OWC In-line Digital Thermal Sensor for iMac 2011 Hard Drive Upgrade

Required for any drive installed into the main drive bay.

Eliminate fan noise and maintain correct system fan control when upgrading your 2011 iMac.

The only iMac HDD upgrade option on the market certified to pass the Apple Hardware Test.

Fixes firmware incompatibility issues with third party hard drives.

Engineered in-house and backed by OWC's award-winning customer support.

This item does not include installation tools.

View the OWC Hard Drive Upgrade Kit with installation tools.

Improve Performance and Capacity. Upgrade Your iMac with Confidence.

OWC's in-line solution is the only hardware digital thermal sensor on the market allowing a third-party SATA drive to be installed in your iMac. A convenient, plug-and-play cable, the In-line Digital Thermal Sensor eliminates fan noise and maintains proper system fan control through the iMac's System Management Controller. This innovative device is designed specifically for the iMac, requires no software hacks and ensures compatibility with Apple's built-in diagnostic processes.

Using an OWC Internal HDD DIY Kit (sold separately), replace your iMac's original hard drive with up to an 8.0TB hard drive or a lighting fast SSD with a NewerTech Adaptadrive, for dramatic upgrades in storage capacity or data speed while maintaining the original system's fan and diagnostic performance.

Note: Before attempting to perform this installation, please watch the OWC Install Videos below to determine your ability to perform this complex upgrade.

OWC assumes no responsibility for damage that may occur during the install. Technical support for this DIY product consists only of the OWC Install Video.

Have OWC Upgrade Your iMac

While OWC encourages the DIY philosophy, this is a very difficult upgrade that requires advanced skills. If you are not fully confident in your ability to upgrade the drive in your 2009–2010 iMac after watching the OWC Install Video, you can have OWC upgrade your iMac where our certified technicians will expertly upgrade your iMac and ship it back to you.

If you need an upgrade kit with tools, you can purchase the OWC Internal HDD DIY Kit.

Install Videos

Includes

OWC In-line Digital Thermal Sensor Cable
1 Year OWC Brand Standard Limited Warranty

NOTE: This kit contains consumable and/or one time use components and therefore is non-refundable if opened. If you have any concerns about your ability to perform the upgrade, you can return the unopened kit for a refund.

This kit is compatible with... Learn how to find your Mac's model ID

iMac (21.5-inch Late 2011)

(August, 2011)

Model ID: iMac12,1

3.1GHz i3

Detailed specs

Install Videos

iMac (21.5-inch Mid 2011)

(May, 2011)

Model ID: iMac12,1

2.5GHz i5, 2.7GHz i5, 2.8GHz i7

Detailed specs

Install Videos

iMac (27-inch Mid 2011)

(May, 2011)

Model ID: iMac12,2

2.7GHz i5, 3.1GHz i5, 3.4GHz i7

Detailed specs

Install Videos

Gallery

Customer Ratings

Write a Review 4.9 / 5 35 out of 35 (100%) reviewers would recommend this product

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: agrajag Location: Canada Age: 45-54 Experience Level: Power User

Rating: 4/5 Did the trick- like new iMac September 3, 2016 27" iMac 2011 with a dead HD (Seagate) now resurrected with an SSD, working nicely using this module. Also used the OWC adapter so the SSD fit in the iMac HD mount.

I would recommend this item to a friend! Customer Videos:

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: LVCustomer Location: Latvia Age: 25-34 Experience Level: IT Professional Owned Product: less than a month

Rating: 5/5 Amazing fast delivery August 9, 2016 I have never got items from US so quick using non-expres delivery.

