OWC: Replacing main hard drive with third-party is not an option in new iMacs

I don't get this "if I buy it, I should be able to change it however I want" line. Where does that "right" come from? Which of the things you own can you upgrade yourself? Have you replaced the 720p panel in your television with a nice 1080p panel? Have you trotted down to Napa auto parts to swap out the engine in your car yourself? Have you perhaps replaced the burners in your furnace with bigger ones that pump out some extra BTUs? The laser unit in your Blu-Ray player?

Er, no. The iMac is a consumer electronics device. Computing's roots in hobbyist circles and the continued availability of models that are easy to upgrade does not mean every computer should continue to be "upgrade friendly." And you certainly aren't being denied anything you paid for because you can't swap out internal parts at your whim.

What's even crazier is we're even having this conversation when Apple has provided several very convenient, DIY ways to use storage devices other than the one they've "locked" to their hardware.

Sheesh.

This isnt new.

The 21.5& 27 imacs use the onboard temp sensor of the HDD.

You just need to use the same make drive as you removed OR

ORder the proper temp sensor cable for your brand of HDD OR use the temp sensor jumper cable.

The articles opinion on apple care does not factor in that you are able to buy apple care after the fact. The article should be rewritten to say "you have three years AFTER the hard drive fails"

Already proven false !!!!!

Standard connector. Any drive works fine except for fan control.

FUD FUD FUD

This story has already been proven wrong so quit your whinig everyone! Check out Mac forums for proof and TUAW you should post an update immediately!

My initial reaction was disdain for Apple, but after a few hours, I'm thinking, how exactly do you open up the iMac to swap the hard drive?

And if you don't have someone you trust who you know won't break your iMac for that lower cost HDD upgrade option, then I really do think its better to let Apple handle it.

But in the end I'm still going to say Apple should make an easy pop open cover for people to do these things.

I mean swapping hard drives isn't rocket science, it could be done if they really really anally wanted to as much as they really really anally wanted keep the enclosure as a single piece.

Well I criticize Microsoft for using a standard 2.5" hard drive in the xbox 360, but instead of using a stock firmware drive they put their own firmware on it just for the sake of forcing people to buy the microsoft branded drive (for $150 instead of $30). If this is truly a firmware issue, which I doubt, then a replacement drive can be flashed with Apple firmware just like a stock (specific model number) hard drive can be flashed to work on a 360. It's more than like just like the previous 2 generations of iMacs though, using the hard drive's internal temp sensor as opposed to Apple gluing one to the outside of it. If your iMac came with a Western Digital hard drive in it and you wanted to replace it with a respectable hard drive instead, you'd have to source the Seagate-specific cable.

On the other hand, just boot off of a Thunderbolt drive in the future. It's 3.3334x faster than 3G SATA anyway!

Someone will find a way to make this work, if my G4 Cube can have a GeForce 6200 video card then a 2011 can have a new hard drive. Perhaps something along the lines of an external temp sensor probed into the cable to give it a reading within spec to prevent the fans from getting angry. Anything's possible.

Well I criticize Microsoft for using a standard 2.5" hard drive in the xbox 360, but instead of using a stock firmware drive they put their own firmware on it just for the sake of forcing people to buy the microsoft branded drive (for $150 instead of $30). If this is truly a firmware issue, which I doubt, then a replacement drive can be flashed with Apple firmware just like a stock (specific model number) hard drive can be flashed to work on a 360. It's more than like just like the previous 2 generations of iMacs though, using the hard drive's internal temp sensor as opposed to Apple gluing one to the outside of it. If your iMac came with a Western Digital hard drive in it and you wanted to replace it with a respectable hard drive instead, you'd have to source the Seagate-specific cable.

On the other hand, just boot off of a Thunderbolt drive in the future. It's 3.3334x faster than 3G SATA anyway!

Someone will find a way to make this work, if my G4 Cube can have a GeForce 6200 video card then a 2011 can have a new hard drive. Perhaps something along the lines of an external temp sensor probed into the cable to give it a reading within spec to prevent the fans from getting angry. Anything's possible.

At first I thought, "That's crap. You should be able to swap the HDD."

Then I remembered, "I don't build computers anymore." Since I got Macs I don't even fix computers.

Since I got a kid I don't do much of anything.

So now I just don't care what they do, as long as it works and I don't have to f--- around with it.

This had better be a bug. I was about to buy a new iMac till I read this. I guess I will wait until something comes out about it.