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MBA 2014 13" Max specs Vs Mac mini w/ 2.3ghz i7,256 gb ssd and 16gb RAM

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rosejap

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jul 7, 2014
8
0
which has a better performance the max out MBA 13" 2014 or
the Mac mini w/ 2.3ghz i7,256 gb ssd and 16gb RAM? portability is not an issue to me since ill be doing my stuff at home. Ill be doing simple 3d mobile game dev and web designing/development.
 
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paulrbeers

macrumors 68040
Dec 17, 2009
3,963
123
rosejap said:
which has a better performance the max out MBA 13" 2014 or
the Mac mini w/ 2.3ghz i7,256 gb ssd and 16gb RAM? portability is not an issue to me since ill be doing my stuff at home. Ill be doing simple 3d mobile game dev and web designing/development.
Click to expand...

Probably the Mini w/ SSD since it's a quad core and none of what you mentioned will tax the GPU much (the HD5000 is better than the HD4000 so that's the only real advantage of the MBA). The SSD will also be faster in the MBA, but even comparing the relatively slow SSD in my 2011 to the super fast SSD in 2013, I really don't "feel" much of a difference in day to day activities.

Having both a Maxed out MBA (okay sans the SSD as I only have a 256GB SSD) and the Mid-Mini w/ SSD I think I'm a pretty good judge of what is "better"....

Now, will either computer do? My guess is yes. The i7 in the MBA is still a pretty decent processor (even with just two cores), so I don't think either will be a problem. The 8GB of RAM MIGHT be a limiter in the MBA, but I am still able to do quite a bit even running a VM on my MBA, so.....

Ultimately if you don't need portability then I would just go with the Mini.
 
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rosejap

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jul 7, 2014
8
0
paulrbeers said:
Probably the Mini w/ SSD since it's a quad core and none of what you mentioned will tax the GPU much (the HD5000 is better than the HD4000 so that's the only real advantage of the MBA). The SSD will also be faster in the MBA, but even comparing the relatively slow SSD in my 2011 to the super fast SSD in 2013, I really don't "feel" much of a difference in day to day activities.

Having both a Maxed out MBA (okay sans the SSD as I only have a 256GB SSD) and the Mid-Mini w/ SSD I think I'm a pretty good judge of what is "better"....

Now, will either computer do? My guess is yes. The i7 in the MBA is still a pretty decent processor (even with just two cores), so I don't think either will be a problem. The 8GB of RAM MIGHT be a limiter in the MBA, but I am still able to do quite a bit even running a VM on my MBA, so.....

Ultimately if you don't need portability then I would just go with the Mini.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the ultra fast reply.Your so rich man you got all type of mac just what do you do with all of your computer? or maybe your just so rich that you got a lot of extra money I envy you lol and thats for real . Anyway what specs of monitor will you advice me to get? if im going with the mac mini.
 
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paulrbeers

macrumors 68040
Dec 17, 2009
3,963
123
rosejap said:
Thanks for the ultra fast reply.Your so rich man you got all type of mac just what do you do with all of your computer? or maybe your just so rich that you got a lot of extra money I envy you lol and thats for real . Anyway what specs of monitor will you advice me to get? if im going with the mac mini.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't call myself rich. And they were purchased in different years, so it helps stem the overall cost. And owning a business means tax deductions and the mini I upgraded to SSD and 16GB of RAM myself (much cheaper than buying from Apple)....

Anyway, I personally like the 27" 2560x1440 monitors. They've come down greatly in cost over the last few years. The MBA and Mini can't drive monitors with greater resolution than 2560x1440 so 4K monitors are out. If you go with a 1080P (1920x1080) or 1200P (1920x1200), I wouldn't go more than 24" in size. Here in the USA, 1080P monitors are fairly cheap. Get what you can afford, but also remember that a monitor is something you can use on multiple computers and something you stare at for hours....
 
R

rosejap

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jul 7, 2014
8
0
paulrbeers said:
I wouldn't call myself rich. And they were purchased in different years, so it helps stem the overall cost. And owning a business means tax deductions and the mini I upgraded to SSD and 16GB of RAM myself (much cheaper than buying from Apple)....

Anyway, I personally like the 27" 2560x1440 monitors. They've come down greatly in cost over the last few years. The MBA and Mini can't drive monitors with greater resolution than 2560x1440 so 4K monitors are out. If you go with a 1080P (1920x1080) or 1200P (1920x1200), I wouldn't go more than 24" in size. Here in the USA, 1080P monitors are fairly cheap. Get what you can afford, but also remember that a monitor is something you can use on multiple computers and something you stare at for hours....
Click to expand...

Thanks a lot man. I think I'm going to get 1080p monitor . :)
 
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bradkb

macrumors member
Nov 15, 2012
30
0
I have 2 23" Samsung on my Mini, although they are only 1680x1050 so not full HD, but on OSX, its great, I can do everything I need and I am a sys admin, so real estate helps.

Love my setup, only switched to Mac last month, bye bye windows. Been in IT for over 21 years, and MS through and through at work, just got fed up at home, and Windows 8, no way. :)
 
M

Miat

macrumors 6502a
Jul 13, 2012
851
805
rosejap said:
Ill be doing simple 3d mobile game dev and web designing/development.
Click to expand...

Mini is definitely more powerful overall, but the Air has a better GPU.

Which is more important is your call, but don't skimp on the external monitor.

I don't do any special graphics stuff, but I do watch a lot of movies/docos, including hi-res Blu-ray level. I am not rich but I spent the extra dollars for a good Dell U2713H (over the lower grade U2713HM model) and it was worth every cent.

Dell have regular sales of monitors, and the U2713H is currently on sale for about 30% off. Get in quick if you want it. Or wait for the next round of sales.
 
JohnPi314

JohnPi314

macrumors member
Jun 27, 2014
50
0
California
rosejap said:
Anyway what specs of monitor will you advice me to get? if im going with the mac mini.
Click to expand...

I'm getting a PLANAR PXL2790MW. Tom's hardware has a review. It uses a LG AH-IPS panel that is layer bonded.

Mine is on the way, so I can't comment on actual use yet.

I would also upgrade your CPU on the mini to 2.6.
 
M

Malte.

macrumors member
Nov 4, 2012
38
6
Sweden
rosejap said:
which has a better performance the max out MBA 13" 2014 or
the Mac mini w/ 2.3ghz i7,256 gb ssd and 16gb RAM? portability is not an issue to me since ill be doing my stuff at home. Ill be doing simple 3d mobile game dev and web designing/development.
Click to expand...


What is your budget really? Maybe you should take a look at iMac.
 
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