21.5-inch iMac a good idea?

[sanfrancisofont1984]

A family member of mine needs to upgrade from her 2014 mini. She wants a biggish screen so it is either mini (with existing monitor) or iMac.

I know 27-inch is just refreshed but it is over budget unfortunately. The second tier in 21.5-inch iMac seems pretty decent to me.
Compared to 2018 mini it has better Radeon Pro 555X graphics (as opposed to UHD 630) which makes the system more balanced I think.

The use case is mostly web browsing.

What do you think?

 

[Fishrrman]

I'd suggest a 2018/20 Mini to replace the 2014, instead of a 21" iMac.

BE AWARE that RAM CANNOT be upgraded on the 21" iMac (unless you take it completely apart).

BE AWARE that unless you get one with a built-in SSD (which much be special-ordered from Apple), a 21" iMac won't be very fast.

Again, 2018 Mini is the better way to go in my opinion.
It comes with an SSD as standard equipment.
I'd suggest getting 16gb of RAM "right from the factory".
If price is an issue, keep a close watch on Apple-refurbished 2018 Minis and buy one as soon as the desired configuration comes into stock, because they sell out in a matter of hours (or minutes).

 

[sanfrancisofont1984]

In the latest line up the default config seems to be all 256G SSD, which is good.
I agree that 16G RAM is more future-proof but the RAM price from "factory" ...
I also heard that the bluetooth is an issue on the mini?

 

[Zen_Arcade]

Given the rumors around a new ARM iMac, she should wait a couple of weeks if she can to see if the rumored Apple event in November replaces the 21.5" iMac.

She could also look at a refurbished iMac, whether 21.5" or 27". There are currently a number of refurbished iMacs, both 21.5" and 27", that could let her get a better machine than if she buys one brand new.