New Imac Purchase

[SniperZ]

Im about to buy a new iMAC 1 ghz, problem is im new to mac and dont know if I should pay the extra to get a 512 in the the computer so i can get the full 1 gig of memory, IM just surfing the web and digital picturing....
ANy suggestions would be great.. thanks a bunch Milton......

 

[Graphite]

Well, I wish I would have put a gig in my iMac, it would help out alot. I guess it can't hurt. RAM is at low so its cheaper than it could be.

 

[SniperZ]

So if i order it from apple store it cost 200.00 more.
HOw long after I Purchase one of these honeys can i get the applecare program pack?
Thanks again, IM so pumped up about getting a new MAc I can hardly stand it, IM coming from windows which has boared me to death, Just seeing the max And OS X makes me excited that I can learn new things and keep busy for a while ....
Long Live MACS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Murlyn]

Actually I would probably purchase the memory from a different company just because it would be cheaper, unless of course money is not a problem for you

Im not sure on the applecare program pack..

 

[SniperZ]

Actually I would probably purchase the memory from a different company just because it would be cheaper, unless of course money is not a problem for you

I kinda dont want to put the 512 in the snow ball my self, If i ever have problems with it wont it void my warrenty?
I dont think i want to have to deal with messing with paste and what not..

 

[Murlyn]

ahh hmm.. I have never had an iMac before so I didnt realize that you actually had to mess with glue.. that's a strange way of doing things.. most Mac's it's a simple step of opening the case.. one or two screws, and plopping the suckers in. Oh well.. then yeah have Apple do it then.

 

[GSMarquis]

I orderd the 1ghz the way it came from factory and added the 512 ddr chip myself. It took all of 15 mins max. The apple 512mg chip cost 200.00 the one i got from crucial (which had same chip manufac. at the time) cost 79.00. All you have to do is remove old paste from the metal terminals in a few locations and then apply new paste. Only us a very small dab because it will seep from edges onto the mother board. Dont be scared at all, all you need is a philips screw driver, a torx #15, and paste available from any computer store.

Do yourself a favor and save over a hundred buks.....put it toward a isight, airport setup, or a new mouse that doesnt suk with only one button.

 

[Graphite]

I orderd the 1ghz the way it came from factory and added the 512 ddr chip myself. It took all of 15 mins max. The apple 512mg chip cost 200.00 the one i got from crucial (which had same chip manufac. at the time) cost 79.00. All you have to do is remove old paste from the metal terminals in a few locations and then apply new paste. Only us a very small dab because it will seep from edges onto the mother board. Dont be scared at all, all you need is a philips screw driver, a torx #15, and paste available from any computer store.

Do yourself a favor and save over a hundred buks.....put it toward a isight, airport setup, or a new mouse that doesnt suk with only one button.

I don't know, if someone doesn't know what they are doing, they could seriously ruin their RAM.. or the entire computer. Scared.. no, but very very careful. Is it worth the risk? If apple screws up you get a new mac, if you screw up, you get a screwed up mac.

As for the one button mouse.. I used the one button mouse for over 18 years, only recently have I used the 2 button mouse, and both have their purposes.

 

[GSMarquis]

NO NEED FOR DEBATE


I just recommended a 2-3 button mouse for more functionality. Most nice programs like photoshop 7, dvd studio pro, ut2003, and others use second mouse and scroll options for more usability.

As far as ruin ram, it all depends on installer or user....I tend to say things are easy because I have been working/bulding/repairing computers of all types of architechure for years. My first computer was a 8088 ibm clone based and the day my father gave it to me I took it apart and put it back together, worked like a champ.

Sorry if you took offense to that.

 

[nko]

Actually, it should be VERY easy to upgrade your iMac's RAM to 768 MB. The iMac comes with two RAM slots. One is a standard slot for PC 133 RAM, the other seems to be mor eproprietary, but much easier to use. If you buy RAM (available from several non-Apple dealers for decent prices) for the "user upgradable" slot, all you have to do is take the cover off the bottom, slide the new stick in the slot, and put the cover back on. Boot up, and voila. It's what I plan to do once I get some money (it doesn't cost much, but I probably wont get around to it for another 2-3 years ).

 

[Padawan]

Actually, it should be VERY easy to upgrade your iMac's RAM to 768 MB. The iMac comes with two RAM slots. One is a standard slot for PC 133 RAM, the other seems to be mor eproprietary, but much easier to use. If you buy RAM (available from several non-Apple dealers for decent prices) for the "user upgradable" slot, all you have to do is take the cover off the bottom, slide the new stick in the slot, and put the cover back on. Boot up, and voila. It's what I plan to do once I get some money (it doesn't cost much, but I probably wont get around to it for another 2-3 years ).

Very true - but his original question was whether he should buy the machine with a single 512 chip pre-installed, allowing him to upgrade to 1 GB by simply installing a 512 chip into the "owner-installable" slot. His concern was over the difficulty of installing his own 512 chip into the factory slot, thus saving money over having Apple do it, but still allowing him to upgrade to 1 GB with the second "owner-installable" 512 chip.

 

[dagaz]

With the new flat panel iMacs you only get one user-servicable RAM slot. To get access to the other RAM slot (factory installed) you have to basically take your Mac apart, see this Apple Support page. As it says on the page:

Warning: While you may add or change memory in the SO-DIMM slot, do not attempt to access the factory-only memory slot. Special seals and tooling are required to access and reseal the computer successfully. If the computer is incorrectly resealed, damage to the computer will result and this damage would not be covered under warranty.

I have read elsewhere that even attempting to do this will void your warranty ( and I assume your AppleCare as well). So to answer the original question, if you want the maximum 1Gig of RAM you are going to have to fork out for the Apple installed RAM, which is a lot more expensive than other RAM that's out there.

 

[Emrys]

I have done this, I have 1GB in my iMac. Are you familiar with computer hardware? If not then just go for the 512MB and then install the SO-DIMM yourself. It was kind of scary opening my iMac, as I didn't want to hurt anything, and I've been A+ certified for years

And of course the ultimate issue is money. You can get the same module from most other retailers for way under half the price. But they don't "Factory Install" it for you, which means that as soon as you open that sucker, your warranty is VOID.

Of course if you choose to do this on own, which I did, make sure you wait until AFTER you complete the installation before you become inebriated

Bottom line is, it's not hard, there are very good instructions on doing it, and if you have the patience to take it slow, and do it to the "T", then you should be alright. You will also save yourself a substantial amount of dough to boot.