I have little to no knowledge of the compatibility of the Macmini to a PC. I currently own a 4 yr old HP Pavilion. There's not much wrong with it, it's slowed a little, but my husband and I have been wanting a Mac. We saw the Mac mini and like what we see, but we don't want to have to buy a new printer and monitor when both work perfectly. The monitor is an HP vs15 and the printer is a HP Photosmart USB. Will these work if we buy the Mac mini?
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Switching from Windows to Mac!
- Thread starter petscheb
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Congrats on your choice.
You posted at the right time, as I have just recently purchased a new Mac mini myself.
Your monitor and printer should work just fine. If it's USB, it'll work.
As for the monitor, I'm guessing it doesn't have a DVI input on the back, as it looks old. As for that, you'll need to purchase:
http://store.apple.com/us/product/M9320G/A
to get video output. I bought that along with my computer and it works just fine.
Good luck making the switch! We'll be here to answer any other questions
Yes. All monitors, most USB keyboards and mice, and most printers will work.
Printer drivers included in 105 and 10.6: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1370
Printer drivers included in 105 and 10.6: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1370
Contrary to the other posters, I found this:
http://www.mac-forums.com/forums/ap...macbook-strange-external-display-problem.html
It's not for a mac mini, but the poster had issues with that monitor working. I searched on: Mac, mini, and "HP vs15."
Here's another:
http://www.mac-forums.com/forums/ap...macbook-strange-external-display-problem.html
It's not for a mac mini, but the poster had issues with that monitor working. I searched on: Mac, mini, and "HP vs15."
Here's another:
I had an HP monitor I used with my old Mac, and with my newer Mini and it worked just fine. It was starting to wear out, so I replaced it. It was an mx 705 though.
Well, we started thinking of just getting an iMac since we can upgrade the RAM to 8gb and it looks like the mouse, keyboard, and monitor all come with it? I just know we're both sick of Windows and it's "patches" like 7! Not so user friendly!
Yeah, an iMac comes with all of that. It's much more expensive, and the Mac Mini can be upgraded to 8 GB, too (Apple just won't tell you)
Also, Windows 7 is excellent.
Also, Windows 7 is excellent.
Yeah, an iMac comes with all of that. It's much more expensive, and the Mac Mini can be upgraded to 8 GB, too (Apple just won't tell you)
Also, Windows 7 is excellent.
I have Vista, and I've never had an issue with it. I haven't used 7, but a friend of mine has had nothing but trouble with it compared to Vista. I digress! I just saw that iMac can actually go to 16GB. I think that $1200 looks well worth it to upgrade to a new monitor and everything. I think we paid just about as much for the HP monitor, printer, and CPU and it's already well past obsolete (4 yrs old)
The consensus is that Windows 7 is a far, far better OS than Vista could ever have been, and personally, it's in my opinion the best Windows OS ever. They really did well with it. I've had not one issue whatsoever with it.
That's not the point though! You cannot go wrong with an iMac, they are great machines.
That's not the point though! You cannot go wrong with an iMac, they are great machines.
A Mini is what, $600 off the shelf? You can get a new monitor for under $150 and if it goes bad, and you paid $30 or so for warranty coverage, you can replace it for next to nothing. If the monitor in your iMac goes bad, you can replace it for another $1200. Keyboards are inexpensive too. An iMac is a good choice, just sayin'...
I agree. Personally I don't ever see myself buying an iMac, because I don't like all-in-ones.
Hmm - While I dont personally consider them good nor bad - I can see the attraction for a new user - much easier not to have a separate screen - especially a tiny lil 15"er (My college is throwing 17"s away now - which although sad is good, cos I get em for free
)
Hmm - While I dont personally consider them good nor bad - I can see the attraction for a new user - much easier not to have a separate screen - especially a tiny lil 15"er (My college is throwing 17"s away now - which although sad is good, cos I get em for free
It's not bad, but as I said, a mini is 50% less expensive than an iMac, and if something happens to my monitor, all I have to do is get another monitor. The mini is perfect for me because it's small, relatively customizable, and extremely portable for a desktop. Plus, it's cute :3
Sorry but if you're asking if your printer and screen will work with the mac mini then there is no way in hell that you need 8GB of RAM.
As for Windows, 7 is great, thought I never had any serious problems with Vista (It was more annoying for the first month than anything)
And just how can you say that?? Just because someone isnt a "geek" doesnt mean that they dont need that much RAM. Hell, Ive known Professional Video Editors who wouldnt know - They definitely need that much (Most use 16GB on a Mac Pro), but have a "It Works. Do I really care how? No."
Sorry but knowing if a monitor/printer will work with a computer isn't even approaching "geek" territory.
If they want to get 8/16GB of RAM, go for it but I'm almost certain that it will be a waste of money.