Apple Restricts Hard Drive Replacements on New iMacs

[saxondale.]

What happens if the motherboard fries and it is out of warranty?!

n/m

[Stetson]

What happens if the motherboard fries and it is out of warranty?!

Pay to have it swapped out at an Apple Store or Apple authorized repair center? Not sure how easily you'd come across a for sure new iMac motherboard elsewhere.

[Boz]

This is why is always good idea to buy an Apple Care Support.

LOL.. good idea.. it's a $250 rip off for something you shouldn't need in the first place.

[bandit_liberty_rumble]

All iMacs and eMacs to date are a bitch to upgrade, none of them were unibody before so that's not the issue alone.

It actually used to be really easy to replace the HDD in an iMac G5. I would think that it'd certainly be possible to design it like that again, if upgradeability was a priority with Apple...

[benthebear]

LOL.. good idea.. it's a $250 rip off for something you shouldn't need in the first place.

It's $169 USD (what, the cost of a good hard drive?), and I'd rather pay that and have three years of coverage, instead of paying through the nose for a replacement part that I have to put in myself via suction cups and a dust free room. I didn't get Apple Care when I bought my first iMac back in 2005, and when the logic board failed in 2007, it would have cost $1,000 just to for a new logicboard. I know hard drives run a lot cheaper, but the iMac was never designed to be serviced by the user, and I have no problem having Apple do it for me. And honestly, what typical user services their HP, Dell, Viao themselves? If the disk fails after the warranty period, I'll get a new computer and use my backup to restore it. I'd rather do that then invest time and money to fix it.

I would only consider Apple Care a rip off if I paid the $169, and they refused to fix my computer that broke within it's coverage period. From my experience, it's a great service. I sold my first iPhone to a friend of mine, and he noticed that the speaker wasn't very loud. So he called up Apple, and since it was still under its initial warranty, they had a new one on his door step the next day. I know people think warranties are rip-offs, but I'm the type that gets it for my high dollar purchases (Car, HVAC, TV, etc) because paid professionals would be a lot better and faster at it than I am. It also ends up being cheaper.

[xWhiplash]

LOL.. good idea.. it's a $250 rip off for something you shouldn't need in the first place.

Yes again because the only thing apple care covers if the Hard Drive. WOW!

[Trueblue711]

To all those saying "it's by design" -- yes, it is, but it's out of complete unnecessary greed. There's NO design benefit from this except to restrict people. It doesn't make the PC perform better and it doesn't help with space.

This is a really greedy decision by Apple, because 90% of Apple users will never touch the HDD, or even think of it. It's only the tech-enthusiasts who will. Why bother some of your most loyal customers who will probably buy more of their products in the future anyway?

[TheLegendOfMart]

There is a reason, it's called design. If you have an issue with it simply don't buy an iMac and quit your whining. Nobody is forcing you to buy one. Problem solved.

I wish I could +1 multiple times.

Is that your answer to everything, you sound like a petulant child. I dont HAVE to buy one i WANTED to buy one, as a consumer i will whine all i want despite the apologists defending Apple to the death.

Just saying "its called design" isnt an excuse, they could swap it so the motherboard was mounted to the LCD and had a latch or two on the back to give you access to memory, etc.. and still have 'design' and the fact that you think its acceptable and that you should have to buy Apple Care is disgusting.

Setting aside how small a marketshare Apple has compared to Microsoft, imagine Microsoft created a branded computer and made it so you could only install Microsoft Windows, had it locked up so tight that you risk damaging it if you wanted to replace any parts and if you could strip it without breaking it had propietary connectors and hardware that on every other PC is standardised so you could only buy them from Microsoft at an over inflated price and if you wanted to skip all that and get it easily repaired you are forced to buy Microsoft warranty???

Doesnt sound so good now does it, they would get an antitrust slapped against them faster than you could say i love steve jobs.

[DeadEndAccount]

More Apple apologists, pretty sad how people will jump to Apples defense. Despite what you may think Apple doesnt care about you they only have their interests at heart. Hard Drives are user replaceable parts on pretty much every kind and make of computer out there........ except any Apple computers that is.

What I think is pathetic is when someone like yourself who runs Windows feels the need to post in the Mac section of a forum - if you're so happy with your purchase why do you feel the need to troll the Mac section and spew ignorance?

[TheLegendOfMart]

What I think is pathetic is when someone like yourself who runs Windows feels the need to post in the Mac section of a forum - if you're so happy with your purchase why do you feel the need to troll the Mac section and spew ignorance?

I see someone hasnt read the thread fully.

For the 3rd? 4th? time, i was saving up to get a Mac, i like Mac OSX, i like the hardware, i dont like Steve Jobs, i dont like Apples business practices, i dont like it when Apple makes their components propietary, i dont like the fact Apple chooses form over function.

