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My new imac is running very slow

I recently replaced my 2011 21.5 iMac with a new model 18,1. The 2011 imac had slowed down to the point it was almost unusable and I am having the same issue with the new one. We don't use any intensive programs, no Photoshop etc. Mainly we only use this machine to connect to the web and use G suite tools for education and work. My wife uses splashtop to connect to her office now that she's working from home. I'm wondering if I messed up by transferring the settings from the old mac to the new one. Would it have been better to just start fresh with this and simply transfer any documents and photos I needed? I still have the old mac so I can wipe this one and restart if that is necessary.


I realize that I got the base model hard drive, could that be the issue?


Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks



iMac 21.5″, macOS 10.15

Posted on Jun 2, 2020 10:53 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Jun 2, 2020 1:37 PM

Runaway user process - A user process is using a large percentage of your CPU.

Heavy RAM usage - Apps are using a large amount of RAM.


Open Activity Monitor in Utilities, sort on CPU%, see if anything using too much CPU%, click on Memory tab, what is eating up the most RAM?


3 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Jun 2, 2020 1:37 PM in response to yem549

Runaway user process - A user process is using a large percentage of your CPU.

Heavy RAM usage - Apps are using a large amount of RAM.


Open Activity Monitor in Utilities, sort on CPU%, see if anything using too much CPU%, click on Memory tab, what is eating up the most RAM?


Jun 2, 2020 12:15 PM in response to yem549

 Time since boot: About 34 days

Leaving the Mac on all the time can "gum up the works" with many temporary system files, cache files and swap files. Rebooting more frequently, at least a couple of times a week will help with general overall performance.


It would help to limit the apps that are launched at startup (i.e. in the User Login Items pane) and run them only when needed and close when finished.


Jun 2, 2020 11:48 AM in response to yem549

yem549 wrote:

I realize that I got the base model hard drive, could that be the issue?

Yes the 5400rpm Hard Drive in that iMac, is considerable slower than the 7200rpm Hard Drive in your old 2011 iMac.


Plus the newer macOS really runs a lot better on an SSD than an HDD.


If you have had it for less than 14 days, you can ask for a full refund. If you have had it beyond the 14 day return window, Then you might want to consider getting and running from an external USB 3.0 SSD.

My new imac is running very slow

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