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Apple TV and Mac mini m1

D

d00by

macrumors member
Original poster
Jul 29, 2009
41
2
I have an iPhone 6s, iPad 5th gen, Apple Watch 3, Magic Mouse, Apple TV 3, Xbox wireless game controller.

I just bought a M1 Mac mini base model. It’s hooked up to my 4K 55” tv.

Most of my media is consumed via plex with Synology ds218 serving the files.

I’m tempted to buy the new Apple TV 4K.

I am debating whether it will be money well spent if most of my media consumption will be via Plex which can also be done via Mac mini plex client.

I also plan to use Apple Arcade but I think that is available on Mac mini as well.

Is the ease of use of remote control interface worth it when I already have a Mac mini?
 
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Hmm. There's been a lot of rumours about a new Mini coming out with a faster (M1X/M2) processor - soon. Me, I would have waited until WWDC before taking the plunge.

(I'm actually using the new ATV4k as a bridge until a Mac mini with HDMI 2.1 / 120Hz HDR / Dolby DV / Atmos, etc comes available). Hopefully before the fall.
 
@fischersd I bought the Mac mini to use as a media centre.

I don’t plan to do any productivity stuff on it. I think M1 Mac mini will be fine for me.

what I’m dithering about is whether to get Apple TV as well considering the situation I described in my OP.
 
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d00by said:
Is the ease of use of remote control interface worth it when I already have a Mac mini?
Click to expand...
IMHO a sound YES! To use macOS via TV remote or computer mouse or some iPhone mouse app, is definitely doable, but awkward. tvOS UI is designed for such interactions and viewing from a distance.
I also find the ability to AirPlay from iPhone or iPad whenever/whatever I want, a big bonus.
Plus - AirPlay via aTV can serve as a second screen to any of your macs/macbooks. Not for gaming, though, as the lag is significant.
 
priitv8 said:
IMHO a sound YES! To use macOS via TV remote or computer mouse or some iPhone mouse app, is definitely doable, but awkward. tvOS UI is designed for such interactions and viewing from a distance.
I also find the ability to AirPlay from iPhone or iPad whenever/whatever I want, a big bonus.
Plus - AirPlay via aTV can serve as a second screen to any of your macs/macbooks. Not for gaming, though, as the lag is significant.
Click to expand...
I have an atv3 which can AirPlay but it can’t run tvOS.

I was also leaning towards getting the new Apple TV.

I guess I’m getting the new Apple TV 😉
 
d00by said:
@fischersd I bought the Mac mini to use as a media centre.

I don’t plan to do any productivity stuff on it. I think M1 Mac mini will be fine for me.

what I’m dithering about is whether to get Apple TV as well considering the situation I described in my OP.
Click to expand...
I used my 2012 Mac Mini as a HTPC with a Synology DS2413+. (I did an NFS mount of the main volume, so the media appeared local for apps on the Mac). I used Kodi for playback / library management.

I did also use my HTPC as a PC (Office, Photoshop) and music and had the wireless magic keyboard and trackpad on my coffee table.

I also use Subler to convert the containers for any downloaded content into files compatible with the Apple ecosystem.

Since relocating, looking to recreate my experience. (and waiting for the next Mac Mini as the current one is lacking an HDMI 2.1 port - I have a TV that supports 4k 120Hz and also need eARC) - hence why I'm using a ATVv4v2 until that's available.

So, what exactly is your use case for an ATV4k?

As it doesn't sound like you're actually using the Mini for anything other than media playback, I don't know why you wouldn't just do that with the ATV4kv2 and return the mini - and pocket several hundred $ you can use for other toys. :)
 
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fischersd said:
I used my 2012 Mac Mini as a HTPC with a Synology DS2413+. (I did an NFS mount of the main volume, so the media appeared local for apps on the Mac). I used Kodi for playback / library management.

I did also use my HTPC as a PC (Office, Photoshop) and music and had the wireless magic keyboard and trackpad on my coffee table.

I also use Subler to convert the containers for any downloaded content into files compatible with the Apple ecosystem.

