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EddieRebel · May 27, 2005, 12:02 PM

Hi everyone, I am new to the forum. I have been using Windows since v3.1 and I think I have finally had enough. I really want to try out a Mac but I am just not sure which one to go with. Initially I figured I would get a Mac Mini, because I have no real experience with OS X or Apple in general (except for the iPod I got for Christmas.. which is what got me to rethink purchasing an Apple to begin with).

I had a few questions about the Mac Mini. Can it do everything in Tiger that a beginner would need to use it for? Is there much difference between the 1.2 and 1.42 gHz model? Would you advise upgrading to 1gb of RAM?

I have heard that the Mini can't do the "Ripple" effect because of the video card, and while that is not really an important part of the OS it made me wonder if there are other limitations to the Mini. I can afford a Mini right now but would have to resort to a credit card if I upgraded to an iMac. I think the iMacs are beautiful creatures and I would love to own one, but I think it would be overkill in my situation. 90% of my time will be spent using Dreamweaver, Photoshop, email, AIM, or web surfing most likely. I would hope that a Mini can handle this without any painful load time or slowdowns.

I would love to hear some advice from you guys. I hope to be "leaving the dark side" in a matter of weeks.

hudson1 · May 27, 2005, 01:22 PM

Probably the best thing you can do to help us answer your question is to describe the computer you're using today. Plus, let us know what you like about it, don't like, etc. From there, I'm sure many will gladly offer their best thoughts and advice.

Quadra · May 27, 2005, 11:33 PM

Hi Ed...

Welcome!

I am a IT professional/ 2000 server, etc. I use a Mac Mini at home and a ibook on the job. The widows platform is a shambles (national security nightmare), and even win-specific pundits are coming around to that conclusion.

My mini is a 1.42, with 512mb. I run Dreamweaver MX 2004, and Flash. I have no complaints. The machine is extremely stable and quick. The Mini does have limitations (all computers do). No you don't see ripples but I couldn't care less (eye candy is a distraction to me). The ATI 9200 is plenty for productivity tasks and even light to medium photo manipulation, iphoto etc. It even plays Unreal Tournament 2004 at a decent pace.

The best advice is get what you can comfortably afford, but don't OVER do it. If you decide on the Mini I would get the full 1 gig of ram (ordered mine today), although the 512 I will do fine.

pat++ · May 28, 2005, 11:25 AM

Whatever you do, get 1gb of RAM. It helps a lot. If you can afford it, it might be worth going for the 1.42 instead of 1.25, but I don't think the difference it very noticeable... One thing which would make me buy a Mini instead of an iMac is that the Mini is virtually silent. Although the G5 iMac is quiet, you hear the fan continuously which is not the case on the Mini.

EddieRebel · May 28, 2005, 12:04 PM

Thanks everyone for your input. I appreciate it a lot.

The machine I am running at home right now was built by a friend, runs around 2.1ghz (he overclocked it and I don't remember the exact speed) with 1gb of RAM. It's got a 40gb hard drive (which is definitely too small, working on upgrading that over the long weekend).

I like the fact that I don't have to wait for many apps to open. However I have had to reformat it at least 3 times in 17 months due to viruses or other problems. I have Norton, ZoneAlarm, Spybot and AdAware and there are still things that get by and cause problems. As an aside, I ran a scan on my Dad's machine just yesterday and there are 14 instances of viruses on there and I am probably going to reformat that soon as well.

I have heard that there are virtually no viruses on the Mac platform. I don't know if that will change when more and more people start using it or not, but for now thats good enough for me.

Thank you again for your input. I have a feeling I will be getting the Mini in the near future.

One last question. Do many of you guys run a PC and Mac? If so, what type of KVM would you recommend? I have considered going this route since the Mini does not include these and for now I would still use the other machine for a couple reasons.

EddieRebel · May 28, 2005, 02:12 PM

Has there been any speculation as to when the Mac Minis will be upgraded? I know they have done the iMacs recently and I believe the PowerMacs were upgraded prior to that. Anybody have ideas on this?

pat++ · May 28, 2005, 03:36 PM

Originally Posted by EddieRebel

Has there been any speculation as to when the Mac Minis will be upgraded? I know they have done the iMacs recently and I believe the PowerMacs were upgraded prior to that. Anybody have ideas on this?

Noone really knows.... I think they won't update the Mini before at least Mac World Expo in Paris (in September).

DoFa · May 30, 2005, 12:19 AM

KVM: I just bought the miniview usb plus from iogear based on quite a few recommendations from this and other mac forums. Amazon has it for $44 shipped which is the best price around. There are cheaper KVMs, but none that seem to work very well.

VIRUSES: An absolute non issue. Additionally 10.4 pretty much does it's own maintainance and defragmentation. Just use Apple's Disk Utility to repair permissions every month or so. There are freeware programs and Apple Scripts that will automate permsissions repair also.

