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Updated Emac or the Mini?

W

Willy S

macrumors 6502
Original poster
May 8, 2005
393
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I and my wife are in the market for some fruit and have narrowed our choice to either the Mini or the newly updated Emac. We have a PC with Suse-Linux and XP on it and we will be using it as the second computer afterwards.

The reason why we want an Apple is that we are going to edit some videos with it and Linux can´t beat Apple in that field. Also, we would like to install Photoshop and other programmes so we can finally say good bye to M$ after a long time a love-hate relationship with M$, just without the love.

I have never used a Mac before so I would like to know from knowledgeble users which computer is a better buy? We are not particular fans of CRTs but we could make an execption if the Emac is a more capable computer, e.g with audio input (we use Skype alot,) faster hdd, more graphics memory (don´t know it it makes any difference.)...but Emac is supposed to by noisy and bulky. And we plan to upgrade the ram to 1GB.

So which computer would you buy today?
 
The eMac has a much better video card and a 'proper' hard drive whereas the mini has simply a notebook hard drive which is limited to 80GB according to Apple and 100GB according to the after-market and will be much slower.

I reckon the eMac may represent the better buy at the moment but have you thought of saving just a little more to get one of the iMacs with a significantly better graphics card, screen and processor?
 
If you must pick between the eMac and Mac Mini, I recommend the eMac. I got one back in December and so far, it's been the best computer I've ever had.
 
FadeToBlack said:
If you must pick between the eMac and Mac Mini, I recommend the eMac. I got one back in December and so far, it's been the best computer I've ever had.
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So I'm assuming you haven't found it noisy then? How about the screens? Have you had any problems? My Dad runs a business that has about ten eMacs and every now and then there's a bad screen but generally they're very good machines. I'd go one over the mini for sure at the moment.
 
Well I really cannot justify the price difference between Emac and iMac which is more than 400 euros and I doubt that the Emac wouldn´t be good enough for me needs.
 
Willy S said:
Well I really cannot justify the price difference between Emac and iMac which is more than 400 euros and I doubt that the Emac wouldn´t be good enough for me needs.
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Fair enough. Well, definitely the eMac over the mini then?
 
If you're video editing get an iMac. Simple.

Save up, you wont regret it.

That said, I have an eMac 700mhz and I do absolutely everything on it to 24 track Pro Tools songs, little video editing and a lot of design work. It can be painful at times but at least you know if it is slow or is taking a while OSX will see it thru! I used to hate pushing my PC and it always crashing! They first promoted video editing with the iMac G3 400mhz so anything in todays range should work fine.
 
As said save for an iMac.......but if you won't then go for the eMac because of the GPU and HDD as well as 2 RAM slots ;) and it has a screen thats not too bad either ;) Oh and dual layer superdrive ;)
 
mad jew said:
So I'm assuming you haven't found it noisy then? How about the screens? Have you had any problems? My Dad runs a business that has about ten eMacs and every now and then there's a bad screen but generally they're very good machines. I'd go one over the mini for sure at the moment.
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It's no noisier than my old PC was. I don't find it annoying or anything. When I go to sleep, so does the eMac, so it's completely silent while I'm sleeping.

So far, the screen has been fine. I plan on buying Applecare before my warranty runs out, so if I do run into any screen problems, I'll be able to get it fixed under warranty.

I got my eMac refurbished from the Online Apple Store. I got a really great deal on it. $846 with tax. It was only supposed to come with 256 RAM and an 80gb HD, but it ended up coming with 512mb RAM and a 160gb HD. Needless to say, I was VERY happy! :)
 
Willy S said:
We are not particular fans of CRTs but we could make an execption if the Emac...
Click to expand...
The eMac isn't a CRT, it's an LCD screen with the computer behind it.
 
I think CRT displays are great, much easier on the eye thank LCD for prolonged or detailed work, and photos look much sharper. If they could just get a CRT that was as thin as an LCD....
 
