Filed under: Desktops, Hacks, iMac
Putting an SSD upgrade in a 24" iMac
SSDs, or solid-state drives, are all the rage in portables these days. They come in MacBook Pros and MacBook Airs directly from Apple (with the appropriate upgrades, of course), and we've seen people upgrade their old-school mechanical drives, hack in a second drive to take advantage of the speed of a shiny new SSD, oreven put one in an AppleTV. Desktop computers are usually left out of the solid-state love-fest. After all, 3.5" drives are usually less expensive than a 2.5" drive of a similar capacity, and desktop machines are less prone to damage to the disk since they are usually stationary when running.
However, there are times when a solid-state upgrade to a desktop machine makes sense. For Jason Siebert, this was one of those times. When the drive on his 24" iMac started showing the tell-tale signs of a drive on the brink of death, he decided to tear the machine apart and throw in a smaller & faster SSD, and use his Drobo for external storage. Installation was simple for the most part, but some adjustments had to be made to allow for installing a 2.5" drive in the space of a 3.5" drive, and some finagling of the drive due to a too-short SATA cable.
The result is a pretty satisfying speed increase when it comes to opening up applications, and especially when running a virtual machine. Check out the installation instructions and first impressions on Jason's website.
Any upgrades like this should be performed only by skilled users, and of course it
![TUAW [Cafepress]](http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.tuaw.com/media/tuaw-cafepress-promo.png)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Matt Henderson said 9:03AM on 11-02-2009
I've recently upgraded my MacBook with an SSD, and found it to be the most amazing upgrade I've ever made. I wrote about it here:
http://bit.ly/3chz8z
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KP said 9:24AM on 11-02-2009
I'm currently waiting for delivery of a new 7,200rpm drive for my Macbook Pro. I will try to enjoy my new purchase and not think about how this guy is having more fun with his SSD.
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Seth said 9:57AM on 11-02-2009
I use high-performance SSD's in all of my systems now, will never go back.
I really want the new iMac, but I hate the inability to upgrade the video and the hassle and warranty issues of swapping the hard drive.
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Nerual said 10:18AM on 11-02-2009
I know you say at the end this MAY void your warranty, but reality is this WILL void your warranty, not something I'd recommend for anyone who still has a warranty on their machine....
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CHRiS said 10:32AM on 11-02-2009
and if you purchased the extended applecare, be sure to just call them up and cancel it for a pro rated refund. There is NO sense in paying for a warranty you will not be able to use.
Joseph said 12:32PM on 11-02-2009
can it be that Car people are more knowledgeable about the law than computer people?
Check out the magnusson moss warranty act. I am sure there are computer implications.
Basically, all you would be voiding is the "systems" connected to the part you changed. So the hard drive and maybe the sata cable?
THJ said 9:22AM on 11-11-2009
Couldn't one just reverse the process and put the original drive back in, or do you have to break a 'warranty void if this sticker is not intact' sticker to get at the HDD?
junior said 11:57AM on 11-02-2009
upgrading your HDD voids the warranty in iMacs?
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Toby said 1:05PM on 11-02-2009
The real question is - why isn't this offered as an upgrade option for the new iMacs?
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