2011 iMac Does it support replacing gtx 1070 mxm 3.0

As you can see here Apple dropped NVIDIA MXM board support around 2010 iMac Video MXM bd options so your system will run in compatibility mode using the older 2009 driver. You might be able to get a newer driver from NVIDIA directly as there was rumbling of them creating one quite a few years ago.

The next issue is the boards firmware is unique to Apple MXM boards so you would need to figure out how to find the older NVIDIA board firmware and if you can alter it to work with the GTX 1070 board.

The next issue it the heatsink getting the correct one so you don’t cook it or your system.

Is this worth the effort?

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Joseph Argueta @josephargueta crwdns2934065:0crwdne2934065:0: 1 · Answer 2 · 2025-05-24T16:32:09-07:00

It is possible to install a GTX 1070M in the iMac 2009-11 however currently there is only 1 vBios available for 1070M's with the specific Device ID 10DE:1BA1 (have to confirm with AfterBurner in Windows).

You will NEED a programming clip and another computer running Linux or Windows 10/11 to flash the vBios as the 1070M does not work with NVFlash, a 3 pipe heatsink will need to be purchased (possible grinding for chips to fit) as the stock 2 pipe heatsink that ships with iMac's from 2009-11 is not enough to keep it adequately cooled.

See for more details:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/ima...

The vBios provided should fix broken boot screen, sleep/wake, and brightness control as the card is natively unsupported, Apple cut support after the 2010 model and stuck closer with AMD, I heard rumors of people getting RX 5500 XT's and 6600 XT's working if that tickles you interest.

If you do attempt the upgrade be sure to research a lot, good luck!

iMac

2011 iMac Does it support replacing gtx 1070 mxm 3.0

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