Mini purchase dilemma

Discussion in 'Mac mini' started by Dr Charter, Dec 28, 2013.

Most Liked Posts
  1. Dr Charter, Dec 28, 2013
    Last edited: Dec 28, 2013

    Dr Charter macrumors 6502

    Joined:
    Feb 26, 2011
    Location:
    Oklahoma
    #1
    I'm in the market for a new Mac Mini. I'm not waiting for the refresh but am choosing between these two models. They are new and available at these prices through my university IT store.

    2012 2.5 I5 with HD 4000 graphics: $569
    2011 2.5 I5 with AMD Radeon HD 6630M: $469

    Both have 4GB ram, which I plan to upgrade later regardless, along with an SSD at some point. I know the 2011 has USB2 but my drives are all Firewire or Thunderbolt anyway. I know that both are powerful enough for my needs (productivity apps and media playback). I love the price of the 2011 but have some reservations about buying a 2011 computer in 2013. Are these units comparable in your experience? Does the 2011 lack anything I haven't mentioned? Any feedback would be appreciated.
     
    share
    + Quote Reply
  2. balamw, Dec 28, 2013

    balamw Moderator

    balamw

    Staff Member

    Joined:
    Aug 16, 2005
    Location:
    New England
    #2
    share
    + Quote Reply
  3. nollimac, Dec 28, 2013

    nollimac macrumors regular

    nollimac

    Joined:
    Oct 10, 2013
    #3
    What I did was to choose the late 2012 Mac Mini which was in an open box condition for $431.99 from Best Buy...hint, hint!
     
    share
    + Quote Reply
  4. Dr Charter, Dec 28, 2013

    Dr Charter thread starter macrumors 6502

    Joined:
    Feb 26, 2011
    Location:
    Oklahoma
    #4
    Thanks. I hadn't considered that.
     
    share
    + Quote Reply
  5. balamw, Dec 28, 2013

    balamw Moderator

    balamw

    Staff Member

    Joined:
    Aug 16, 2005
    Location:
    New England
    #5
    Sounds like you got a great deal!

    B
     
    share
    + Quote Reply
  6. Dr Charter, Dec 28, 2013

    Dr Charter thread starter macrumors 6502

    Joined:
    Feb 26, 2011
    Location:
    Oklahoma
    #6
    No kidding. This might be a good time of year to look for them. Damn. Now I have a third option to consider. :D
     
    share
    + Quote Reply
  7. nollimac, Dec 28, 2013

    nollimac macrumors regular

    nollimac

    Joined:
    Oct 10, 2013
    #7
    I agree...I am even thinking of when I get the Samsung 840 Pro 128GB SSD next week and max out the memory to 16GB to put on Ebay. By April, it should be clear if the 2014 Mac Mini will be coming out.
     
    share
    + Quote Reply
  8. phrehdd, Dec 28, 2013

    phrehdd macrumors 68040

    phrehdd

    Joined:
    Oct 25, 2008
    #8
    That is pretty close to what I did.

    I got the base model of the higher end Mac Mini, added a Samsung Pro SSD and 16 gigs of Crucial RAM. It runs quite well though the only thing I really wanted over this model and the previous was the Intel Iris Pro gpu on board. This should hold me over until 2014 comes along.
     
    share
    + Quote Reply
  9. Crosscreek, Dec 28, 2013

    Crosscreek macrumors 68030

    Crosscreek

    Joined:
    Nov 19, 2013
    Location:
    Margarittaville
    #9
    Refurbished site of Apple has just restocked. I recommend this over BB.
     
    share
    + Quote Reply
  10. Dr Charter, Dec 28, 2013

    Dr Charter thread starter macrumors 6502

    Joined:
    Feb 26, 2011
    Location:
    Oklahoma
    #10
    Thanks for the heads up. $509 for a base 2012 model! Sold.
     
    share
    + Quote Reply
  11. MrGuder, Dec 28, 2013

    MrGuder macrumors 68020

    Joined:
    Nov 30, 2012
    #11
    I'm considering a refurbished now, but I don't want a 500GB hardrive, at 5400 rpm that is way too slow, boot up time and opening applications will be slow, I've seen youtube videos of time difference between a 5400 and a SSD and the 1TB Fusion they are night and day differences.

    SSD is best, then the Fusion is ok (because it also has the 128GB Flash) but the 500GB w/ 5400 rpm is the slowest.
     
    share
    + Quote Reply
  12. Dr Charter, Dec 28, 2013

    Dr Charter thread starter macrumors 6502

    Joined:
    Feb 26, 2011
    Location:
    Oklahoma
    #12
    I agree about the drive. I currently have my media on an external and will probably keep it there. I'm planning to swap out the 500 GB HD for an SSD. With that and RAM upgrade, I should be good to go.
     
    share
    + Quote Reply
  13. Crosscreek, Dec 28, 2013

    Crosscreek macrumors 68030

    Crosscreek

    Joined:
    Nov 19, 2013
    Location:
    Margarittaville
    #13
    I bought a refurbished 2.5 mini and plan on using external 250mb ssd as a boot drive that I already have for my rMBP that I use for time machine and storage. When the refresh happens I will have the mini ready to sell as a base unit. I did buy 8GB of ram for it. That is what I have in my MBP and thats more than I ever use.
     
    share
    + Quote Reply
  14. Fishrrman, Dec 29, 2013

    Fishrrman macrumors G3

    Joined:
    Feb 20, 2009
    #14
    [[ I'm planning to swap out the 500 GB HD for an SSD. ]]

    There's no need to "swap out" the internal drive.

    There's space for -two drives- inside.

    Just add the SSD, and keep the HDD for a backup, extra storage, etc.

    You will need another ribbon cable to the motherboard for this, however.
     
    share
    + Quote Reply
  15. scottsjack, Dec 29, 2013

    scottsjack macrumors 68000

    Joined:
    Aug 25, 2010
    Location:
    Arizona
    #15
    That's what I am going to do when I gen mine in a couple of weeks; 2.3 i7, Crucial M500 960GB, 16GB of Crucial RAM and an OWC Data Doubler kit.
     
    share
    + Quote Reply
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)

Share This Page