Swapping Hard Drive on 2012 iMac

[theereal]

So my buddys 2012 iMac had the Hard Drive fail. The store which he bought it at told him Apple doesent supply parts to that machine anymore so its pretty much dead, which i find wierd because it just uses a standard HDD. So i went into the store and asked them if i couldnt just buy a new HDD from any company and throw that in there, and they say that MIGHT work, but that it might not "work correctly" and its not something they would recommend. To me this sounds wierd, its just a standard HDD in there so why wouldnt a replacement one work just fine?

 

So my question is: Is what they are saying just bullshit because other HDDs are not "apple recommended" or will there be issues if i just throw another standard 7200rpm HDD in there and boot up the system? I found exact replacement drives on Ebay for the 2012 iMac but theyre more expensive, like 3 times as expensive so i was wondering if it would be okay just to throw the odd WD or Seagate drive into the Mac and boot up?

 

I apologize in advance if this has been posted in the wrong sub-forum.

[Guest]

It uses a standard SATA interface for it`s drive So, any SATA HDD or SSD will work Apple is saying like that so you may buy a new computer instead of fixing your old one.

[SpookyCitrus]

Apple certified stores like that are pretty wack, the one where I live is the same way. They would much rather try to convince you to buy a whole new computer than to fix the one you have. You are correct though, what they said is just a scare tactic to try to sell a new computer. Any standard HDD or even SSD that fits should work. I've done plenty of iMac drive replacements and never had a problem. The 2012 iMacs that take standard HDDs are some of the easiest to replace. You will need to reinstall MacOS but that's pretty much it. Also before installing the drive make sure it's been setup in a Windows or Mac computer prior to install as sometimes uninitialized drives can be a pain to get MacOS installed on(sometimes they just don't show up in disk utility unless they've been initialized prior).

[tkitch]

buy an SSD and watch it get SO MUCH FASTER

[Surestgarlic2]

I once put a Xbox 360 slim hdd in a iMac it worked you can do anything if you put your mind to it lmao it is true thought.

[BondiBlue]

That's just Apple being Apple. It's a standard drive, but the original drives have temperature sensors that replacement drives don't have. So, they're not entirely wrong about it possibly not working right. You can get a thermal sensor to go with the new drive, but I'd just recommend using Macs Fan Control. It's free and does the same thing. 

 

Also, I wouldn't recommend putting a mechanical hard drive back in it. It would be much better off with an SSD. The Crucial MX500 is cheap and works very well.

 

7 minutes ago, SpookyCitrus said:

The 2012 iMacs that take standard HDDs are some of the easiest to replace.

They're not hard to replace, but the 2012 is definitely one of the hardest to open (along with all the models after 2012 as well). The 2011 was the last one that could easily be opened. 

[GuiltySpark_]

Whatever he does, don't replace it with a HDD. Absolutely use an SSD. 

 

Looks like any SATA based drive will work. A 2.5" SSD will be much smaller than the included HDD so you'll have to rig up a way to support it but that's trivial.

 

 

[SpookyCitrus]

3 minutes ago, BondiBlue said:

They're not hard to replace, but the 2012 is definitely one of the hardest to open (along with all the models after 2012 as well). The 2011 was the last one that could easily be opened. 

For a first timer it might be a little tricky, nothing a simple tutorial video can't help with, but it's really not that bad, a suction cup in the center of the glass and a slight pull, the glass comes right off it only has magnets holding it on, unscrew the display and unhook it and your good. The hardest iMacs by far to work on are the slim models introduced in 2013 that apple currently uses, the adhesive that you have to remove and replace is just a time consuming pain in the ass, plus if you don't reinstall the screen correctly it's just liable to fall out. 

[BondiBlue]

2 minutes ago, SpookyCitrus said:

For a first timer it might be a little tricky, nothing a simple tutorial video can't help with, but it's really not that bad, a suction cup in the center of the glass and a slight pull, the glass comes right off it only has magnets holding it on, unscrew the display and unhook it and your good. The hardest iMacs by far to work on are the slim models introduced in 2013 that apple currently uses, the adhesive that you have to remove and replace is just a time consuming pain in the ass, plus if you don't reinstall the screen correctly it's just liable to fall out. 

