Good deal? Mac Mini & Cinema Display $800

[ex0]

Mighty MacRumors Members,

I thought that this would be the best place to ask whether I should jump on this deal or not.

There is a guy across the street from me that is selling a mac mini (core duo) & 23 inch cinema display (A1082)

The mac mini has 2 GB of ram & the hard drive was recently upgraded to a 7200 rpm drive.

It comes with an apple wireless keyboard and mouse. All the boxes and receipts are all there.

Everything is flawless (no scratches, dents, or dings). The guy has owned several macs and takes excellent care of them. He recently bought his wife a new iMac so doesn't need this mac mini & cinema display.

Is 800 a good deal? He said the price is fair since the monitor goes for about 350 all day long, and another 350 for the mac mini. The wireless keyboard and mouse are new so thats another 100.

Does his logic make sense?

So what do you guys think? The more opinions the better!

Should it run snow leopard without any problems? I'll be using it for photoshop and web development. Nothing too crazy.

I just want to know if this is a good deal and will it do what I need it to do.

 

[Little Endian]

yes this is a good deal if everything you say is true and correct, though more detailed information on the mini would be nice. The monitor alone could fetch up to $500. $800 is a steal and yes it will run snow leopard with no problems and handle the tasks that you mentioned.

 

[ex0]

yes this is a good deal if everything you say is true and correct, though more detailed information on the mini would be nice. The monitor alone could fetch up to $500. $800 is a steal and yes it will run snow leopard with no problems and handle the tasks that you mentioned.

What details would you like? I can e-mail the guy today and find out. I won't be (possibly) buying it until the end of this week or start of next week. I still have time.

Thanks for the quick reply!

 

[iTechInfo]

Yes this is a very very good deal you should deffiently jump at it

 

[92jlee]

Mighty MacRumors Members,

I thought that this would be the best place to ask whether I should jump on this deal or not.

There is a guy across the street from me that is selling a mac mini (core duo) & 23 inch cinema display (A1082)

The mac mini has 2 GB of ram & the hard drive was recently upgraded to a 7200 rpm drive.

It comes with an apple wireless keyboard and mouse. All the boxes and receipts are all there.

Everything is flawless (no scratches, dents, or dings). The guy has owned several macs and takes excellent care of them. He recently bought his wife a new iMac so doesn't need this mac mini & cinema display.

Is 800 a good deal? He said the price is fair since the monitor goes for about 350 all day long, and another 350 for the mac mini. The wireless keyboard and mouse are new so thats another 100.

Does his logic make sense?

So what do you guys think? The more opinions the better!

Should it run snow leopard without any problems? I'll be using it for photoshop and web development. Nothing too crazy.

I just want to know if this is a good deal and will it do what I need it to do.

I had the 1.66 core duo with 2gb of ram and photoshop sucked on it. Just about everything was painfully slow. The 23" monitor is nice though and they alone go for £500 ($700?)

I sold my mini with a wired keyboard and mouse for £150 ($220?)

Id ask for the monitor for $400 if i were you

 

[ex0]

I had the 1.66 core duo with 2gb of ram and photoshop sucked on it. Just about everything was painfully slow. The 23" monitor is nice though and they alone go for £500 ($700?)

I sold my mini with a wired keyboard and mouse for £150 ($220?)

Id ask for the monitor for $400 if i were you

Well that worried me a little since its not the core 2 duo. But he said that the 7200 rpm hard drive that he recently placed in it really made all the difference.

Should I hold off and try to find a Core 2 mac mini instead? or will i pay substantially more for one and should just hop on this deal?

 

[js81]

Well that worried me a little since its not the core 2 duo. But he said that the 7200 rpm hard drive that he recently placed in it really made all the difference.

Should I hold off and try to find a Core 2 mac mini instead? or will i pay substantially more for one and should just hop on this deal?

I had a Core Solo Mini that I upgraded to a 2.0GHz Core Duo T2500 and a 7200rpm Seagate hard drive. It was a more than acceptable machine, except for the crappy GMA950 graphics. Speedwise, it was close to on par with my current iMac (a 2.0GHz Core 2 Duo). Remember though - GMA950 graphics and a max memory of 2GB. If those limitations are OK by you, I say go for it.

My advice, though, would be a refurb Mini (if you can find one) or any other Mini with the 9400M and a nice 24" LCD (non-Apple). You should be able to easily get both of those for under $800 as well.

 

[duky]

I think buying the Mac mini at a price of $350 wouldn't be the best move considering there was a 9400m model on the refurb store for $499 a few days ago. I'd spend the extra $150 and get a much better machine that will last you longer. However, the ACD is a good deal and I'd ask him if he will be willing to sell that for $350 alone (though I posit he would not be willing because he's probably only selling it for that cheap because he knows he's making the difference back by overcharging for the Mac mini).

Curious though: why do you need this? From your signature it sounds like you have enough machines? What would the Mac mini provide?

 

[kellen]

Good, not great deal on monitor. Not that good on the mini.

Snag the monitor and buy a refurb mini.

 

[steve2112]

Well that worried me a little since its not the core 2 duo. But he said that the 7200 rpm hard drive that he recently placed in it really made all the difference.

Should I hold off and try to find a Core 2 mac mini instead? or will i pay substantially more for one and should just hop on this deal?

I had (err, still have..sale not final yet) a 1.83CD Mini. I replaced the stock drive with a 7200 Seagate, and I didn't think it made that big of a difference. It was faster a boot up, and slightly faster launching apps, but in normal usage, I didn't see much of a difference. As others have pointed out, the 2GB RAM cap and the terrible Intel graphics are the big limitations. Also, before selling it to a friend locally, I checked eBay, and models similar to mine (1.83CD, 2GB RAM, Superdrive) were going for around $300. $350 for the monitor sounds good, though.

