iMac (mid 2010)

[Porkchop Sandwich]

Hello,

I recently upgraded to the new rMBP 15" along with 27" LG display to update my business computers. The idea was to replace my mid 2014 rMBP along with a mid 2010 27" iMac in one shot.

While the new rig was certainly beautiful..I simply could not deal with the bugginess so I have decided to "sit this one out" for the time being and to squeeze some more life out of my current set up.

My workhorse has been the '14 rMBP 13" along with a Dell U2515 (nice setup) while the iMac functions as "home base storage" due to the fact that it's just painfully slow these days.

Once I decided to squeeze some more life out of my current setup, I did some housekeeping on the iMac by acquiring an AP Extreme for storage, thus, freeing up a good bit of storage. Went one step further and dropped in 8gb's of RAM for a total of 12gb..another step in the right direction. Now to top it off, I'd like to add an ssd drive while maintaining the HDD that currently sets in the machine.

I have a late 2013 rMBP that suffered a bit of water damage which seems to have killed it. (have tried fixing)

Question ~ can I use the SSD cannibalized from the '13 rMBP? I believe it is a PCle-based drive, yes?

 

[dictoresno]

Are you looking to swap the PCIe SSD into the iMac? After briefly reviewing the everymac website, it appears all the 2010 models were 3.5 inch standard HDD, no PCIe slots.

You will need to buy a 2.5 inch SSD with an adapter mount.

 

[tyche]

The 2010 27" model does have 3 sata ports available so it's possible to have dvd, spinner, plus a new ssd. But from what I remember if you didn't t order the machine with an ssd, the third sata isn't completely plumbed in so to speak so you need some parts maybe it's just a cable plus it's rather tricky to get to. So I'd say, yes you can add a ssd but do some reading first.

But 2010 is sata and pcie won't work. I have a 21" 2010 with 16gb and ssd and it's still a vey capable machine.

 

[Porkchop Sandwich]

dictoresno - yes, I was hoping to use the PCle drive from the fried laptop in the iMac..sorry if I didn’t make that clear.

Ideally, I’d use the PCle SSD in unison with the spinning drive that came w/the machine which would then be relegated to storage leaving the SSD to perform boot and day to day functionality. I’ve done a bit of diligence & I am aware that there are kits to do just what it is I’m wanting to do (split cables, mounting brackets, temp sensor, etc.) I was hoping to install the SSD behind the optical drive. What was NOT clear to me was whether the PCle SSD would be compatible.

tyche - you have answered my question and unfortunately, it appears it won’t work due to the SATA connection - bummer.

Although I’m a capable guy with respect to going in to do the work etc, I’m not very tech savvy as it relates to compatibilities and whatnot. tyche - I’m guessing if I forego the “fusion drive” arrangement and simply replace the HDD altogether with the PCle SSD in its physical location..that still gets me nowhere w/the PCle due to the SATA connection to the motherboard..correct?

No such thing as a magic cable : ) that will allow for installation in a single drive arrangement?


I also agree with you - with a few upgrades..the 2010 iMac is by all means a capable computer today, certainly for my needs it is.

 

[dictoresno]

I only think the PCIe cable is present if the computer was originally ordered with its respective SSD from the factory. However I think that's only available in the 2012+ iMacs. The website makes no mention of the option of PCIe being available for the 2010 models.