Should I wait for the release or buy now..

[kringlelikechris]

Hey guys.
Should I wait for the release of the new iMacs or just buy now?
I am currently using a Mid 2011 iMac [2.7 GHz Core i5, 12 GB Ram, 1TB HDD]
I BADLY need an upgrade! I'm a designer, videographer, and photographer. So the programs I mainly use are Final Cut Pro X, Lightroom, Illustrator, and Photoshop. EVERYTHING is running so slow and is messing up my workflow. Also, when I do buy, should I get the Fusion or the Flash?

 

[mcnallym]

If you need NOW, Buy NOW. Buy FLASH Drive. Could be looking at possibly October or maybe even later until new iMacs are out.

If get a new iMac now then isn't going to suddenly be inadequate when the newer one's eventually launch and in the meanwhile had a good few months of being able to actually do your stuff.

 

[Sirmausalot]

A couple of possibilities

1. Purchase an external SSD for boot and programs. Add a bit more RAM too. That should get your through until October -- which is now the new rumored release date.
2. Purchase a refurb for around $2000 https://www.apple.com/shop/browse/home/specialdeals/mac

You could always sell the refurb unit when the new iMacs are out if there is something you really want. You'd probably take around a $500 hit. Does your computer now have a dGPU?

 

[CWallace]

If the performance improvements will pay for themselves in six to nine months, buy now, as that is likely the release window.

 

[bodonnell202]

Since it sounds like your current setup is no longer workable it sounds like the answer is easy. Yes new iMacs will come eventually, but they could be months away yet and overall will probably be just a modest performance upgrade from the current models. If you really want to hold out though as an above post suggests, upgrading your current Mac to an SSD could make all the difference. It's better to replace the HDD with an internal SSD though and that is beyond most people's comfort level so if you don't think you can tackle it yourself it may not be worth paying someone to do it versus just putting the money towards a new iMac.

Other considerations: Going for straight Flash is best, but if going for a Fusion drive go for at least the 2 TB model as it has much more Flash storage and performs better.

 

[T'hain Esh Kelch]

You can also add a second internal SSD to the iMac. It transforms the machine, assuming you currently run a HDD.

 

[Lunder89]

I would advise to buy now. And to get the SSD harddrive. The current model is still a fast one. And the updates to the new one, will be USB-C and new CPU and GPU, neither seems to get that much faster. Especially if you get an i7 one.

 

[kringlelikechris]

A couple of possibilities

1. Purchase an external SSD for boot and programs. Add a bit more RAM too. That should get your through until October -- which is now the new rumored release date.
2. Purchase a refurb for around $2000 https://www.apple.com/shop/browse/home/specialdeals/mac

You could always sell the refurb unit when the new iMacs are out if there is something you really want. You'd probably take around a $500 hit. Does your computer now have a dGPU?

Wow, great options. Especially that first one.
If I go with option one, do you think this SSD and RAM will do?:
https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-2-5-...492663551&sr=8-2&keywords=samsung+850+pro+1tb
https://www.amazon.com/Crucial-PC3-...8&qid=1492720700&sr=1-3&keywords=ram+for+imac

It'll cost me around $450 but it will definitely get through till October..
Thank you so much for your advice!
[doublepost=1492721912][/doublepost]

Since it sounds like your current setup is no longer workable it sounds like the answer is easy. Yes new iMacs will come eventually, but they could be months away yet and overall will probably be just a modest performance upgrade from the current models. If you really want to hold out though as an above post suggests, upgrading your current Mac to an SSD could make all the difference. It's better to replace the HDD with an internal SSD though and that is beyond most people's comfort level so if you don't think you can tackle it yourself it may not be worth paying someone to do it versus just putting the money towards a new iMac.

Other considerations: Going for straight Flash is best, but if going for a Fusion drive go for at least the 2 TB model as it has much more Flash storage and performs better.

