1080p Query

[SisterRay]

Interested in the new unibody with 2.66 Ghz and 4Gb. It's main use would be as a media centre. But before I buy I need to know a few things

1. Can it play 1080p H.264 encoded video smoothly. I have first core duo 2Ghz (2006) macbook and this can play 720p ok but struggles with 1080p
2. Does the HDMI port carry audio as well
3. Can I use it without a keyboard, I'm thinking about logon?

Thanks in advance

 

[Hellhammer]

1. It should. Your MacBook has Intel IGP which suck, the 320M should be more than fine

2. Yes

3. As far as I know, you cannot, it asks you to connect one when you boot it.

The 2.4GHz should be fine if you're not getting the server edition

 

[SisterRay]

would a non apple usb keyboard be ok?

 

[flopticalcube]

My Late 09 mini (2.53/9400M) plays 1080p h.264 with no issues. You should invest in a bluetooth keyboard, even the tiny $20 ones off ebay, just for emergencies.

would a non apple usb keyboard be ok?

Yes,

 

[dh2005]

1. Can it play 1080p H.264 encoded video smoothly. I have first core duo 2Ghz (2006) macbook and this can play 720p ok but struggles with 1080p

I realise I'm getting a rep for being 'that c**t who moans about 1080p', but I feel this is my charge.

You need to be careful about taking advice from anyone here about '1080p', because it means different things to different people. Furthermore, in my experience, the majority of this forum's userbase don't use the term in its most commercial sense.

If by '1080p' you mean 'transcoded 1080p torrent downloads', then the current 9400M Mini can cope with them - so yeah, the new 320M Mini will be great. If you mean true 1080p Blu-ray dumps, well now, I wouldn't be so sure.

If the new Mini can do so, then the Mini will truly become one serious mo**erfu**ker of an HTPC - small, aesthetic and powerful. But the October 2009 unit did not hit this watermark for someone with my standards.

 

[DoFoT9]

I realise I'm getting a rep for being 'that c**t who moans about 1080p', but I feel this is my charge.

You need to be careful about taking advice from anyone here about '1080p', because it means different things to different people. Furthermore, in my experience, the majority of this forum's userbase don't use the term in its most commercial sense.

If by '1080p' you mean 'transcoded 1080p torrent downloads', then the current 9400M Mini can cope with them - so yeah, the new 320M Mini will be great. If you mean true 1080p Blu-ray dumps, well now, I wouldn't be so sure.

If the new Mini can do so, then the Mini will truly become one serious mo**erfu**ker of an HTPC - small, aesthetic and powerful. But the October 2009 unit did not hit this watermark for someone with my standards.

im sorry for my bitch about your post 😉 no offence intended 😀

but yea, you're right in bringing up the quality of the 1080p rip - and thats what my post was going to be about lol.

currently, my 2006 Core Duo 2.16GHz MBP can playback a ripped 1080p movie directly from a BD using Plex (floptical will attest to this). thats a 2006 CPU. sure, it struggles and loses frames in intense scenes, but it can do it. i have no doubt that the 2010 Mini could play ANY 1080p content thrown at it.

next, the OP said he will be playing back h264 content, so if he is using QTx - playback will be fine thanks to GPGPU and OpenGL 🙂 nothing to worry about.

 

[dh2005]

Aw, dude... forget about it. I used to be a lawyer - people would spit in my face and say that they were going to kill me. A mild case of internet disagreement doesn't ruffle me at all.


Personally, I hope the 320M can take it all. If so, this new Mini could be absolutely excellent.

 

[Pachang]

Interested in the new unibody with 2.66 Ghz and 4Gb. It's main use would be as a media centre. But before I buy I need to know a few things

1. Can it play 1080p H.264 encoded video smoothly. I have first core duo 2Ghz (2006) macbook and this can play 720p ok but struggles with 1080p
2. Does the HDMI port carry audio as well
3. Can I use it without a keyboard, I'm thinking about logon?

Thanks in advance

1)what software are you using to play stuff on your macbook?
2)I'm sure it does
3)I'D have a keyboard around anyway.

 

[DoFoT9]

Aw, dude... forget about it. I used to be a lawyer - people would spit in my face and say that they were going to kill me. A mild case of internet disagreement doesn't ruffle me at all.

haha man that just made me LOL so hard. Thanks 🙂

Personally, I hope the 320M can take it all. If so, this new Mini could be absolutely excellent.

🙂 yup it sure seems like apple has taken a step in the right direction finally with the mini. It's still a tad expensive for me though. Bit of competition for the appletv though! 😱

 

[dh2005]

Oh, the Apple TV's f**ked, and no mistake. And I think Apple know it. It'll be gone in a year's time.

I think they've made the right move, though. I'm a media hound, and I would never have bought an Apple TV... yet, I would/will buy a 2010 Mini. And that costs much more money, and comes loaded with OS X and iLife and iTunes and blah-blah-blah... getting me to buy the Mini by putting a 320M and an HDMI socket onto it is smart, long-term business.

 

[judethat]

Yes the HDMI does play through the 1080p, but in preferences you need to select sound then output and the drop down to select your television. Its just taken me ages to work that out. But works great now.

 

[gilesybaby]

What's the deal with audio output on the new minis to accompany 1080?

By that I mean - how would the mini output surround sound if used as an HTPC? I guess the standard mini-jack wouldn't output beyond 2.1?

I apologise if the answer to this is obvious - I'm an epic home theatre n00b.

 

[DoFoT9]

Oh, the Apple TV's f**ked, and no mistake. And I think Apple know it. It'll be gone in a year's time.

I think they've made the right move, though. I'm a media hound, and I would never have bought an Apple TV... yet, I would/will buy a 2010 Mini. And that costs much more money, and comes loaded with OS X and iLife and iTunes and blah-blah-blah... getting me to buy the Mini by putting a 320M and an HDMI socket onto it is smart, long-term business.

personally i dont think i will buy one, based on the pricing alone. it is a SUPER sexy a** machine - but $1000Aus for it? no thanks. my PS3 plays everything just fine - i use a media streaming program over the network to play any files that i like 🙂

i think that apple will bring out another TV, SJ said only recently that it is still a hobby for them, and i believe them will continue gradually upgrading it until internet bandwidth capacities and the interest for purchasing streamed content (as opposed to hiring from the video store etc) become more popular. in the grand scheme of things the TV is on the money.

What's the deal with audio output on the new minis to accompany 1080?

every mac since (roughly) the PowerMac G5s have had built in optical output from the standard 3.5mm jacks. this means that if you have a stereo/amp that is optical capable your Mac can output whatever format you throw at it (DTS, AC3 blaablaa etc). very good feature 🙂

By that I mean - how would the mini output surround sound if used as an HTPC? I guess the standard mini-jack wouldn't output beyond 2.1?

using a generic 3.5mm analogue cable will only allow 2.1 sound - however with my Logitech x540's came this cool adaptor that somehow lets all speakers work, it even seems to work correctly with surround sound!!

I apologise if the answer to this is obvious - I'm an epic home theatre n00b.

no problems - we all have to start somewhere 🙂 i hope my answer helps!

 

[johnredcorn]

The 2.26 late 09 mini has no issues playing uncompressed 1080p ripped straight from bluray. I have tested over 30mbps with no issues. I suspect you could play much higher if you had to the need to store such a large file. If the untouched video exceeds 30 gigs I usually just re-encode.

The new mini should have no issues playing any reasonable bluray content (and by reasonable I mean <50mbps).