What storage solution would be the best?

**Dx3me** · 01-14-2013, 05:18 AM

I'm getting myself a new 2012 iMac (27 inch) within a few months, but I'm not sure what storage I would be getting...
Money is not really a big issue here, as I'm not buying a new system on an annual base anyway, so I want to buy a system that will last for a few years.

I want to have the fastest solution available, but I've read several reviews, that makes me doubt about the Fusion Drive...
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I'm going to use my upcoming iMac mainly for video editing, music mixing, graphics design.
Of course I want the fastest solution, as I'm not planning to buy my next system anytime soon... but stability is also a HUGE factor here, since I'm running a business.
My system needs to be running safe and stable at all times, and I don't want my system running into any form of storage errors (hardware or software related).

- Do you guys recommend me to go for the 3TB Serial ATA solution, or is it safe enough to go for 3TB Fusion?
(and is Fusion really that much faster??)

**Karenkcoulter** · 01-14-2013, 06:54 AM

Fusion is that much faster. There is no comparing an HDD only system with one that has an SSD-even if only a relatively small one like the fusion system. I don't know anything about the reliability of the fusion system though.

The only thing faster would be an all SSD system. You could consider getting the iMac with as big of an SSD as offered and then getting an external thunderbolt drive (which could have either an SSD or HDD) to make up the difference to get to the 3TB size.

**Fausty82** · 01-14-2013, 10:08 AM

As Karen says, there’s no comparison in speed between an SSD and a mechanical HD (SSD wins by large margin).

There is also no comparison in capacity between an SSD and a mechanical HD (HD wins by a huge margin).

The biggest issue here is the prohibitive cost of 2-3 TB SSDs. The Fusion drive would be an easy compromise. The issue that remains to be decided is the reliability of the Fusion drive. Hybrid drives (standard mechanical drives with small built-in SSDs for caching recently/often used files have been around for a while now and have proven reliable... but, as I understand it, Apple actually uses separate SSD and mechanical HD for the Fusion configuration. Aside from any down time related to problems/failure, Apple will fully warrant the setup...

So, to answer your questions, yes the Fusion setup will really be that much faster. And if I were purchasing a new iMac, I would not think twice about the 3TB Fusion drive. I’d go for it.

Good luck.