Upgrade to Ventura

[Acantheae]

I am not quite sure if my thread is in the correct area my apologies. in advance. The latest MacOS Ventura unfortunately will not install on my iMac 27inch (2016 )
I thought that however fantastical the idea may seem to use the existing display, remove innards where necessary and use it in conjunction with the Mac Mini or rumoured M2 Mac Mini. In my opinion the displays available at the moment have lost their individuality and just look like any other monitors,
compare it to the iMac.

 

[MacInWin]

Unless you are an electronics expert, the effort isn't worth it. You would have to design and build the interface to drive the screen from the new Mac. And conform it to the USB-C or HDMI standard that the new Mac expects to see.

And monitors do look alike. That is a case of form following function. Flat screen, small bezel, small stand. Not sure how it could be different, to be honest.

 

[Raz0rEdge]

There is no 2016 iMac. There's 2014 and 2017. If you're on the 2014, then Big Sur is the newest version of macOS you can upgrade to. If it's the 2017, you can get to Ventura.

So assuming you're right about not being able to upgrade to Ventura, you're on the 2014 iMac and should upgrade to at least Big Sur. That will definitely be fine for a few years until apps start complaining about requiring newer versions of macOS or the machine no longer suites your needs.

That's the right time to upgrade.

Your idea of gutting the iMac and hooking it up to a Mac Mini is not worth it for various reasons.

If you are indeed going to upgrade to a Mac Mini or Mac Studio, then just grab a proper monitor and use it.

 

[Lifeisabeach]

There is no 2016 iMac. There's 2014 and 2017. If you're on the 2014, then Big Sur is the newest version of macOS you can upgrade to. If it's the 2017, you can get to Ventura.

So assuming you're right about not being able to upgrade to Ventura, you're on the 2014 iMac and should upgrade to at least Big Sur. That will definitely be fine for a few years until apps start complaining about requiring newer versions of macOS or the machine no longer suites your needs.

That's the right time to upgrade.

Your idea of gutting the iMac and hooking it up to a Mac Mini is not worth it for various reasons.

If you are indeed going to upgrade to a Mac Mini or Mac Studio, then just grab a proper monitor and use it.

There was a late 2015 iMac also. Caps out on Monterey.

iMac "Core i5" 3.2 27" (5K, Late 2015) Specs (Retina 5K, Late 2015, MK462LL/A*, iMac17,1, A1419, 2834): EveryMac.com

Technical specifications for the iMac "Core i5" 3.2 27" (5K, Late 2015). Dates sold, processor type, memory info, hard drive details, price and more.

everymac.com

 

[Acantheae]

Many thanks for all your replies. I can now fully appreciate the complexities of conversion. I have.Just checked I have Monterey v. 12.6.1 iMac Retina 27 inch Late 2015 3.2GHz Quad-Core Intel Core 5, 8GB 1867 DDR3 Graphics AMD Radeon R9 M390 2GB. My apologies for the confusion and thank you once again.

 

[Rod]

Akantheae, I completely understand why you would like to keep the 27" display of the Late 2015 iMac. Original case designed in 2012 by Johnathan Ive, it's almost retro in it's feel. The cunning thick in the middle, thin at the edges shape made it look thinner than it really was and the unique stand with the hole in the middle that kept all the cables tidy, I really liked it.

 

[pm-r]

I thought that however fantastical the idea may seem to use the existing display, remove innards where necessary and use it in conjunction with the Mac Mini or rumoured M2 Mac Mini.

If you want to read and feed your mind some ideas supporting your upgrade thoughts and ideas, you could check out some of the suggestions on a Google search such as this:

Mac hack install mac mini inside 2015 iMac - Google Search

Definitely a world of Mac hacking and basically unsupported, at least very doubtful at this site.





- Patrick
=======

 

[jpdemers]

You can turn the iMac into a 27" display, but it ain't for the faint-hearted:

Set it on top of an M1 Mini, and you're in business.

