My iMac is dying

Well, isn't that great. The one time I decide not to take Apple Care (can't remember for the life of me why I made that decision!).
I have a mid-2010 refurbished 21" iMac (bought in March 2011), which worked perfectly until a few months ago.
Then it started beach-balling, slowing down and, well, bugging.
After much perusing on the web and this forum and much tinkering, I went for it and did a system restore from my Time Machine backup. Voila! Magic, all was fine again. Phew.
...but it wasn't.
Last week it started again. If I hadn't had so much trouble a while back, I would've been sure it was because of my recent Mountain Lion upgrade... but really it was too similar a feeling.
Once again, it was back to square one. Except this time I wasn't going to do a restore from my backup : what if it was all because of a corrupted file?!
I resigned myself to do a "clean install"... but just when I was about to do it, I'm in disk utility and suddenly my hard drive is in red, I have the error message that I should backup everything ASAP and bring the whole thing to Apple Store, and my S.M.A.R.T. status is "failed". WHAT?
So it was the HDD dying all this time? I wish disk utility would've told be from the start... geesh. But no, not even 3 days ago it was saying the disk was just fine.
And of course, we're 6 months past the warranty ending.
So I get my Genius Bar appointment, I bring the iMac to the Apple Store (it's those times when you wish you didn't have a "all in the screen!" kinda computers, isn't it?!) and I pay 320$ to have the genius switch the HDD...
Just before he does, in front of me, he runs a diagnostic test on the computer, and I see all is just fine, except the HDD. Well, at least it will run like new, and 300$ is much cheaper than a new, right?
It looked like it. I was back home yesterday, restored the whole thing from my backup and it ran perfectly. What a relief, so happy!
...And then I shut it down because a thunderstorm was coming, went to bed... and this morning... It wouldn't boot. I'd just get to the login grey screen, with no login.
I did a safe boot, restarted. Phew, that worked.
But problem after problem started to happen.
I would get the beachball, things were sluggish... Files wouldn't appear in the Finder, I'd just get the turning gear forever, and if I forced a relaunch... well nothing happened.
A bunch of programs were unresponsive... ****.
Tried to quit... even that wasn't responding. I had to force quit using the power button!
And guess what? It didn't boot, again. This time I didn't get past the white screen!
Tried unplugging the power as well, a few times. Nothing worked.
So I called Apple Care.
For 20min we tried stuff. Shutting down and re-starting manually. With and without various commands. Then the call got cut.
I continued on my own. Tried to reinstall Mountain Lion and erase everything... it froze.
I called Apple Care back.
We tried other things. Made it to disk utility and turns out a few permissions needed to be repaired. (less than 10).
...didn't help one bit.
Tried to install Mountain Lion again... this time it wouldn't even start!
Did the unplug-plug back, restart thing... and this time, miracle, it worked! ***?!
...And all the problems seemed to have vanished.
The Apple tech said with all we tried, she is convinced it's a hardware problem.
Since even installing Mountain Lion from scratch would freeze, I too am relieved to learn it's not my data and I can keep my backup.
But then, what is failing?
I tried the "D" command while restarting, and I get nothing... it just freezes on the white screen until I let it go (we're talking minutes).
Is it the new HDD? Well it looks spanky in disk utility... but so did the previous one for months until it finally admitted failure!
And how long can I use this until one day it really doesn't open anymore?
I hesitate with using it until it dies... or wiping it clean while I can and selling it for parts (because if it dies I won't be able to clean it and I wouldn't like selling it with all my info on it, of course).
Could I save money and keep it as a monitor and buy a Mac mini?
This long rambling was more to vent, I guess... ;o)
But would anyone have ideas on what is failing and how to make sure? The best course of action?
Thanks
...and really... Apple Care warranty is worth it kids. I guess I didn't pay the extra thinking I never needed it in the past. Murphy's law: the one time I didn't take it was the one time I would've dearly needed it!

RRFS, I did as you suggested...
4 trips to the Apple store later, I'm back at the same place.
Apple Care tech on the phone was convinced it was a hardware problem and not my data. Altough she didn't specify what she thought could be the problem.
The first tech I talked to at the Apple Store on Thursday was convinced of the same. In his mind, it was either the newly installed hard drive that was faulty, or my graphic card, or a RAM. He said the only way to know was to install the parts and test each in turn.
...That is not what they did (whatever happened to following what the genius suggests and what the customer signs for?).
They did the simple diagnostic test, which showed all was in perfect order... so the tech looked around and found a keychain problem, he said (I talked to someone else who couldn't really explain this to me), and "corrected the situation".
I got home, my iTunes external drive couldn't be accessed anymore (not authorized... wth did he do in my permissions?!), so I hoped restarting would magically correct that... and guess what? The problem was still there : my computer would stuck at the grey login screen! Whatever that genius tech thought he did, did nothing at all. He thought it had worked because the computer started... of course it did, it always does after being unplugged. It's the ONLY thing which works.
So I had to schedule yet another appointment.
This time they made sure they would change the hard drive.
As that new genius was convinced the graphics card could have nothing to do with my problem.
(the RAM? no one would talk about them anymore).
They changed the hard drive and now I am back home with the computer.
It looked to be working fine. I tried to restart it a few times and it seemed fine.
I put my data back in... and tested it by restarting it a few times in a row. After the second time, bang. Not starting again!
So I guess the problem lies in my data after all, and the first 2 techs I spoke to were wrong.
But here's what I don't get :
-If the problem lies in my data, why did it only start after a new hard drive was installed?
-If the problem lies in my data, how come the system doesn't even get to the login page? What in my data is even accessed before that point?
Most of all... what do I do now?! It's all very fine, but if it's not hardware and if it is my data... how the heck do I figure out what is the culprit?
I wipe it all (how?) and use the migration assistant (do we still have that in ML?) to import only apps, and test, then only files, then test?
Gosh I hate when things don't make sense.

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My 13 month old IMAC finally died. Is it worth repairing?

Hi all,
"Could someone tell me how to forward this post to apple asia, what is there email address as i would like them to get a copy" thanks all.
Some may have seen my posts. I am working in Jakarta and 13 months ago i bought an Imac g 5 , serial w844...., rev a. I also own a g4 powerbook.
The imac was nothing but trouble since i got it. Fan noise made it useless as a day to day desktop. So i keep using my powerbook. Well my business stuggled last year so i did not use the Imac very much. Basically got the imac as a heavy design machine and for backups . Probably only used for a few months in total. When i did use it and needed it during two busy periods, it broke down. Screen failure, TWICE. It also went back for screen flickering and fan noise in the first month i got it. . Last week was the last straw. Needed it for backups and for heavy work, had people coming in to use it. It died and it cost me money as we could not work as planned. Well its been a disaster. Agravation and lost money and time. Spent more time last year setting it up than using it. Everytime it come back from service, they apologised and said they could not back it up for some reason. Then i had to set it all up again.
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Two years ago there was only 1 good apple store in Jakarta, now there are at least 100 with the explosion in ipod sales. Unfortunately, they have no decent staff or support and are only interested in immediate sales. I feel that the apple reputation will be taking a big hit soon.
I would really like to ask APPLE for my money back. People around town know me as the apple nut. I encouraged lots of people to switch to mac. Lets just say, the hardware issues may force me to switch back.
Sadly, i have really enjoyed these discussion groups, great way to get help. i am just a little sad and a lot angry now.
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Hi all
I've just made another appointment to take my iMac to an apple store for the 3rd time in it's short life.
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gargh... I have bald patches over this thing!
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oh... and wireless keyboard and magic mouse - I spilt whisky on my keyboard and it's not been the same since.. so all new shiny computer on the way soon.. yay!
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:-D
Message was edited by: EggCustard

I swear I think my 2009 27" iMac is dying?

I was having a problem with the SuperDrive wouldn't work all the time. I took it to the Apple Store to get them to figure it out and he said it would be $150 to replace the SuperDrive. We decided that I would do a complete clean install of Lion and see if that fixed the SuperDrive however it didn't. Amost immediately the problem was still there. So now I need a SuperDrive based upon what the Apple Genuis said however after a couple of weeks I seem to have other problems.
I seem to get a lot of spinning beach balls, the computer becomes unresponsive. Quite a few times the computer won't wake up by hitting anything on the keyboard, mouse or trackpad. So I'll have to hit the power button to wake it up but the mouse, keyboard or trackpad still won't work and I'm forced to manually power it down by hold the power button for a few seconds. After I start it up and it gets to the login screen the mouse, keyboard and trackpad work fine. But if the computer goes to sleep again, it does the same thing [unresponsive]!
Just a minute ago this happenend and my wife hit the power button to wake it up. After the screen came on she put in her USB flash drive and the computer sceen IMMEDIATELY black. I looked/listening to the computer and it just shut down on her. This has never happened and that's why with all of these other things going on, I'm saying that there's definitely something wrong.
I don't want to pay to put in a SuperDrive when there could be something else totally wrong with it, so I'm sure you understand. I feel really bad that this is my FIRST Mac and after less than a year after my Apple warranty is up all of this crap is going wrong with my computer.
Does anyone know of some things I could do to see what's the matter. I don't mind buying a part or two for it but I don't want to buy parts that aren't broken. I have a feeling the hard drive is going out, is there anything I can do to check it. I've also got a little video of what it's doing when it won't wake up if anyone is interested. I've done the reset the PRAM & disk permissions already with no change in behaviour.
Ideas?

I agree. I have just come back from the Genius Bar in Sydney Chatswood where they are looking into a problem with the power. The 27" iMac is only 15 months old and 89 days out of warranty. Martin the 'genius' didn't seem preturbed that this could be a major problem on a machine that cost over $2300AUS such a short time ago - a lot of money in these times - he obviously earns more than we do! I am really annoyed and feel that I have been let down by Mac. As an avid iPhone user and going to iMac, I am feeling very annoyed at both the quality of the product and the attitude of the Genius Bar.
the machine was also showing the same signs as yours - slow wheels etc.
Is there any recourse - it is not sustainable to sell products at that price which only last for 15months.
Anyone else have similar problems.
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My iMac is dying. What do I replace it with?

I'm pretty sure my Graphics card is dead. See my post here https://discussions.apple.com/message/21496843?ac_cid=op123456#21496843
I don't know what to do, I'm sure I'm looking at a $300+ bill if not more like $500. For that price, I should just start looking at a whole new computer.
I like the idea of an SSD, but in all cases, I'm looking at a minimum of $1500.
I like my iMac, but my 27" screen is really big, almost too big. I like the 21.5" but I feel like I should always be getting more for my money than the last computer I bought.
This might be the first time I get less than what I'm replacing.
For example:
My iMac (Late 2009):
27"
2560x1440
2.8Ghz i7
8GB 1067 DDR3
ATI Radeon HD 4850 (512)
New iMac
21.5"
1920x1080
2.7-2.9GHz i5
8GB 1600 DDR3
GeForce 640M-650M (512)
If I upgrade to 16gb DDR3 it goes to $1750-$2150
I paid ~$2700 3 years ago for upgraded everything on the 27" iMac (Late 2009) and now it's (basically) dead.
I don't feel like repeating such a costly investment in another 3 years... :-(
What do I do????
In a way I also miss my laptop (an old 12" PowerBook G4) but in order to get close to the specs I currently have, I have to look at the 15 RetMBP and again we're getting into the $2199+ range again.
Help me decide please!!!

The reply on your other thread is amazing. I find myself wondering how they can properly diagnose a hardware problem online? You obviously are having heating problems causing the GPU to act like that. Maybe it's just a fan problem or maybe even just a buildup of dust inside he computer impeding airflow? Before I give up on a three or four year old iMac I would at least try to vacuum out the vents on top and bottom of the iMac. If that didn't help I'd take it to the nearest Apple Store or AASP and have it properly diagnosed and get an estimate for repairs. Check your serial number to see if your iMac is included in the hard drive recall, not all late 2009 iMacs are. I sure wouldn't give up because someone looked at some photos and said that your graphics card is broke. The best advice he gave you is to back up your system.

Imac superdrive died external drive substitute

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John,
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IMac 20" died after one month

The iMac wouldn't get past the grey screen at startup. Called Applecare and got no help. They sent me to a genius bar, but told me the wrong date and time.
Beware of Applecare. They are on the other side of the world and have no idea what the day and time is where you are. "Today" is probably your tomorrow.
Got to wait days now to get back in line at a genius bar.

Korn,
Welcome to Apple Discussions!
Normally they aren't as problematic. The gray screen at startup normally happens if the disk is too full, or the directory is damaged. Is your data backed up so we can test for the latter?
Not everyone has a time zone clock on their wall. I would at least mention to AppleCare the next time you call that they need to pay closer attention to their clock widget. And certainly when you call, tell them what part of the world you are calling from.

My imac has died I don't know what to do

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My screen has gone crazy, I don't know if it is the screen or the video card or anything, but I wasn't even touching the keyboard, I had a game running and was afk in it when the whole thing crashed, all the colours went ****** and It had big black lines going down the screen and it was completely frozen.
I turned it off and turned it on again and there was still the black lines going down he screen and doesn't go past the loading screen with the apple, and then says "you need to restart you computer, press the power butotn and hold it down for several seconds" and nothing works, please help asap I have work that needs to be handed in tomorow

You have experienced a kernel panic.
About "You need to restart your computer" (kernel panic) messages
You will need to take a look at Isolating issues in Mac OS X.
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IMac G5 Died...

Hi All,
Today my 20" iMac G5 (1.8) kept shutting down until now it will not start up. I opened it up and pushed the internal startup button, but nothing happened, pushed the SMU button, nothing changed. The first of the LEDs are lit up.
Prior to today, like for the last month or so, when I would start it up, as it was going through the startup process, before the blue screen, the screen would swipe bottom upward from a grey to a darker grey.
So, what do you think? Power supply, logic board...???
Thanks in advance!

I have an iMac G5 (1.8 GHz Power PC G5 running 10.5.7, purchased in 2005). I had the power supply and logic board replaced under warranty in 2006 due to the screen going gray, no gear loaded.
About 6-8 months ago, the screen would go black and I think it shut down.. I forget if it shut down now but I checked here and read about opening the back to check the caps and clean out dust. I did so, the caps were fine but it was PACKED with dust in the fan. I vacuumed that out and it worked fine again.
This week, it starts up and after a short time open, it makes a pop sound, the screen goes black and it is dead. I've checked the power cord, it is solidly plugged in. I opened the back again and it is clean as a whistle and all the caps look good, no bulging.
Any other thoughts of what might be causing it to shut down? It is not hot as it was off for the past two days and had been on for less than 2 minutes when it shut down tonight. I restarted it and it did it again. I had opened firefox both times so this time I opened safari. I doubt it is it but thought I'd throw it out there. But so far, it is up. But I wanted to post here to ask while it is up in case it dies again.
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