I would recommend this item to a friend! Customer Videos:

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Newcastle, Australia Age: 45-54 Experience Level: Power User Owned Product: 1-3 months

Rating: 5/5 Does what it says on the tin August 4, 2016 This solution works as advertised; I have had it installed for at least one month and it has performed without any issues. Installation was as per the video provided, which I found to be complete, giving clear instructions. I had reason to install my new HDD prior to receiving this thermal controller, so I can say from experience that the cooling fans will ramp up to full speed for significant periods of time (quite annoying; yet prudent of the Apple engineers) without the feedback from this thermal controller; which provides a clever solution. Just one minor points to note: make sure that you choose a location on your HDD which will not interfere with the back of the display panel (easy). Cheers

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer Top 100 Contributor

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: northern CO Age: Over 65 Experience Level: Home User Owned Product: over 6 months

Rating: 5/5 thermal sensor needed for SSD install in IMAC August 1, 2016 This works well for the SSD I installed in my IMAC

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Maryland Age: 45-54 Experience Level: IT Professional Owned Product: less than a month

Rating: 5/5 Worked fine July 26, 2016 Installed new hard drive with this thermal sensor and it worked fine. Seemed a lot easier than trying to manage fan & temp with software since I wasn't using an official Apple drive.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Los Angeles, CA Age: 45-54 Experience Level: Power User Owned Product: 1-3 months

Rating: 5/5 Excellent product for iMac HDD upgrade July 22, 2016 Excellent product and easy to install (after you open the iMac). The only real solution for replacing the stock hard drive in an iMac. Works perfectly with an SSD upgrade, replacing the original stock hard drive. No fan issues at all. This thermal sensor is not necessary when installing an SSD in a 27" iMac in the secondary location behind the optical drive. It is only required when replacing the original stock hard drive.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Milburn, New Jersey

Rating: 5/5 Necessary equipment if upgrading and iMac to SSD January 31, 2016 This item was suggested as an add on during checkout when I was buying a new SSD to put in my iMac to replace the existing spinning disk. I didn't really understand what it was, or if it applied to what I was trying to do. But after I had finished installing the hard drive, The fans on my iMac would not stop spinning. If you Google around, pretty much everyone says that the hard drive your iMac comes with includes a temperature sensor, which aftermarket hard drives never come with. This cable adds that sensor in a way that your mac understands so it knows not to keep the fans running at full speed.

Bottom line, if you are upgrading the hard drive in your iMac, it's much easier to buy this and put it in at the same time. Otherwise you'll end up opening your machine again two weeks later when you receive this cable

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Colorado Age: 35-44 Owned Product: 1-3 months

Rating: 5/5 Makes my iMac happy. January 24, 2016 Glad to have done research and found this solution for my 2011 iMac 27" SSD replacement project. No instructions came with the sensor, but could figure out by watching the available video (with HDD replacement). Didn't have a chance to hear my iMac vent unhappily.

A small tip: I didn't use the very special suction cup as you saw in all the videos. Instead, I just grabbed the smartphone holder that is used for the car windshield. It has a clear suction cup with good quality and worked well.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer Top 250 Contributor

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Ventura, CA Age: 45-54 Experience Level: Power User Owned Product: 3-4 months

Rating: 5/5 Don't forget to buy this December 18, 2015 Great product - allows the use of an SSD in an iMac with out fan issues. Do not put an SSD into your iMac with out this.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Atlanta Age: 45-54 Experience Level: Power User

Rating: 5/5 a Life Saver December 2, 2015 when my iMac's HD went south, I had heard that the replacement was pretty straight forward except for the baked in Mac temp sensor. a quick Google search revealed not only that it WAS true, but that the only company that offered a viable workaround was OWC. They have been life savers before, and continue to be in this case, as well. Just out of AppleCare ( I mean less than 30 days!) meant that the repair was gonna be 350.00 PLUS having the machine out of work for a week. for less than a hundred INCLUDING a TeraByte drive replacement, I was back in business....the product, the video tutorial, and the ongoing customer service are TOP DRAWER. I'll be back many times to come....A+ all the way.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Hong Kong Age: 35-44

Rating: 5/5 Good service December 2, 2015 Item is good, ship on time.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous

Rating: 5/5 A1 October 26, 2015 I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Sweden Age: 45-54 Experience Level: Power User Owned Product: 1-3 months

Rating: 5/5 Excellent! October 13, 2015 Great product, works perfect. Good instructions for installation. You need to know what you are doing when installing this kit.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Belgium Age: 45-54 Experience Level: Power User Owned Product: 1-3 months

Rating: 5/5 Ordered, shipped and works as expected. September 28, 2015 I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer Top 50 Contributor

