How to run 3 Displays without breaking the bank WITHOUT a 27" iMac?

[Backslashnl1]

FYI only reason I would upgrade my 2015 is I'm frustrated with the fusion drives, getting some image retention on the edges, and can still find some 2020's with Warranty in tack, new\open box items. I figure I could sell my 2015 for $500 or so as it's in mint condition with 32gb of RAM.

You can already steer 2 external 4k displays at 60Hz on your iMac 2015 through the Thunderbolt 2 ports. I have a Dell UP2715K 5K monitor which I can hook up as a secondary 5K @60Hz monitor next to my iMac 5K 2015 or 2017 with dual displayport cables.

Going to a 2017-2020 will gives you an upgrade to Thunderbolt 3, but this only gives you more options for some very specific thunderbolt 5k/6k displays like the LG Ulrafine 5k and the Apple Pro Display XDR. If you use a regular monitor with a thunderbolt/usb-c to displayport cable you get only displayport 1.2 bandwidth, the same as with thunderbolt 2. In other words, you can steer the same (regular) monitors on your current iMac as with a 2017-2020 model.

If your main reason to upgrade to a 2020 model is the fusion drive, you could upgrade your current iMac with a Sata SSD or blade ssd, if you are comfortable to open up your iMac yourself. Image retention on the edges however will stay there... in that case you can get a newer one.

Anyway, if you still want to upgrade, only because of the lacking Fusion drive, there is nothing wrong to keep your focus on an 5K iMac. The display is simply amazing and the €1779 Mac Studio display still uses the same screen. If you don't need the extra horsepower from Apple silicon, an Intel iMac 5K is still a great machine which you can keep using for 3-5 years depending on your use case.

 

[Grubster]

You can already steer 2 external 4k displays at 60Hz on your iMac 2015 through the Thunderbolt 2 ports. I have a Dell UP2715K 5K monitor which I can hook up as a secondary 5K @60Hz monitor next to my iMac 5K 2015 or 2017 with dual displayport cables.

Going to a 2017-2020 will gives you an upgrade to Thunderbolt 3, but this only gives you more options for some very specific thunderbolt 5k/6k displays like the LG Ulrafine 5k and the Apple Pro Display XDR. If you use a regular monitor with a thunderbolt/usb-c to displayport cable you get only displayport 1.2 bandwidth, the same as with thunderbolt 2. In other words, you can steer the same (regular) monitors on your current iMac as with a 2017-2020 model.

If your main reason to upgrade to a 2020 model is the fusion drive, you could upgrade your current iMac with a Sata SSD or blade ssd, if you are comfortable to open up your iMac yourself. Image retention on the edges however will stay there... in that case you can get a newer one.

Anyway, if you still want to upgrade, only because of the lacking Fusion drive, there is nothing wrong to keep your focus on an 5K iMac. The display is simply amazing and the €1779 Mac Studio display still uses the same screen. If you don't need the extra horsepower from Apple silicon, an Intel iMac 5K is still a great machine which you can keep using for 3-5 years depending on your use case.

Yes, this was my thought, upgrade my machine for minimal price difference and get support for Ventura and maybe next OS. Also, I dont want to open my machine to upgrade the hard drive and paying someone basically is the same as buying a new machine.
I just saw Costco has the San disk 1TB external ssd nvme for 99, I might buy one to try booting from as well To see if performance is good enough.

 

[pshufd]

Yes, this was my, thought upgrade my machine for minimal price difference and get support for Ventura and maybe next OS. Also, I dont want to open my machine to upgrade the hard drive and paying someone basically is the same as buying a new machine.

Yes, this was my, thought upgrade my machine for minimal price difference and get support for Ventura and maybe next OS. Also, I dont want to open my machine to upgrade the hard drive and paying someone basically is the same as buying a new machine.
I just saw Costco has the San disk 1TB external ssd nvme for 99, I might buy one to try booting from as well To see if performance is good enough.

One thing about using external displays on the 27 inch iMacs is that it bumps the GPU temps up 10-15 degrees. It can be annoying if you work in room that it's well-ventilated or cooled.

 

[Grubster]

One thing about using external displays on the 27 inch iMacs is that it bumps the GPU temps up 10-15 degrees. It can be annoying if you work in room that it's well-ventilated or cooled.

Never noticed, been running multi-monitor on my 2011 and 2015 iMac for years. I guess, it's never caused a problem.