Overall Mac Mini experiences?

[Westside guy]

Hey all,

I am trying to get a feel for the overall satisfaction level of the folks who've bought the Mac Mini. My primary concern is reliability, what with it being a Rev. A product and all. Are there any widespread issues people are aware of, such as I experienced first-hand with the Rev. A 15" Al Powerbook and it's dreaded white spots?

The reason I'm asking is this: My sis is about to buy a new computer and is leaning towards the Mini, which would be her first Mac. I realize nothing is guaranteed in this life, but if there are significant known issues I might see if I can convince her to hold off a few months. Basically I don't want a switcher's first experience with Mac hardware to be a bad one, if I can help it. :D

Thanks!

[CanadaRAM]

Hmm.

Got the Mini, Pried it open and put in 1 Gb RAM, Installed Filemaker Server, has been running without a reboot since end of January. Dunno what else I can say ;)

[Demon Hunter]

Overall I think it's one of the "safest" Apple products right now... after all, you have to remember that this hardware has been used for a long time, in similar setups and older machines... so yeah, it is Rev. A, but the technology is like Rev. K. ;)

Just be careful with heat, like don't stack 3 Minis on top of each other.

[ravenvii]

Oh my god!

I mean... OH MY GOD! When I opened that box (which was OH MY GOD as well - the niftiness level of the thing was OH MY GOD!) and lifted up the layers of OH MY GOD syrofoam... I came upon the Mac mini, my preciousss! And I picked it up. This thing ain't plastic, no sir! It's heavy, cold, solid metal hunk of OH MY GODness! I even had to go to the bathroom for a little "private time" after beholding it!

And I booted it up.

My preciousss...

[MacNut]

I even had to go to the bathroom for a little "private time" after beholding it!

And I booted it up.

My preciousss...I hope it didn't go into the bathroom with you. :rolleyes:

[Etrain]

I even had to go to the bathroom for a little "private time" after beholding it!

My preciousss...

Hmmm...sounds odly like Buffalo Bill from the Silence of the Lambs. ;)

[Phat_Pat]

I even had to go to the bathroom for a little "private time" after beholding it!

** does everything possible to try and not make a joke about slot loading drive.....**

[PlaceofDis]

i haven't heard any problems from the few people i know that have gotten em

they seem to be rather stable, unlike the problems with the iMac G5 and the original 15' powerbooks

the hardware isnt new, just the design layout, and it seems to be simple enough that there are no large issues at this time, of course apple care is always a good idea if you want to be cautious

[panphage]

Make sure to buy the 512 ram upgrade or get a gig stick somewhere (newegg) and pop it in there. I heard one guy complaining that it was a slow machine and then he put in 512MB of ram and said it was zippy.

[Solafaa]

I know co-worker who got a mac, he liked it very much but was complaining it was a bit slow. After a 512mb RAM was installed he does not have any problems.

[redeye be]

It works absolutely fine for me.
I will be upgrading to 1 gig in the near future i think, i sometimes get a beachball when safari, mail, ical, adium, photoshop, illustrator and imageready are open (simultaniously :rolleyes: ).
I also do feel the slower HD (i got the 80 Gb @ 4200 rpm) is holding back the mini sometimes.
No *real* problems.

I'm very happy with this computer, not in a way that i need some 'private time' after or while using it ;), but i like it.

[Dont Hurt Me]

Mini seems very reliable,no problems. Imac is the problem maker for Apple these days. If i was to do it again i would wait for Apple to get off their arses and spend the $5 more for the Fx5200,and Tiger then buy it. Now that would make a very Solid machine. the 9200 is crippling it in my view, Nanosuar looks bad on the weak graphics compared to my 4y/o 64mb Geforce3 using about the same G4. Mini is very sweet dont get me wrong it just needs a modern GPU and 9200 is like 2mx performance maybe. Its the achilles heal of the machine.

[Winstonp]

I had a mini until this friday. It's great for what it is...but you are getting what you paid for.

The graphics card was so underpowered, and it make simple expose actions jagged and weak. Forget gaming...trust me.

The hard drives are too slow as well.

With this powermac i have now instead...I notice a HUGE difference.

[BillHarrison]

Got mine In January. Ram is a bit limiting, but other than that, I have seen no issues. ONLY real issue I have heard of in web surfing has been Weak Analog VGA output, causing dim screens on some Analog monitors. I personally use the analog out with an older LCD that does not have DVI, and its fine.

Performance wise, is very acceptable. I have the 1.25ghz model, and processor speed has not held me back yet. Ram has however, so I highly recommend atleast 512mb.

As others have stated, this is basically a repackaging of older tried and true technology, so there really have been few Rev A issues. I would not hesitate to jump on one.

