Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Mac mini vs Mac Pro vs iMac

M

macnoob222

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Mar 25, 2013
4
0
Hi and thanks in advance for any helpful responses. I am planning on buying a new mac for video editing. I am going to be using Final Cut 7 but I will probably end up using FCPX in the future. I also want to be able to use Motion and photoshop. I don't mind waiting several hours to render huge projects but I really don't want to have the program freeze up while I am using it. I also have a 37" Philips TV which I plan to use as my monitor.

I am leaning toward a mac mini but am finding that the price difference (at least for used machines on ebay) is negligible between all three of these machines. I know that macpros have more space inside them for upgrading memory/hard drives but what I care about is that the machine runs smoothly. I think I will probably use my new machine offline because it seems that my last macbook (not pro) has run slower over time and I'm guessing its due to internet use.

Which of these models/setups will give me the best performance? I almost don't want the imac because the screen will be reduntant and in fact in the way on my desk. Also, can I get away with an i5 processor if I go with a mini? Secondarily, which is the best bang for my buck? Also, is it worth it to spend a couple hundred extra bucks on a mac mini vs used? Help! :apple:

I'd like to be under the $1,000 threshold. Cheaper the better(of course). My workload is just personal projects for now.
 
Last edited:
Macsonic

Macsonic

macrumors 68000
Sep 6, 2009
1,706
97
Hi Macnoob222

You're better with the Mac Pro since you are doing video editing and Motion. You will also need to factor in Compression tasks which also needs multi-core processing plus other apps being open.

You'll also might be dealing with large files later and the expandability of the Mac Pro is a big plus.
 
M

macnoob222

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Mar 25, 2013
4
0
Macsonic said:
Hi Macnoob222

You're better with the Mac Pro since you are doing video editing and Motion. You will also need to factor in Compression tasks which also needs multi-core processing plus other apps being open.

You'll also might be dealing with large files later and the expandability of the Mac Pro is a big plus.
Click to expand...


Don't imacs and mac minis have multi-core? and how much do I need to worry about apple not supporting macpros in the future?
 
Macsonic

Macsonic

macrumors 68000
Sep 6, 2009
1,706
97
macnoob222 said:
Don't imacs and mac minis have multi-core? and how much do I need to worry about apple not supporting macpros in the future?
Click to expand...

I know iMacs and Mac Minis are also multi-core though they use i5 and i7 processores while Mac Pros uses the Xeon server type cpus. Here are some discussions which might help but keep in mind you will get varied opinions. Some will recommend Mac Minis or Imacs over a Mac Pro and vice versa.

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4652324?start=0&tstart=0
http://forums.creativecow.net/thread/8/1076226#1076226

We don't have an idea how long Apple will support the Mac Pro though let's hope Apple will continue to.
 
M

macnoob222

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Mar 25, 2013
4
0
Macsonic said:
I know iMacs and Mac Minis are also multi-core though they use i5 and i7 processores while Mac Pros uses the Xeon server type cpus. Here are some discussions which might help but keep in mind you will get varied opinions. Some will recommend Mac Minis or Imacs over a Mac Pro and vice versa.

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4652324?start=0&tstart=0
http://forums.creativecow.net/thread/8/1076226#1076226

We don't have an idea how long Apple will support the Mac Pro though let's hope Apple will continue to.
Click to expand...


Thanks for all the help y'all. My research tells me that:
imac 21" used: $800
macpro (older than the imacs/minis of course) used: $800
mac mini i7 used: $800
mac mini i5 refurb: $500 http://store.apple.com/us/product/F...c-mini-25ghz-dual-core-intel-core-i5#overview
mac mini i7 refurb: $700 http://store.apple.com/us/product/F...c-mini-23ghz-quad-core-intel-core-i7#overview

Now of course there is some variation in the specs of all these machines but they seem to pretty much balance out.

I think I want to go with one of the minis because they are cheaper and I trust refurb more than used but I can't seem to find a clear answer to the question:

How do mac minis (i5 and i7s) handle Apple Motion 4? Which of these options is my best bang/$?

I would really like my new machine to be able to handle motion but I was using an imac at school today and it slowed down when I got into rotoscope rendering.
 
