Peter Hillman

I agree with you. But even if it were thicker, which would be nice because you would not have an audio cable sticking out of the side for powered speakers, the Apple Silicon platform means no more upgrades ever. Soldered RAM and soldered storage from this point forward. Having to pay Apple prices for more RAM and more storage. Nothing is repairable in this Mac, except the display. Something goes wrong, whole new motherboard.

In the comments above, the X-Ray is the base model unit with two ports and one fan. It is not the one they tore down.

The VESA Mount iMac is a special build to order option from Apple. It is not a user-installable option.

Yeah, that AC inlet plug was a nasty one to unplug, mainly because I was trying not to bump the solder joints on the PSU. After a few wiggles and pulls while manipulating the spudger tool to release the clip, it finally unplugged. Made it easier by removing the PSU completely so you don’t have to worry about it. Don’t worry, plugging it back in is a breeze!

I was not able to install the memory without removing all the components. My fingers are too big and I could barely get in that tight spot to swap out the memory. The hardest part about the power supply is that one connector under the chin next to the Apple logo. Once it is out, you are home free because it is so easy to plug it back in when you are putting it all back together again. Ridiculous that Apple did not put a simple access door behind those memory slots because they are on the backside of the Mac! They did an access door on the PowerBooks and it did not ruin the appearance. They could have designed a cool looking pop out door that only had a thin seam around it so it would still look good. Then you could remove the access door to upgrade the memory easily.

The roller tool for slicing open the display works great for this step. Get in there like using the card and roll across the bottom to slice through the remaining adhesive.

Using suction cups (the ones that were made for removing the magnetic front glass on the 2011 and earlier iMacs) work well too. Place one in each top corner, while the Mac is lying face up on a table, and gently pull and it will separate the display from the main body. You might need to do a little more slicing around the edges if you did not get all the way through the first time with the roller. Then you can lift the display up at an angle to disconnect the cables.

In my experience, it is easier to lay the Mac flat on its back, especially if you do not have a wedge, because the display will tilt up and down and you do not want that happening. With the Mac on its back, I removed all the front adhesive strips and then angled the display (not a big angle) against the chin making sure it was even on both sides. Then reconnect the video cables and gently bring the display down into the proper position. Step 23 below seems too much of a hassle to try and get the bottom adhesive strips out while the display is resting on them, and taping the bottom of the display in Step 19 also seems to be a hassle.

As far as the remaining 2 inches I cut off, I snipped off a little more on the right side to leave a small gap for the microphone and placed that small remaining part in the center where it should have been if there was no microphone, just to complete the adhesive.

The strips that I received from OWC do not have a notch cut out for the microphone. The instructions advise you, for 2017 and later 21.5” iMacs, to cut about 2 inches off from the left side of the strip so you do not cover the microphone hole.