1TB HDD and 4GB RAM has been standard for over 2 years?

[Kendo]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IMac_(Intel-based)#Unibody_iMac

Does anyone feel "gipped" that 2 years after the Unibody iMac has been introducted, the latest refresh still only offers a 1TB HDD and 4GB RAM as the base configuration for the 27" models?

I'm not really complaining about the refresh because of the CPU and GPU upgrades but that is standard. For example, in October 2009, the iMac offered what was a top tier CPU and GPU at the time (Core i7 and 4850). Today, the iMac offers a top tier CPU and GPU. Technology evolves so of course we'll get faster chips, but how can the HDD and RAM stay in the same quantity 2 years later (which is more like 10 when it comes to technology)?

 

[StruckANerve]

They want consumers to pay the premium on the upgrades they offer. Buy it from Apple with the lowest possible specs for the HDD and RAM and then upgrade yourself. You will save a boatload.

 

[hashilli]

They want consumers to pay the premium on the upgrades they offer. Buy it from Apple with the lowest possible specs for the HDD and RAM and then upgrade yourself. You will save a boatload.

Getting to the the HD in my G5 iSight was a huge pain. I ended up having to cut through parts of aluminum dust barrier. I don't think it ever went back the same as I took it apart. (Sold that for $50 a few months ago after I could not fix logic board induced kernel panics.)

Is it easier to get to the HD in the newer models?

 

[frankieboy]

Mulcting the Moxie of Many a Modder

Apple has a long history of being a somewhat stingy with RAM and HDD capacities. With the the mid- and high-end2011 iMacs, they have allowed themselves to fall way behind the curve yet again. I was crestfallen to see that even the top-end 27" only had a 1 Tb drive: that's just pathetic.

As for upgrading HDD in the current iMacs, I don't know the specifics for the 2011s yet, but upgrading the 2009s may be perilous. Apple was (is?) using HDD heat sensors that plug directly to the hard drive, and the plug form factor varies from one brand of drive to another. You may also be subject to the vagaries of different firmware affecting temperature readouts, and therefore fan speeds. If you don't get it right, you get your fans going full speed all the time. This issue has mulcted the moxie of many a modder. See this article for more information. (OWC probably knows what drives to supply to you to avoid this issue.)

 

[StruckANerve]

I replaced the HDD in my 08 iMac in 30 minutes or so. It was very simple. Couldn't SMC fan control be used to control temps? That's what I use.

 

[talmy]

For most customers, 1TB HD and 4GB RAM are plenty. The RAM is trivially upgradable and with Thunderbolt it will be possible to add external drives that offer no loss in performance if 1TB is inadequate.

 

[Badger^2]

I know very few people that need more than 500 GBm let alone 1TB of space or even 4 gigs of ram.

If I can run the entire Adobe CS5, Quark 8, MS Office and everything else under the sun out there on a 2.4 Core2Duo with 4 gigs of ram and a 750 gig drive -- Im sure my neighbor who doesnt do any of that can easily get by with less.

I agree that the should probably come with 8 gigs (2 x 4) and a 2TB drive wouldnt kill them -- but its just a numbers game.

My car has 278 HP and will go 0-60 in 6 seconds flat and run near 140 mph smoothly -- but that doesnt mean I will ever use any of that...

 

[Hexley]

Apple should've made the low-end iMac 1TB, mid-end 1.5TB, high-end 2TB and the 3TB a BTO option. 8GB as standard to all, including the 2011 MBP.