What used Mac do you recommend for me?

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Hello all, I'm hoping your expertise can help me make suitable Mac purchase. I much appreciate you reading and any input.

- What I computer I have now:
Last year (2021), I thought because I only use for email and updating our website and printing shipping labels for our business I would get a deal so I got a iMac (21.5-inch, Mid 2011) for $400, Processor: 2.8 GHz Intel Core i7, graphics AMD Radeon HD 6770M 512 MB. Big mistake I think now.

- The problem iMac:
The guy I got it from has a FB tech support business and put OS Mojave 10.14.6 (18G103). It is terribly slow and glitchy. I spent $200 on upgrading the memory from 1333 MHz DDR3 4x2GB to 4x8GB and this did speed it up a little. I'm only using 25GB of 1 TB of space. Guy thought it was running slow because our wifi is 50ft away and im in a log building and don't have the ability to hardwire in now. Safari is the only browser that is usable (chrome etc is inchworm slow) but now Safari is asking me for an update but I can't perform it with Mojave and there is no update to the next OS. The tech guy who sold it to me said I could bring it in and he would take off OS and put on a newer OS but he's 1 hr away. Can an old computer even take newer OS, won't it get bogged down? (sorry super non technical language, iI don't have the technical knowledge). Anyways it's just too much maintenance and time for me. So I'm wanting to get out of this mistake and buy something newer/faster that can update/last for a few years, ideally 5 years but really have no idea how to choose the next one. Would you like to help?


- What Mac should I get?
I have the budget to spend $500-$1000 on a preferably used Mac. I don't want to make the same mistake of buying an old Mac thinking it would be reasonable speed and finding out it's a dinausor.

Question: Could I just connect my 2011, 21 inch iMac to this https://www.amazon.ca/2020-Apple-M1...9Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=
 
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Hello all, I'm hoping your expertise can help me make suitable Mac purchase. I much appreciate you reading and any input.

- What I computer I have now:
Last year (2021), I thought because I only use for email and updating our website and printing shipping labels for our business I would get a deal so I got a iMac (21.5-inch, Mid 2011) for $400, Processor: 2.8 GHz Intel Core i7, graphics AMD Radeon HD 6770M 512 MB. Big mistake I think now.

- The problem iMac:
The guy I got it from has a FB tech support business and put OS Mojave 10.14.6 (18G103). It is terribly slow and glitchy. I spent $200 on upgrading the memory from 1333 MHz DDR3 4x2GB to 4x8GB and this did speed it up a little. I'm only using 25GB of 1 TB of space. Guy thought it was running slow because our wifi is 50ft away and im in a log building and don't have the ability to hardwire in now. Safari is the only browser that is usable (chrome etc is inchworm slow) but now Safari is asking me for an update but I can't perform it with Mojave and there is no update to the next OS. The tech guy who sold it to me said I could bring it in and he would take off OS and put on a newer OS but he's 1 hr away. Can an old computer even take newer OS, won't it get bogged down? (sorry super non technical language, iI don't have the technical knowledge). Anyways it's just too much maintenance and time for me. So I'm wanting to get out of this mistake and buy something newer/faster that can update/last for a few years, ideally 5 years but really have no idea how to choose the next one. Would you like to help?


- What Mac should I get?
I have the budget to spend $500-$1000 on a preferably used Mac. I don't want to make the same mistake of buying an old Mac thinking it would be reasonable speed and finding out it's a dinausor.