Actually, I did

:P

Bill

[redeye be]

there could be a sound issue (http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=117381).
:(

[Chip NoVaMac]

I even had to go to the bathroom for a little "private time" after beholding it!

And I booted it up.

My preciousss...

Is this not what got MJ in trouble with the law? :D

[twoodcc]

got my mini a few weeks ago, and i love it so far. it was my first mac, and now i've got an ipod shuffle :) . i do need to upgrade the ram on the mini, but other than the ram, no problems at all.

[Chip NoVaMac]

May be moving in to a different place in a few months, and the Mac mini seems to fit the smaller space that will result. Glad to hear of the positives on the Mac mini so far.

[Tuned MP5T]

The Mac mini is my first Mac and it's been enjoyable thus far. Just make sure that you uprgrade the ram to at least 512.

[Yvan256]

My sis is about to buy a new computer and is leaning towards the Mini, which would be her first Mac. I realize nothing is guaranteed in this life, but if there are significant known issues I might see if I can convince her to hold off a few months. Basically I don't want a switcher's first experience with Mac hardware to be a bad one, if I can help it. :D

Thanks!

I've had my Mac mini for one week and it's amazing. Gaming aside, this little box can kick any PC. Why? The PC doesn't have OS X and iLife.

The only thing I've heard about the Mac mini is about some people having static noise from their audio-out connector. But mine's free from such defect.

The only things I don't like about the Mac mini are:
1. weak GPU, low VRAM (but then again, the computer didn't cost that much)
2. not enough USB ports (a regular PC switcher will need at least 3, maybe 4 ports: keyboard, mouse, printer, other such as scanner or webcam, etc).
3. only one memory slot (which makes upgrading a hassle - I wish Apple would solder 256MB or 512MB on-board and keep the single memory slot open for upgrading).

The USB ports problem can easily be solved by a USB hub if needed.

In my opinion, tell her to get the 1.42GHz/80GB model, it's worth the price if only for the extra 40GB of HD space. Or at least upgrade the 1.25GHz to 80GB (but at that price, you're really close to getting the 1.42GHz).

[jayscheuerle]

The processor upgrade feel from my 450mHz G4 tower is felt, but the slower disk speed hurts with all the graphics apps I keep open.

I had my first kernal panic in years with this machine waking up from sleep.

Disk drive is loud as hell. (actually optical! ) :D

I miss the audio in.

I still like the machine. - j

[AstroManLuca]

For clarification, the "disk drive is loud as hell" comment is almost certainly referring to the optical drive, not the hard drive. The hard drive is almost silent, but the optical is extremely loud. I don't have to use it much though, and besides, it's a slot loader so I can forgive it because of its coolness ;).

No kernel panics or reliability issues with mine, even after installing some generic RAM from NewEgg (1 GB Geil PC3200). The only problem at all is that the DVI-VGA adapter has one screw that won't turn. I don't need it, though, because I have a DVI flat panel.

[Yvan256]

I had a mini until this friday. It's great for what it is...but you are getting what you paid for.

The graphics card was so underpowered, and it make simple expose actions jagged and weak. Forget gaming...trust me.

The hard drives are too slow as well.

With this powermac i have now instead...I notice a HUGE difference.

I guess it also depends on your settings. I'm using my Mac mini on a 15" CRT @ 1024x768, and Exposé just couldn't be smoother (and my first complain is always choppy/low FPS problems).

As for gaming, I guess old games such as Unreal Tournament 2003/2004 should be able to run fine in 800x600 or 1024x768 with moderate settings. In fact, I've been playing WoW on my Mac mini for a week! Sure, I play in 800x600, all settings "off" or "lowest", there's no terrain shading (looks awful) and I'm getting 1 FPS in IronForge at peak times with dozens of people on the screen. But most of the time, when in the open with few monsters, I'm getting from 15 to 30 FPS (average 20-22).

As far as the hard drives being too slow, I don't know what to say, feels fast enough for me.

And comparing the Mac mini to the PowerMac, well, I call unfair comparison. :D

Edit: I have no problems with the analog VGA output and my 15" CRT, also tried it with my brother's CRT, no problems there either. And the TV output is fine too (bought the optional adapter).

[Lord Blackadder]

My brother's had his Mini since january; it hasn't crashed yet, and nothing has broken...

He spends most of his time playing Warcraft 3, watching DVDs, recording his guitar into Garageband or chatting/surfing. For these things the Mini is a champ, and except for the optical drive the machine is silent.

[Chip NoVaMac]

The Mac mini is my first Mac and it's been enjoyable thus far. Just make sure that you uprgrade the ram to at least 512.

Given the one RAM slot, I would say just go to 1gb if you can afford it.

