New 27" 5K iMac question

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Hello everyone,

Finally decided to pull the trigger and make the jump to Mac. Been using windows for the last 30 years so I have a lot to learn and reprogram my brain. Never really played with a Mac until I spent 30 minutes on my daughters MacBook air. She has been hounding me to switch for years. So here I go ;)

So of course I have a question.

I'll be getting the 3TB fusion drive for sure. But need to decide were my extra money is better spent either 16GB of Ram upgrade or the i7 chip upgrade. Can't afford to do both right now. But looking for the best bang for my buck.

I do a lot of video editing so I'll be researching and reading the most there.
 

pigoo3

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I just checked the cpu benchmarks on this "puppy"…and the i7 4.0ghz upgrade has quite an increase in performance. 16gig of ram is pretty handy as well with video editing.

If it were me…I would get the i7 upgrade, the 16 gig ram upgrade…and skip the 3TB fusion drive. How does this fit your budget?

- Nick
 

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One other question. Do you really have to go all the way and get the top-end 5k retina iMac? Would a regular 27" iMac get the job done?

Just asking,;)

- Nick
 
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Still researching but is the Ram an easy upgrade like a windows PC, just plug and play?
Because if it is I think I might go with the chip upgrade now and add Ram later.

If not then I was thinking the same thing Nick, going with the ram.
 

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If not then I was thinking the same thing Nick, going with the ram.

Sorry. I edited my post. Did a bit more thinking & changed my mind.;)

- Nick
 
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Great question Nick, Do I need to no. But.. there's always a but lol my dear wife has so graciously allowed us 3K budget for a new Mac which we will pay out right. We didn't want to pay interest.

Hoping this will last us a long time. We currently seem to buy a new computer every 2 years now and we are sick of that.
 

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Great question Nick, Do I need to no. But.. there's always a but lol my dear wife has so graciously allowed us 3K budget for a new Mac which we will pay out right. We didn't want to pay interest.

Hoping this will last us a long time. We currently seem to buy a new computer every 2 years now and we are sick of that.

Here's the deal. CPU benchmarks:

- 3.5GHz Quad-core Intel Core i5 = 11958
- 4.0GHz Quad-core Intel Core i7 = 16558

This is approx. a 37.5% CPU performance gain. This is pretty massive. Usually I don't find the CPU upgrades that Apple offers to be that tempting. Usually the CPU upgrades will be about 12-15% better. But 37.5% (again) is pretty massive!!!:)

Here's what I would do if I were you. Get the 3TB fusion drive…and get the CPU upgrade. Why…you can upgrade the ram later (the ram is user upgradable)!:) So upgrade the ram later (if you feel you need it). And do it later when the budget allows!:)

- Nick
 
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I agree. Thanks for numbers. That is quite a jump for the money.

I just watched 2 great reviews on youtube.
First one was upgrading the memory. Very easy and will do his myself.
Second video was a side by side comparison with a 5K vs the 2.5K iMac.With the benchmarks and me having the budget might as well pull the trigger on the 5K.

Thank you for the help. When I pull the trigger in a few weeks I'm sure i'll have more questions ;)
 
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Another question.. is the extended Apple care worth the investment? I know laying out a lot of cash this would seem like a no brainer but now I'm creeping over my budget which I wouldn't think was possible when I started my journey earlier.

Off to research more and watch more videos..
 

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Lots of folks ask the same question about Apple Care. Like any extended warranty, it offers protection beyond the normal warranty period. Additionally Apple Care extends free telephone support from 90 days to 36 months. Having Apple Care on my last iMac saved me money over and above what I paid for it. (Hard drive replacement.)

And kind of do it yourself maintenance on an iMac can be very difficult. And there are certain repairs which can be very expensive. Of course, the decision is up to you. Looking at it the other way, you could own your new iMac for 5 years and never need anything done to it. ;)
 
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I know my luck, if I don't purchase the warranty I'll end up needing it. If I do purchase it nothing will go wrong with the computer.

In the end if I know my wife we'll end up with the extended warranty which is probably for the best. Now I'm over budget :$
 

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I'm not sure what Apple is charging for Extended Applecare these days (I could look);). But folks have been able to purchase it from B&H Photo for less than Apple charges. So you could save a few bucks this way.:)

applecare | B&H Photo Video

As far as the budget. You could always purchase a 27" non-retina iMac...and come in way under budget!;)

- Nick
 
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chas_m

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If you think you're going to end up working with 4K video in the next five years, then you should get the 5K iMac. Perhaps you should get it even if you don't think you will be working with 4K, but that at least provides a strong justification.

Since you can afford the machine, I'd say go for it. But get the RAM later and use that money for the AppleCare. Even though it has received **glowing** reviews, it is still the first of a new line ...
 
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Even though it has received **glowing** reviews, it is still the first of a new line ...

I've thought about this for sure. But I really need to purchase a machine soon. my 2 year old windows PC is just sooo bad right now. Now if there is a new rev coming soon say less then 3 months I'm up for waiting. But I don't believe that will be happening anytime soon.
 
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chas_m

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I absolutely positively guarantee you that there is no "rev" coming for the 5K iMac, which was released three months ago.
 
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I'm sure as well. Been reading quite a few reviews online. Some bad but very few and far in between. Most of them are 5 stars. But some of the bad reviews I felt might be from people like myself making the switch and not fully understanding the machine.

The more I read and research the better this machine is sounding.
 
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Another question, I currently use dual monitor setups. They are 24" Acer widescreens with DVI hookups. Will there be a way to connect one of these to the new iMac? I really can't see myself going back to one monitor.

Off to research this now... learning is fun.
 

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Another question, I currently use dual monitor setups. They are 24" Acer widescreens with DVI hookups. Will there be a way to connect one of these to the new iMac? I really can't see myself going back to one monitor.

The 5k iMac has 2 Thunderbolt ports…which for display purposes also acts as a mini-display video port. You should be able to connect both of those 24" displays…you would just need a mini-display port adapter. If you only need to attach one of those 24" displays…that is certainly doable.:)

- Nick
 
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Thanks Nick, I only want to hook up one of the displays. So could you post what exact "mini-display port adapter" I need? Don't laugh at the new guy but I have no idea what that even is.. :Blushing:
 

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Thanks Nick, I only want to hook up one of the displays. So could you post what exact "mini-display port adapter" I need? Don't laugh at the new guy but I have no idea what that even is.. :Blushing:

Need to know what port/ports your 24" display has.

- Nick
 
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