Yeah, my current setup is just wasting a lot of my time. I'm leaning towards getting a Samsung 850 EVO 1TB 2.5-Inch SATAIII Internal SSD right now and run my OSX on it until the new release of iMacs come around.

you think this SSD will do?
https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-2-5-...492663551&sr=8-2&keywords=samsung+850+pro+1tb

Thanks for your input. I really appreciate it.

www.chrisbulilan.com

 

[bodonnell202]

Wow, great options. Especially that first one.
If I go with option one, do you think this SSD and RAM will do?:
https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-2-5-...492663551&sr=8-2&keywords=samsung+850+pro+1tb
https://www.amazon.com/Crucial-PC3-...8&qid=1492720700&sr=1-3&keywords=ram+for+imac

It'll cost me around $450 but it will definitely get through till October..
Thank you so much for your advice!
[doublepost=1492721912][/doublepost]

Yeah, my current setup is just wasting a lot of my time. I'm leaning towards getting a Samsung 850 EVO 1TB 2.5-Inch SATAIII Internal SSD right now and run my OSX on it until the new release of iMacs come around.

you think this SSD will do?
https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-2-5-...492663551&sr=8-2&keywords=samsung+850+pro+1tb

Thanks for your input. I really appreciate it.

www.chrisbulilan.com

Yes, that is a good SSD and is just about as fast as you can get over a SATA connection and your system should feel significantly faster versus the standard mechanical hard drive in your system.

 

[Sirmausalot]

Wow, great options. Especially that first one.
If I go with option one, do you think this SSD and RAM will do?:
https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-2-5-...492663551&sr=8-2&keywords=samsung+850+pro+1tb
https://www.amazon.com/Crucial-PC3-...8&qid=1492720700&sr=1-3&keywords=ram+for+imac

It'll cost me around $450 but it will definitely get through till October..
Thank you so much for your advice!
[doublepost=1492721912][/doublepost]

Yeah, my current setup is just wasting a lot of my time. I'm leaning towards getting a Samsung 850 EVO 1TB 2.5-Inch SATAIII Internal SSD right now and run my OSX on it until the new release of iMacs come around.

you think this SSD will do?
https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-2-5-...492663551&sr=8-2&keywords=samsung+850+pro+1tb

Thanks for your input. I really appreciate it.

www.chrisbulilan.com

That's if you install it internally. But that is a HUGE PITA. Also, you don't need a 1TB to get you through if you manage your current hard drive. You just need primarily your program files and OS plus your basic working files. Also, you can boot from an external firewire 800 drive. Not as fast as an internal SSD< but still much better https://eshop.macsales.com/item/Other World Computing/MEF3MSSD480/

 

[Malus120]

As other posters have suggested, I would recommend upgrading your system with an (external or internal) SSD and additional ram. Both are easy upgrades (if you go with an external SSD anyway) that can add a lot of performance and life to your mac.

That said, it would help if you provided more information on just what exactly is "running so slow" and "messing up your workflow." Provide us with some concrete examples (what IS your workflow for example, and where exactly does it slow down) so its easier to deduce whether your slowdowns are storage/ram related (and thus solvable with an SSD and more ram), or due to you being CPU or GPU bound (in which case an an SSD will certainly stil improve responsiveness, but won't solve your fundamental problem).

Of course, as CWallace so wisely pointed out, if you're actually making (significant) money with this machine, its a simple question of RoI (Return on Investment). But figuring out what your RoI will actually look like for upgrading vs buying a new machine requires a better understanding of your use case.

 

[lowkey]

If a 4.0GHz i7 with 16gb Ram and 2TB Fusion or 512 SSD is going to be enough for you then just buy one of them from the refurb store whenever it pops up. I wouldn't buy one at the full price now because the value will be dropping as soon as the updates come.

If you need more than the 4g i7, then you need to wait.

But I'd say the current top of the line machine will meet most people's needs.

 

[Fishrrman]

New iMacs probably remain 3-4 months away from today (or longer).

If you NEED NOW, BUY NOW.
The current iMacs are fine performers (when properly configured) and will remain usable for years.

If you can keep waiting, then wait.
But right now, no one knows how LONG "the wait" will remain.

 

[Steve Jobs.]

Check this out! http://www.ebay.com/itm/112351778112?rmvSB=true

It's an Apple Refurb with the full 1yr warranty and it's $800 off the price when you buy new. There's also no sales tax outside of NY so you'd be saving on that too.

