Would this mac work for what i want to do?

[Spoofo9t9]

I work at a pc shop and we got some imacs in and i was considering buying one for my gf. She likes to do art and drawing stuff. would this work for what she would want to do or should i pass on it?

http://www.everymac.com/systems/app...e-i3-3.2-27-inch-aluminum-mid-2010-specs.html

 

[pigoo3]

She likes to do art and drawing stuff. would this work for what she would want to do or should i pass on it?

Not enough info. There are simple drawing apps…and more complex drawing apps. With differing demands on the hardware. We would also need to know the exact specs of the computer. And finally. It is a 5 year-old computer… But the 27" display is awesome.

- Nick

 

[Spoofo9t9]

Not enough info. There are simple drawing apps…and more complex drawing apps. With differing demands on the hardware. We would also need to know the exact specs of the computer. And finally. It is a 5 year-old computer… But the 27" display is awesome.

- Nick

its got the stock specs the i3 with 4gb ram and 1tb hdd. she uses the adobe collection and paint tool sai and manga studio. I was also considering putting an i7-890 in it and maybe a ram upgrade

 

[chscag]

I was also considering putting an i7-890 in it and maybe a ram upgrade

Memory upgrade - easy to do. CPU upgrade, forget it as the CPU is not socketed and even if it was, it still wouldn't work without supporting hardware. The only Mac that lends itself to a CPU upgrade is a Mac Pro.

 

[chas_m]

Without knowing the specs of the machine she's on now, it's hard to say. Can that machine run Adobe stuff beautifully? Yes, especially with lots of RAM and an SSD drive (or fast external storage for those large art files). But as noted, it is a five year old machine, and all that implies. That screen is incredible, but she'll want something more powerful in a couple of years.

 

[Spoofo9t9]

Memory upgrade - easy to do. CPU upgrade, forget it as the CPU is not socketed and even if it was, it still wouldn't work without supporting hardware. The only Mac that lends itself to a CPU upgrade is a Mac Pro.

I looked on iFixit and you can change the cpu on the mid 2010 27inch. it looks like it might be a pain in the *** for people that dont know what they are doing, but it doesnt look that hard

 

[harryb2448]

Many an iMac has been turned into a doorstop by 'home mechanics'.

 

[Spoofo9t9]

Many an iMac has been turned into a doorstop by 'home mechanics'.

I'm a computer technician for a living.......

 

[pigoo3]

I'm a computer technician for a living.......

We understand that…you mentioned it in the first post.

What we're trying to tell you is…Apple computers are not like Windows computers. They are very non-upgradeable (in many cases). Especially when it comes to iMac's and CPU's. Yes the CPU on this 2010 27" iMac is socketed. And yes the iMac can be opened up to get access to the CPU. But not just any CPU with the proper number of pins will work with an iMac.

This sort of CPU upgrade on an iMac is done very very very rarely (maybe I should have added a couple more "very's"). Before making plans to upgrade the CPU…do some extensive internet searches to find out (if possible) what CPU's are compatible. Don't assume that ALL [FONT=Helvetica, sans-serif]FCLGA 1156 CPU's will work.[/FONT]

[FONT=Helvetica, sans-serif]I have not done this on an iMac…but I have done it on some other Apple computers. Sometimes official or unofficial (non-reversable) firmware updates need to be applied to get the new CPU to work. Or maybe an enthusiast written "hack" needs to be used…etc. Depending on what needs to be done…the iMac (with the CPU upgrade)…may or may not act 100% like Apple intended. For example you may or may not get a boot screen…or other anomalies. Or the "different" CPU may cause kernel panics.

What I'm trying to say is. If you purchase this iMac…with the intention of upgrading the CPU…DEFINITELY do your research ahead of time to see what others have done (if you can find any info). This may end up being an experiment (with no other info available).

