Guaranteed compatible upgrades for:

Apple iMac 2015 (Late) Core i5 1.6 GHz 21.5-inch (iMac16,1)


System Specifications
Maximum Memory:
  • 16GB (not user upgradeable)
Standard Memory:
  • 8GB
CPU/Chipset:
  • Intel Core i5 1.6 GHz
Upgrade Path:
  • The 16GB RAM upgrade could only be ordered at the time of purchase and it's not possible to upgrade the RAM post-purchase.
Comments:
  • iMac16,1 Late 2015 21.5-inch EMC 2889

  • INSTALLATION GUIDES

  • - HDD upgrade guide

  • Sadly, the RAM is soldered to the motherboard in this model, and is not upgradeable.

  • HDD -> HDD or SSD

  • The iMac late 2015 21.5-inch iMac models have a standard 1TB 2.5-inch factory HDD with a 6 Gb/s SATA port. At the time of purchase, Apple offered a 1 TB "Fusion Drive" (which combines a 128GB ‘blade’ SSD and a 1 TB hard drive), or a stand-alone 256GB/512GB blade SSD. To upgrade the factory 2.5-inch HDD, you’ll need the general servicing kit, plus a larger 2.5-inch HDD or 2.5-inch SSD. Follow this guide to perform the upgrade.

  • No additional thermal cable is needed for all 21.5-inch 2012-onward iMacs. If your fans are running fast after upgrading, you may not have reconnected one of the temperature sensors properly. Use the iStat widget to check which fan is running fast and check the associated sensor is connected properly.

  • To clone your existing OS/app setup first, purchase a cloning cable or 2.5-inch HDD/SDD enclosure to connect your new HDD/SSD to your mac, then use the Super Duper app to perform the clone, then switch the drives. Your old 2.5-inch HDD can then be housed in the enclosure.

  • If you have a ‘Fusion drive’ setup, then you’ll need to split the fusion drive first and then perform the clone operation.

  • HDD+SSD or SSD->SSD

  • There are currently no supported aftermarket upgrades for the ‘blade’ SSD in the Late 2013 and onward 21.5-inch iMac models. (The only upgrade path is to install a genuine Apple SSD pulled from another machine). However, unlike the early 2013 model, even if your system was ordered with only a HDD installed, the PCIe connector for the blade SSD is still present on the motherboard.

  • You can house your original factory Apple blade SSD in the Envoy Pro enclosure for June 2013 to current Macs.

  • If you have only have a 'Blade' SSD installed

  • All 'Tapered Edge' iMac's from the Late 2012 iMac13,1 up to the "Mid-2017" iMac18,3 models have a 6 Gb/s Serial ATA (Revision 3.0) connector that is occupied by a hard drive in the default configurations. However, if you customised your model and it only has a 'Blade' SSD installed, then you can still install a standard SATA 2.5" hard drive in 21.5-Inch models and a 3.5" hard drive in 27-Inch models. An SSD can also be installed in this hard drive space as well.