesty, those slot-loading drives suck.

On the flip side, the 2012 models will have as an option an SSD/HDD combo that act as one drive and will offer some performance benefits. Read up on the "Fusion Drive" feature here:
AnandTech - Understanding Apple's Fusion Drive

Of course you could get the 2011 iMac and replace the DVD drive with an SSD, but that's a bit tricky to do. The 2011 is also somewhat more serviceable otherwise, at least as far as RAM upgrades go. Truthfully, I don't see an overwhelming reason to go with the 2012 models. If you can get a good deal on a 2011 model with the minimum amount of RAM, you can upgrade the RAM yourself from a 3rd party if need be and consider swapping out the DVD drive for an SSD if that meets your fancy. The SSD swap is NOT a simple task though and requires a great deal of care.
 
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Re: 2012 iMac 21.5-inch: The deal killer for me is the limitation of 8 GB RAM. I have 20 GB in my 2011 iMac and can increase it to 32 GB if necessary. Eight GB might be fine if you are editing JPEGs in PhotoShop Elements or short video clips in iMovie, but I shoot RAW images and have some drum scanned 4x5 images that are 1 GB in PhotoShop.

Six years ago 8 GB RAM was plenty, but times have changed and now 8 GB is the minimum I can recommend for using PhotoShop. The 21.5-inch iMac is an excellent computer, but keep that limitation in mind when making your decision.
 

pigoo3

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Re: 2012 iMac 21.5-inch: The deal killer for me is the limitation of 8 GB RAM.

My understanding is (via Everymac.com & Apple.com)…the "Late 2012" 21.5" iMac is configurable (at time of purchase) to 16gig of ram. But once purchased (with 8gig of ram)…the ram is not upgradeable later.

- Nick
 
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You are correct, pigoo. Thanks for educating me. I just checked Apple's specs and it states the 2012 21.5-inch iMac is configurable to 16GB at time of purchase. That removes my objection to the RAM limit.
 

chscag

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Also keep in mind the firewire port has been removed, but to Apple's credit, they added a second thunderbolt port. Now, if someone could tell me if that second thunderbolt port will accept a video input signal that would be a vast improvement over the previous model. I'm also wondering why Apple switched from ATI graphics to nVidia?
 

pigoo3

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You are correct, pigoo.

I'm thinking that initially the info being passed around was that the 21.5" 2012 iMac was ONLY capable of 8gig of ram. But I'm thinking as time passes (and we get more info before the actual 2012 iMac release date)…the ram options for the 2012 21.5" iMac's are becoming more clear.:)

- Nick
 
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Thanks for the responses.

I dont need a dvd drive as such - im sure there may be songs / old photo albums but i can manage or get the superdrive.

RAM and processor speeds are key to me. The processor on high end iMacs (maybe 27 or congi'd 21.5) seem to be the base spec of the new iMacs - am i missing something? Is the i5 from 2011 the same as a 2012 i5, just clock speeds are different.

I would look to upgrade to 16GB at first pass if going 2012 - do like the look of it, although still to see it in the flesh.

I built my last pc, but to be honest i think ive started to fall under the spell :) . Not sure i would take on the solid state upgrade in a 2011 myself, due to what ive heard (these are rumours and my perception of them not being as straight forward as pc upgrades, which i can do, but may be wrong).

And i do like th eidea of fusion drives - but question if 128 is enough? When the 'fusion' hit the release i googled reports on it and people had said you can create very similar set ups via DIY - but again straight forward or not?

Sorry fro all the questions again.

Cheers,
 

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