Tired of waiting, advice

[Evan1229]

So I have been waiting for a new mini while using my 24 inch iMac which is "beach balling" on nearly every task these days.

I generally do email, web surfing, light photo editing and some website work every now and again. I also burn lots of media onto DVD for my basketball team (game film)

Which mini and what confit would you recommend?

Also, could I have two minis on one monitor? How?

 

[dan1eln1el5en]

why would you have two minis to one monitor ?

usually monitors supports more than one input (except Apples, of course)
any mini would be good for you, consider getting the right amount of harddrive space, but it is user changeable (like the RAM) though it voids the warranty and is a bit tricky. (many posts of people breaking antenna cables)

I did the upgrade myself, only thing I find the mini is missing is a better graphics card. mostly when it comes to gaming.

 

[fredr500]

An Older Mac Pro?

I picked up a Mac Pro 5,1 on Craigslist for $900. It has 4 hard drive bays, 2 bays for optical and expandable to 32GB of RAM (or more). I plugged an SSD in the second optical bay.

This should more than handle your needs as long as you have space for big shiny box near your monitor.

A USB3 card gives you faster externals if needed, and if you really need speedy disk you can put in a SATA3 PCI card.

I'm glad I got tired of waiting for the mini, I'm much happier with this than I would be with a mini.

 

[brdeveloper]

In this moment, you should really wait. It seems that we'll see Mini and iMac announcements from Apple in the next weeks.

 

[jlanpheer]

I know the feeling.....

I thought a new Mini was coming LAST year, and everyone (even salespeople) told me to 'wait'. I waited 6 months and finally ignored those people and jumped in and bought the latest Mac Mini. I use it as the basis for a music studio, which is much heavier on CPU than your needs are. I've been extremely pleased with it. I am EXTREMELY happy that i jumped in, otherwise i'd STILL be waiting.

Still, there HAS been recent news that indicates that there WILL be a new one ..... someday (probably just before Christmas time). So, there's a possible reason to wait. But, for your needs, the current Mini will MORE than suffice. I would jump in if i were you, for your needs, the current machine already meets them.

I bought the mid-model version and did the SSD upgrade, and i would recommend doing that. You'll be set for 5-10 years, unless your needs change.
cheers!
jim.

 

[MRrainer]

Bought a 2.3i7 a couple of months ago.
Exchanged the HD for an SSD, maxed-out the RAM.
It's a very nice system.
If you can find a good deal, go for it.

 

[Rodster]

If I were the OP I would wait. I think this time the rumors are real. This followed a similar pattern to the MPros. We didn't anything for awhile, and people started wondering whether Apple would eliminate the line and then they completely overhauled the entire line.

I currently use a 2012 Mini I purchased late last year so I can obviously wait. In fact once the new Mini's are announced i'll buy one when Yosemite is released.

 

[Fishrrman]

To the OP:
This post doesn't have anything to do with the new Mini, but if you are getting lots of beachballs from the 24" iMac, there are a few things you could do to improve its performance.

First thing (requires external hard drive):
- Use CarbonCopyCloner or SuperDuper to clone contents of internal drive to external
- Boot from external
- Re-initialize internal
- RE-CLONE contents of external back to internal
(all files will be re-copied contiguously, resulting in a drive that is defragmented with all the free space at the end)

Second thing (my opinion only)
- IF you are using Mavericks, junk it and go back to Mountain Lion
- Mavericks seems to require an SSD to avoid beachballing. If you have an internal HDD, it will probably do much better on Mountain Lion...

 

[GoCubsGo]

How old is the iMac and what re the specs? Beach balls aren't normal. I run two Macs that are from 2008 and 2009 and neither beach ball consistently. I get it with iTunes on the 2009 Mac Mini and when Safari is overloaded on the Mini, the other is a octo-core Mac Pro and that doesn't really beach ball. So age is not a factor, something else is going on.

Still though, I would wait on the mini because it sounds like there could be a very significant update very soon.

 

[SpiceWare]

Also, could I have two minis on one monitor? How?

Sure, use a KVM. It's a switch box that lets you switch the Keyboard Video(monitor) and Mouse between 2+ systems.

You'll need to select the model of KVM based on how you connect the monitor: VGA, DVI or Displayport.

Also be aware that some (older) KVMs use PS/2 for the keyboard and mouse, make sure you get a newer model that uses USB.

 

[justinTlME]

Tired of waiting? Just buy one!

So excited and all set up!

2.6 GHz i7, 16 GB RAM, Fusion Drive

DUAL MONITORS!!! THIS THING IS FAST!

https://imageshack.com/i/p9odzvhhj

 

[apfelmann]

Tired of waiting? Just buy one!

So excited and all set up!

2.6 GHz i7, 16 GB RAM, Fusion Drive

DUAL MONITORS!!! THIS THING IS FAST!

https://imageshack.com/i/p9odzvhhj

nice setup! I am planning the same, but will wait if the MID 2014 mini becomes a reality

 

[justinTlME]

nice setup! I am planning the same, but will wait if the MID 2014 mini becomes a reality

Thanks! I'm just glad I didn't keep waiting because for me, I doubt I will even notice any upgrades, and if they remove the ability to add your own RAM that wouldn't allow me to go to 16 GB (since I did that myself).

I really am just blown away by how fast it is. RAM and the SSD kind of help in that department.

 

[brdeveloper]

Thanks! I'm just glad I didn't keep waiting because for me, I doubt I will even notice any upgrades, and if they remove the ability to add your own RAM that wouldn't allow me to go to 16 GB (since I did that myself).

I really am just blown away by how fast it is. RAM and the SSD kind of help in that department.

It looks more like "I want everyone doing the same as me" than a good advice.

I would wait since it has been already listed on Apple software. Apple developers wouldn't do this if they're planning launch a new Mini only in 2015. It's a big evidence of an announcement soon.

Upgrading is nice for giving new life for a computer, but look at the most probable scenario considering the cheaper iMac and the new rMBPs:

- Dual-i5 Minis with the same specs as the base rMBP 13" or the cheaper iMac. Both come with 8GB of RAM.
- Quad-i7 Minis will probably match the base 15" rMBP, that is, they'll come with 16GB if the memories are soldered.

To me, it doesn't make sense upgrading from 8GB to 16GB...

 

[apfelmann]

- Quad-i7 Minis will probably match the base 15" rMBP, that is, they'll come with 16GB if the memories are soldered...

Now this would be absolutely mind-blowing!!!!

 

[justinTlME]

It looks more like "I want everyone doing the same as me" than a good advice.

I would wait since it has been already listed on Apple software. Apple developers wouldn't do this if they're planning launch a new Mini only in 2015. It's a big evidence of an announcement soon.

Upgrading is nice for giving new life for a computer, but look at the most probable scenario considering the cheaper iMac and the new rMBPs:

- Dual-i5 Minis with the same specs as the base rMBP 13" or the cheaper iMac. Both come with 8GB of RAM.
- Quad-i7 Minis will probably match the base 15" rMBP, that is, they'll come with 16GB if the memories are soldered.

To me, it doesn't make sense upgrading from 8GB to 16GB...

Lol, no not at all. I could care less what people do with their money. Just trying to point out my experience with the machine thus far and what I use it for.... That way people can get a handle on if it's the right machine for them.... Or if they should continue to hold out and wait for the mythical Mac mini '14 to be released.