Next Mac mini release? Or buy now

Paskell · Jan 30, 2013, 02:21 AM

I am currently In a pickle. My 2009 Mbp is 2.2ghz 2 gb ram pretty fail now and I don't want to upgrade the ram it's a waste to drop money on it. I'm looking to either get an i7 Mac mini with basically all upgrades but the graphics card is weak I'm wondering if new one will have a top end card.. And when it will likely be released. If not ill get an 27" iMac i7 3.3ghz , 16gb ram, gtx 680 2gb.. Opinions / rumors of releases would be awesome. Also I have heard that its near impossible to upgrade the iMac minus the ram on the 27" but I hope no hdd fail:/

LaunchpadBS · Jan 30, 2013, 04:18 AM

If you need it now buy it now, if you are PREPARED to wait...then wait, next update likely to be October.

zedsdead · Jan 30, 2013, 04:29 AM

The Mini will likely not get a dedicated graphics card again. Apple dropped the only one on this last refresh because they feel the HD4000 is good enough.

Considering Haswell will house the HD4600 which will offer almost twice the performance of the HD4000, Apple will likely stick with the intergraded graphics approach.

If you can wait, like the previous poster said it will be much later in the year.

If not, the current model has a quad core processor and the HD4000 is a good chip for most uses. If you need more graphics power, your only current option then would be an iMac (or get a new macbook pro instead).

Micky Do · Jan 30, 2013, 05:45 AM

Last November I upgraded my early 2009 Mini (2 Ghz Core 2 Duo, 1 GB RAM, 120 GB HDD, Snow Leopard) to 5 GB, and had Mountain Lion installed. All done at a shop (I have no credit card so no App Store a/c), it set me back the equivalent to $US 130. The difference was like night and day; it was like getting a new computer. Had the HDD been looking dickie I would have replaced that too...... Maybe I will in a year or two, and then maybe a bit more RAM too.

If I had the facilities to do it myself the upgrade would have cost half as much. As it is I am happy with the upgrade, which set me back less than 15% of what it would have cost to get a new Mini and equivalent software. What I have now should see me right for several more years.

Right now, depending on your needs and circumstances, the upgrade option could be the way to go for you, as it was for me.

It was a different decision for me in 2009, when my early 2005 Mini HDD and power supply packed a sad. Repairs and upgrades would have cost nearly half the cost of a new computer, and would have left with an already obsolete G4 computer and OS.

Che Castro · Jan 30, 2013, 06:02 AM

If I get the base model 2012 Mac mini & add 16gb , how many years will I be able to get out of it before it starts getting slow with new mac software ?

Razzerman II · Jan 30, 2013, 06:08 AM

Hello,

Wait for the next update, as had been said, if you can. I have an early 2009 mini and I'm waiting as patiently as I can for Haswell.

Can I ask what OS you're running? Has mountain lion eating all your 2gb of ram?

I personally would avoid an imac, as after 5 years your left with a nice screen and a dead end computer. Nature of all in ones, I guess.

Cheers,

Ray

Micky Do · Jan 30, 2013, 09:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Razzerman II

Hello,

Wait for the next update, as had been said, if you can. I have an early 2009 mini and I'm waiting as patiently as I can for Haswell.

Can I ask what OS you're running? Has mountain lion eating all your 2gb of ram?

I personally would avoid an imac, as after 5 years your left with a nice screen and a dead end computer. Nature of all in ones, I guess.

Cheers,

Ray

A good point, for sure.....

"But the Mini comes without a monitor, mouse and keyboard," some say.

To me that is an advantage.

The monitor and speakers I bought in 2005 are doing just fine. I have replaced my first keyboard (Apple) with one that better suits my needs (a small wired Apple one), and a mouse that wore out (dunno what brand) with a wired Logitech one.

The Mountain Lion requires at least 2 GB of RAM, though it is reckoned to go better with at least 4 or 5 GB. I have never run it with less than 5.

foofan · Jan 30, 2013, 12:14 PM

take a look at macrumors buyers guide tab. they tell you if you should buy or not. the current mini came out a little over 3 months ago, so i would buy right now. I don't see new minis coming out till next october or later.

do you really want to torture yourself for 10 months?