 

[ex0]

I think buying the Mac mini at a price of $350 wouldn't be the best move considering there was a 9400m model on the refurb store for $499 a few days ago. I'd spend the extra $150 and get a much better machine that will last you longer. However, the ACD is a good deal and I'd ask him if he will be willing to sell that for $350 alone (though I posit he would not be willing because he's probably only selling it for that cheap because he knows he's making the difference back by overcharging for the Mac mini).

Curious though: why do you need this? From your signature it sounds like you have enough machines? What would the Mac mini provide?

Well I'm about to get rid of my Aluminum MacBook but I still want to have a mac. I've been eying the mac mini for a while. I like using it for photoshop and web development (Coda is amazing)

Thats about all I'd use it for basically. Nothing too serious.

 

[92jlee]

Well I'm about to get rid of my Aluminum MacBook but I still want to have a mac. I've been eying the mac mini for a while. I like using it for photoshop and web development (Coda is amazing)

Thats about all I'd use it for basically. Nothing too serious.

If you arent photoshopping, editing video (even in imovie) or gaming then that mini is fine or you will need to have the patience of a saint. Like I said, I had the core duo, it was my primary machine for 3 or 4 years (2006-2010?) - it gamed warcraft 3, starcraft, lord of the rings bfme 1/2, command and conquer - it edited video in imovie hd 6 better than the G5 my dad had at the time but it refused photoshop point blank.

They are great for secondary computers especially with that nice 23"! If you have the money then go for the monitor and use it with your macbook, if you dont, then im sure he would accept $750 or $700?

 

[ex0]

I found a T7600 for only $65 at a local pc store (pulled from a working machine)

I'm thinking that if I get this package and do the CPU (Core Duo to Core 2 Duo) upgrade, I should be pretty set.

 

[duky]

I found a T7600 for only $65 at a local pc store (pulled from a working machine)

I'm thinking that if I get this package and do the CPU (Core Duo to Core 2 Duo) upgrade, I should be pretty set.

You're talking about essentially paying a bit over $400 for this Mac mini.

http://store.apple.com/us/product/G0FX0LL/A?mco=MTI3Njg4ODk -- This is the higher model current gen. The lower model goes for $499, comes with warranty and is a much better machine than what you are getting. Makes no sense to buy a used product with voided warranty for $100 less than you can get a new, better one.

 

[ex0]

You're talking about essentially paying a bit over $400 for this Mac mini.

http://store.apple.com/us/product/G0FX0LL/A?mco=MTI3Njg4ODk -- This is the higher model current gen. The lower model goes for $499, comes with warranty and is a much better machine than what you are getting. Makes no sense to buy a used product with voided warranty for $100 less than you can get a new, better one.

What if I can talk him down to $700 for the package. Would you still feel that way?

But I do agree with you. I would feel much better if it was a current gen with the Nvidia chipset and Core 2

 

[ex0]

By the way I really appreciate all the input I've received for being new to the forums. You guys will really help influence my decision. You're the experts and thats why I came here.

 

[duky]

What if I can talk him down to $700 for the package. Would you still feel that way?

Yeah I still like the idea of snagging the monitor from him because that is a good price, but I just would never buy that machine at the moment. I understand that you don't need to do much with it but over time our needs tend to grow and I don't think this is a machine that will be able to handle any growth very well. For $700 I'm sure you could also get one of the older Core 2 Duo 20" iMacs with dedicated graphics, 4GB ram and a larger HDD. I get that you want a Mac mini but I don't think this is the one to get. As a poster above said, another good idea is to get the monitor and connect it to your unibody MacBook which will undoubtedly be a better machine--what's your reason for getting rid of it?

 

[ex0]

Yeah I still like the idea of snagging the monitor from him because that is a good price, but I just would never buy that machine at the moment. I understand that you don't need to do much with it but over time our needs tend to grow and I don't think this is a machine that will be able to handle any growth very well. For $700 I'm sure you could also get one of the older Core 2 Duo 20" iMacs with dedicated graphics, 4GB ram and a larger HDD. I get that you want a Mac mini but I don't think this is the one to get. As a poster above said, another good idea is to get the monitor and connect it to your unibody MacBook which will undoubtedly be a better machine--what's your reason for getting rid of it?

I'm going to be getting a PC laptop for work. But I want to keep a mac at my desk for my graphics and development work. I really don't want two laptops. So thats why I'm leaning towards a mac desktop of sorts (hence this mac mini / ACD combo) - But I'm really starting to think that you're right. I can go with an iMac setup OR find a better mac mini deal and then just find another monitor with the same $800. My boss authorized me to sell my Aluminum body MacBook (purchased last june) and put those funds towards another laptop. I'll be buying the desktop setup with my own funds and keep it work though the company will not own it - it will always be mine.

 

[duky]

Gotcha, so you pretty much have to swap the laptop out for the PC laptop. I thought the $ from the laptop sale would go towards Mac mini purchase. Then yeah, I'd recommend looking into used 20" iMacs (or the 21.5 currently on sale for $999 refurb) or newer used/refurb Mac minis. Godspeed

 

[macrumorsMaster]

I'm going to be getting a PC laptop for work. But I want to keep a mac at my desk for my graphics and development work. mine.

If you're going to be doing graphics work, the intel integrated graphics suck compared to the current mini's nvidia's integrated graphics. Unless you really need that monitor, you can get a refurb mini and buy a cheap 20-24" monitor(check slickdeals or fatwallet for deals).