Apple Restricts Hard Drive Replacements on New iMacs


Recommended Posts

I do not like the idea of being locked out of an upgrade, especially something like a hdd.

That being said: I would like to see the technical specifications on why they have. chosen this route.

Does the new imac get hotter, therefore require a more accurate sensor?

Is this in some way a begining to create a `lock-out`for osx86 users

Or is it that they want to capitalize on the few who may upgrade their system...

I don't know what their plan is with this, but like others said... the new system is a pain to take apart so im sure it wont affect too many users..

And those whom it does, well at least now we know and can make an informed purchasing decision.

Go for MS. Problem Solved. Period.

Microsoft dont make computers, Windows is completely different than OSX.

Try again.

This is a non issue really :/ Not many people will actually crack their iMac open to replace the HDD (it's a lot more complicated than it sounds). Just the fact that you have to remove the glass and lcd is enough to stop a lot of people (including me and I've always built my computers before going switching to OSX)

So once its out of warranty you just throw the machine away?

That analogy is failed because in the real world of computers you can replace your hard drive.

Is that true for all machines? Including laptops and other all in ones.. I personally have not found one I can't replace(a few I wish I hadn't) but I don't know I would say they all are like that...

Hmm, gonna check on those all in one hps and vaios

It depends how much you need the upgrade, my friend's parents have an iMac from 2006 they haven't upgraded because it does what they want

Its not just upgrades what if your HDD fails, you cant buy a standardised sata hdd you have to buy apples overpriced non-standard one.

  • Like 3

Microsoft dont make computers, Windows is completely different than OSX.

Try again.

So once its out of warranty you just throw the machine away?

Dude everybody knows that. But you can get customization you need which in this case is no Restriction on Hard Drive. :sleep:

So once its out of warranty you just throw the machine away?

Isn't that how it is for all things that break out of warranty?

My Dell broke last year and it was out of warranty. I couldn't figure out what's wrong so I just threw it away and bought a new PC.

Or maybe a hackintosh that destroys the iMac for specs.

This is the best solution, but you'll have some problems finding the correct drivers and stuff. :shiftyninja:

You mean that contrary to Apple's iPhone / iPod / iPad where nothings replaceable, your Android/WP7/Nokia has upgrade/replaceable inner parts which you can upgrade/replace by yourself ?

you completely missed the point, I am talking about apple products ONLY, they started the trend on not able to replace batteries in cell phones / mp3 players... I am saying watch them make all their products this way including high end lines

oh and I can put SD cards in android / windows phone and nokia cells, where's the expandable memory in the iPhone?

Thats a nice way to stereotype a large group of people, you dont have to be rich to buy something. I was saving up for a Mac but if this is the direction they are going for ill just spend it on a PC that lets me interchange parts. Or maybe a hackintosh that destroys the iMac for specs.

A hackintosh is not really comparable to an all in one :/ (unless you were planning on building an all in one....in that case I'm REALLY impressed and I want to see it ;))

Dude everybody knows that. But you can get customization you need which in this case is no Restriction on Hard Drive. :sleep:

Do you even have a clue?

So you would choose a Windows computer purely for the fact that you can change the HDD even though you were buying a Mac for OSX?????????????

A hackintosh is not really comparable to an all in one :/ (unless you were planning on building an all in one....in that case I'm REALLY impressed and I want to see it ;))

Believe it or not some people dont buy computers just for the pretty shiny cases, i want OSX and i can only legitimately get that on a Mac.

Because everybody knows you can only boot from internal drives. /s :rolleyes:

Wow really??????

If you buy USB2 you get reduced performance, if you buy a 'Thunderbolt' HDD you are paying over the odds for new technology. Wouldnt be easier just to go buy a ?40 1Tb HDD and replace it rather than a ?200 1Tb thunderbolt drive, you think it would but then this is Apple after all.

By the time your hard drive fails and your Mac is out of warranty, Thunderbolt won't be overpriced.

Really?

I had 4x 2Tb Western Digital HDDs fail within months of each other because of a Manufacturing defect and they were only 6 months old, please give me your crystal ball that will tell me which HDD will fail or not.

Really?

I had 4x 2Tb Western Digital HDDs fail within months of each other because of a Manufacturing defect and they were only 6 months old, please give me your crystal ball that will tell me which HDD will fail or not.

Hence the "and your Mac is out of warranty". Which, if you're smart and buy AppleCare, is three years.

Believe it or not some people dont buy computers just for the pretty shiny cases, i want OSX and i can only legitimately get that on a Mac.

