Resolved G4 Mac Mini or Intel Mac Mini

[3349793]

Hi All,

I have been looking on eBay for eMac G4's, but I changed my mind as it's a CRT, it's heavy etc. and I would like to get a Mac Mini instead. Now, should I buy a G4 Mac Mini, a 2006-07 model (the one with C2D) or should I buy a brand new one with i7?

Thanks, Alex.

 

[eyoungren]

Uhm…the last G4 (PowerPC) Mac Mini was 2005 vintage.

Your question is probably, should you get Core Duo or Core 2 Duo. The difference is whether you want to run Snow Leopard max or Yosemite (and higher).

 

[3349793]

Uhm…the last G4 (PowerPC) Mac Mini was 2005 vintage.

Your question is probably, should you get Core Duo or Core 2 Duo. The difference is whether you want to run Snow Leopard max or Yosemite (and higher).

Thanks for your quick reply. So if I get the Core 2 Duo, and it isn't the Unibody model, will I still be able to run Yosemite on it? To be honest I really wouldn't mind running SL max... I really love that OS as it's nice and stable.

 

[eyoungren]

Understand that I don't have a Mac Mini, nor have ever owned one so I am speaking solely from a MacBook Pro perspective. My MBP is a 2006 model and it's Core Duo. It can't run anything higher than Snow Leopard because Lion and above are 64 bit and my MBP is 32 bit.

The Core 2 Duos are 64 bit, which meets ONE of the requirements to run Yosemite and higher, but not necessarily ALL of the requirements. That said, there may be ways to get Yosemite or higher on a Mac Mini if it does not meet the requirements. But someone else would have to answer that if there is an answer.

 

[3349793]

Understand that I don't have a Mac Mini, nor have ever owned one so I am speaking solely from a MacBook Pro perspective. My MBP is a 2006 model and it's Core Duo. It can't run anything higher than Snow Leopard because Lion and above are 64 bit and my MBP is 32 bit.

The Core 2 Duos are 64 bit, which meets ONE of the requirements to run Yosemite and higher, but not necessarily ALL of the requirements. That said, there may be ways to get Yosemite or higher on a Mac Mini if it does not meet the requirements. But someone else would have to answer that if there is an answer.

Oh okay, thanks for that. I have found a C2D Mini for a reasonable price will consider buying it! Thanks for your help!

 

[MagicBoy]

2009 Mac mini. First one with sensible graphics capabilities, plus it'll run any version of OS X from 10.5 Leopard to 10.11 El Capitan.

I used mine as a desktop for a few years, it now mainly lives under the TV as an XBMC media centre.

 

[3349793]

2009 Mac mini. First one with sensible graphics capabilities, plus it'll run any version of OS X from 10.5 Leopard to 10.11 El Capitan.

I used mine as a desktop for a few years, it now mainly lives under the TV as an XBMC media centre.

Thanks! Do you think a 2009 2.53GHz C2D, with 4GB RAM and 320GB HDD worth it for £200 / $310? It has an nVidia GeForce 9400 with 256MB? I would use it for web surfing, watching videos on YouTube, and maybe play a little bit of games (but not graphics or processor intensive ones).

 

[Andres Cantu]

Thanks! Do you think a 2009 2.53GHz C2D, with 4GB RAM and 320GB HDD worth it for £200 / $310? It has an nVidia GeForce 9400 with 256MB? I would use it for web surfing, watching videos on YouTube, and maybe play a little bit of games (but not graphics or processor intensive ones).

That price is much too high for a six year old computer, especially considering you can get the latest model for $399 when they're on sale.

 

[3349793]

That price is much too high for a six year old computer, especially considering you can get the latest model for $399 when they're on sale.

Fair enough, that is what I was thinking just after I replied to his comment... I'm not quite sure about the integrated HD5000... I have a HD4000 in my MBP and it isn't the worst, but it surely isn't the best! How is your one? Is it good? Is the 1.4GHz "snappy"?

 

[MagicBoy]

Thanks! Do you think a 2009 2.53GHz C2D, with 4GB RAM and 320GB HDD worth it for £200 / $310? It has an nVidia GeForce 9400 with 256MB? I would use it for web surfing, watching videos on YouTube, and maybe play a little bit of games (but not graphics or processor intensive ones).

That's one of the higher spec ones, but the price is a little strong. Also bear in mind the graphics card uses system RAM. It reserves 128MB for with 1GB, 256B for 2GB and above. They're expandable to 8GB with the latest firmware, but can be picky about RAM - they need 1066MHz.

The 2009s are holding their value well for a machine that was typically £499/£599 when new. I've certainly had my money's worth from mine, and have thrown under £80 at it to upgrade to 4GB (in 2009) and an SSD last month.

That price is much too high for a six year old computer, especially considering you can get the latest model for $399 when they're on sale.

£399 in the UK. We've got a non-US Apple tax, plus 20% VAT on top.

 

[3349793]

That's one of the higher spec ones, but the price is a little strong. Also bear in mind the graphics card uses system RAM. It reserves 128MB for with 1GB, 256B for 2GB and above. They're expandable to 8GB with the latest firmware, but can be picky about RAM - they need 1066MHz.

So it isn't really worth it... Anyways thanks for your reply!

 

[Andres Cantu]

Fair enough, that is what I was thinking just after I replied to his comment... I'm not quite sure about the integrated HD5000... I have a HD4000 in my MBP and it isn't the worst, but it surely isn't the best! How is your one? Is it good? Is the 1.4GHz "snappy"?

For what I use it for, which is mostly for web browsing and YouTube videos, it's plenty snappy!