In an earlier post you mentioned wanting to use an i7-890 CPU for the upgrade. Within the various 27" iMac models released in 2010…there was one model with an i7 CPU. And it had an i7-870 2.93ghz quad-core CPU. So if you intend on upgrading the CPU…from a "best" compatibility standpoint…using the exact same CPU as Apple used (i7-870 2.93ghz CPU) would probably be a good idea.

- Nick[/FONT]

 

[Spoofo9t9]

We understand that…you mentioned it in the first post.

What we're trying to tell you is…Apple computers are not like Windows computers. They are very non-upgradeable (in many cases). Especially when it comes to iMac's and CPU's. Yes the CPU on this 2010 27" iMac is socketed. And yes the iMac can be opened up to get access to the CPU. But not just any CPU with the proper number of pins will work with an iMac.

This sort of CPU upgrade on an iMac is done very very very rarely (maybe I should have added a couple more "very's"). Before making plans to upgrade the CPU…do some extensive internet searches to find out (if possible) what CPU's are compatible. Don't assume that ALL [FONT=Helvetica, sans-serif]FCLGA 1156 CPU's will work.[/FONT]

[FONT=Helvetica, sans-serif]I have not done this on an iMac…but I have done it on some other Apple computers. Sometimes official or unofficial (non-reversable) firmware updates need to be applied to get the new CPU to work. Or maybe an enthusiast written "hack" needs to be used…etc. Depending on what needs to be done…the iMac (with the CPU upgrade)…may or may not act 100% like Apple intended. For example you may or may not get a boot screen…or other anomalies. Or the "different" CPU may cause kernel panics.

What I'm trying to say is. If you purchase this iMac…with the intention of upgrading the CPU…DEFINITELY do your research ahead of time to see what others have done (if you can find any info). This may end up being an experiment (with no other info available).

In an earlier post you mentioned wanting to use an i7-890 CPU for the upgrade. Within the various 27" iMac models released in 2010…there was one model with an i7 CPU. And it had an i7-870 2.93ghz quad-core CPU. So if you intend on upgrading the CPU…from a "best" compatibility standpoint…using the exact same CPU as Apple used (i7-870 2.93ghz CPU) would probably be a good idea.

- Nick[/FONT]

So if i swap the i3 with the i7-890 and it works and blah blah blah, will it at that point be able to do what i want to use it for?

 

[pigoo3]

So if i swap the i3 with the i7-890 and it works and blah blah blah, will it at that point be able to do what i want to use it for?

That is the experiment…to see if it works. As I mentioned. Apple used an i7-870. You mentioned using an i7-890. Just have to see.

If by "use it for"…you mean the drawing stuff. It should be ok. But like any computer (and expectations of the user)…it depends. If this iMac is faster than the computer your girlfriend is currently using…then it should be fine.

- Nick

 

[Spoofo9t9]

That is the experiment…to see if it works. As I mentioned. Apple used an i7-870. You mentioned using an i7-890. Just have to see.

If by "use it for"…you mean the drawing stuff. It should be ok. But like any computer (and expectations of the user)…it depends. If this iMac is faster than the computer your girlfriend is currently using…then it should be fine.

- Nick

i miss typed i meant the 870. she is currently using an inspiron laptop. i dont know exactly which one but i know its like 3 years old or maybe a bit older

 

[pigoo3]

i miss typed i meant the 870.

Sounds good…no problem.

she is currently using an inspiron laptop. i dont know exactly which one but i know its like 3 years old or maybe a bit older

Hey…you work in a computer shop (computer technician)…you know the deal. Compare the specs of her current computer to the specs of this iMac. If she's using the same apps on the Inspiron laptop as she will be using on the iMac…and if the iMac's specs are better or far better…then she will love it.

Also…the iMac is 5 years old…the Inspiron is 3 years old. The iMac's specs may or may not be better. But the iMac does have the quad-core CPU. Plus the 27" display on the iMac has to be far better than what's on the Inspiron!

Two other things to consider:

1. She's currently using a laptop. How is she going to feel about using a desktop (iMac)?
2. She's currently using a Windows based computer. How is she going to feel about moving from the Windows OS to the Mac OS?

- Nick