Since relocating, looking to recreate my experience. (and waiting for the next Mac Mini as the current one is lacking an HDMI 2.1 port - I have a TV that supports 4k 120Hz and also need eARC) - hence why I'm using a ATVv4v2 until that's available.

So, what exactly is your use case for an ATV4k?

As it doesn't sound like you're actually using the Mini for anything other than media playback, I don't know why you wouldn't just do that with the ATV4kv2 and return the mini - and pocket several hundred $ you can use for other toys. :)
Click to expand...
I do plan to use the mini for encding my media using handbrake, use dolphin emulator for playing wii games, it’s a great plex media server.

I also like that I can multi task on my mini.

I also love the Mac OS. Love tinkering around with it.

so, I will not be doing any major productivity stuff on it but I will be keeping the mini as I like the OS.

as for eArc and HDMI 2.1 my existing TV can barely do reasonable 4K and I dont have a home theatre system.

I think I the existing M1 will serve my needs for the next 5-7 years.

i just am not sure whether I should get an Apple TV. I doubt it will be snappier than the m1 Mac mini or more capable. The navigation using keyboard mouse/ ios apps can be a bit icky at times but it’s mostly fine most of the times.

There is nothing that the Apple TV can do that the Mac mini can’t do uapart from the remote control interface. The airplay stuff is not an issue as I don’t use it.
 
Isn't there an existing Plex Media Server app that you can run natively on the Synology?

Yeah, if you're keeping the Mini, I just don't see what you would get out of an ATV, other than using it for another TV in another room. :)
 
fischersd said:
Isn't there an existing Plex Media Server app that you can run natively on the Synology?

Yeah, if you're keeping the Mini, I just don't see what you would get out of an ATV, other than using it for another TV in another room. :)
Click to expand...
I was running PMS on synology but it struggled with some codecs.

PMS on the mini plays like butter.

I just keep going back and forth on getting an Apple TV. That tvOS interface is slick.

I love being able to do real Mult-tasking on my mini but navigating while watching media can be a bit frustrating at times.
 
d00by said:
I have an iPhone 6s, iPad 5th gen, Apple Watch 3, Magic Mouse, Apple TV 3, Xbox wireless game controller.

I just bought a M1 Mac mini base model. It’s hooked up to my 4K 55” tv.

Most of my media is consumed via plex with Synology ds218 serving the files.

I’m tempted to buy the new Apple TV 4K.

I am debating whether it will be money well spent if most of my media consumption will be via Plex which can also be done via Mac mini plex client.

I also plan to use Apple Arcade but I think that is available on Mac mini as well.

Is the ease of use of remote control interface worth it when I already have a Mac mini?
Click to expand...

I used to use my mini as a HTPC. And it worked pretty well. I eventually moved to using the ATV4k and streaming from my mini. The advantages are the interface is much more suitable for the tv (especially with the remote). It can be awkward using a keyboard or mouse in your lap to watch content on the mini. Netflix and Prime (and other streaming services) are much easier to access on the ATV than the mini. The other big advantage for me is I have a second ATV4K in the bedroom. So i can watch my shows/movies at either place and pick up right where i left off. That's not really possible without moving the mini if it's hooked to the tv. (This also may not be something that matters to you depending on how you watch your videos.

Also, I've learned to really dislike Plex. I don't like how each update reorganizes the home screen and moves MY content around and keeps putting their content back after it's been removed multipe times. I'm mostly using Infuse and Jellyfin now.

My mini is a 2012 unit and is working great for serving my videos. But i'm really looking forward to the upgraded mini the current rumors are going on about. It would be a huge upgrade!

Edit: Infuse just released a MacOS version, too, if you decide to go with the mini HTPC route. It's not a free solution but it's so much nicer than plex and you don't need a seperate server program on the mini to access your content.
 
@hxlover904 I am married to Plex.

I use smart playlists & multiple devices to view my media and plex keeps all of it in sync. Also, I have a lifetime plex pass and it has some nice goodies like hardware transcoding, etc.

Plex can be really high maintenance but I am invested in it too much to migrate to some other software.

one thing that keeps me from buying atv is apart from the tvOS interface, it offers nothing that the mini can’t do.
 
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