[kupan787]

So I have been reading XLR8yourmac and seeing people doing processor upgrades on their mac mini, since the processor is in a ZIF socket. I found the following processor on ebay here and am wondering if that will work. From all that I can gather, I believe it will (it appears to be a socket 479 part, has the same power requirements/wattage, etc).

Has anyone here done a processor upgrade on a mini?

[Veltliner]

I wouldn't touch it. Minis are quite hard to open. And I wonder what you can gain, as an older mini has more bottlenecks for speed than just the processor.

But if you have worked on computers then that's a different thing, and it might work for you.

I'd say it's more for those who have fun rummaging around in a computer's guts than a really economically valuable operation.

[kupan787]

Originally Posted by Veltliner 

I wouldn't touch it. Minis are quite hard to open. And I wonder what you can gain, as an older mini has more bottlenecks for speed than just the processor.

But if you have worked on computers then that's a different thing, and it might work for you.

I'd say it's more for those who have fun rummaging around in a computer's guts than a really economically valuable operation.

Sorry, I should have clarified :-)

I am pretty comfortable with internals, I have built quite a few PCs in the past, and have done processor upgrades on G3s and G4s. So I am not worried at all about that aspect, I was more concered with the actual processor, if it was the right kind.

As far as what I can gain, I currently have a 1.83 GHz mini, and it can handle 720P videos just fine. I am finishing up my HTPC setup (used to have a hacked AppleTV), and I have read that the 2.0GHz minis can handle 1080p content. I am looking to more or less future-proof myself. This baby is only used for Boxee and media playback. I have ripped all my DVDs (Handbrake is amazing!), and am starting to rip my HD-DVD collection now that I have a machine capable of playing them back. I was sold on VOD with the AppleTV, and being bale to VOD full 1080p content will be killer.

[Simon]

If you have a 1.83 GHz mini then the T7600 is the fastest C2D you can upgrade to. It's a socket M type Merom so it will fit your mini and it should work.

That said, don't expect any dramatic gains. Do you have a C2D or CD 1.83 GHz? The latter will of course see more of a boost, but if it's the former don't expect to notice that much. And considering $250 is a lot compared to the value of the mini...

[hwojtek]

T7600 is the fastest and works. In fact, in some xBench tests, my SuperMini™ is faster than my quad-core, 2.0 GHz Mac Pro.

And that said, the Mini gets a dramatic boost (partially due to the CPU-driven graphics array) with a maxed out C2D, even compared to the 1.83 C2D. There is a vast knowledge of the mini upgrading on http://www.123macmini.com/forums/

[mduell]

Originally Posted by hwojtek 

T7600 is the fastest and works. In fact, in some xBench tests, my SuperMini™ is faster than my quad-core, 2.0 GHz Mac Pro.

What benchmark is that, BogoMIPS?

[hwojtek]

This is my SuperMini™ directly compared to my Mac Pro that my wife uses, using xBench:

http://db.xbench.com/merge.xhtml?doc...91&doc2=309386

I have upgraded the Mac Pro to 4GB RAM since.

[mduell]

Which shows what a poor benchmark Xbench is.

[hwojtek]

Name a good one and I'll run it.

[mduell]

Benchmark what you do; that's all that really matters in the end.