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I have ordered a T7600 2.3Ghz Socket M chip upgrade. I would ideally like to also upgrade the hard drive to a 500 GB SSD. I have 2 concerns (1) possible lack of fan cooling capacity and (2) SATA 3 upgrades are everywhere yet this imac is SATA 1 (slower write speed of 1.5 Gb/s) and so not sure if it will work. I know will have to use a 3.5 inch to 2.5 inch adaptor. Please can you advise me.
Physically you have the right idea! You need a drive converter from 2.5” to 3.5” like this Icy Dock EZ-Fit Lite Dual 2.5" to 3.5" SSD/HDD Mounting Bracket You’ll also need to get a drive which offers compatibility like Samsung 860 QVO. As we can see under the Interface line: SATA 6 Gbps Interface, compatible with SATA 3 Gbps & 1.5 Gbps interfaces are all supported! Make sure what ever drive you get lists support for the older SATA I (1.5 Gb/s) standard. Here’s the needed guide: iMac Intel 17" Hard Drive Replacement You will need to make sure you’ve got the newest OS your system supports installed - OS-X Snow Leopard 10.6.8 You should also get TRIM Edabler as Snow Leopard don’t not offer TRIM services natively.
