Should I pay $440 US for a 2017 4k iMac?

[staypuftforums]

I’m really tempted to buy it. This is from a store, so I can’t bargain the price down.

I know it can run the latest Ventura and I’d like to get at least 4 years of use out of it.

Would run from external SSD (I already have 256GB drive). I’d just need an enclosure - any recommendations?

Currently using a mini PC with Pentium Silver J5005 CPU. PC itself is fine for my needs, but the fan is faulty and I can’t stand how crappy my monitor is.

 

[Gudi]

First, you can bargain with a store. And while Apple will likely support Intel four more years, it won't be for much longer and don't expect any of the cool new features designed to run on Apple Silicon. A used 24" M1 iMac will cost you ~$950 and after four years it will still have a resale value of at least +$450. And in the meantime your electricity bill will be lower. So you end up paying less for more. Buy second-hand, but buy relatively new ARM Macs!

 

[padams35]

$440 is a fair price, assuming mouse/keyboard are included, but the RAM isn't user-accessible and I'm hesitant to recommend 8GB RAM models in 2022. (If that unit happens to have 16GB+ RAM then go for it!)

Since the 2017 21.5" was still sold new up through 2021 I think Apple will still support 2017 iMac's with the next MacOS release giving you about 4 years of security updates. Depending on your use you might be able to squeeze another year or two out beyond that without any more trouble than someone running Catalina or Mojave today.

As for an enclosure, SATA or NVMe?
I recently got a Jeyi M.2 NVMe Enclosure. That enclosure requires you to apply small per-chip thermal pads (included) over each chip (a little extra work), but it is a sold enclosure with great heat dissipation by $20 standards. Would recommend.

 

[pshufd]

That's a decent price from a store. There's one of those for sale at $325 on my local Craigslist. There's another at a store for $900.

 

[HDFan]

This is from a store, so I can’t bargain the price down.

Warranty? Return policy? Brand name store?

 

[dandyryan]

i would. you better hope it gets obsolete in a few years so you can use it as an external monitor via target display mode. $440 for a retina 4k display!

 

[zln2492sn]

Sounds like a reasonable price. Just wanted to mention that target display mode isn't available for 4K/5K iMacs, and that RAM upgrades may be technically available by an Apple Retail Store or Apple Authorized Service Provider (or possibly yourself with a steady hand and the right tools) but likely not worth the cost (please see this document for specific guidance).

 

[staypuftforums]

i would. you better hope it gets obsolete in a few years so you can use it as an external monitor via target display mode. $440 for a retina 4k display!

*deleted*

 

[staypuftforums]

$440 is a fair price, assuming mouse/keyboard are included, but the RAM isn't user-accessible and I'm hesitant to recommend 8GB RAM models in 2022. (If that unit happens to have 16GB+ RAM then go for it!)

Since the 2017 21.5" was still sold new up through 2021 I think Apple will still support 2017 iMac's with the next MacOS release giving you about 4 years of security updates. Depending on your use you might be able to squeeze another year or two out beyond that without any more trouble than someone running Catalina or Mojave today.

As for an enclosure, SATA or NVMe?
I recently got a Jeyi M.2 NVMe Enclosure. That enclosure requires you to apply small per-chip thermal pads (included) over each chip (a little extra work), but it is a sold enclosure with great heat dissipation by $20 standards. Would recommend.

Thanks for the reply.

To update the thread, I found a brand new, sealed 2019 4k iMac (i3, 256GB SSD) for $500 US on eBay from a local seller.

Using it now and I'm thrilled with it. Very glad I waited.

I can see myself using this, easily, for the next 5 years and possibly longer as I'm happy running Windows or any flavor of Linux when MacOS is no longer supported.