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ltt23 · Jan 19, 2005, 04:56 PM

Hello everyone!

I'm not sure if I'm posting this in the correct thread, so apologies if I've just wrecked someone's conversation...

I've had some experience with high-end macs in the workplace (I used to run a printing company where we used weapons-grade PowerMac G4s with plenty of RAM). I'm considering getting a Mac Mini (currently a Dell user) as a second computer alongside my laptop, but I had a couple of questions regarding the spec:

1. Am I going to have any performance issues by getting a G4 rather than a G5? Is it going to have enough power under the boot or am I doing the equivalent of buying a Pentium 3 computer when the rest of the world is on the P4? I'm planning on using it mainly for word processing/excel number-crunching/email and the odd game now and then.

2. Is MacOS memory-hungry? I know Windows machines eat memory but am I mad not putting 512 or a 1Gb of memory into it.

[As a related question - will Apple support people let me buy memory from elsewhere and then let them fit it - assuming that I can't get into the case: Crucial's prices are considerably less for the same amount of RAM!]

Thanks for your help!

L.

Luca Rescigno · Jan 19, 2005, 05:07 PM

For what you intend to use it for, it's probably fine. Excel, word processing, e-mail? You can do that on a freakin' G3 iMac

.

OS X is indeed memory hungry. It's not totally unusable with the base 256 MB of RAM, but you'll still see a big improvement going from 256 MB to 512 MB. And Apple's price to upgrade from 256 MB to 512 MB isn't even that bad - just $75. I know you can get a 512 MB module for that much, but then you have to go through the hassle of installing it yourself and then selling the original 256 MB one. I think Apple will install your own RAM though - I thought I saw someone post a little while ago about how they got Apple to upgrade the hard drive in their laptop for something like $40.

I bet the main bottleneck for the mini is going to be the hard drive. It's only a 4200 RPM unit, the same speed used in laptops. Not particularly impressive. But for what you're doing it should be great.

Oh, and this may get locked soon because I don't think you're supposed to post more new threads about the mini. There should be an announcement listed... maybe it's run out by now, I don't know.

SouthPaW1227 · Jan 19, 2005, 06:20 PM

Welcome to the boards!

I think the above poster covered it well. For what you need, the G4 Mini should be fine.

And although this will get locked, it's retarded. There was never any locked PBook threads when the AlBook came out; never any PowerMac threads locked w/ the G5s came out. Geez, just let the threads be posted...who wants to look through 6 pages of thread to MAYBE find something relevant?

recogniser · Jan 19, 2005, 06:25 PM

Originally posted by SouthPaW1227:
...who wants to look through 6 pages of thread to MAYBE find something relevant?

In a topic title that has nothing to do with the information you are looking for. Crazy mods, heh.

Bookie · Jan 19, 2005, 07:23 PM

It should be a reasonably good gaming computer as well. My iBook is spec'ed out almost exactly like the low-end mini, with the exception of more RAM, and it plays World of Warcraft, UT 2004, C & C Generals, plus any lesser game I've thrown at it. Doom 3 will likely overwhelm it, but any currently shipping Mac game should run, and most will run pretty well.