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Buy new 21,5'' iMac

Good evening, I have to buy an iMac 21.5'' and I am undecided between the one with the 1.6 GHz Intel Core i5 dual-core processor and the one with the 2.8GHz Intel Core i5 quad-core processor.

I don't play games and I don't do multimedia editing (images and videos); so my use of it will be programming, surf on internet, watch videos, listen music and other things like that.

In any case for storage I will choose the 1 TB Fusion Drive.

Which model do you recommend to me?

iMac, null

Posted on Apr 28, 2016 10:55 AM

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17 replies

Apr 28, 2016 11:23 AM in response to Pez_93

I personally love quad-core processors when it comes to programming. The extra processors allow music streaming and web research to continue without issue while I am compiling code or transferring files in the background. In contrast the old Core 2 Duo I used before would suffer noticeable performance issues if I tried to continue normal use while compiling larger projects.

Apr 28, 2016 11:33 AM in response to Pez_93

Pez_93 wrote:


8 GB of RAM are not enough?

I see that the display is a sRGB 1920x1080 IPS, is a good display?

I had a MacBook Air and I switched to MacBook Pro because the Air model have a poorly defined display, and I wouldn't that even this display is poorly defined.


8GB may be enough for now now, but hopefully you'll have this Mac for many years and many system updates. As far as Retina, I don't see the difference myself.

May 2, 2016 7:57 AM in response to Pez_93

Yes, it should serve you well. The reason I suggest more RAM is that with each system upgrade, it seems to require more RAM.Also programming can be very memory intensive. But no worries, you can always install more RAM later. Also, I wouldn't suggest having Apple add more RAM because that's expensive. On iMac RAM slots are very accessible and you can check these vendors. Use the advisory tool in Crucial, or OWC. As far as resolution, I'd suggest higher res if you were doing desktop publishing, or something like that.

May 2, 2016 8:52 AM in response to Pez_93

Actually the RAM is no longer user upgradeable on the 21.5" i-Mac. It is on the 27" i-Mac. I have a 21.5" i-Mac that I purchased in the fall of 2010 and it is still running fine (although I have nearly worn the characters off the USB keyboard I bought at the same time). I was fortunate to have a model old enough to still be user upgradeable and am now running 12 GB of RAM. After all this time the i-Mac still looks new (except for the keyboard).

May 2, 2016 9:39 AM in response to Pez_93

Invest a little more now to forstall issues later. On the 21.5 always max out the RAM because you wont be able to upgrade later and since you're getting the
Fusion drive this is BTO and you have to wait for it to be built.

I'm facing a similar dilemma in replacing a 2008 iMac. I decided to get the mid level 27" iMac for the Fusion drive, upgradable memory and a dedicated GPU (graphics). The smaller iMacs use the Intel chipset that draws power from the CPU and memory from your total RAM. Another reason to max out the RAM.

Hope this helps

Buy new 21,5'' iMac

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