Question: Could I just connect my 2011, 21 inch iMac to this https://www.amazon.ca/2020-Apple-M1-chip-8‑Core-256GB/dp/B08N6GDF4D/ref=sr_1_4_sspa?crid=22Z2CQMF4DTVA&keywords=imac&qid=1662052073&sprefix=imac,aps,167&sr=8-4-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzUE40UTFNTFpSRlpEJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNzMyNjQ0Mk45TzJYRURGQUQwSiZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNjQyNzEwM1REMTVYNUdHRFlVNSZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=
I’m assuming your question regarding connecting the old iMac to the M1 Mac mini is regarding using the screen of the iMac for the mini’s display. Yes, there are methods for doing this, and probably most, if not all, of your problems with speed, hardware and network, will be solved this way. The only caveat with the sub-$1,000 M1 Mac mini is storage. The internal SSD is not upgradeable, and 256 gigabytes is way too small. I suggest investing in the half-terabyte model. 8 gibibytes of memory will be more than sufficient for the purposes you describe.
 
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I’m assuming your question regarding connecting the old iMac to the M1 Mac mini is regarding using the screen of the iMac for the mini’s display. Yes, there are methods for doing this, and probably most, if not all, of your problems with speed, hardware and network, will be solved this way. The only caveat with the sub-$1,000 M1 Mac mini is storage. The internal SSD is not upgradeable, and 256 gigabytes is way too small. I suggest investing in the half-terabyte model. 8 gibibytes of memory will be more than sufficient for the purposes you describe.
That's correct Tony, I was looking at connecting old Mac to M1 Mac mini. I thought the $800 CAD price was good but you are right that the 256 gigabytes is likely too small. So you suggest the 1/2 terabyte model, thanks! And good to know 8gb is enough you think. I am reading people have issues with connecting screen and it flickering. Not sure if this issue has been resolve with new updates...

About connecting M1 Mac mini 2020 to mid-2011 21.5 iMac as a display, you mentioned there are methods for doing this but after a little more research it seems I have learned that it's unlikely I would be able, given my low technical skill, to do this. Unless you have some simple straightforward way? I don't know how to fix or do any software upgrades. I'm basing my understanding on this conversation with similar question https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...c-as-a-monitor-for-my-newer-mac-mini.2344271/

- Otherwise, do you (anyone else is welcome to chime in) know of any other laptop or desktop Macs, used, that would be suitable for my light/medium office needs (several browser tabs open, some photo editing, printing shipping labels, playing music). I much appreciate your help! - Louise
 
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That's correct Tony, I was looking at connecting old Mac to M1 Mac mini. I thought the $800 CAD price was good but you are right that the 256 gigabytes is likely too small. So you suggest the 1/2 terabyte model, thanks! And good to know 8gb is enough you think. I am reading people have issues with connecting screen and it flickering. Not sure if this issue has been resolve with new updates...

About connecting M1 Mac mini 2020 to mid-2011 21.5 iMac as a display, you mentioned there are methods for doing this but after a little more research it seems I have learned that it's unlikely I would be able, given my low technical skill, to do this. Unless you have some simple straightforward way? I don't know how to fix or do any software upgrades. I'm basing my understanding on this conversation with similar question https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...c-as-a-monitor-for-my-newer-mac-mini.2344271/

- Otherwise, do you (anyone else is welcome to chime in) know of any other laptop or desktop Macs, used, that would be suitable for my light/medium office needs (several browser tabs open, some photo editing, printing shipping labels, playing music). I much appreciate your help! - Louise
Louise, I don’t wish to overwhelm you by adding more and more to your shopping list but, as they say, you get what you pay for. If you need portability, one of the silicon MacBooks would be good, especially the M2 MacBook Air. But if you don’t have to pay the premium for portability, then the M1 mini would still be your best bet. My research showed that there was little gain in adding more memory so just think about the added storage.

I seriously considered the M1 Mac mini to replace my intel Mac mini which was giving me a lot of grief, but decided to go with the M1 Max Mac Studio with upgrades that totaled more than $4,000. At least I already had a dual-monitor setup. For you I would recommend, with the M1 Mac mini, the LG 27GL83A-B 27" monitor, available from Amazon below $300. That would be my first choice but I already have two 32" LG monitors. Surely, the hassle and drawbacks of trying to adapt the old iMac as a monitor will not be worth it. Cheers!
 

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