It would seem that the new design given to the iMac range makes it far more difficult for the end user to complete repairs themselves.
iFixit, known for their repair guides and DIY walk throughs are quoted as deeming DIY repairs on the new slimline models as “an exercise in disappointment”.
iFixit actually recommend potential purchasers of the new iMac to get the previous 2011 model should they be looking to complete DIY jobs on their machine.
“Hackers, tinkerers, and repairers be forewarned: Get last year’s model if you’d like to alter your machine in any
Compared to the 2011 models which achieved a 7 out of 10 for DIY friendlyness, it comes as no surprise to me that the more compact, neater, and slimline versions of the desktop would be harder to repair from home given it’s almost mystical Narnia style design which left me questioning where they were hiding everything.
The new iMacs have been given a score similar to their mobile brother and sister, the 15 and 13 inch retina display macbook pro’s which earnt a 1 and 2 respectively, the 15 inch model being dubbed “the least repairable laptop we’ve taken apart” by iFixit earlier this year.
The low score is some what down to the change from magnets to “incredibly strong” adhesive that holds the glass and LCD panel to the main body of the machine.
With older models, RAM is easy to change / replace. Easier than most PC’s on the market. A small metal grate under the machine with two screws covers the access panel where RAM can easily be added or removed. With the new 21.5″ model, the RAM is located, for some reason, under the logic board which means that owners must “take apart most of the iMac just to gain access” says iFixit.
This decision to move the location of the RAM is beyond me. I understand that Apple would much rather customers upgraded RAM from the stock 8gig shipping with new machines to 16 for obvious cost reason, but preventing users from upgrading themselves is surely a step to far.
The 27 inch version of the new models (not yet shipping) will continue to support the 4 RAM bays under the display previously mentioned so Apple’s choice is obviously that of size limitations, but until it’s explained to me I’ll be unsure of why the position of the RAM would cause a problem on the smaller machine.
Older 21.5-in. iMacs had four external RAM slots that were easily accessed by users.
iFixit spotted several other changes to the iMac, including a larger, single fan rather than several smaller fans; dual microphones, likely a noise cancellation move for FaceTime video calls; and a vibration-dampening housing around the laptop-sized 2.5-in. hard disk drive.
The teardown also shows where the “Fusion Drive” is stored. This drive is a combination of a 128gb solid state drive and a standard platter-based hard drive.
As most Apple users would admit, I always wanted an iMac partly for the design, but I’m not too keen on the new design. I’m really not a fan of losing the CD/DVD drive…or at least not right now. I’m from a place where the internet isn’t THAT fast and relying on the internet for software downloads isn’t a viable option for a lot of people. Plus, when did burning CDs become so unpopular ?
The post iFixit Gives iMac 3 out of 10 for DIY Repairs appeared first on Considering Apple.