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Burlington, VT Age: Over 65 Experience Level: Power User Owned Product: 1-3 months

Rating: 5/5 It measures the HDD temperature well June 4, 2015 It measures the HDD temperature well, and the MacFans APP controls the fans speed well.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Rural Nebraska Age: 55-65 Experience Level: IT Professional Owned Product: over 6 months

Rating: 5/5 Works flawlessly May 31, 2015 This works exactly as expected. It takes a little time to get it nested in place due to lack of room inside the computer. Good length on the SATA and sensor cables. I've installed several of these, they work flawlessly. A very affordable solution, highly recommended.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Basel Age: 25-34 Experience Level: Power User Owned Product: less than a month

Rating: 5/5 highly recommend this product from OWC April 28, 2015 I have install this adapter with a 960gb SSD, so far it works with no mistakes, now I have 2 SSDs in my 27" iMac 2011. thanks to OWC , which made it to be passable.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous

Rating: 5/5 Works as Advertised April 17, 2015 I bought this to install an SSD in my Mid-2011 iMac. Since these computers expect a signal from a pin on a drive with custom firmware to operate, I wanted to find something that would prevent the fan from running all the time without a software modification or some homemade solution. This works as advertised and the best part is that it's completely reversible if I ever got crazy enough to put the original hard drive back in (okay, for resale).

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: UK Age: Over 65 Experience Level: IT Professional Owned Product: over 6 months

Rating: 5/5 Works like a dream! March 20, 2015 1TB drive on iMac mid 2011 started clicking and was not covered by the Seagate replacement scheme. I had an almost new WD 1TB in a box, realised I would have issues with fan speed and temp. sensors so ordered the sensor and cable. Arrived in the UK after @ 10 days which was no problem as I was running off a CCC clone in the meantime. As a retired Apple Genius, installing was no problem and after @ 15 minutes the drive and cable were fitted, tested and the restore was started.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Sweden, Europe Age: 55-65 Experience Level: Home User Owned Product: less than a month

Rating: 5/5 Quality product that does its job February 27, 2015 Resolves the issue with changing the HDD to a larger non-Apple version and/or of different make in the 2011 iMac 27" by adding an externally mounted temperature sensor to correlate with the internal HDD sensor of the Apple originals. In this respect it's particularly useful when adding an extra SSD and creating a fusion drive with the new HDD. Same fine black cabling like the original Apple SSD SATA cabling so that it lies flat and takes up little space.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous

Rating: 5/5 Works February 14, 2015 This made replacing my iMac hard drive super easy. No issues and aftermarket hard drive passes the apple hardware test.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Tomelloso Age: 35-44 Experience Level: Power User Owned Product: 1-3 months

Rating: 5/5 Perfect February 13, 2015 It's easy to install and work perfect in my Imac 27" mid 2011

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous

Rating: 5/5 Simply perfect! January 27, 2015 As others have said this resolves the fan speed problem when installing a hard drive not sold to you by Apple. I had been fighting the fan speed issue for the past year after upgrading to a larger HD. (The software workarounds never completely worked.) This simple cable resolved all fan speed compatibility issues. If you can follow the videos that OWC has available on this site to open up your iMac and upgrade the hard drive, then the installation of this cable is very simple. Don't try to install a non-Apple HD without adding this cable. Another fantastic solution from OWC.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Age: Over 65 Experience Level: Power User Owned Product: 1-3 months

Rating: 5/5 Perfect Solution January 17, 2015 I recently upgraded the HD of my 27" iMac. After the upgrade I realized that after a while the Mac began to sound like a yard blower. After researching I found that Apple specified from manufacturers custom drives with built in temperature sensors, which my new HD did not have. This product fixed that issue perfectly. Now I have the equivalent of an Apple Fusion drive — very fast. Now my iMac runs very quiet and is very happy.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Budapest, Hungary Age: 35-44 Experience Level: IT Professional Owned Product: over 6 months

Rating: 5/5 Best ever January 9, 2015 The never stuff is better, than the previous. Nice work, thanks!