I would normally say wait it out, but in the case of this deal, I'd say take it - then if you like the new iMac that comes out at the end of this year, you can probably sell this one for the same price you paid for it and upgrade to the newest.

You can add aftermarket RAM or an external SSD to juice it up. I've also heard that you can un-fuse the fusion drive so that the SSD and HDD parts are separated. Which means you can run a pure SSD build if you wanted to - with an external SSD for more storage (The 2TB Fusion drive comes with a 128GB SSD partition)

 

[t0mat0]

Bear in mind any new Mac is likely to have some initial teething problems - (screen drivers, graphical glitches, issues with external monitors, point updates of macOS needed etc) - so if you're needing a stable machine for work you'd be advised to wait a little bit after any new release.

 

[kringlelikechris]

As other posters have suggested, I would recommend upgrading your system with an (external or internal) SSD and additional ram. Both are easy upgrades (if you go with an external SSD anyway) that can add a lot of performance and life to your mac.

That said, it would help if you provided more information on just what exactly is "running so slow" and "messing up your workflow." Provide us with some concrete examples (what IS your workflow for example, and where exactly does it slow down) so its easier to deduce whether your slowdowns are storage/ram related (and thus solvable with an SSD and more ram), or due to you being CPU or GPU bound (in which case an an SSD will certainly stil improve responsiveness, but won't solve your fundamental problem).

Of course, as CWallace so wisely pointed out, if you're actually making (significant) money with this machine, its a simple question of RoI (Return on Investment). But figuring out what your RoI will actually look like for upgrading vs buying a new machine requires a better understanding of your use case.

For instance, when I place a 60 second video onto my timeline in Final Cut, I have to sit there and wait for like 3 minutes until it fully renders. When I extract about 100 photos from Lightroom (10MB each), I could probably fold all my laundry by the time that's finished. Therefore my workflow is totally screwed. Is that what an SSD would fix or the CPU or GPU (don't know much about those)? Thanks so much for your input.

 

[Malus120]

For instance, when I place a 60 second video onto my timeline in Final Cut, I have to sit there and wait for like 3 minutes until it fully renders. When I extract about 100 photos from Lightroom (10MB each), I could probably fold all my laundry by the time that's finished. Therefore my workflow is totally screwed. Is that what an SSD would fix or the CPU or GPU (don't know much about those)? Thanks so much for your input.

1. Lightroom image export is generally CPU bound. That said, 100 images shouldn't take THAT long unless you're using insane settings or working with insanely large (raw) files. I would try watching activity monitor the next time you do an export and see what the CPU usage looks like. If you're hitting close to 400% (for your iMac's 4 cores) then its most likely your CPU speed. That said, be aware that CPU speed hasn't increased THAT much in the last 6 years. Even if you buy a top of the line 4Ghz i7 model you're probably only looking at a 60-75% increase in speed.

2. I'm not an expert on Final Cut, but are you utilizing any effects? Final Cut is optimized to take advantage of GPU(s) to accelerate certain types of work so its certainly possible the old, slow GPU in your iMac is holding you back. Still I'm not sure if this applies to the timeline importation phase so someone with more experience can hopefully comment on this.

Also, have you considered that your hard drive might be (slowly) failing? That would explain why applications with IO access (importing a clip into your final cut timeline, exporting photos) are slowing down.

One more thing, is this something that has gotten worse over time, or has it always been this bad? If its gotten worse over time I would suspect some kind of hardware issue (probably failing HDD)

Regardless of the CPU/GPU limitations of your machine, I would still consider getting an SSD and seeing what that does for your performance before splurging on a new machine (unless you just want new and don't want to wait, which is also ok). It should certainly speed up almost every step of your workflow, and make your machine noticeably more responsive.

This post is a bit of a mess, I'll try and clean it up later if I have time. Please ask if there's anything you don't understand.

 

[Rivanov]

I just bought a Late 2015 iMac 27". Could get a very nice discount on a brand-new one (completely sealed, never been turned on.. Apple Care till April 5th 2018). It's the 3.3Ghz i5 with 2TB Fusion Drive model. Going to upgrade it to 32GB RAM soon.