The 2011 was the last to have the display screwed in. The thin model you're talking about is the 2012 iMac. The iMac that OP is working on has the glued on display. 

[SpookyCitrus]

Just now, BondiBlue said:

The 2011 was the last to have the display screwed in. The thin model you're talking about is the 2012 iMac. The iMac that OP is working on has the glued on display. 

In late(the last week of October) 2012 the thin iMac was released(there are a few of them out there), however for a majority of the year the thick iMac models were still being sold and the thin wasn't widely adopted until 2013. The majority of 2012 iMacs I have done work on have been the thicker model. OP hasn't said if they have the thin or thick model so we can't rule it out. From my experience I rarely get any of the gen 1 thin iMacs from 2012, the last few years especially with the GPU issues in the 2011 to 2012 thick models I feel like that is all I've gotten.

[BondiBlue]

1 minute ago, SpookyCitrus said:

In late(the last week of October) 2012 the thin iMac was released(there are a few of them out there), however for a majority of the year the thick iMac models were still being sold and the thin wasn't widely adopted until 2013. The majority of 2012 iMacs I have done work on have been the thicker model. OP hasn't said if they have the thin or thick model so we can't rule it out. From my experience I rarely get any of the gen 1 thin iMacs from 2012, the last few years especially with the GPU issues in the 2011 to 2012 thick models I feel like that is all I've gotten.

No 2012 iMac is one of these "thick models" with an optical drive and separate glass panel. None of them. If it's a thick model then it's a 2011 model or older, not a 2012. Apple doesn't mix and match their cases. The 2012 iMac is a totally different beast inside than the 2011 and older models. 

 

Also, the iMacs with graphics issues are basically guaranteed to be 2011 models, not 2012 models. The 2012 models weren't known to fail, but the 2011 models have a manufacturing defect. 

 

The year of the iMac is not determined by when it was purchased; it's determined by when it was released. If OP actually has a 2012 iMac then they may have (well, their friend anyway) purchased it in 2013. That doesn't make it a 2013 iMac at all. 

[SpookyCitrus]

13 minutes ago, BondiBlue said:

No 2012 iMac is one of these "thick models" with an optical drive and separate glass panel. None of them. If it's a thick model then it's a 2011 model or older, not a 2012. Apple doesn't mix and match their cases. The 2012 iMac is a totally different beast inside than the 2011 and older models. 

 

Also, the iMacs with graphics issues are basically guaranteed to be 2011 models, not 2012 models. The 2012 models weren't known to fail, but the 2011 models have a manufacturing defect. 

 

The year of the iMac is not determined by when it was purchased; it's determined by when it was released. If OP actually has a 2012 iMac then they may have (well, their friend anyway) purchased it in 2013. That doesn't make it a 2013 iMac at all. 

I might just be having a smooth brain moment, but I could of sworn the thin model of iMac wasn't even announced until October of 2012 and didn't come out until 2013. I could be wrong. I get what you're saying I think I'm just having an early morning with no Coffee kind of morning.

[BondiBlue]

Just now, SpookyCitrus said:

I might just be having a smooth brain moment, but I could of sworn the thin model of iMac wasn't even announced until October of 2012 and didn't come out until 2013. I could be wrong. 

They were introduced in October 2012 and were available from then until they were discontinued in September 2013. No matter when the iMac was purchased within that range it's still a 2012 model. And if it happens to be one of the thicker models then they must have bought it late, but it's not a 2012 model at that point. 

 

@theereal Can you verify that this is a 2012 iMac and not an older model? 

[SpookyCitrus]

Just now, BondiBlue said:

They were introduced in October 2012 and were available from then until they were discontinued in September 2013. No matter when the iMac was purchased within that range it's still a 2012 model. And if it happens to be one of the thicker models then they must have bought it late, but it's not a 2012 model at that point. 

 

@theereal Can you verify that this is a 2012 iMac and not an older model? 