On the other hand, $600 will also get you a decent 32" monitor. Sell the iMac, and you'll have maybe $800 for an even better one.

 

[Lifeisabeach]

If you really like the aesthetics that much (heck, I do too), perhaps you should consider Apple's Studio Display. It's... rather pricey. I personally wouldn't spend that much, and am actually disinclined to recommend just based on it being the 1st gen model and there have been some reports of issues.

 

[GordWebster]

Have you considered using OpenCore Legacy Patcher to update to Ventura? I have a similar 27" Late 2015, 17,1 which I updated to Ventura and it runs smoothly. This option allows many 'legacy' Macs that have fallen off the 'official' OS upgrade support list to be updated to Ventura.
There are detailed instructions on the website, and Mr. Macintosh has a couple of YouTube videos that walk through the steps. As long as you follow these guides, I found it relatively easy. Food for thought.

OpenCore Legacy Patcher

Experience macOS just like before

dortania.github.io

 

[pm-r]

you should consider Apple's Studio Display. It's... rather pricey. I personally wouldn't spend that much, and am actually disinclined to recommend just based on it being the 1st gen model and there have been some reports of issues.

I see OWC has some for sale @ $500.00usd which is at least a more realistic price, but still a first-gen model as you mentioned with a heads up caution.



- Patrick
=======

 

[pm-r]

I have a similar 27" Late 2015, 17,1 which I updated to Ventura and it runs smoothly. This option allows many 'legacy' Macs that have fallen off the 'official' OS upgrade support list to be updated to Ventura.

Thanks for the info and your personal positive experience Gord, which is good to know if and when I might need to update my 2011 27" iMac past High Sierra.
Very doubtful as I mainly use Mavericks 10.9.5 where everything seems to work pretty well still and still has a lot of small useful things that I use and rely on that Apple stripped in later versions.

I find it very annoying that Apple does that, but I guess they think they are improving things by removing very usable useful features... Most annoying...



- Patrick
=======

 

[denniscampbell]

There is no 2016 iMac. There's 2014 and 2017. If you're on the 2014, then Big Sur is the newest version of macOS you can upgrade to. If it's the 2017, you can get to Ventura.

So assuming you're right about not being able to upgrade to Ventura, you're on the 2014 iMac and should upgrade to at least Big Sur. That will definitely be fine for a few years until apps start complaining about requiring newer versions of macOS or the machine no longer suites your needs.

That's the right time to upgrade.

Your idea of gutting the iMac and hooking it up to a Mac Mini is not worth it for various reasons.

If you are indeed going to upgrade to a Mac Mini or Mac Studio, then just grab a proper monitor and use it.

there is also a late 2015

 

[Lifeisabeach]

I see OWC has some for sale @ $500.00usd which is at least a more realistic price, but still a first-gen model as you mentioned with a heads up caution.

That's actually the older Thunderbolt Display, which yeah.... much more reasonable! It'd get the job done for the average user. It's not a 5K monitor though, so no Retina goodness to be found in them.

 

[stevem44]

Hello !
I have a Macpro with BigSur as the OS. Since then, I have been notified to upgrade to Montery, which I did not. Now I have a notification to upgrade to Ventura. Big Sur has been very good so far in the two years I have my Mac.
Are there any advantages to upgrading to Ventura?

Thank you !!

 

[Rod]

Hiya stevem44, I recommend you start a new thread when asking a question rather than tagging onto an existing thread, it can be a little confusing to know who is addressing who with replies but to answer your question directly there have been a number of big native app changes and additions, whether you would want or use these new features I cannot say. Here is a good reference to the new features and upgrades in Monterey and the current Ventura. just scroll down to numbers 18 and 19. The full list of all macOS versions until 2023
You can ignore the advertising at the bottom of the page.

Apart from the new application features there are always security improvements and features such as lockdown mode;
https://blog.privacyguides.org/2022/10/27/macos-ventura-privacy-security-updates/