[Janaka Cooray]

Hi,

I am contemplating purchasing the new fall 2009 mac mini (base configuration: 2.26GHz Core 2 Duo, 2GB RAM) to replace the Mac mini G4 which I just sold.

The old mini couldn't drive my new 24" (1900x1200) monitor (especially running movies fullscreen)

Trying to run HD DIVx movies was a non-starter at this resolution.

Will my proposed replacement be up to the task?

[Simon]

Yes. The G4 Mac mini supported that resolution but it didn't have enough power to decode HD at a smooth 25 fps.

The new Mac mini supports even much higher resolutions than 1900x1200 but it also has more than enough horse power to decode HD content. Playback should be smooth and beyond you'll still have CPU and GPU cycles left.

[Janaka Cooray]

Fantastic! seems Apple has repositioned the mini from a second computer for "switchers" to a main media centre (hence "mighty mini")

[Andy8]

Originally Posted by Simon 

Yes. The G4 Mac mini supported that resolution but it didn't have enough power to decode HD at a smooth 25 fps.

The new Mac mini supports even much higher resolutions than 1900x1200 but it also has more than enough horse power to decode HD content. Playback should be smooth and beyond you'll still have CPU and GPU cycles left.

Would boosting the ram from 2GB > 4GB help the video playback?

[ddiokno]

Originally Posted by Janaka Cooray 

Hi,

I am contemplating purchasing the new fall 2009 mac mini (base configuration: 2.26GHz Core 2 Duo, 2GB RAM) to replace the Mac mini G4 which I just sold.

The old mini couldn't drive my new 24" (1900x1200) monitor (especially running movies fullscreen)

Trying to run HD DIVx movies was a non-starter at this resolution.

Will my proposed replacement be up to the task?

Hi,
It runs it really well. I have a 2.0 Ghz Mac Mini (nVidia 9400m) w/4GB running a 28" screen at 1920x1200 and works like a charm (using EyeTV). High Def programming looks great. Works well as a media center and kids love watching shows in my office.

Enjoy!
david

[Janaka Cooray]

Originally Posted by ddiokno 

Hi,
It runs it really well. I have a 2.0 Ghz Mac Mini (nVidia 9400m) w/4GB running a 28" screen at 1920x1200 and works like a charm (using EyeTV). High Def programming looks great. Works well as a media center and kids love watching shows in my office.

Enjoy!
david

Did you get 4GB Ram as a build-to-order option? Or did you have to upgrade to 4GB to be able to run HD content smoothly?

[ddiokno]

Originally Posted by Janaka Cooray 

Did you get 4GB Ram as a build-to-order option? Or did you have to upgrade to 4GB to be able to run HD content smoothly?

I bought this back in March. It only came with 1GB, I used it with 2GB (I upgraded with memory I had sitting around) and worked fine while I waited for the 4 GB I ordered. Fairly easy upgrade. The more ram, the better, as it uses the shared memory model...
Good luck! If you are getting one of the new machines, it comes with the 2GB of memory and you should be fine.
david

[Janaka Cooray]

Originally Posted by ddiokno 

I bought this back in March. It only came with 1GB, I used it with 2GB (I upgraded with memory I had sitting around) and worked fine while I waited for the 4 GB I ordered. Fairly easy upgrade. The more ram, the better, as it uses the shared memory model...
Good luck! If you are getting one of the new machines, it comes with the 2GB of memory and you should be fine.
david

Thanks for the reply

I'm getting from your answer that for standard media centre type stuff just go with the new default configuration?

[ddiokno]

Originally Posted by Janaka Cooray 

Thanks for the reply

I'm getting from your answer that for standard media centre type stuff just go with the new default configuration?

I would, and then if you felt you wanted to upgrade the memory, it is very easy to do (less than 15 minutes). Not to mention third party upgrades are much less expensive than Apple memory upgrades.

My machine is only the 2.0 Ghz machine and it does fine, so you should get even better mileage out of the 2.26 Ghz Mini.
Have fun!
david

[Janaka Cooray]

Originally Posted by ddiokno 

I would, and then if you felt you wanted to upgrade the memory, it is very easy to do (less than 15 minutes). Not to mention third party upgrades are much less expensive than Apple memory upgrades.

My machine is only the 2.0 Ghz machine and it does fine, so you should get even better mileage out of the 2.26 Ghz Mini.
Have fun!
david

Thanks! Looking forward to getting the new Mac

[Simon]

Originally Posted by Andy8 

Would boosting the ram from 2GB > 4GB help the video playback?

Probably not. But it depends on what else is going on.

I'd say the proper answer to that would be to look at the pageouts. If there are many and they cause lag during playback, upgrading the RAM would be an obvious solution.

