Wait or Build to order?

[sevoman]

Hey guys, I'm interested in getting a 21.5 inch 4k iMac. I want the 256 ssd option. No two ways about it. Don't want a fusion drive and definitely don't want a 5400 rpm HDD.

As of now, none of the store models in the 21.5 4k have ssd. All have to be built to order. I am assuming that eventually they will have 'base' models availalble in the store with ssd. As of now the closest is a 27 in 5k with fusion drive, otherwise none of the other iMacs have either ssd or fusion as a walk in a buy option.

Any guesses as to if and when Apple will have in store model s with ssd?

 

[Clix Pix]

After i saw the specs available for the new 21.5" iMac with retina screen, I was really, really disappointed. I had been hoping that they would at least offer SSD as a default drive right from the get-go, but they didn't.....they stayed with the stupid old platter/spinner, and the hideously slow 5400 rpm one at that. Also the other spec in which I was interested, the RAM, was still staying at 8 GB. On the 21.5" nothing was user-upgradeable, either. I reviewed all the specs and the $$$$ and then compared them to a MacBook Pro with the same specs that I wanted and found that the two -- a 21.5" iMac BTO with the specs I wanted and a 15" rMBP with pretty much all those specs already available off-the-shelf at my local Apple store came in very closely together with the dollar amounts. I spent some time weighing various pros and cons and in the end, to make a long story short went with being able to walk into my local Apple store and purchase right on the spot a 15" rMBP with the exact specs that I wanted. This offers me flexibility, too, not just in terms of portability but also in being able to choose and add any external monitor that I want when and if I feel that I need more screen real estate.

I'm delighted with my 15" rMBP with discrete graphics and speedy SSD (512 GB) and speedy RAM (16 GB). This baby is fast and she's also portable. I have options, too, with regard to increasing screen real estate in the future if I need to do so. VERY important to me.

I'll never go back to a platter/spinner hard drive. SSDs blow those right out of the water. My once-loved 2012 iMac with a platter drive is now in the hands of a new owner.

Apple really disappointed me and I'm sure a whole bunch of other prospective customers by the way they chose to configure the base and next-to-base, available-in-store 21.5" iMacs. For me, the baseline spinner drive doesn't hack it. Also, sad to say, for me, again, Fusion Drive just doesn't hack it, especially with such a small SSD drive provided. I want pure SSD with enough capacity to actually run my machine and more. Sure, a lot of people would have simply shrugged and moved right on over to the significantly larger and heavier 27" iMac, but for various reasons I could not do that and did not want to do that.

For me, going with the 15" rMBP fulfilled my needs, but of course that is not going to be the same situation for everyone. As far as hoping for and waiting for Apple to put 21.5" iMacs into the stores which do meet your particular tech specs, I wouldn't count on it. Probably Apple won't provide SSD as the default drive in their iMacs until the next iteration or maybe beyond that.....

 

[LoftyHammond]

You probably won't see pure SSD iMac until may the next update (Mid/late 2016?). I'd just order one and wait it out.

 

[colodane]

Nobody knows Apple's plans for SSD in the future. But in the meantime, just go ahead with the BTO. It is a surprisingly easy, fast and painless process - and you will get exactly the configuration you want. You can have it shipped directly to your home or shipped to a convenient Apple store so you don't need to wait around for Fed Ex.

 

[The Doctor11]

Because I think Apple favors the fusion drive over SSD I don't think we'll see stock models with SSD for a while. I don't know when but a while. Maybe 2018? I don't know not through 2017 I'm fairly sure so I won't vote on the poll.

 

[scaramoosh]

Until larger SSDs come down in price, right now a 1TB+ SSD costs a fortune.

 

[bogg]

Until larger SSDs come down in price, right now a 1TB+ SSD costs a fortune.

Mushkin is releasing a 4TB SSD for ~$500 this year so they are getting down to reasonable prices.

 

[maflynn]

As of now, none of the store models in the 21.5 4k have ssd.

Order it online and get what you want.

I don't see apple dropping the spinning drive basic option and/or Fusion drive anytime soon.

 

[maxsix]

Everyone of my various Apple Computers has been built to order. The wait is worth it in the long run since nothing beats getting the ideal configuration for the job. This is one of Apple’s best services. Especially considering the high price they charge, no reason to buy the store model unless you can't wait.

 

[Ludatyk]

Hey guys, I'm interested in getting a 21.5 inch 4k iMac. I want the 256 ssd option.

Yeah, that's what I went for... The 256 SSD option. To me that's the sweet spot, I have plenty of external drive to use for more available storage.

But as @maflynn mention it's better to just do a BTO... You'll have it in a few days, they had initially quoted me a 6 day wait time but I got in 4 days.

 

[scaramoosh]

Mushkin is releasing a 4TB SSD for ~$500 this year so they are getting down to reasonable prices.

Well right now all the good 1TB+ HDDs are all mega expensive and something Apple wont use as standard. You have to pay £400 extra over the 500GB SSD to get the 1TB one... it's madness, but Apple doesn't make mega profits for selling you fair prices devices.

 

[Samuelsan2001]

No one knows if you want a non standard configuration you'll have to order it BTO, you can get this delivered to an Apple Store in some countries if that will ease your mind about ordering one online.

 

[maflynn]

but Apple doesn't make mega profits for selling you fair prices devices.

FWIW, Apple is the only computer maker having sales increase and not decrease, so that must something about their business model.

I agree the cost of the larger SSDs is over priced, which is why I opted for the 2TB Fusion drive.