It didn’t take long for someone to do a tear down of the new entry-level 21.5-inch iMac, and lovers of do it yourself upgrades are not going to like what’s inside Apple’s cheapest iMac.
In a follow-up to its teardown of Apple’s latest iMac model, Mac reseller Other World Computing found the $1,099 machine comes with soldered-on memory, meaning users are stuck with the 8GB of RAM installed at the factory.
The Online Apple Store does hint that the entry-level machine isn’t upgradeable when it comes to memory, saying the budget iMac comes with “8GB memory.” Other iMac models are listed as containing “8GB (two 4GB) memory,” referring to two 4GB DIMMs.
Although you can’t upgrade the memory, Apple does give you upgrade options for hard drives at the time of purchase, as you can upgrade the iMac’s 500GB HD with a 1TB spinner for and extra $50, and if you have $250 to spare, that’ll net you a 1TB Fusion Drive, or 250GB SSD.
It is clear that Apple’s newest $1,099 iMac is aimed at the penny-pinching set, while attempting to prevent cannibalization of the sales of Apple’s higher-end iMacs. However, if a potential buyer can get his hands on another $200, he’ll find he has a much more capable machine in the iMac model that is one step up from the new entry-level iMac.
(Photo Courtesy – OWC)
