Hi all, I know many have asked this question in the past, and here I am asking it myself after having read through the forums, and still not really knowing what to do. Here's the basic use for either, web surfing wordprocessing, some video editing, photo organizing, and a lot of garageband. Since I'm a composer and I'll be hooking my Roland Fantom X8 into whatever computer I get, Garageband takes the forefront. Also regardless of which one I buy I'm goign to get airport extreme and a bluetooth keyboard & mouse (none of which I own yet.) If I get the mini, I will also need to get a monitor too. Also I'd be upgrading to 512 megs of ram. This would all be done on the EDU discount. Now here's the other problem. I'm planning on moving to England in a year, since I've got work prospects there after I'm done with school. If I were to go with the mini, it might just hang around till a powerbook G5 would come out, hopefully before next january, and then would go to my parents. If I got the iMac though it would be more of a permanent thing, for a few years at least. I'm just worried that it might be a huge pain in the ass to move from the states to England and back. so yeah any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
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Should I get a mini or an iMac?
- Thread starter Omad0n
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Video would be okay on a mini but the iMac would render a lot faster.
And as for the monitor, it depends on whether you want a CRT or an LCD. If you plan on getting an LCD you might want to look at the iMac, but what after the LCD dies? The mini can be hooked up to anything from a sickeningly-old CRT to the fanciest HDTVs and HD projectors, and is a separate unit.
Mini + CRT is better than an eMac, of course, in that you can replace your monitor.
It all really comes down to whether you want the extra processor cycles and the G5 -- not in the mini, but in the iMac.
But for what it's worth, I really like my 1.6 GHz iMac G5.
And as for the monitor, it depends on whether you want a CRT or an LCD. If you plan on getting an LCD you might want to look at the iMac, but what after the LCD dies? The mini can be hooked up to anything from a sickeningly-old CRT to the fanciest HDTVs and HD projectors, and is a separate unit.
Mini + CRT is better than an eMac, of course, in that you can replace your monitor.
It all really comes down to whether you want the extra processor cycles and the G5 -- not in the mini, but in the iMac.
But for what it's worth, I really like my 1.6 GHz iMac G5.
Macky-Mac
macrumors 601
a couple of other things to consider since you're a musician.....the mini has but one speaker while the imac has stereo speakers......will a bigger hard drive make a difference to you? the mini is offered with 80gb while the imac is offered with up to a 250gb drive.....also you get an extra firewire port and an extra usb port on the imac
I would definatly go for the iMac. GarageBand is a memory hog, and you'll love that 7200RPM hard drive.
If you price out a mini with one of Apple's displays, it's actually not such a great deal. If you can find a cheap screen elsewhere, and don't mind long waits for its slow hard drive, get the mini.
Either way, both products will have that "whoa, cool" effect on anyone who sees them.
If you price out a mini with one of Apple's displays, it's actually not such a great deal. If you can find a cheap screen elsewhere, and don't mind long waits for its slow hard drive, get the mini.
Either way, both products will have that "whoa, cool" effect on anyone who sees them.
I'd definitley go for the iMac. You'll really notice the speed difference, and the machine is gorgeous. Try and get AppleCare if you can afford it.
greenmeanie
Suspended
jsw
Moderator emeritus
I agree with the crowd - get an iMac. The mini is really nice; definitely cool, tiny, cute, more powerful than it's given credit for.
But the iMac will blow it out of the water.
And, honestly, it's easier to bring an iMac somewhere than to bring a mini and a monitor.
The only thing that would influence me to tell you to go with the mini would be a need for screen resolutions above what the iMac can provide. In that case, a mini with a cheap CRT would be your better bet. Maybe.
But the iMac will blow it out of the water.
And, honestly, it's easier to bring an iMac somewhere than to bring a mini and a monitor.
The only thing that would influence me to tell you to go with the mini would be a need for screen resolutions above what the iMac can provide. In that case, a mini with a cheap CRT would be your better bet. Maybe.
Sounds like you guys have some good points, and yeah it's true that the iMac should be relatively easy to get around. It's just that if I went with the mini, it'd be more of a holdover till a G5 powerbook, whenever that is. Where the iMac would be more of a few year thing. The arguments made for the iMac are pretty good though. decisions decisions