New Mac Mini?

[adamtoone]

Hi All,

Quick question...i currently have a Macbook Pro Retina and have it hooked up to two monitors about 80/90% of the time and then i never can be bothered to unplug etc to use as a laptop!

Im thinking of buying a base Mac Mini just to sit there and be used for YouTube, small iMovie projects (GoPro Footage), music, browsing and maybe small Photoshop projects...anything big obviously i can use the Laptop!

Will the MacMini Current £399 1.4GHz, 4GB model live up to this and perform well? or not?

Or is there a better option for less?

Keen to hear your thoughts Please!!

Thanks,
Adam

http://www.youtube.com/AdamTooney

 

[maflynn]

Do you have the 15" or 13" MBP currently? I'd say that if its the latter you may see a performance hit going from a quad core to a dual core.

I think the Mini will be fine running the software you started though.

 

[adamtoone]

Do you have the 15" or 13" MBP currently? I'd say that if its the latter you may see a performance hit going from a quad core to a dual core.

I think the Mini will be fine running the software you started though.

I currently have a 13in MBP Retina but i don't use it for too much that i think is high performance...

I won't see a slower performance with just browsing YouTube etc will i?

I think i would upgrade the RAM to 8GB!

 

[paulrbeers]

I currently have a 13in MBP Retina but i don't use it for too much that i think is high performance...

I won't see a slower performance with just browsing YouTube etc will i?

I think i would upgrade the RAM to 8GB!

You probably won't notice a lack of CPU performance, but the mechanical hard drive will make the overall system feel slower. I have a 2013 MBA and my wife has a 2013 15" rMBP. For day to day operations, they both "feel" the same because the CPU isn't taxed (surfing the internet, office, watching videos, etc. etc.). However, I bought a 2014 Mid-Mini and tested it out before swapping the mechanical drive for an SSD. The Mid-Mini (even though running a 2.6ghz processor vs the 1.7ghz in my MBA), felt considerably slower because you have to wait for the data to load from the drive....

 

[redheeler]

You probably won't notice a lack of CPU performance, but the mechanical hard drive will make the overall system feel slower. I have a 2013 MBA and my wife has a 2013 15" rMBP. For day to day operations, they both "feel" the same because the CPU isn't taxed (surfing the internet, office, watching videos, etc. etc.). However, I bought a 2014 Mid-Mini and tested it out before swapping the mechanical drive for an SSD. The Mid-Mini (even though running a 2.6ghz processor vs the 1.7ghz in my MBA), felt considerably slower because you have to wait for the data to load from the drive....

God point, SSD is a must coming from a rMBP. I learned that the hard way as well, trying to go from a 2012 rMBP to a 2010 iMac with 7200RPM HDD.

 

[Fishrrman]

Don't buy ANY new Mac of ANY type UNLESS it has 8gb of RAM installed. With the 2014 Mini, it is impossible to upgrade the RAM unless you replace the entire motherboard.

I would suggest that you spend an extra $200 and get the midrange 2014 Mini. 8gb RAM, faster CPU, better GPU.

 

[jg321]

Agreed, SSD is a must once you've had one.

 

[P00t]

Adam, serioulsly, go for a 2012 base model, you can upgrade the ram and it's much more powerful on the CPU point from the 1.4ghz on the base 2014.

I got mine from Very.co.uk for £399 but they only have the 2014 left now.

If I was you, google for a 2012, loads of shops still cleaning out old stock of the 2012 models.

I love mine and it's plenty of power until Apple release another Quad Mac Mini.

EDIT: Misco have some in stock... http://www.misco.co.uk/product/200186/Mac-mini-dual-core-i5-2-5GHz-4GB-500GB-HD-Graphics

 

[MRrainer]

What resolution are these two displays?
2012 Mini can only do 1x 2560x1600 via TB/Mini-DP + 1x 1920x1200 via HDMI.
2014 Mini can do 2560x1600 twice.

Of course, the PCIe-SSD on the 2014 is also a lot faster than a SATA3-SSD.

Other than that, I'd also lean towards a 2012. It's a bit less "throwaway".