Santabean2000

Santabean2000

macrumors 68000
Nov 20, 2007
1,883
2,044
macnoob222 said:
Thanks for all the help y'all. My research tells me that:
imac 21" used: $800
macpro (older than the imacs/minis of course) used: $800
mac mini i7 used: $800
mac mini i5 refurb: $500 http://store.apple.com/us/product/F...c-mini-25ghz-dual-core-intel-core-i5#overview
mac mini i7 refurb: $700 http://store.apple.com/us/product/F...c-mini-23ghz-quad-core-intel-core-i7#overview

Now of course there is some variation in the specs of all these machines but they seem to pretty much balance out.

I think I want to go with one of the minis because they are cheaper and I trust refurb more than used but I can't seem to find a clear answer to the question:

How do mac minis (i5 and i7s) handle Apple Motion 4? Which of these options is my best bang/$?

I would really like my new machine to be able to handle motion but I was using an imac at school today and it slowed down when I got into rotoscope rendering.
Click to expand...

A mini is not a great solution for running Motion. You're better off with something that has discrete graphics.
 
Macsonic

Macsonic

macrumors 68000
Sep 6, 2009
1,706
97
Hi Macnoob222. I guess best way if you have friends who have Mac Minis is to get an actual demo using Apple Motion and see how things run. Might be hard to speculate based on specs on paper.
 
P

palmharbor

macrumors 6502
Jul 31, 2007
408
0
Mac Mini

First bought MM in 2009 bought Apple care...good thing...I am now on my third MM paid for by Apple Care....inconvenient at best.
 
Santabean2000

Santabean2000

macrumors 68000
Nov 20, 2007
1,883
2,044
macnoob222 said:
Thanks. could you recommend any good options with discrete graphics?
Click to expand...

The minis are quite capable of handling FCP, but Motion is best used with discrete graphics. In the Mac world that equals a Mac Pro, MBP 15" or iMac.

It looks like you're after a desktop, (which are typically more powerful), so really you have a choice of Mac Pro or iMac.

I'd be looking at a 27" iMac 2011 or later, or a Mac Pro 2009 or later. Unfortunately neither option is really that cheap.

If I had to choose just one..? Prob the Mac Pro. Look around to get the cheapest option and then possibly switch it for a more permanent solution when/if Apple update the MP range later this year.
 
B

Byrnes3969

macrumors member
Jan 23, 2009
64
0
Santabean2000 said:
The minis are quite capable of handling FCP, but Motion is best used with discrete graphics. In the Mac world that equals a Mac Pro, MBP 15" or iMac.

It looks like you're after a desktop, (which are typically more powerful), so really you have a choice of Mac Pro or iMac.

I'd be looking at a 27" iMac 2011 or later, or a Mac Pro 2009 or later. Unfortunately neither option is really that cheap.

If I had to choose just one..? Prob the Mac Pro. Look around to get the cheapest option and then possibly switch it for a more permanent solution when/if Apple update the MP range later this year.
Click to expand...

We just had this discussion on the FCP X thread:

My advice is switch to Adobe Creative Cloud for $30 per month ( $20 if you're a student) and then get the PC below for $700 less than the entry level Mac Pro:

HP Z420 Workstation
Intel® Xeon® E5-1620 (3.6 GHz, 10 MB cache, 4 cores)
8 GB 1600 MHz DDR3 ECC Unbuffered RAM
NVIDIA Quadro K2000 (2 GB) card

$1800 ($700 less than the Mac Pro Entry) if price isn't a consideration you can configure the Z420 beyond anything imaginable.

Unless you're really devoted to Apple. Then I would keep waiting for a Mac Pro update and price reduction.

My opinion is that Apple has a really strong iphone, ipad, portable business with great OS's and apps but Pro level Video editing is a business that Apple appears to giving one last gasp in marketing and sales before they let the software coast into oblivion. (Think: iweb, iDVD, FCP Express, Aperature, Logic)
 
Last edited:
K

KaraH

macrumors 6502
Nov 12, 2012
452
5
DC
A mac pro would be best and I would suggest aiming for that if you can wait. According to various rumours they hopefully will do a release later this year. In reality I would suggest having a backup plan if there is not a next release.

While by the specs on paper an iMac would do for me right now I am leaning towards a mini as my second-choice plan. Why? The iMac has practically no expandability and the monitor is married to the CPU. I like to be able to upgrade/replace things as needed without buying a new computer (all hail the data doubler). The mini is not much better but it does have *some* expandability ... my main complaint being the gpu.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom