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You are here: MacNN Forums > Hardware - Troubleshooting and Discussion > Mac Desktops > New Mac Mini as a Media Center (Replacing C2D iMac)

New Mac Mini as a Media Center (Replacing C2D iMac)
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stefanicotine
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Aug 26, 2007, 07:01 PM
 
I recently bought a new Samsung HDTV. Of course, like everyone else that gets their first HDTV, I just HAD to hook it up to my iMac and check it out. Front row (or, Backrow, as I actually have installed) looks bee-autiful on the TV. And it really is the perfect resolution for general usage. However, I found that having it as a secondary screen on my iMac is really inconvenient. I can't use Front Row without Mirroring or changing main displays, let alone always having the same thing play on my iMac's screen (plus my mini-DVI to VGA adapter is dying).

To the point then: I bought this iMac to support my gaming. It's a 2.16 Core 2 Duo with 2 GB of ram and the 256 MB video card as upgrades. Since then, however, I've taken the liberty of buying an Xbox 360, thus negating any real practicality in using my iMac as a gaming rig.

What I'm wondering is whether or not it's worth it to sell my iMac and grab a new Mac Mini to replace it. It's been a good 2 years since I've owned a Mac Mini, so I'm a little out of the loop.

Would I be able to use a DVI to HDMI cable to hook it up to my TV? Or would a DVI-VGA adapter work better (I think they come with the adapter anyways).

I also have no idea what I should sell my iMac for. I know I'm not supposed to ask in the threads but a ball park figure would be nice. I looked on eBay to see what they're going for, but the best I could find was the same machine (with only 1 GB of ram) going for a rough thousand with 2 days left in the bid.

Any advice?
( Last edited by stefanicotine; Aug 26, 2007 at 07:23 PM. )
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mduell
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Aug 26, 2007, 08:26 PM
 
Originally Posted by stefanicotine View Post
Would I be able to use a DVI to HDMI cable to hook it up to my TV?
Yes.

Originally Posted by stefanicotine View Post
Or would a DVI-VGA adapter work better (I think they come with the adapter anyways).
No, it would be worse.

Originally Posted by stefanicotine View Post
I also have no idea what I should sell my iMac for. I know I'm not supposed to ask in the threads but a ball park figure would be nice. I looked on eBay to see what they're going for, but the best I could find was the same machine (with only 1 GB of ram) going for a rough thousand with 2 days left in the bid.
Look at completed listings instead of in-progress auctions; $1100-1300 looks reasonable.
     
stefanicotine  (op)
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Aug 26, 2007, 09:12 PM
 
Would the DVI-HDMI connection give me a higher resolution, or would it just produce a better picture?
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mduell
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Aug 26, 2007, 10:08 PM
 
Probably both; most TVs only accept lower resolutions (1366x768 or even 1024x768) over VGA, but full native resolution (1920x1080 for 1080p, 1366x768 for 720p). And even if you get full resolution over VGA, DVI is sharper. And the DVI-HDMI cables are cheaper than VGA cables anyway.

Pick the length you want and buy from Newegg. I know it seems silly to spend $5 shipping on a $10 cable, but BestBuy/CircuitCity/etc would mark that same cable up to $50+.
     
stefanicotine  (op)
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Aug 27, 2007, 02:08 PM
 
Awesome

One last question: Any news on whether or not the mini's GPU will be able to handle what Leopard throws at it?
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mduell
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Aug 27, 2007, 06:28 PM
 
For the basic interface (expose, time machine, yada yada) it is supported with good performance. For the more advanced manipulations that apps can use (Core Image/Video), it is supported but the performance may be lacking depending on complexity and size. No different than Tiger, really.
     
   
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