BUY OR WAIT?: Get it now. Macs have insanely high resale values, so if you hear of rumors of an new revision, you should be able to ebay it for 90% or higher of its retail value.

westrock · May 30, 2005, 03:17 AM

You will like it.

Upgrade the memory to one gig, but buy it yourself. Its pretty easy to do, and if your not comfortable I'm sure your friend that built your PC rig would be able to do it (plus I'm sure he'd be at least curious.

You should also consider either replacing the interal drive, or buying an external USB/Firewire drive. The external is easier, but the interal makes a smaller package and allows the OS to be on a quicker drive.

The Hitachi 7K60 is currently about the best 2.5" Hard drive you can get. Here a comparison of the drive.

7K60 at OWC $229

1Gb PC2700 at OWC $113

1Gb Kingston at New Egg $95

The second runner up harddrive was the Hitachi 80GN....its a 4200 RPM, but suprisingly kept up.

80GN at OWC $138

80GN at New Egg $87

You can most likely at the least use the memory already in your PC, the Mini wil run 1 PC2700/PC3200 stick. It will need to be at least a decent brand as Macs are more intollerable to out of spec memory (which is a good thing). If you have 2x512mb sticks you can use one of those, or if you have a single 1Gb your in luck.

I really like mine so far. With the extra memory it doesn't feel nearly as slow as the specs make it look. I'd say its a little less snappier than my previous PC, which was very close to the same specs as yours. Usually the hard drive spooling up is the difference. Plus UNIX itself isn't quite as snappy as Windows, like processes are a little more thorough or something (at least thats what I tell myself

)

Game wise its OK. I can play Rise Of Nations at 1280x1024 and get about 21 FPS which aint bad considering the limited video power it has.

I know it seems odd to think you have to upgrade a Mac as soon as you buy it, which may go contrary to what Mac users have said about Macs. The Mini is perfectly usable out of the box, its just it might lag a bit here and there. With this simple upgrade it will make that small little wonder truly wonderous. You will proclaim "Why didn't someone do this sooner!?!"

elvis2000 · May 30, 2005, 06:32 AM

Originally Posted by EddieRebel

Thanks everyone for your input. I appreciate it a lot.

One last question. Do many of you guys run a PC and Mac? If so, what type of KVM would you recommend? I have considered going this route since the Mini does not include these and for now I would still use the other machine for a couple reasons.

Given the problems you are having with spyware and viruses, I'd guess the reason you need to keep that PC around is for pirate gaming and Porn, no? Stay away from the seedy sides of the net and your PC will stay clean, my friend.

elvis2000 · May 30, 2005, 06:40 AM

Originally Posted by DoFa

BUY OR WAIT?: Get it now. Macs have insanely high resale values, so if you hear of rumors of an new revision, you should be able to ebay it for 90% or higher of its retail value.

NO! June 6th is the WWDC, with Steve Jobs providing the keynote. At least wait until then. Apple updates their consumer gear more frequently than Pro -- and the Mini has been a sales disappoitment due to the machine being lower speced than many PC converts were willing to accept.

My bet is June 6th. Do NOT run out and buy a Mini right now. You may be sorry.

For example, the iBook averages 158 days between updates. It's been 140 since the mini was introduced. June 6th = iBook and Mini updates.

EddieRebel · Jun 7, 2005, 08:19 AM

OK so the Mini didn't get its update, instead we learned more about the switch away from IBM. I'm starting to think now might be as good a time as any to convert. Anyone else have opinions on this?

westrock · Jun 7, 2005, 03:31 PM

Originally Posted by EddieRebel

OK so the Mini didn't get its update, instead we learned more about the switch away from IBM. I'm starting to think now might be as good a time as any to convert. Anyone else have opinions on this?

Well it was mentioned that the low end (meaning Mini) would get the Intel chips first...sometime in first quarter '06. So I would assume then.

Person Man · Jun 7, 2005, 04:21 PM

Originally Posted by EddieRebel

OK so the Mini didn't get its update, instead we learned more about the switch away from IBM. I'm starting to think now might be as good a time as any to convert. Anyone else have opinions on this?

Now is as good a time as any, yes.

Apple says that both platforms will be supported for the next five years.

Have fun trying it out now and you'll be more than ready for the new hardware when it comes out

elvis2000 · Jun 11, 2005, 12:07 PM

Originally Posted by EddieRebel

OK so the Mini didn't get its update, instead we learned more about the switch away from IBM. I'm starting to think now might be as good a time as any to convert. Anyone else have opinions on this?

I still think an update is around the corner... unless Apple really is planning to work through all existing inventory until the first Intel Mini.

Interesting, by the way, that the Intel's "proof of concept" Mac Mini may have been a "proof" to Apple themselves.