[eroda]

For clarification, the "disk drive is loud as hell" comment is almost certainly referring to the optical drive, not the hard drive. The hard drive is almost silent, but the optical is extremely loud. I don't have to use it much though, and besides, it's a slot loader so I can forgive it because of its coolness ;).


its not that the drive is loud its that the machine is so quiet when compared to the opticla drive put that drive in a regular PM and see how loud it is :D

[Westside guy]

Thanks all!

512MB is a given. I told her that was the single MUST HAVE upgrade. :D

She's been a Windows user for quite a while, running this ancient Compaq that's still got Windows 95 on it. ANYTHING will likely seem speedy by comparison. :p

[Chip NoVaMac]

Thanks all!

512MB is a given. I told her that was the single MUST HAVE upgrade. :D

She's been a Windows user for quite a while, running this ancient Compaq that's still got Windows 95 on it. ANYTHING will likely seem speedy by comparison. :p

You are welcome.

My other half just had to reinstall Win XP after me doing it for him a few months back. Even though he swears he never went to any sites for the adware viruses he ended up with. He is too pig headed to take the eMac we bought for him back!

[EGT]

Thanks all!

512MB is a given. I told her that was the single MUST HAVE upgrade. :D

She's been a Windows user for quite a while, running this ancient Compaq that's still got Windows 95 on it. ANYTHING will likely seem speedy by comparison. :p

Ohh dear!! She'll love OS X when she gets the mini!!

A friend of mine got one a few weeks ago. I must say, its a beautiful piece of engineering!

[jayscheuerle]

its not that the drive is loud its that the machine is so quiet when compared to the opticla drive put that drive in a regular PM and see how loud it is :D

Slot load drives ARE just loud. It's worth the sacrifice I guess...

[Westside guy]

My other half just had to reinstall Win XP after me doing it for him a few months back. Even though he swears he never went to any sites for the adware viruses he ended up with. He is too pig headed to take the eMac we bought for him back!

I must admit that XP is part of the equation in this. My sis is one of the people for whom I'm the "tech support". She knows that I'm getting rather tired of dealing with the various XP problems and oddities people seem to frequently have. Her still running Win95 (on a Pentium 120!) has actually saved her a bit of grief; but there's just so much that OS can't do (or at least can't do well). Put a fork in that computer; it's done!

We've got an XP box at home that hasn't been too much trouble; but having direct control over it makes it easy to enforce good practice - plus my wife is pretty good about not doing the silly things some users seem hell-bent to do. However it's not like I can set up a group policy and lock down my sister's computer (or my mom's, or my friends', or ...). Okay, technically I could, but politically... :D

Plus having had the past 1.5 years to compare OS X and XP side by side, using them both with the same types of hardware and software - it's made it easy to sell OS X on its own merits (as opposed to going the negative route: "Use OS X because of XP's shortcomings").

[Chip NoVaMac]

I must admit that XP is part of the equation in this. My sis is one of the people for whom I'm the "tech support". She knows that I'm getting rather tired of dealing with the various XP problems and oddities people seem to frequently have. Her still running Win95 (on a Pentium 120!) has actually saved her a bit of grief; but there's just so much that OS can't do (or at least can't do well). Put a fork in that computer; it's done!

We've got an XP box at home that hasn't been too much trouble; but having direct control over it makes it easy to enforce good practice - plus my wife is pretty good about not doing the silly things some users seem hell-bent to do. However it's not like I can set up a group policy and lock down my sister's computer (or my mom's, or my friends', or ...). Okay, technically I could, but politically... :D

Plus having had the past 1.5 years to compare OS X and XP side by side, using them both with the same types of hardware and software - it's made it easy to sell OS X on its own merits (as opposed to going the negative route: "Use OS X because of XP's shortcomings").

Amen on so many levels! In the 2= years that we have have OSX and XP under the same roof, we are on the 2nd or 3rd install of XP due to nothing other than bad emails or websites. I have only had to reinstall OSX due to my not wanting the OS to do what it should do, without my ****** it up.

[cheekyspanky]

My Mac mini is running well, had it almost a month now and its only been turned off 3 or 4 times and that was for software updates.

I get the beachball of death quite often, but i do tend to have a lot of programs running at once, and my fan seems to be pretty noisy but other than that all is well.

I haven't really used iLife much, (iTunes is the exception of course) but I feel iPhoto could be improved - with a faster opening time and some more Picasa2 style features!

[homerjward]

i don't get why people are saying exposé is choppy and the graphics is bad, etc. i have the same gpu in my emac and exposé is fine, along with many games including halo at mediumish settings; the only game i have trouble with is a few n64 games under sixty force. perhaps the 7200rpm disk in my computer somehow affects the graphics?:confused: id certainly trade a little less graphic performance for a non-deafening fan.