New iMac - 1TB or 2TB and maybe SSD?

Hi,

Lucky you getting the iMac payed for you!

Are you going to be storing a lot of photos, movies, music etc...?

If so, perhaps you should opt for the 2TB hard drive. If not, the 1TB should be perfect. I have had my iMac 2 years, it has a 650GB and I still have 485GB free!

As for the SSD, I would love to get one. So if you considering one, get it! They are amazing fast and I would certainly have one as my boot option any day!

If it was me, I would go for the 1TB + the SSD. But if the price difference isn't much, perhaps you could choose the 2TB as your company is paying for you and you get that extra bit of storage!

Hope this helps you decide!

Chris.

Sorry,

I forgot to add, I doubt that the 2TB hard drive would be any more prone to hardware failure than the 1TB hard drive. But you may be right, although having a look around on the internet, I haven't seen many people saying that a bigger hard drive is guaranteed to give way before a smaller hard drive.

Just remember, a terabyte is massive on its own!

Chris.

Hi,

I believe that the speed of the 2TB hard drive would be exactly the same as the 1TB hard drive.

I'm just curious, but why would you want to upgrade the size of the hard drive in your computer anyway? The 2TB hard drive (even the 1TB) could easily hold all your files. And with regards to the SSD, it is just holding your Operating System, which takes up about 15GB. So you would still have plenty of room left on the SSD.

With regards to the internal hard drive upgrade, I'm more than positive it voids your warranty, so do this tweaking off your own back! Same goes for the SSD I'm sure. If you can get an Apple Approved Service Centre to do the work for you, happy days! It should void your warranty because it is classified as "unauthorised tweaking." Just letting you know in advance!

But just be careful tweaking inside the iMac. However, saying that, changing the hard drive is a very easy process, same goes for the SSD. (BUT IT MORE THAN LIKELY VOIDS YOUR WARRANTY!) If you really want to know if it will void your warranty, you should email Apple personally. If you get an answer back saying it's fine, then go ahead, and if the computer should ever become faulty, at least you have proof of the go ahead!

To answer your question, the only user changeable part of the iMac Apple intends is the RAM because it is so easy and this doesn't void your warranty. Just be sure to check that the RAM is compatible with the iMac. Also, perhaps you should order standard RAM off Apple and upgrade outside, as the RAM from Apple's website is slightly dearer than where you can get it elsewhere. However, saying that, if you wish to have it done professionally and know your getting the correct RAM for your computer, I would go for the Apple RAM out of peace of mind.

Hope this helps you to decide what way to go.

Chris.

You don’t specify if your company has given you a budget to live within. If you have no budget limitations, then the 1 or 2 TB with SSD will be a great performance machine. If the SSD is beyond the budget, I recommend the 2 TB option for maximum growth and flexibility.

There are somethings worth noting about Apple's drive technology in the new iMacs, SSD and mechanical variety.

MacPerformance Blog

Normally I would get minimum configuration and upgrade on my own with 3rd party SSD and memory, even pull the stock hard drive into an external case and get my own 2TB drive - yes they are faster, even if you use only half.

Depending on what you do, RAM upgrades can help with graphics programs. But I would never in the past recommend buying RAM or parts from Apple when retail will do.

On the 2011 iMacs, the only user-replaceable/upgradable part is the RAM. Opening up the iMac will void the warranty.