2007 vs 2009 upgrade on budget

[elf69]

I am looking to upgrade slightly but have almost no funds.

I have a 2007 iMac, 2.0GHz, 6GB DDR2 320GB HDD, 2400xt, 20"

I was looking at a 2009 iMac, 2.66, 2GB DDR3, 1TB HDD, 9400M 20"

I have RAM for 2009 model from old laptop (8GB)
I also have a T9300 CPU which will fit either of these iMac.
I also have a optical bay mount for a 2nd HDD for the 2007, think fits 2009 too.

Is it worth upgrade (I know the 2009 will take Sierra and wifi card work)

Or am I better keeping the 2007 and put money into SSD?

I play World Of Tanks Blitz and the 2400 is not up to it so stopped playing, this is not a major thing was just for fun.

I know your all gonna say don't bother with such old junk and buy new.
I cannot afford it hence the budget option.

 

[Fishrrman]

What's the budget?

 

[elf69]

at present around £160.

to either buy SSD for my 2007 or buy the 2009 and fit SSD at later date when have more funds.

 

[EugW]

I assume you mean these two models:

iMac7,1: https://everymac.com/systems/apple/imac/specs/imac-core-2-duo-2.0-20-inch-aluminum-specs.html
iMac9,1: https://everymac.com/systems/apple/...o-2.66-20-inch-aluminum-early-2009-specs.html

For video playback the 2.66 GHz CPU in the 2009 is a big upgrade. I find with my 2008 2.0 GHz aluminum MacBook, it sometimes struggles a bit at the beginning of playback with some YouTube content. Same with Netflix. Yes, all these machines (including my MacBook) have GPUs that support hardware h.264 acceleration, but the 2.0 GHz is still at a disadvantage. Even my 2.26 GHz 2009 MacBook Pro (which otherwise is almost identical hardware-wise, with the same GeForce 9400M) struggles less with video playback, so it seems that 2.0 GHz is right at the borderline. (Note that 2007 iMac has 800 MHz DDR2, but my 2008 MacBook has 1067 MHz DDR3. My 2009 MacBook Pro also has 1067 MHz DDR3.)

Neither machine officially supports Sierra, but the 2009 iMac can be made to work well as is with Sierra and High Sierra with dosdude1.com's patcher. I am running High Sierra on my 2008 2.0 GHz aluminum MacBook and 2009 2.26 GHz MacBook Pro with no significant issues. The 2007 iMac can be upgraded to work, but it would be a major hassle with no guarantees.

The only thing I've noticed is a graphics glitch with rare h.264 content with GeForce 9400M. This issue does not exist in Sierra, just High Sierra. However, it's not a result of the dosdude1 patch, as the issue also exists with GeForce machines that are officially supported with High Sierra. Hopefully that means that Apple will eventually fix the graphics driver and/or QuickTime.

The 2009 also has mini-DisplayPort (not mini-DVI) and twice the GPU RAM at 256 MB, which may make a difference if you decide to run an external monitor. This is an old graph, but it does give you an idea what amount of memory is required for OS X:

https://www.anandtech.com/show/2804

For ports, the 2007 has FireWire 400, FireWire 800, and 3 USB 2.0. The 2009 has FireWire 800, and 4 USB 2.0.

tl;dr:

Get the 2009, because:

1) It has a much faster CPU which among other things, helps with video playback even though both machines have hardware h.264 acceleration.
2) It is supported by dosdude1's patch for Sierra and High Sierra.
3) It has twice the GPU memory and mini-DisplayPort.

 

[elf69]

Thank you.

So you do not recommend upgrading my 2007 CPU.

I currently run my 2007 imac with a 20" cinema screen with same res 1680 x 1050 which is same as the imac own screen.

 

[EugW]

I guess since you already have the iMac and T9300 you could always give it a shot, but personally I wouldn't bother.

 

[elf69]

OK so i'm using the imac as i normally do.

4 tabs open in safari one is youtube streaming a live music stream.
random half second or so pause on this stream but could be network not machine.

only 4GB of the 6GB is app memory and 4.96GB used.
6.8MB swap file.

CPU between 24% and 69% with random spikes to 88%

will look at going for the 2009.
does 2009 use same socket for CPU as 2007? if so could I fit the T9300 to the 2009 as it a 2.5GHz chip

 

[EugW]

OK so i'm using the imac as i normally do.

4 tabs open in safari one is youtube streaming a live music stream.
random half second or so pause on this stream but could be network not machine.

only 4GB of the 6GB is app memory and 4.96GB used.
6.8MB swap file.

With extended use, I get more beachballs with 4 GB than I do with 8 GB. This is with Safari, Mail, and Office.

I don't really notice much difference with 16 GB vs 8 GB most of the time, unless it's heavy usage and my wife has logged into her account.

I've never tried 6 GB, but I suspect I'd be happy with that for a basic browsing machine.

will look at going for the 2009.
does 2009 use same socket for CPU as 2007? if so could I fit the T9300 to the 2009 as it a 2.5GHz chip

Why would you swap out a 2.66 GHz for a 2.5 GHz?

 

[elf69]

the seller listed it as a 2.26GHz that's why.

So they are wrong in quoting this speed or a typo.