Normally this would cost me € 2.459,- here in The Netherlands. Now, I paid € 1.900,-

I wanted to wait for the newest model but I couldn't resist this offer.

 

[kringlelikechris]

I just bought a Late 2015 iMac 27". Could get a very nice discount on a brand-new one (completely sealed, never been turned on.. Apple Care till April 5th 2018). It's the 3.3Ghz i5 with 2TB Fusion Drive model. Going to upgrade it to 32GB RAM soon.

Normally this would cost me € 2.459,- here in The Netherlands. Now, I paid € 1.900,-

I wanted to wait for the newest model but I couldn't resist this offer.

Yeah, that sounds amazing. "Steve Jobs" commented earlier and gave me an eBay link to a similar iMac.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/112351778112?rmvSB=true
I'm thinking of pulling the trigger on this. How's it working for you so far?

 

[Rivanov]

Yeah, that sounds amazing. "Steve Jobs" commented earlier and gave me an eBay link to a similar iMac.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/112351778112?rmvSB=true
I'm thinking of pulling the trigger on this. How's it working for you so far?

It's a great machine. I'm not using it professionally. Only normal 'home' usage. Screen is great and because it has the 2TB Fusion Drive you get 128GB SSD storage so it's fast.

Also have a MacBook 12" Retina (2016 model) so it's my perfect combination right now.

If you can get it at for a nice discount, grab it! Your link seems to be very good.

 

[nj22]

Check this out! http://www.ebay.com/itm/112351778112?rmvSB=true

It's an Apple Refurb with the full 1yr warranty and it's $800 off the price when you buy new. There's also no sales tax outside of NY so you'd be saving on that too.

I'm also about to get a refurb iMac and had people mention this ebay deal. It seems to be good to be true, which makes me worry. I thought you only got the apple warranty on refurbs if you buy through Apple. Is that not true?

 

[Sirmausalot]

I'm also about to get a refurb iMac and had people mention this ebay deal. It seems to be good to be true, which makes me worry. I thought you only got the apple warranty on refurbs if you buy through Apple. Is that not true?

Click on the negative reviews. Stay away.

 

[Steve Jobs.]

Click on the negative reviews. Stay away.

There really aren't a lot of negative reviews and if there's Apple Care on the product then it should be fine. If for some reason it didn't have Apple Care then it would be more risky but that's not the case.

 

[Richdmoore]

Hey guys.
Should I wait for the release of the new iMacs or just buy now?
I am currently using a Mid 2011 iMac [2.7 GHz Core i5, 12 GB Ram, 1TB HDD]
I BADLY need an upgrade! I'm a designer, videographer, and photographer. So the programs I mainly use are Final Cut Pro X, Lightroom, Illustrator, and Photoshop. EVERYTHING is running so slow and is messing up my workflow. Also, when I do buy, should I get the Fusion or the Flash?

I use the same model, and am waiting for now (although my 2011 iMac is more for general use vs photo/video uses).

What I decided to do to help keep my iMac current was to use a Caldiget thunderbolt station to add USB 3.0 ports to my iMac, and in addition I continued the thunderbolt chain with a delock thunderbolt drive with a 1tb ssd inside.

I also increased the ram to the unofficial maximum of 32gb for the 2011 model.

The biggest speed increase with these upgrades was seen by me from adding the ssd drive in the thunderbolt enclosure.

I chose to use a thunderbolt external ssd boot drive vs an internal ssd install because of the complexity of opening the iMac. Of course, the disadvantage of the external ssd was the cost of buying the delock & thunderbolt cables, so about $100 more than a direct internal install.

FYI: If you decide to internally install the ssd by replacing the hdd, be sure you know about the fan sensor issues, owc makes a hardware solution you will need to install at the same time.

http://blog.macsales.com/27903-owc-...-upgrade-compatible-with-capacities-up-to-6tb

Finally, even with the caldiget station giving my iMac USB 3.0 support, the 2011 iMac is unable to use a USB 3.0 drive as a boot drive. (I believe it is a limitation of all apple computers that shipped with USB 2.0 only.)

Links:

http://www.caldigit.com/thunderboltstation/

http://www.synchrotech.com/products...sd-drive-external-enclosure-delock-42510.html