Paskell · Jan 30, 2013, 12:19 PM

But the iMac CPU is better, and the gtx 680 2gb is far superior an would put last the rest of the components also the 27" can upgrade ram to 16/32 gb my problem is the hdd if it dies no way to get at it and with fusion your only left with ssd I guess external ?

CausticPuppy · Jan 30, 2013, 01:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Che Castro

If I get the base model 2012 Mac mini & add 16gb , how many years will I be able to get out of it before it starts getting slow with new mac software ?

Depends on what you're doing, but consider that my 5-year old Mac Mini is still perfectly fine for internet + word process + other basic stuff... you can expect the same usable lifespan out of the current generation. I think the computer market in general has matured to the point where you don't need to upgrade every 2 years just to be able to run current software.

Razzerman II · Jan 30, 2013, 02:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paskell

But the iMac CPU is better, and the gtx 680 2gb is far superior an would put last the rest of the components also the 27" can upgrade ram to 16/32 gb my problem is the hdd if it dies no way to get at it and with fusion your only left with ssd I guess external ?

All true, I know. And only you can decide. I always ask myself 'am I prepared to throw away the whole computer if the screen conks out, or be happy to pay to repair said screen'. The answer, for me, is 'no, I'm not'.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

Cheers,

Ray

Hookemfins · Jan 30, 2013, 09:26 PM

You're only 3 months out from the release of the latest Mac mini. Get it and max out the RAM and you'll be fine.

Paskell · Jan 31, 2013, 02:47 AM

Yeah I now realize its a long wait but I just find that to get a good monitor plus the Mac mini it's basically same price as iMac and not as good.. And not as big of screen and once again the killer is the intel hd 4000 graphics are not really all that great for high demand programs/ games. Can it even run a game like wow on high settings..

Woyzeck · Jan 31, 2013, 08:05 AM

A (do-it-yourself) maxed out Mini will cost you some 900-1000 USD. A very good 27" screen (Dell 2711, actually better than that of the iMac) will cost you 600-700 USD. It's still not top-notch, but even usable for graphics design and printing.

And as others have said: the iMac is a feature-stripped AIO with a single disk. If anything breaks you have to throw away the whole unit. If it gets too slow for you then you have to throw away the whole unit, even if the display might still be good enou for you. There's no feasible way to swap out anything but the RAM.

In my opinion the new iMac is the most stupid desktop machine that Apple has ever offered.

Mike Valmike · Jan 31, 2013, 09:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paskell

Yeah I now realize its a long wait but I just find that to get a good monitor plus the Mac mini it's basically same price as iMac and not as good.. And not as big of screen and once again the killer is the intel hd 4000 graphics are not really all that great for high demand programs/ games. Can it even run a game like wow on high settings..

The Mini isn't a gaming computer. Buy the iMac already.

Razzerman II · Jan 31, 2013, 09:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Valmike

The Mini isn't a gaming computer. Buy the iMac already.

I disagree - I've played Wow (not the panda version) and currently play Diablo 3 - all on lowest, but perfectly playable nevertheless.

Some say no Mac is a gaming machine anyhow.

Cheers,

Ray

Paskell · Jan 31, 2013, 03:34 PM

If only they would slap a decent gpu in there I wouldn't hesitate to get the Mac mini. Thanks for the advice probably end up with mini or wait it out and upgrade ram on 09 Mbp

Mr. Retrofire · Jan 31, 2013, 04:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paskell

But the iMac CPU is better...

Not much:

The 2.6 GHz Ivy Bridge 2012 Mac mini has a i7-3720QM, and the 3.4 GHz Ivy Bridge 2012 iMac has a i7-3770:
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?...QM+%40+2.60GHz

The difference between the iMac (9475 points) and the Mac mini (8463 points) is not really big.

(100 / 8463) * (9475 - 8463) ≈ 12 % faster

So the iMac CPU is only ≈ 12 % faster than the CPU in the Mac mini, and probably much less in multicore-applications, because each processor has only a limited memory bus bandwidth. More active cores = less memory bus bandwidth for each core.