Yeah, I get what you're saying now. It's been a long morning for me already haha.

[BondiBlue]

Just now, SpookyCitrus said:

Yeah, I get what you're saying now. It's been a long morning for me already haha.

It is still important to figure out given that 2011 and 2012 models are constructed in such a different manner. This sort of thing happens with MacBooks all the time. I've had people say they have a 2016 13" MacBook Pro, but as it turns out it's a 2012 13" MacBook Pro that they purchased in 2016 (yes, that MBP was available for that long). Thankfully it's pretty easy to figure out, especially with the serial number. 

[theereal]

5 minutes ago, BondiBlue said:

They were introduced in October 2012 and were available from then until they were discontinued in September 2013. No matter when the iMac was purchased within that range it's still a 2012 model. And if it happens to be one of the thicker models then they must have bought it late, but it's not a 2012 model at that point. 

 

@theereal Can you verify that this is a 2012 iMac and not an older model? 

Yes im sorry. They PURCHASED it in 2012 i should have specified, i just assumed its a 2012 model i guess. I cannot log onto the computer so i cannot verify, but its a thick model i would assume as its not very slim imo.

[BondiBlue]

1 minute ago, theereal said:

Yes im sorry. They PURCHASED it in 2012 i should have specified, i just assumed its a 2012 model i guess. I cannot log onto the computer so i cannot verify, but its a thick model i would assume as its not very slim imo.

So it has an optical drive on the right side? If so then this is going to be a whole lot easier. 

[theereal]

7 minutes ago, BondiBlue said:

So it has an optical drive on the right side? If so then this is going to be a whole lot easier. 

Yes, it does have an Optical Drive on the right hand side.

[BondiBlue]

Just now, theereal said:

Yes, it does have an Optical Drive on the right hand side.

Great. If you want you can send me a PM and I can help you with what you'll need. 

[theereal]

3 minutes ago, BondiBlue said:

Great. If you want you can send me a PM and I can help you with what you'll need. 

Thank you so much for all the in-depth help  Actually im not replacing the drive, the store is. Because he has a "service agreement" that he was stupid enough to pay 900 Euros for they will replace it for him provided he has the hardware free of charge. I preferred to have them do it as i heard you need suction cups and whatnot to get the screen off which sounds like a hassle if i can avoid it haha   (Yes they will perform the replacement even though they told him to buy a new one and when i came in told me they didnt recommend replacing the HDD because it may cause issues) but they will perform the task so i wanted to make sure before i purchase a HDD.

[BondiBlue]

2 minutes ago, theereal said:

Thank you so much for all the in-depth help  Actually im not replacing the drive, the store is. Because he has a "service agreement" that he was stupid enough to pay 900 Euros for they will replace it for him provided he has the hardware free of charge. I preferred to have them do it as i heard you need suction cups and whatnot to get the screen off which sounds like a hassle if i can avoid it haha   (Yes they will perform the replacement even though they told him to buy a new one and when i came in told me they didnt recommend replacing the HDD because it may cause issues) but they will perform the task so i wanted to make sure before i purchase a HDD.

Please make sure it's replaced with an SSD then. It makes a major difference in those iMacs. Also, you don't really need suction cups to open them up, they just make it a bit easier. Those are some of the easiest iMacs to open. 

[theereal]

On 6/23/2021 at 6:44 PM, BondiBlue said:

Please make sure it's replaced with an SSD then. It makes a major difference in those iMacs. Also, you don't really need suction cups to open them up, they just make it a bit easier. Those are some of the easiest iMacs to open. 

One more question if you dont mind haha Does it use a 3.5" or 2.5" HDD originally? Because if its a 3.5" ill probably also have to purchase some sort of bracket to make it fit correct?

[BondiBlue]

2 hours ago, theereal said:

One more question if you dont mind haha Does it use a 3.5" or 2.5" HDD originally? Because if its a 3.5" ill probably also have to purchase some sort of bracket to make it fit correct?

3.5". There is an empty drive bay under the optical drive, but I would just get a bracket for the original drive location.