merdbird Author

Level 1

4 points

I need to replace my 2019 imac 27", what would be a comparable replacement

My iMac 27" has gotten so slow I can barely use it.

iMac 27″, macOS 15.7

Posted on Nov 6, 2025 2:48 PM

Top-ranking reply

padams35

Level 4

3,613 points

Posted on Nov 7, 2025 6:37 AM

The obvious replacement is a Mac mini or a Mac Studio depending on what software you expect to run. Just add your own display (and maybe also speakers).

Monitor option include but are not limited to:

5K Apple Studio. Quality display with high quality built in speaker array and force-cancelling woofer by Apple.

5K BenQ PD2730. Quality display with basic built in stereo speakers.

Asus Pro Art 5K. The most affordable 5K monitor I know of, but you will need to purchase separate speakers.

Something 4K - relatively cheap, but a step down in quality from your 2019. Popular with Mac Mini owners.

But now for the elephant in the room... why is your 2019 27" iMac slow? My 2018 Mini is still going strong.

If your iMac was configured with the 1TB Fusion Drive then the drive might by the problem. If you don't need to run Tahoe anytime soon you could try buying a cheap external USB-C SSD and then installing MacOS onto the external drive as your new startup disk. How to use an external storage device as a Mac startup disk - Apple Support

If your iMac still has the factory default 8GB RAM you could try adding an extra +8 or +16GB from OWC (macsales).

If none of the above are true I would suggest running Etrecheck and posting the results.

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22 replies

Nov 9, 2025 7:05 AM in response to AnotherGrandy

AnotherGrandy wrote:

tbirdvet wrote:

I know all about external drives. I have several TB drives that I use to boot. In the case of my iMac it is an I9 with a 1TB SSD drive so an external boot drive would provide little benefit.

Thank you so much for responding! 😊

I confess that I am now just a little confused! At the beginning of this thread you stated: "My iMac 27" has gotten so slow I can barely use it."

tbirdvet – the person you are responding to – did not write that. merdbird - the person who started the thread – did.

Nov 9, 2025 7:16 AM in response to Servant of Cats

Servant of Cats wrote:

tbirdvet – the person you are responding to – did not write that. merdbird - the person who started the thread – did.

Oops! 🙄

Thank you for pointing that out "Servant of Cats".

Apologies to all.

Nov 10, 2025 11:59 AM in response to Old Toad

Old Toad wrote:

You're right. For some reason eons ago (2021) I came across Jack-19's post and for some reason thought it was Apple recommended: here.

Thank you for your correction. 😊

Protecting against malware in macOS - Apple link

EtreCheck is NOT an "App" - so how does Apple protect users who download the software onto their computers?

Just wondering!

etresoft

Level 9

56,064 points

Nov 11, 2025 6:28 PM in response to Phil0124

Phil0124 wrote:

Etrecheck is an app. Its an application that runs on a Mac.

Whenever a thread strangely pivots towards malware and EtreCheck, it's always a good idea to take a step back and ask why.

Another great tipoff is when the person who introduced EtreCheck into the conversation gets confused over who they are.

I was beginning to think stalker had finally moved on. I hadn't seen any activity for a long time - October 6th to be exact.

But now we're up to alias #75.

Edit: After reviewing other threads, I guess I only had a two week reprieve from stalking. Strange, it seemed longer than that.

Old Toad

Level 10

215,076 points

Nov 8, 2025 10:51 AM in response to AnotherGrandy

You're right. For some reason eons ago (2021) I came across Jack-19's post and for some reason thought it was Apple recommended: here.

tbirdvet

Level 6

17,006 points

Nov 8, 2025 2:35 PM in response to AnotherGrandy

No issue on the transfer using my TM backup. Very smooth. I still have my old iMac and use it in another room for some misc. work. Still works fine.

tbirdvet

Level 6

17,006 points

Nov 9, 2025 4:19 AM in response to AnotherGrandy

I know all about external drives. I have several TB drives that I use to boot. In the case of my iMac it is an I9 with a 1TB SSD drive so an external boot drive would provide little benefit.

I need to replace my 2019 imac 27", what would be a comparable replacement