If you wanted to spin it round.....

What i think is pathetic is when someone like yourself who runs OSX feels the need to post defending Apple against the evil Windows users - if you're so happy with your purchase why do you feel the need to defend Apple and spew ignorance?

[.Neo]

It actually used to be really easy to replace the HDD in an iMac G5. I would think that it'd certainly be possible to design it like that again, if upgradeability was a priority with Apple...

Yeah, I had the newer iMac G5 in mind. The rev A and B were relatively easy. They were also relatively less powerful, less feature packed and pretty fat compared to today's iMacs. You win some, you loose some... ;)

[Elliott]

Is that your answer to everything, you sound like a petulant child. I dont HAVE to buy one i WANTED to buy one, as a consumer i will whine all i want despite the apologists defending Apple to the death.

Just saying "its called design" isnt an excuse, they could swap it so the motherboard was mounted to the LCD and had a latch or two on the back to give you access to memory, etc.. and still have 'design' and the fact that you think its acceptable and that you should have to buy Apple Care is disgusting.

Setting aside how small a marketshare Apple has compared to Microsoft, imagine Microsoft created a branded computer and made it so you could only install Microsoft Windows, had it locked up so tight that you risk damaging it if you wanted to replace any parts and if you could strip it without breaking it had propietary connectors and hardware that on every other PC is standardised so you could only buy them from Microsoft at an over inflated price and if you wanted to skip all that and get it easily repaired you are forced to buy Microsoft warranty???

Doesnt sound so good now does it, they would get an antitrust slapped against them faster than you could say i love steve jobs.

They wouldn't get slapped with an antitrust lawsuit, because, realistically (or as realistic as you can get in your crazy, hyperbolic hypothetical situation), Microsoft probably wouldn't be enjoying 80+% of the market?and we'd probably have a lot more OS competition (which, honestly, might have been a good thing).

You're also throwing the whole thing way out of proportion. Design decisions to slim down products have consequences. Get over yourself. If you want Apple to make the machine fatter by adding extra space for antennas, mounting brackets, etc. so that you can **** around inside the machine as you please then send them feedback, but calling them totalitarian is ridiculous.

[.Neo]

Is that your answer to everything, you sound like a petulant child. I dont HAVE to buy one i WANTED to buy one, as a consumer i will whine all i want despite the apologists defending Apple to the death.

Just saying "its called design" isnt an excuse, they could swap it so the motherboard was mounted to the LCD and had a latch or two on the back to give you access to memory, etc.. and still have 'design' and the fact that you think its acceptable and that you should have to buy Apple Care is disgusting.

Again, read the thread: For the last time I don't agree at all with this change, but continuously complaining about it here isn't constructive either. Adding latches and whatnot isn't Apple's style and you know it. Of course it's technically possible, I'm not disputing that, but it would have an impact on the minimalistic style of the product. At this point you sound like a spoiled kid who doesn't get his way, blowing the whole thing out of proportion. If you can't deal with the changes being made you'll have to look for a different computer, simple as that. We've established by now the iMac isn't for you, others simply don't care as much about the issues you have with Apple's design. Nobody here, myself included, can help you with your problem. Time to move on and look for a different Mac/PC or suck it up.

[vladmphoto]

This is why is always good idea to buy an Apple Care Support.

OR maybe buying into a different brand would be a cheaper and less angering alternative. I don't think I will give Apple anymore of my money. They keep creating business opportunities for themselves at the expense of my wallet and I am sick of playing this stupid game. I am going to buy into a serious company from now on that has a solid business model instead of the Apple model of pinching money from every possible angle. I want to be able to replace my own battery in devices and now HDD's etc. They build computers that are intended to be kept at most 2 years and then they expect you to buy a new one well I have learned my lesson with my MacBook Pro. Adios!

Your post really shows the kind of mentality that Apple thrives on. Oh you can't do it yourself anymore BUT if you spend $200 on warranty you could have US do it for you. ALl you have to do is lug that heavy iMac down to the Apple store, hold onto the heavy thing while waiting for the 10 customers ahead of you who are incapable of syncing their iPod to iTunes and are taking forever and then in a few hours it will be done. BUT oh wait, if you simply want an upgrade then pay us 400$ for the 160GB drive and we'll install it for you............................OR you could allow us to do it ourselves in 5 mins., in the comfort of our own homes with a 2TB HDD which costs 100$

[bob_c_b]

hmm, I'm okay with it, but AppleCare is an amazing experience for most people and 99% of customers won't ever open their iMac. Almost all the people ranting about this aren't Apple owners anyway.

[.Neo]

LOL.. good idea.. it's a $250 rip off for something you shouldn't need in the first place.

AppleCare Protection Plan for the iMac costs $169, even less with an educational discount. Check your facts next time.