Buying a new iMac with a small SSD

[Howard Brazee]

I'm planning on buying a replacement for my 2013 27" iMac. I saw a suggestion that the most cost-effective way to do this is to buy a 256G SSD with an external drive for my data. External drives also are easier to replace with larger ones should I need more space.

I'm waiting to see what the new models offer, including costs. My wife's 2017 27" iMac uses over 1TB, but I'm only using 3/4 of a TB. I have 3rd party 16GB of memory which I plan to move from my old computer. I also have a 1TB LaCie SSD drive which I boot to whenever I need Mojave. My Time Machine is on a 4TB drive (I recently dropped my old Time Machine so this is a new replacement). It seems to take as long to boot to my SSD than to my Fusion drive. It is plugged into USB 3.0 (although I did boot it once on my wife's Thunderbolt 3, and it seemed to take just as long).

How hard is it to move data to an external drive? Should I buy the external drive now, and move my data off or wait until I got my new computer? Should I buy a 2TB SSD for my external drive?

Looking for advice.

 

[Elmo A]

Carry on! All the best!

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hello again,

I guess it depends on what data you want to reside on the external. macOS and applications need to remain on the startup drive. You can store your documents, iTunes, and Photos libraries on an external.

Depending on the new iMac model, the RAM may not be compatible. Your 2013 iMac uses PC3-12800, which is only compatible with iMacs through 2014. Your wife's iMac uses PC4-19200, and the newest/current models use PC4-21300.

Whatever configuration/capacity external you buy, make sure you have another for Time Machine or other backup. Size depends on how much data you currently have and how much you may add in the near future.

C

 

[Howard Brazee]

Shoot, I was hoping that RAM would have solved a performance issue without being only a temporary expenditure. I didn't notice any difference with it. At least I didn't spend Apple prices for it. My Time Machine backup will remain my Time Machine backup.