I agree with you but it's also the reason you can't compare an iMac vs Hack directly (obviously the hack will be cheaper)

You shouldnt HAVE to buy Apple Care just to get peace of mind, so after gouging you for the cost of a machine you then have to spend another ?150 just so you arent stuck with a useless machine when it inevitably breaks. My old PC was nearly 5 years old, a part breaks and if its out of warranty i can go buy the cheapest relatively specced peice of hardware.

Its not just upgrades what if your HDD fails, you cant buy a standardised sata hdd you have to buy apples overpriced non-standard one.

What are you talking about? There's a standard Western Digital SATA HDD inside my iMac.

I agree with you but it's also the reason you can't compare an iMac vs Hack directly (obviously the hack will be cheaper)

I wasnt comparing them?

I didnt say anything about price comparison, all i said was if Apple wants to go in this direction i will take the money i was going to spend on a Mac and buy a better PC for 'iHack' i dont care about all this Aluminium Unibody crap that everyone thinks is the best thing ever.

What are you talking about? There's a default SATA HDD inside every iMac.

Did you even read the original post?

They changed the power connector to non-standard one. I was saving up for a mac so it would have been a Sandybridge one i bought......

Hence the "and your Mac is out of warranty". Which, if you're smart and buy AppleCare, is three years.

Paying ******** for warranty is smart? Ok, no comments necessary. They made this stuff right for you. They care for you.

And Macs do not break anyway, because they're pricey and that must mean quality. Or you're using it wrong.

/s

Did you even read the original post?

They changed the power connector to non-standard one. I was saving up for a mac so it would have been a Sandybridge one i bought......

Sorry, I thought I was posting in a different thread. Just saw it. That sucks... :/

Mac users don't care, so they deserve this for their ignorance.

Nice ignorance. You think all the buyers are all ignorant? You must be out of your mind. :rolleyes:

I wonder how ideas like these are thought up?

*working on the new iMac*

Engineer 1: We need ideas people! Come one!

Engineer 2: I got one. Why don't we lock down our hardware so users can't change their harddrives with others, so we can make money selling them new ones!

Engineer 1: My god! Your a genius! Steve will like this!

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Posts

    • What? They aren't removing the disc drive and charging $800 for questionable performance upgrades that are better suited to a new generation console? How outrageous!
    • Bummer it's only 1TB instead of 2. I had one of those - the "Halo Special Edition" OG Xbox. This looks like a cool update.
    • KillerPDF 1.4.3 is out.
    • Google's NotebookLM gets some useful features you may have been waiting for by Aditya Tiwari It's been three years since Google introduced its AI-powered note-taking and research app, NotebookLM. Just when Apple is about to kick off WWDC 2026, the search giant has announced a platter of new NotebookLM features that add agentic capabilities in chat and more advanced reasoning. For starters, NotebookLM now draws its fuel from Gemini 3.5 and Antigravity to improve accuracy and reliability. One of the things people have been asking for a long time is more transparency into the thinking steps. NotebookLM now shows expanded thinking steps in chat, providing better visibility into the thinking process. Google compared the upgraded NotebookLM with prior versions and found that it "achieved an average win rate of over 65% — a 15% point margin above parity — across our top five core evaluation dimensions," including accuracy & quality, multilingual support, large document analysis, document creation, and advanced research. It showed substantial improvements in analyzing large documents, achieving a 69.9% win rate. The system also delivered "exceptional performance" in advanced web research and source discovery with a 78.2% win rate. The AI research tool now generates outputs in more formats. You can give instructions to guide the outputs and download the generated files from the studio panel. Here are the newly supported formats: PNG and SVG for data visualizations and charts PDFs, docx, markdown, and text files for documents PNG, JPG, and GIF for images JSON and CSV for structured data XLSX for Microsoft Excel PPTX for Microsoft PowerPoint You can make edits after the outputs are generated. The feature is available globally; therefore, you can provide directions in one language and create outputs in another. Google said that it's also making it easier to get started with a project in NotebookLM. Instead of having a list of sources beforehand, you can even start with loose ideas, and NotebookLM can help build the repository of sources through the chat. For instance, you can find primary sources in other languages to get new perspectives or explore related works of an author. All of these new features are rolling out globally for those who can loosen up their pockets. They are available to users with Google AI Ultra and all Workspace business customers with AI Ultra access. Google has plans to expand them to more users in the future.
  • Recent Achievements

    • One Month Later
      amusc earned a badge
      One Month Later
    • One Month Later
      DJC50PLUS earned a badge
      One Month Later
    • Week One Done
      DJC50PLUS earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • Proficient
      Eric Biran went up a rank
      Proficient
    • Dedicated
      Conjor earned a badge
      Dedicated
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      504
    2. 2
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      238
    3. 3
      ATLien_0
      76
    4. 4
      Steven P.
      75
    5. 5
      +Edouard
      69
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!