[ddiokno]

Originally Posted by Janaka Cooray 

Thanks! Looking forward to getting the new Mac

If you are in education, you can normally get it for about $50... another option is to look at the refurbs on Apple's website, as those are normally $100 off, but still carry a full one year warranty.

[mduell]

Depends on the format/bitrate. Will sail through many, but stutter with some.

[Janaka Cooray]

Originally Posted by mduell 

Depends on the format/bitrate. Will sail through many, but stutter with some.

That's interesting. I'm intending to purchase this computer as a media center. So if it's not going to be up to the job with certain types of films then that would give me pause to reconsider (or maybe think about going for something other than the base configuration.)

What formats, resolutions and bit-rates might give this setup trouble? (not asking for definitive lists but just the problem areas)

[ddiokno]

Here is a link to some good information regarding the Mac Mini, HD playback, specs, and other FAQs. Is the Intel Mac mini capable of H.264 HD playback? @ EveryMac.com

Hope they help,
david

[ddiokno]

On thing I did forget to add earlier on my machine, I boot off of a full-sized, fast external Firewire 800 drive (helps with more storage for videos, and speed).
Again, good luck with whatever you get!
david

[Janaka Cooray]

Originally Posted by ddiokno 

Here is a link to some good information regarding the Mac Mini, HD playback, specs, and other FAQs. Is the Intel Mac mini capable of H.264 HD playback? @ EveryMac.com

Hope they help,
david

Well it looks like Apple officially supports full 1080p video on the mini (even last March's model). So I can't understand why some formats, and bitrates might make the mini stutter.

...but that's just what Apple would have you believe maybe? Funnily enough, I have considered purchasing a firewire 800 drive (since Macworld UK said this would be more cost-effective that getting the middle or top configuarion mini). Would the base configuration mini benefit from upgrading of some sort - or should Appple tech support be assisting me if my HD video stutters?

[Simon]

What player are you using? Have you tried VLC?

[Eug]

Originally Posted by Janaka Cooray 

Well it looks like Apple officially supports full 1080p video on the mini (even last March's model). So I can't understand why some formats, and bitrates might make the mini stutter.

Because many of Apple's HD H.264 files are not that difficult to decode, relatively speaking. The complexity is not high, and the bitrates are comparatively low.

Higher bitrates can cause problems on slower Core 2 Duo machines.

OTOH, HD DivX should usually be fine. DivX is usually easier to decode than H.264.

[Janaka Cooray]

Originally Posted by Eug 

Because many of Apple's HD H.264 files are not that difficult to decode, relatively speaking. The complexity is not high, and the bitrates are comparatively low.

Higher bitrates can cause problems on slower Core 2 Duo machines.

OTOH, HD DivX should usually be fine. DivX is usually easier to decode than H.264.

Well that's shed more light on thr matter. I'm figuring that most HD content out there should be fine.

[mduell]

Originally Posted by Janaka Cooray 

What formats, resolutions and bit-rates might give this setup trouble? (not asking for definitive lists but just the problem areas)

Most things in an MKV container.
TiVo HD recordings (through Windows virtualization)
High complexity, high bitrate H.264 files

Originally Posted by Janaka Cooray 

Well it looks like Apple officially supports full 1080p video on the mini (even last March's model). So I can't understand why some formats, and bitrates might make the mini stutter.

The mini is capable of outputting a signal at 1080p, and realtime decoding of some video files containing 1080p content. Three reasons why the mini can't play some 1080p (or even 720p) files:
1) The software stack isn't very good at decoding them (MKV)
2) The software isn't available for OS X, so you have to take the performance hit of virtualization
3) It's just too much data/math for the mini's CPU to keep up with

[Janaka Cooray]

Originally Posted by mduell 

Most things in an MKV container.
TiVo HD recordings (through Windows virtualization)
High complexity, high bitrate H.264 files



The mini is capable of outputting a signal at 1080p, and realtime decoding of some video files containing 1080p content. Three reasons why the mini can't play some 1080p (or even 720p) files:
1) The software stack isn't very good at decoding them (MKV)
2) The software isn't available for OS X, so you have to take the performance hit of virtualization
3) It's just too much data/math for the mini's CPU to keep up with

Thanks for this - looks like I'll have to boot into Windows 7 on the mini to play HD stuff (all the HD stuff I've got at the moment is .mkv anyway )

[imitchellg5]

VLC can play .mkv, and if you have Perian, you can get a plugin for it to work with QuickTime X... should work fine.

[mduell]

Originally Posted by imitchellg5 

VLC can play .mkv, and if you have Perian, you can get a plugin for it to work with QuickTime X... should work fine.

You can play MKV files, but the performance is horrible.