How much better are the imacs compared to my mini?

[matt516]

Hey all,
I'm a full time wedding photographer and am editing on a late 2012 macmini. I've been looking into newer displays as my current one is crapping out, and figured since my mini is 3 years old at this point it might make more sense to just get one of the newest 27inch retinas. How much faster are these machines compared to my mini, will it be like night and day? I'm just not sure if it makes more sense to get the new imac retina or just invest in a good standalone monitor and keep the mini?
I just ran a geekbench and my singlecore score for 32bits was 2968 and multicore was 11553. Not sure how that correlates to other scores out there.
I would probably get the $2300 model and upgrade to an ssd.
Thanks all!

 

[rkaufmann87]

Hey all,
I'm a full time wedding photographer and am editing on a late 2012 macmini. I've been looking into newer displays as my current one is crapping out, and figured since my mini is 3 years old at this point it might make more sense to just get one of the newest 27inch retinas. How much faster are these machines compared to my mini, will it be like night and day? I'm just not sure if it makes more sense to get the new imac retina or just invest in a good standalone monitor and keep the mini?
I just ran a geekbench and my singlecore score for 32bits was 2968 and multicore was 11553. Not sure how that correlates to other scores out there.
I would probably get the $2300 model and upgrade to an ssd.
Thanks all!

Without know the specification on your 2012 MM it's tough to say for sure. Any 27" iMac will be significantly quicker and if you get a model with a SSD and more RAM the difference will be orders of magnitude faster. This assumes you are comparing a 2015 iMac with a base model 2012 MM. If you upgraded the MM in any way then the differences narrow but they are still there.

For example, my wife's 2012 MM started life as a base i5 with 4GB RAM and 500GB HD. It now has 16GB RAM (maximum amount) and a 500GB SSD, this make the machine MUCH faster than it was when it started life. Compare our current MM to a current 27" which has a faster CPU (either a 3.2 or 3.5 i5), upgrade to a SSD and expand the RAM (up to 64GB) that means the new iMacs have much much more potential.

If you are looking for a definitive answer, I'm afraid you won't get one. You will have to judge for yourself and see if it makes sense for your situation. If it were me, I'd probably upgrade, take the tax write off, sell the MM (still worth good money cause it's a 2012) and then determine what 27" configuration I'm going to go for.

 

[matt516]

Thanks for the quick response!
It's a 2.6ghz i7 quad core, 16gb ram, and 256 samsung ssd drive

 

[fa8362]

Hey all,
I'm a full time wedding photographer and am editing on a late 2012 macmini. I've been looking into newer displays as my current one is crapping out, and figured since my mini is 3 years old at this point it might make more sense to just get one of the newest 27inch retinas. How much faster are these machines compared to my mini, will it be like night and day? I'm just not sure if it makes more sense to get the new imac retina or just invest in a good standalone monitor and keep the mini?
I just ran a geekbench and my singlecore score for 32bits was 2968 and multicore was 11553. Not sure how that correlates to other scores out there.
I would probably get the $2300 model and upgrade to an ssd.
Thanks all!

The geekbench for the Skylake iMacs are basically the same as what you already have.

 

[matt516]

The geekbench for the Skylake iMacs are basically the same as what you already have.

Wow, thats crazy! So my 3 year old mac mini is almost as good as the new imacs? I guess I'll just grab a good monitor and call it a day!
Thanks

 

[rkaufmann87]

Wow, thats crazy! So my 3 year old mac mini is almost as good as the new imacs? I guess I'll just grab a good monitor and call it a day!
Thanks

If you get another display similar to what you already have then yes, that would be smart. If you want 5K display quality, the only way you will get the performance is with a new iMac.

 

[Gav2k]

With exception of the i5-5250U the others use desktop processors over the low power mobile chips in the mini's

 

[whodatrr]

Not what I've been seeing... have seen some of the new i7s top 19,000 multi. You've also got a dramatically better GPU, much better I/O (~2x), and about the best screen in existence.

The geekbench for the Skylake iMacs are basically the same as what you already have.

 

[fa8362]

Wow, thats crazy! So my 3 year old mac mini is almost as good as the new imacs? I guess I'll just grab a good monitor and call it a day!
Thanks

The single core score on the 3.3GHz is about 30% faster, but the multicore score is only 10% faster. I wouldn't upgrade for that. I'd continue to use the Mini for another generation or two of iMac development.

Then again, now is a great time to sell 2012 i7 Minis. I sold a 2.3GHz i7 Mini with 16GB RAM for $795 and I had only paid $860 for it 3 years earlier.

 

[fa8362]

Not what I've been seeing... have seen some of the new i7s top 19,000 multi. You've also got a dramatically better GPU, much better I/O (~2x), and about the best screen in existence.

He's not buying an i7. He said he was looking at the 3.3GHz i5.

 

[fa8362]

Not what I've been seeing... have seen some of the new i7s top 19,000 multi. You've also got a dramatically better GPU, much better I/O (~2x), and about the best screen in existence.

Also, the highest multi-core score Primate Labs lists for the 4.0GHz i7 is 17,975, not 19,000 or higher.

 

[bankshot]

For reference, here are relevant links to Geekbench results:

• Late 2012 Mac mini 2.6 GHz i7
• Late 2015 iMac i7
• Late 2015 iMac i5

Indeed, the i5 iMac scores are similar to the Mac mini - better single core, worse multi-core (due to lack of hyperthreading?).

I have nearly the same Mac mini - Late 2012, quad core 2.6 GHz i7, 16 GB, 256 GB Crucial SSD. It's a great machine, outside of the occasional integrated graphics hiccup. Normally I would hang onto it for another 2-3 years, but various Discover cash back deals right now make the iMac a really good deal. I'd also like to have more than 16 GB memory on occasion. So my i7 Late 2015 iMac is due to arrive late next week.

 

[matt516]

For reference, here are relevant links to Geekbench results:

• Late 2012 Mac mini 2.6 GHz i7
• Late 2015 iMac i7
• Late 2015 iMac i5

Indeed, the i5 iMac scores are similar to the Mac mini - better single core, worse multi-core (due to lack of hyperthreading?).

I have nearly the same Mac mini - Late 2012, quad core 2.6 GHz i7, 16 GB, 256 GB Crucial SSD. It's a great machine, outside of the occasional integrated graphics hiccup. Normally I would hang onto it for another 2-3 years, but various Discover cash back deals right now make the iMac a really good deal. I'd also like to have more than 16 GB memory on occasion. So my i7 Late 2015 iMac is due to arrive late next week.

What kind of cashback deals are going on aside from the usual 5% back?

 

[bankshot]

What kind of cashback deals are going on aside from the usual 5% back?

10% bonus cash back if you use Apple Pay in store. Plus if you're in your first year with the card, they will double ALL cash back after your 12th billing cycle. That effectively makes it 22% back (1% regular + 10% bonus, all doubled).

Of course, this makes it problematic to do BTO since you can't order a BTO in store. There is a thread here discussing creative ways of getting around the in-store requirement with BTO.