Aeronautical said:
I think CRT displays are great, much easier on the eye thank LCD for prolonged or detailed work, and photos look much sharper. If they could just get a CRT that was as thin as an LCD....
Click to expand...

More likely to get an LCD with the quality of a CRT than a CRT that thin...
 
hi,

the mac mini, remeber, is a computer for those who already have keyboards, displays, and mice. (or mouses). its all part of the BYODKM philosophy. i, for one, would not get the emac, but would get the mini, as i have a very good 18" flatpanel, a nice mouse (logitechMX700) and keyboard. i am thinkning of buying the mini, or the next incarnation of it, because it is small, runs tiger ok (as far as ive heard) and keeps costs down. the only thing that would be tempting about the emac, to me, would be the 'all-in-one-ness' of it, like the imac. however, if you are not able to BYODKM, go for the eMac, as it is, generally a better deal unless you BYODKM.

tastic
 
I would say that in two or three months, maybe sooner if the iBooks get their anticipated upgrade.

They both need to have the video card upgraded IMO to handle Core Image.
 
I would personally recommend the eMac, as I feel its a slightly better value than the Mini, especially if you don't have a monitor to use with the mini currently. The eMac is also slightly more upgradeable since it uses a standard HDD and optical drive, unlike the mini which uses laptop components. You can easily upgrade the eMac to a DL Superdrive for $50 off of newegg.com. Also, the audio in seems important to you, and the mini lacks that which would require you to use a USB audio card, which are pretty flaky. The better video card with more VRAM in the eMac also makes it more attractive and helps run Tiger far better compared to the Mini.

The screen on the eMac has its ups and downs, and they might be important to you. The CRT has a max resolution of 1280x960, but it can only do that at 72hz, which hurts my eyes too much. I run mines at 1152x864 @ 80hz, which is much more tolerable. The screen itself is just a basic, cheap shadow mask CRT, and the quality drops significantly as you move towards the edges of the screen (the pixels get fuzzier). Its not horrible, but its not the best. With that said, my eMac has the brightest, most vivid and colorful display i've ever seen on a CRT. Even on the lowest brightness its a joy to look at. It looks loads better than my 19" Samsung Syncmaster, but only in terms of color reproduction and brightness, not sharpness and refresh rates. Like I said, it has its ups and downs.
 
Go for the eMac. I bought my Mom one and it has been a great computer. It comes ready to go right from the box, unless you want more RAM, which is easy to install. You will notice better performance especially if you are doing video editing, etc. with the eMac.
 
Since the iMac was recently updated, resellers may have rev. A iMacs available at a discount. The G5 is nice to have, and the iMac has a 3.5" hard drive (faster than a 2.5" laptop drive like the mini has). The iMac also has a great LCD, many people find LCDs to be sharper and easier on the eyes than CRTs.

If even an older iMac is too expensive, I agree that the eMac is a better machine for the money than the mini, especially if you were going to use a CRT monitor with the mini.
 
zap2 said:
get the 1.6ghz imac the imac were just updated so this computer is only 1000 in usa ,on apple.com under sales
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Thanks for this tip!

I live in Italy and Apple is not offering these deals here, but I will check if I can find someone in the US to order the iMac and mail it to me.

Otherwise I will probably settle for the eMac. Would though love to hear any comments from those who have bought the updated eMac.
 
Willy S said:
Thanks for this tip!

I live in Italy and Apple is not offering these deals here, but I will check if I can find someone in the US to order the iMac and mail it to me.
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Be careful with the US spec machines. I know the Rev A iMacs had different power adaptors depending on where they were sold so you might blow it up if you plug it into an Italian wall. :(

You might be better off looking at eBay for a demonstrator model.
 
i got an eMac and have to say its one of the best purchases ive ever made... it's great that it includes everything u need already, and is more upgradable than the mini... and even tho a lot of people say otherwise, i really like the built in speakers. but that's just me.
 
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