Mac Mini 2012 i7 - hdd 5400rpm vs fusion drive

The 5400 rpm drive will feel exceedingly slow to you since you're already using a computer with an SSD. I recommend avoiding this option.

If you don't want to go the DIY route, then I say get the fusion drive or the SSD

maflynn said:

The 5400 rpm drive will feel exceedingly slow to you since you're already using a computer with an SSD. I recommend avoiding this option.

If you don't want to go the DIY route, then I say get the fusion drive or the SSD

Click to expand...

Totally agree, but to add to maflynn's comments

You should be able to find an apple dealer to do the SSD change over. It only takes 5 minutes to do if you have done it before so I am sure a Mac expert could replace the HDD for an SDD for a reasonable price. Once you find the 'expert' just order your mini with HDD and third party SSD (Samsung 840 Pro or OCZ Vector) and get them to do it. You then have an option of a DIY fusion (OEM 1TB HDD and SSD - will need extra sata ribbon, screws etc as well) or a stand alone SSD (simply replace the HDD - easiest option).

Also the OEM HDD in the mini is actually fast for a 5400rpm drive but still a lot slower than an SSD.

See: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/notebook-hard-drive-review,3270-3.html

"Let us be clear, this is not at all a slow disk; it even beats the Seagate Momentus XT and Hitachi Travelstar 7K500 (both 7200 RPM-based products) in the h2benchw benchmark."

maflynn said:

The 5400 rpm drive will feel exceedingly slow to you since you're already using a computer with an SSD. I recommend avoiding this option.

If you don't want to go the DIY route, then I say get the fusion drive or the SSD

Click to expand...

I don't necessarily agree with this. I came from a 2012 macbook air to quad i7 mini with 1TB drive. I also have other computers with SSD.

While startup and application launch is faster with the air and SSD computers. Once that's done it comes down to your usage beyond that. Without knowing how you use the computer it's hard to say how much or little you'll benefit.

My fixit kit will be in tomorrow and I'll be added an SSD to the mini since I have a spare. If not it'd add another 1TB drive before I purchased an SSD.

If you don't want to spend the extra $400 now, buy the model with the internal HDD.

Then, buy an SSD on your own.

You can either install it internally (if you want to open up the Mini), or...

... You can buy an external enclosure or USB3/SATA dock and use the SSD as an "external booter". It will work just fine.

You could "meld" an external SSD and internal HDD into a fusion drive if you wish, but I don't see why that would be necessary. Just get used to managing two drive icons on the desktop, instead of one. I keep no less than -7- drive partitions mounted at all times -- no big deal.