Hello All. I am very very interested in purchasing a new mac mini. I am a PC user and I just need some change. I have pretty much every other apple product and I am very pleased with all. I was looking into purchasing a desktop and a friend of mine recommended the Mac Mini. Now for the past week I have really debating on getting a new PC desktop or Mac Mini. I just need a few pointers from you guys to see if I am making the right decision. The mac that is in my budget is the 599.00 version. I DO plan on upgrading the RAM once I get it. Any other suggestions?
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ok thanks fir response. should i not get caught up in the dual or quad core thing?
Was in the same boat, wanted to make the change from PC to Mac for a long time, was tossing up between MacBook Pro or iMac until a co-worker suggested the Mac mini
Ordered it and received it a few days ago, while waiting for it to arrive (around 10 days), decided to shop for some new peripheral's to go with it, bluetooth mouse (targa) keyboard (logitech K811) and Dell monitor U2312,
Man I feel like I'm at the helm of a brand new spaceship now, should have made the transition years ago, still learning the Mac way but loving the progress,
Thnx to the input from boardies on this site
Oh ye, I ended up ordering the I7 2.6 1TB Fusion and put in 16GB Kingston HyperX Ram
Ordered it and received it a few days ago, while waiting for it to arrive (around 10 days), decided to shop for some new peripheral's to go with it, bluetooth mouse (targa) keyboard (logitech K811) and Dell monitor U2312,
Man I feel like I'm at the helm of a brand new spaceship now, should have made the transition years ago, still learning the Mac way but loving the progress,
Thnx to the input from boardies on this site
Oh ye, I ended up ordering the I7 2.6 1TB Fusion and put in 16GB Kingston HyperX Ram
You can add RAM later (get the 4gb "minimum" from Apple).
You can even add an SSD later (if you don't want to "go inside" the Mini, you can add one via USB3 as an "external booter"). Apple overcharges you for SSD drives.
The one thing you _CAN'T_ add later is a quad-core processor. I strongly suggest that you consider spending a litter more, and get the i7 processor instead of the i5...
You can even add an SSD later (if you don't want to "go inside" the Mini, you can add one via USB3 as an "external booter"). Apple overcharges you for SSD drives.
The one thing you _CAN'T_ add later is a quad-core processor. I strongly suggest that you consider spending a litter more, and get the i7 processor instead of the i5...
You need to state what you are using it for. There is a tendency here to wish every option available on you, which you might not need (or even want because of the $$$) but it all depends on your use.
Some general advice: check out for refurbished units for additional savings and if you have a Discover credit card it's good for an additional 5% off on any online Apple Store computer purchase.
I purchased this book and found it interesting (still reading it): http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1449398537/ref=oh_details_o03_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
![41VOj0pcRvL._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg]()
That's the Lion version, here's the Mountain Lion version, which all new or refurb Mini should ship with: http://www.amazon.com/OS-Mountain-Lion-Missing-Manual/dp/1449330274/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_z
![514BhywgaxL._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg]()
That's the Lion version, here's the Mountain Lion version, which all new or refurb Mini should ship with: http://www.amazon.com/OS-Mountain-Lion-Missing-Manual/dp/1449330274/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_z
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I went quad because I wanted as much power as I could get, but it's more of a psychological choice for me than an actual. The mini appeared to me to be on par with my 2010 iMac before I added the extra RAM and, more importantly, the SSD, but that's just my opinion. It's not based on any testing or stats.
As always, it depends on what you'll be using it for.
In that case the base model will do fine. The earlier suggestion about David Pogue's Mountain Lion The Missing Manual I'll second. There is also a version for switchers:
Switching to the Mac: The Missing Manual, Mountain Lion Edition
The base does HT too. It has 4 virtual cores, where the quad i7 has 8.
Instead of SSD's, you can also pop in a 7200rpm drive, and/or try a faster drive first in a USB3 case.
You don't need an i7 unless you are doing or will do in the future any heavy duty work like encoding video or running through dozens of high res images. You also don't need more than 4GB RAM for the same reason or if you load up a lot of programs at once. The SSD is up to you, that will certainly speed up day to day loading of programs, but I don't miss mine, using a HDD now.
If you have to stay within your budget then you do not have much choice.
But just a suggestion on possibly looking at an SSD or fusion drive if you take that path... If you are new to Mac, which you are, and you are looking to do your own install of an SSD, you are looking to do a number of techinical things all at once at the first point of becomming familiar with mac mini's, OSX and Apple. For that reason I suggest you do some good homework on loading OSX and installing an SSD or fusion drive if you are going to do your own work. It is not super difficult, but it is very different to a windows installation, and installing a HDD/SSD in a mini is VERY different to installing a drive in a Windows based 'tower'. Although some might argue you can actually do an SSD install on a mac mini in the same time once you have experience (5 mins).
I don't want to scare you as it is definately doable and in fact very enjoyable in terms of self acheivment, but it will be a touch more difficult for someone who has no experience with OSX and mac minis. Expect some trial and error in the OS install - no in terms of OSX having problems, but more in terms of procedure.
Having said all that, if you are not that way enclined (technically and mechanically) I would strongly suggest the Apple stock fusion drive option. Yes it is priced up instead of a DIY version, but a definate benefit from my point. I see far more 'fusion happy' poeple than 'fusion unhappy' people. I would normally recomend a DIY fusion, but in your case, if you can afford it go for the Apple OEM version - no install issues.
I say all that because a few people have recomended SSDs (which I agree with) but be aware of how to do it.
There are far more computer noobs than experts
There are far more sheep than critic people.
There are far more people who think moving files to an external drive is a backup than people that truly understand backup.
There are far more people happy with a new car than those feeling ripped-off because turning the key destroys 30% of a car value.
There are far more people happy with a crap Disney movie release than with a well crafted tru-to-life indie movie.
It's a Facebook world. Only happy is documented.
Who's to say he doesn't know all these people and they are all experts who understand backup's?
I call bullcrap on this one. What part of FB have you been hanging out on? You must be in some other FB world.
In the "online world", there is a much larger tendency to gripe about something than to praise it. These forums are a perfect example - it's a breeding ground filled with complainers and whiners and anyone else who wants to grind an axe. If anybody tries to present an alternative positive view, they are labeled a fanboy. If the number of "fusion happy" people outweigh the number of "fusion unhappy" people on here, you can bet that in real life they outweigh them even more.
It's safe to say that Fusion has been a technology advancement that has been viewed very positively by a large number of users. It's mainly dissed by the self-proclaimed "power users" who may be a little OCD about where every one of their files are stored. There are some (video creators for example) that may not see as much benefit, as they frequently may be moving very large files around, and the 4GB Fusion buffer gets saturated quickly for them. But for most folks, it's a great way to experience SSD-like speed in a 1TB or 3TB arrangement.
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SSD is a huge increase in performance, but a tad expensive. Getting yourself to 8GB+ of RAM is quite cheap and the most performance increase for the money, imho.