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Austria Age: 55-65 Experience Level: Power User Owned Product: less than a month

Rating: 5/5 Works perfectly November 30, 2014 I installed a Samsung 840 EVO 1TB on my iMac mid 2011 and installed the OWC thermal sensor, sticking the sensor on the SDD case, and connecting the cable as per instructions. It works perfectly, the fan is well controlled. Initially I had a doubt if the Thermal sensor was made for SSD's ( The OWC demo video was made only on a HDD ), and I wrote OWC and in few hours I got the answer that it works with any drive.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous

Rating: 5/5 Perfect November 10, 2014 Works as designed - no issues with the fans after installation of new drives with this kit.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: San Marcos Age: 35-44 Experience Level: IT Professional Owned Product: 1-3 months

Rating: 5/5 Works great! October 21, 2014 Purchased this to replace the primary 3.5" hard drive in my Mid 2011 27" iMAC with a Samsung SSD drive. Installed and everything works perfectly, The system runs silently and now with two SSD's installed. No fan issues and no fan control software needed.

This nice simple cable allows the 2011 iMAC to run normally with any SATA drive.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Experience Level: IT Professional

Rating: 4/5 Works as expected October 13, 2014 The HDD adapter works flawlessly in my 27" iMac, the installation was straightforward. Shipping to Germany took a while but went smoothly.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Edmonton, Alberta. Canada Age: 55-65 Experience Level: Power User Owned Product: 1-3 months

Rating: 5/5 Worked as advertised!! August 24, 2014 I bought this for my 27" 2011 iMac. I bought it so I could install a Seagate 3TB HDD and have lots of storage room. I have a 3TB external HDD that I'll use for a backup. I previously had a 1TB HDD that came with the iMac and I used a 2TB drive for its backup. After I installed it with the HDD and ran some tests with it, I can say...worked as advertised!! No longer do I need HDD Fan Control!

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: London,UK Experience Level: IT Professional Owned Product: 1-3 months

Rating: 5/5 Excellent Item July 26, 2014 First I just want to say thank you for your great product and excellent service to UK. I fixed my iMacs and both are running perfect , your products are excellent and i will definitely buy from you again and will recommended this company to anyone here in UK. A*****

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer Top 250 Contributor

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Woodbury, MN Age: 45-54 Experience Level: IT Professional Owned Product: 1-3 months

Rating: 5/5 A must for HD install in 2011 iMac June 23, 2014 A little pricey at nearly $50, however it works perfect and no software required. Worth every penny to have a flawless HD install in my mid 2011 iMac.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Austin, Texas Age: Over 65 Experience Level: Power User Owned Product: 1-3 months

Rating: 5/5 Brilliant solution to an awkward problem May 2, 2014 Apple managed to make replacement or upgrading the hard drive a proprietary affair. OWC have brilliantly solved this issue and now have an inline connector solution which avoids the need to replace the motherboard to drive connection (as was required in the old kit). The old solution required removing the motherboard, this one only requires removing the LCD, glass and, of course, the drive. Brilliant solution and it works flawlessly. I upgraded the 1 TB internal drive to a 3 TB with no problems whatsoever and completed the whole thing in about 20 minutes. OWCs instructions are, as usual, complete and very clear. The tool kit is helpful in providing the correct screw drivers, but is not essential. I no longer fear drive failure as I can easily replace it. Thoroughly recommended.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer Top 100 Contributor

Reviewer: Anonymous Location: Lohja, Finland Age: Over 65 Experience Level: Power User Owned Product: less than a month

Rating: 5/5 Very good choice! April 29, 2014 Really fast delivery, as usual. The product arrived at my doorstep in Finland on the 3rd day ofter the order. Installation instructions are excellent, everything is OK.

I would recommend this item to a friend!

Verified Buyer

Reviewer: Anonymous

Rating: 5/5 very easy to install March 13, 2014 OWC has improved on this connector (as compared to the video). It's now a simple attachment to the existing SATA cable, so requires less iMac disassembly. You still have to get the screen off, but not the motherboard. (It's equivalent to an operation replacing the hard drive.)

It works like a charm.

I would recommend this item to a friend!