----------

Quote:

Originally Posted by Razzerman II

All true, I know.

No, it is NOT “all true”.

Razzerman II · Feb 1, 2013, 12:59 PM

Which bit isn't true? I'm confused...

David58117 · Feb 1, 2013, 01:36 PM

Why don't you go to Best Buy, buy the mini, if it doesn't suit your needs return it? Their return policy is very nice and all you'll likely be asked is - "Is there anything wrong with it?"

Anyway, there are plenty of youtube videos of people playing games on the mini - Skyrim, Dirt 2, Arma 2, Crysis....just youtube "mac mini 2012 gaming" and they will come up. On mine, all I've been somewhat interested in installing was Civ 4 - no problems with it whatsoever.

Fans will come on, the casing will get hot - that's its purpose, don't freak out about it - it's normal.

The HD4000 is definitely not a dedicated GPU, but it's no slouch either. And the nice thing about the mini is - in a few years when you upgrade, you've got yourself a very nice HTPC (The apple remote + remote buddy app is pretty nice..).

Jan 30, 2013, 02:21 AM	#1
Paskell macrumors newbie Join Date: Jan 2013	Next Mac mini release? Or buy now I am currently In a pickle. My 2009 Mbp is 2.2ghz 2 gb ram pretty fail now and I don't want to upgrade the ram it's a waste to drop money on it. I'm looking to either get an i7 Mac mini with basically all upgrades but the graphics card is weak I'm wondering if new one will have a top end card.. And when it will likely be released. If not ill get an 27" iMac i7 3.3ghz , 16gb ram, gtx 680 2gb.. Opinions / rumors of releases would be awesome. Also I have heard that its near impossible to upgrade the iMac minus the ram on the 27" but I hope no hdd fail:/
	0

Jan 30, 2013, 04:18 AM	#2
LaunchpadBS macrumors 6502a Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: iLondon/iDurban	If you need it now buy it now, if you are PREPARED to wait...then wait, next update likely to be October. __________________ Mac Mini i7 2012 - 13" MBP 2012 - iPhone 4S - iPod Shuffle - Retina iPad - iPad Mini - iPod Classic - ATV 2
	0

Jan 30, 2013, 04:29 AM	#3
zedsdead macrumors 68030 Join Date: Jun 2007	The Mini will likely not get a dedicated graphics card again. Apple dropped the only one on this last refresh because they feel the HD4000 is good enough. Considering Haswell will house the HD4600 which will offer almost twice the performance of the HD4000, Apple will likely stick with the intergraded graphics approach. If you can wait, like the previous poster said it will be much later in the year. If not, the current model has a quad core processor and the HD4000 is a good chip for most uses. If you need more graphics power, your only current option then would be an iMac (or get a new macbook pro instead). __________________ iMac 27: 3.4 Core i7 Quad, 3tb Fusion, 24gb of RAM, 2gb NVIDIA 680mx Macbook Air 13": 2.13 Core2Duo, 256 Flash, 4 gigs of RAM, NVIDIA 320M iPad 3, iPhone 5, Apple TV, Final Cut X, Logic, Drobo 5D
	0

Jan 30, 2013, 12:14 PM	#8
foofan macrumors 6502 Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: New England	check buyers guide take a look at macrumors buyers guide tab. they tell you if you should buy or not. the current mini came out a little over 3 months ago, so i would buy right now. I don't see new minis coming out till next october or later. do you really want to torture yourself for 10 months?
	0

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Jan 30, 2013, 05:45 AM	#4
Micky Do macrumors regular Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Thailand	Last November I upgraded my early 2009 Mini (2 Ghz Core 2 Duo, 1 GB RAM, 120 GB HDD, Snow Leopard) to 5 GB, and had Mountain Lion installed. All done at a shop (I have no credit card so no App Store a/c), it set me back the equivalent to $US 130. The difference was like night and day; it was like getting a new computer. Had the HDD been looking dickie I would have replaced that too...... Maybe I will in a year or two, and then maybe a bit more RAM too. If I had the facilities to do it myself the upgrade would have cost half as much. As it is I am happy with the upgrade, which set me back less than 15% of what it would have cost to get a new Mini and equivalent software. What I have now should see me right for several more years. Right now, depending on your needs and circumstances, the upgrade option could be the way to go for you, as it was for me. It was a different decision for me in 2009, when my early 2005 Mini HDD and power supply packed a sad. Repairs and upgrades would have cost nearly half the cost of a new computer, and would have left with an already obsolete G4 computer and OS.
	0

