should I buy an M1 iMac?

Alan Blair wrote:

Sorry if I did not select the correct group but this is a before-the-sale question and has nothing to do with any of my current Apple machines.

I am giving some serious thought about moth-balling my very old Early 2009 24" iMac and buying an Apple-refurbished M1 21.5" iMac. The Apple-refirbushed machines that I am looking at have been given the OK by some of the sharpest tools in the shed at Apple and I have never gone wrong buying from Apple.

I have read everything that I can find about this M1 architecture but get more confused the more I read. I am basically concerned with the compatibility of the software that I have and if they (software) will seamlessly work with this M1 architecture. In the past, I have encountered, after an OS X upgrade, some incompatible programs as detailed by the newly-installed OS X. Should I be concerned?

Any suggestions?

Migration from Older version of macOS to a Virginal and Pristine Installation of Monterey can badly pollute the New Computer.

This can also bring over whatever issues / problems existed on the Older Version of macOS to the new Apple Computer.

Add to this, migrating from Intel Based Apple Computer to Apple Silicon M1 Computer should be reason enough to be very cautious.

Applications that work in older versions of macOS do not automatically translate as functioning on Monterey and especially on the Apple Silicon computer.

IMHO - it is better to install the Applications Directly from the Developersof the Applications - predicated on the user verifying the Applications as M1 Apple Silicon and Monterey compatible.

Welcome and Thank you too.

Do come back to the ASC Forums, in the future, if / or when additional question may arise

To add additional information - is is reasonable to believe Apple will at some time bring out a Larger iMac or something along those lines at sometime in the future. Just when ? Only apple knowns that timeline

If one what to check for anything less than 64 Bit Applications - Go64 is a good start

Monterey on the M1 Macs run fine for most but remember that all your old 32bit apps will no longer function so you may need to find 64bit replacements from the supplier or replace by another supplier. I have two M1 Macs and one iMac Intel all running Monterey and no major issues. You will also find that your new Mac runs much faster than your current model.

Apple silicon has been around for over a solid year for developers to update their respective apps.

I waited a year and the smoothness of the system is unbelievable.

When you are ready, go for it. 😉

Old 32-bit apps and (in practice) Windows do not work. Check your mission critical apps and upgrade if they are OK or can be updated.