Keep my 2011 mini or try to upgrade to a 2012?

[davidg4781]

I recently purchased a 2011 Mac mini. Great machine, and I do miss having a laptop, but I think I'm going to stick with a desktop, at least for a while.

It does need some upgraded RAM, and I'm also considering adding a larger HDD. My question is, is it worth trying to upgrade to a 2012 before doing all this, since the RAM's a bit different.

AFAIK, all I'd get is USB 3.0, and the only peripheral I have is my Time Machine disk. Other than that, a bit of a speed boost. I plan on doing some video editing later in the future and I'm sure the 2011 can handle that fine. I may even end up doing it on my Power Mac.

The main reason I'm thinking of all this is I had kept trying to get a refurbished from Apple, and right after I pulled the trigger on the 2011 the refurb came up, then I saw a few 2012s on here for sale for just a bit more. But I guess that is life.

 

[phrehdd]

The three things that come to mind are

1) quad vs dual CPU if you have apps that take advantage of multi-core
2) type of video within the unit (on board GPU speed and access to RAM)
3) USB3 vs USB2 this is a night and day difference if you move data around or do backups.

 

[davidg4781]

Unless I can find a quad at a very good price I'd get just a DC CPU. Both have discreet graphics, but I'm sure the 2012 has a bit more power.

 

[Ebenezum]

i5 processors in 2011 and 2012 Minis have very little difference, about 10-15% depending on software.

i7 in 2012 is a lot more powerful but good luck trying to find one within reasonable price...

USB3 vs USB2 does make quite a difference if you have lots of data.

If your software can use GPU then 2011 model with AMD Radeon HD 630M might be better option.

Otherwise differences are quite minor.

 

[c8rlo]

i was in a similar situation, but wanted a MM as a desktop to replace my aging Windows(Acer) desktop. i found a mid-2011 MM on eBay for a good deal then ended up selling it 2 days after i bought it and found a late-2012 MM locally that was cheaper than what i paid for the 2011. mainly wanted the 2012 for the USB3 which was the deal breaker for me.

 

[davidg4781]

Thanks. I think I'll stick with the 2011. USB won't matter to me since I rarely move large files. I think the only time it might is when I start doing that video editing and even then I'll just move it over the network.