Has anyone bought the BTO 2.66 Mac Mini?

[jonny5009]

Is it dumb to max out a Mac Mini? I'd like to get one for home theater use but I am afraid of lower performance comparing the base 2.26 to my MBP 2.93. Am I crazy or what?

 

[Serif]

Well I wouldn't say it's dumb, but I think the 2.53 version might be the sweet spot. The step up from the base model gets you a slightly better processor, but more importantly, twice the disk space and RAM. I doubt you'd notice the difference in speed between the 2.53 and the 2.66 unless you were running benchmarks.

 

[petsk]

I bought the 2.66 GHz version and will throw in an Intel SSD. I will use it as media-, file- and webserver.

 

[zedsdead]

Once you start customizing it, the price gets so close to an iMac that it is worth it because of the far better specs. That's just me though. The Mini has it's uses and loyal fan base.

 

[zerohp]

I use the 2.26 with 4gb ram in my home theater. It plays everything perfectly, including full size bluray rips.

 

[fa8362]

Is it dumb to max out a Mac Mini? I'd like to get one for home theater use but I am afraid of lower performance comparing the base 2.26 to my MBP 2.93. Am I crazy or what?

Yeah, it's foolish. The base Mini is more than capable for home theater use.

 

[5630745]

What does BTO stand for?

 

[noodle654]

What does BTO stand for?

Built to Order

 

[mr_matalino]

Yes it's crazy. I have a 1.8GHz mini with 2GB RAM and it handles everything except for full 1080p .mkv files (which any mini will struggle with anyway). I watch hulu, netflix on demand, quicktime files, 720p mkv, eyetv, etc... I don't think it's necessary to spend an extra $200 for an upgraded mini media server.

 

[zerohp]

Posting to disagree with the above poster. A 2.26 mini handles 1080p MKV just fine with plex. VLC struggles because it's not very optimized.

 

[jonny5009]

Thanks for all the advice. I think I will go with the 2.53 4gb version and save some dollars.