Last summer, I bought a new (2011-era) iMac to replace one from early 2008.
I have 2gb of aftermarket RAM in the older computer. Would that be compatible with the newer iMac, so I could just transfer the memory? (I'm finding the new Mac slow with the built-in 4gb.)
iMac, Mac OS X (10.7), mid-2011 i5
Most likely not - you need to look up your model identifier in both machines and then look up the specs for the RAM for both to make sure. This is a good place to look up your model identifier:
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/apple/memory/iMac
(how to find model ID)
Aside from that, the new iMac has 4 slots; it should have 2 x 2 GB matched horizontally and you should add a matched kit in the other two slots. I have 12 GB total (added 2 x 4 GB) which works well with Lion and Mountain Lion (both a memory hogs).
Most likely not - you need to look up your model identifier in both machines and then look up the specs for the RAM for both to make sure. This is a good place to look up your model identifier:
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/apple/memory/iMac
(how to find model ID)
Aside from that, the new iMac has 4 slots; it should have 2 x 2 GB matched horizontally and you should add a matched kit in the other two slots. I have 12 GB total (added 2 x 4 GB) which works well with Lion and Mountain Lion (both a memory hogs).
CTS wrote:
... I have 2gb of aftermarket RAM in the older computer. Would that be compatible with the newer iMac, so I could just transfer the memory?
No.
No, you can't use memory from your older iMac, as your early 2008 iMac used DDR2 memory and your 2011 iMac uses DDR3 memory.
I installed another 4GB (2 x 2GB) in my mid-2011 iMac, and can see where the system uses >4GB. For what I run, 8GB works fine. I bought Samsung memory from OWC to match what was shipped with my system. A 2GB Samsung memory card is $17, and Crucial is $15.
compatibility of RAM, 2008-2011