Jan 30, 2013, 06:02 AM	#5
Che Castro macrumors 68040 Join Date: May 2009	If I get the base model 2012 Mac mini & add 16gb , how many years will I be able to get out of it before it starts getting slow with new mac software ?
	0

Jan 30, 2013, 06:08 AM	#6
Razzerman II macrumors member Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Scunthorpe - yes, that place	Hello, Wait for the next update, as had been said, if you can. I have an early 2009 mini and I'm waiting as patiently as I can for Haswell. Can I ask what OS you're running? Has mountain lion eating all your 2gb of ram? I personally would avoid an imac, as after 5 years your left with a nice screen and a dead end computer. Nature of all in ones, I guess. Cheers, Ray
	1

Jan 30, 2013, 12:19 PM	#9
Paskell Thread Starter macrumors newbie Join Date: Jan 2013	But the iMac CPU is better, and the gtx 680 2gb is far superior an would put last the rest of the components also the 27" can upgrade ram to 16/32 gb my problem is the hdd if it dies no way to get at it and with fusion your only left with ssd I guess external ?
	1

Jan 30, 2013, 09:26 PM	#12
Hookemfins macrumors newbie Join Date: Jan 2013	You're only 3 months out from the release of the latest Mac mini. Get it and max out the RAM and you'll be fine.
	0

Jan 31, 2013, 02:47 AM	#13
Paskell Thread Starter macrumors newbie Join Date: Jan 2013	Yeah I now realize its a long wait but I just find that to get a good monitor plus the Mac mini it's basically same price as iMac and not as good.. And not as big of screen and once again the killer is the intel hd 4000 graphics are not really all that great for high demand programs/ games. Can it even run a game like wow on high settings..
	0

Jan 31, 2013, 08:05 AM	#14
Woyzeck macrumors member Join Date: Nov 2012	A (do-it-yourself) maxed out Mini will cost you some 900-1000 USD. A very good 27" screen (Dell 2711, actually better than that of the iMac) will cost you 600-700 USD. It's still not top-notch, but even usable for graphics design and printing. And as others have said: the iMac is a feature-stripped AIO with a single disk. If anything breaks you have to throw away the whole unit. If it gets too slow for you then you have to throw away the whole unit, even if the display might still be good enou for you. There's no feasible way to swap out anything but the RAM. In my opinion the new iMac is the most stupid desktop machine that Apple has ever offered.
	2

Jan 31, 2013, 03:34 PM	#17
Paskell Thread Starter macrumors newbie Join Date: Jan 2013	If only they would slap a decent gpu in there I wouldn't hesitate to get the Mac mini. Thanks for the advice probably end up with mini or wait it out and upgrade ram on 09 Mbp
	0

Feb 1, 2013, 12:59 PM	#19
Razzerman II macrumors member Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Scunthorpe - yes, that place	Which bit isn't true? I'm confused...
	0

Feb 1, 2013, 01:36 PM	#20
David58117 macrumors member Join Date: Jan 2013	Why don't you go to Best Buy, buy the mini, if it doesn't suit your needs return it? Their return policy is very nice and all you'll likely be asked is - "Is there anything wrong with it?" Anyway, there are plenty of youtube videos of people playing games on the mini - Skyrim, Dirt 2, Arma 2, Crysis....just youtube "mac mini 2012 gaming" and they will come up. On mine, all I've been somewhat interested in installing was Civ 4 - no problems with it whatsoever. Fans will come on, the casing will get hot - that's its purpose, don't freak out about it - it's normal. The HD4000 is definitely not a dedicated GPU, but it's no slouch either. And the nice thing about the mini is - in a few years when you upgrade, you've got yourself a very nice HTPC (The apple remote + remote buddy app is pretty nice..).
	1