{exia} (iMac 21.5" Mid-2010)
Table of Contents
Summary
My other Mac. Keep it for doing Mac things, and because it has an ok display.
Notes
- Can't upgrade past 10.13.6 without losing graphics support. Haven't tried it.
- 2020 and this machine is still receiving security updates.
- App store support for old machines sucks though.
- Homebrew is adequate for getting familiar tools onto it.
Hardware
| Make | Apple |
| Year | 2010 |
| Model | iMac 21.5" Mid 2010 2389 |
| Chassis | iMac |
| Processor | Intel Core i3-540 |
| Memory | 16GB DDR3 1333 |
| Ports | 3.5mm Headphone / Optical Out |
| 3.5mm Line in / Optical In | |
| 4x USB A 2.0 | |
| Firewire 800 | |
| Mini DisplayPort | |
| RJ-45 LAN | |
| SD card slot | |
| Graphics | ATI Radeon HD 4670 256MB |
| Storage | Inland 240GB SATA SSD |
| SuperDrive 8X (DVD/CD RW) - Optiarc AD-5680H | |
| Display | 21.5" 1920x1080 |
| Int. Peripherals | iSight Camera 1280x720 |
| AirPort Extreme 802.11abgn WiFi | |
| Broadcom Bluetooth 2.1 | |
| Apple BCM5701 Ethernet | |
| Ext. Peripherals | Iomega Firewire/USB Hub and HD Enclosure |
| Dimensions | (from Apple site) |
| Length/Depth | 18.9 cm |
| Width | 52.8 cm |
| Height/Thickness | 45.1 cm |
| Weight | 9.3 kg (20 lbs 8 oz) |
Software
| Operating System | macOS High Sierra (10.13.6) |
| Unique applications | Quiver |
| Xcode | |
| iMovie |
Log
Trash iMac
Found in trash with cracked glass.
New glass and upgrades
Replaced glass with "Lecho" brand replacement off amazon. The LCD has a couple small marks near the center, but it's not too bad in use.
Upgraded 4GB memory to 4x4GB, and swapped 500GB drive for 240GB Inland SSD.
Grabbed an extra apple wireless keyboard, and trackpad to match.
Dead GPU
GPU seems to have died. Machine still powers on and chimes. Diagnostic LEDs indicate no contact with GPU. Disassembly and reassembly was ineffective.
A new GPU?
Got a Nvidia K1100M from an HP ZBook (N15P-Q1-A2 734276-001). Did the iMac teardown and rebuild, but it still has the same symptoms. Going to retire this machine now. Getting the GPU in and out is too much trouble to keep experimenting, and it's not worth throwing parts at.
Letting go
Exia was still booting, but without any display it was kind of useless. I was done throwing hardware at it, and I have other more compact Macs now. I brought it to VCFSW, and left it on the free tables. It got taken pretty quick.