I have an iMac 21.5-inch, Mid 2011 i5 and have been told the Max memory is 16Gb..
However mine has 20Gb running fine?!
Your Mac contains 4 memory slots, each of which accepts
a 1333 MHz DDR3 memory module. 2 x 8Gb, 2 x 2Gb.
However when I do an online memory check, to see what i can upgrade, it says it will go to 32Gb 1333 MHz DDR3 memory??
Does anyone know which is correct for this model so i dont buy any memory that is incompatible?
Your iMac will actually run with 32 Gb of compatible ram. 16Gb is Apple's original spec which never changes as higher capacity ram chips become available and are tested with that specific model. Compatible ram can be purchased from OWC https://eshop.macsales.com/ or Crucial http://www.crucial.com/ Other brands, especially anything marked as "value" won't meet spec and will result in your iMac having kernel panics.
Mike is spot on… Apple never updates the RAM specs if bigger modules become available after introduction.
| Standard RAM: | 4 GB | Maximum RAM: | 32 GB* |
| Details: | By default, 4 GB of RAM is installed as two 2 GB SO-DIMM modules. Two slots free. *Officially, this model supports four 4 GB modules -- one in each slot for a maximum of 16 GB of memory. However, third-parties have discovered that it actually will support 32 GB of memory using four 8 GB modules. In the US (and many other countries), site sponsor Other World Computing sells memory -- as well as other upgrades -- for this iMac. In the UK, site sponsor Flexx sells memory and other upgrades for this iMac. In Australia, site sponsor RamCity sells memory and other upgrades for this iMac. In Southeast Asia, site sponsor SimplyMac.sg sells memory and other upgrades for this iMac. |
Thank you for the replies!
So my iMac would use the full 32Gb if i installed it? It currently has 20Gb (how I bought it) so it obviously can go over the specified 16Gb limit. I think Crucial.com would be where i get it from, as they have now clarified the same..
I was thinking of getting a new iMac, which I suppose will be faster but as mine is an i5 but with 32Gb memory and a reformat, i'm hoping mine will still have some poke in it compared to selling and re-buying a newer machine?
So my iMac would use the full 32Gb if i installed it?
Yes.
iMac 2011 21.5" Max Memory? conflicting advice
