iMac i7 2012 or iMac i5 2015?

[Paulohsac]

Hello everybody,

I'm thinking of buying an iMac but I don't have the money right now to buy a new one. So I'm looking for some older used ones.

I found a iMac 21.5 i7, 8GB of RAM, 1TB HDD, Late 2012 for $ 400.00 and an iMac 21.5 i5, 8GB of RAM, 1TB HDD, 2015 for $ 280.00.


Considering the difference of years, price and processor, which would be the best buy?

Thank you so much


Full specifications of both models can be accessed here:

https://everymac.com/systems/apple/imac/specs/imac-core-i7-3.1-21-inch-aluminum-late-2012-specs.html


and here:

https://everymac.com/systems/apple/imac/specs/imac-core-i5-1.6-21-inch-aluminum-late-2015-specs.html

 

[casperes1996]

I wouldn't recommend either. The 2012 is quite old by now, and whilst still workable there are two big issues the way I see it. Nr. 1, the display. I may just have grown too accustomed to retina, but I can't stand 1080p panels anymore. And Nr. 2, the HDD.

The exact same issues are present in the 2015. Normally I'd say that a newer i5 is better than an older i7, but in this case, the i5 model is a lowly clocked U series chip, not even meant for desktop computers. It's the kind of chip that's meant to go in something like a MacBook Air.

I would say find the cheapest 4k model you can and get that instead.

 

[Paulohsac]

I wouldn't recommend either. The 2012 is quite old by now, and whilst still workable there are two big issues the way I see it. Nr. 1, the display. I may just have grown too accustomed to retina, but I can't stand 1080p panels anymore. And Nr. 2, the HDD.

The exact same issues are present in the 2015. Normally I'd say that a newer i5 is better than an older i7, but in this case, the i5 model is a lowly clocked U series chip, not even meant for desktop computers. It's the kind of chip that's meant to go in something like a MacBook Air.

I would say find the cheapest 4k model you can and get that instead.

Thank you so much. Your opinion helped me a lot

 

[casperes1996]

Thank you so much. Your opinion helped me a lot

You're welcome . Always happy to help, whether it be opinion or plain facts