Not to mention that the older models will lose support sooner than the newer models.

I don't play games on it, but the HD 5000 has more than twice the performance of the HD 4000, I believe.

 

[3349793]

For what I use it for, which is mostly for web browsing and YouTube videos, it's plenty snappy!

Not to mention that the older models will lose support sooner than the newer models.

I don't play games on it, but the HD 5000 has more than twice the performance of the HD 4000, I believe.

Thanks. I have decided to go for a G4 Mini, I might put modern components into it, but I'll see. Might even buy a brand new one later.

I might borrow a friend's MBA to see what's the HD5000 is like!

 

[eyoungren]

I have decided to go for a G4 Mini…

You're going for a PowerPC Mac Mini then, not an Intel?

 

[3349793]

You're going for a PowerPC Mac Mini then, not an Intel?

I meant the Intel Core 2 Duo lol sorry...

 

[bunnspecial]

I've made this statement here before...

I have an example of every G4-based Mac that Apple has made with the exception of the Xserve and the Mini. The Mini is a computer that's completely, 100% off my radar and I have no desire to own one.

On the other hand, I have a CoreDuo Mini running SL Server in the closet that runs 24/7 and has for several months now. I have zero complaints about it. SL is the most recent OS that will run on a CoreDuo processor.

BTW, quite a few C2D Macs are officially limited to Lion because they have 32 bit EFI(despite the 64 bit processors). My Mac Pro 1,1, late '06 iMac, and late '07 Blackbook are in that boat. There are work-arounds with most of these computers to install newer OSs, although the crummy GMA 950 GPU in the Macbooks, Minis, and some iMacs makes this less than desireable. The Mac Pro takes a minimal amount of hacking along with a GPU upgrade to install newer versions,

Interestingly enough(although not to get off track too badly) with most newer versions of OS X you don't even have to flash the GPU to get it functional provided that you select the correct GPU. The downside to not flashing is that you don't get a boot screen until the OS loads, but aside from that they work fine.

 

[3349793]

Uj

I've made this statement here before...

I have an example of every G4-based Mac that Apple has made with the exception of the Xserve and the Mini. The Mini is a computer that's completely, 100% off my radar and I have no desire to own one.

On the other hand, I have a CoreDuo Mini running SL Server in the closet that runs 24/7 and has for several months now. I have zero complaints about it. SL is the most recent OS that will run on a CoreDuo processor.

BTW, quite a few C2D Macs are officially limited to Lion because they have 32 bit EFI(despite the 64 bit processors). My Mac Pro 1,1, late '06 iMac, and late '07 Blackbook are in that boat. There are work-arounds with most of these computers to install newer OSs, although the crummy GMA 950 GPU in the Macbooks, Minis, and some iMacs makes this less than desireable. The Mac Pro takes a minimal amount of hacking along with a GPU upgrade to install newer versions,

Interestingly enough(although not to get off track too badly) with most newer versions of OS X you don't even have to flash the GPU to get it functional provided that you select the correct GPU. The downside to not flashing is that you don't get a boot screen until the OS loads, but aside from that they work fine.

Whoa well thanks for that I need a bit of time to decide on what I want to do... Might Hackintosh my PowerMac G5 and buy a G4 Mini... Who knows?

 

[eyoungren]

Uj


Whoa well thanks for that I need a bit of time to decide on what I want to do... Might Hackintosh my PowerMac G5 and buy a G4 Mini... Who knows?

Uhm…no offense, but you 'hackintosh' an Intel PC to run an Intel version of Mac OS X instead of Windows. This is completely unnecessary with a G5, impossible even, since you already have a Macintosh capable of running OS X.

Now if you meant, 'hacking' a G5 to run anything higher than Leopard then you're going to find that isn't possible.

I'm not trying to rain on your parade, really, I'm not. It's just that the line between what is PowerPC and what is Intel and what is PC seems to be getting quite mixed here.

 

[3349793]

Uhm…no offense, but you 'hackintosh' an Intel PC to run an Intel version of Mac OS X instead of Windows. This is completely unnecessary with a G5, impossible even, since you already have a Macintosh capable of running OS X.

Now if you meant, 'hacking' a G5 to run anything higher than Leopard then you're going to find that isn't possible.

I'm not trying to rain on your parade, really, I'm not. It's just that the line between what is PowerPC and what is Intel and what is PC seems to be getting quite mixed here.

Hi, that isn't what I meant! i meant me taking the interals out of the G5 casing, and putting new components in such as a quad-core i7 or something like that.

 

[eyoungren]

Hi, that isn't what I meant! i meant me taking the interals out of the G5 casing, and putting new components in such as a quad-core i7 or something like that.

Oh, ok! I get you then!

 

[redheeler]

I have an example of every G4-based Mac that Apple has made with the exception of the Xserve and the Mini. The Mini is a computer that's completely, 100% off my radar and I have no desire to own one.

On the other hand, I have a CoreDuo Mini running SL Server in the closet that runs 24/7 and has for several months now. I have zero complaints about it. SL is the most recent OS that will run on a CoreDuo processor.

I have a Mac mini G4. Nothing special, but it's neat to see a PowerPC G4 in such a compact enclosure.

Otherwise, the Intel mini is the best choice for sure, and is definitely worth the little bit of extra over a G4.

 

[3349793]

I have a Mac mini G4. Nothing special, but it's neat to see a PowerPC G4 in such a compact enclosure.

Otherwise, the Intel mini is the best choice for sure, and is definitely worth the little bit of extra over a G4.

Okay thank you!

 

[3349793]

Oh, ok! I get you then!