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RIP: My 2012 iMac hard drive has died

I have a 2012 27” iMac with 1G memory. Apple stores tells me they don’t make the disk drives for these models anymore. I called around to some locale repair shops and they said they can replace the HD with a compatible one for around $500. Should I get this HD replaced? What is the replacement for this HD? Or should I just scrap this idea and buy a new computer? This computer looks new so it would be a shame to just recycle it at the Apple Store.

Posted on Aug 9, 2023 10:28 AM

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Posted on Aug 9, 2023 11:53 AM

One great source for replacement drives is OWC (aka Mac Sales). The following link should get you started:


OWC has both a great support staff to take you through drive selection and the actual installation process ... which, on an iMac, is a bit tricky.


So, you may want to consider that vs. the real value of keeping this older Mac.


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Aug 9, 2023 11:53 AM in response to BritanniaGold

One great source for replacement drives is OWC (aka Mac Sales). The following link should get you started:


OWC has both a great support staff to take you through drive selection and the actual installation process ... which, on an iMac, is a bit tricky.


So, you may want to consider that vs. the real value of keeping this older Mac.


Aug 9, 2023 4:27 PM in response to Rudegar

I believe that a 27" Late 2012 iMac will accept a 3.5" SATA hard drive – or a 2.5" SATA SSD (with an adapter). But it may be necessary to purchase a temperature sensor (about $38 from OWC) to prevent the iMac from cranking up its fans full-blast all of the time.


https://eshop.macsales.com/item/OWC/DIDIMACHDD12/


Replacing the internal hard drive is a very intricate process, so I would suggest leaving this to a repair shop.


[Edited by Moderator]

Aug 9, 2023 4:38 PM in response to BritanniaGold

If you do go to the trouble and expense of installing a new internal drive, I would suggest getting a SSD. Having a SSD as your startup disk will greatly reduce startup (from power off) and application launch times.


Looking at MacTracker and the OWC site, it appears that your Mac will accept internal "blade" SSDs. Possibly you could have both an internal "blade" SSD (for a startup drive) and an internal 3.5" HDD (for bulk storage).

https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/ssd/owc/imac-27-inch/2012


RIP: My 2012 iMac hard drive has died

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