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mak_attack · Apr 6, 2005, 07:41 PM

hi,

i have had my mac mini for well over a month now and it seems a good purchase.

i have used the factory spec 256mb ram and have had many ups and downs with this configuration. at times i can handle it and other times i feel like throwing the mac in the bin lol.

i mainly use: safari / msn / word / macromedia director / dreamweaver / flash / photoshop / itunes / few other random programs

thus the 256mb can not really cut it for me. the 512mb stick is �35 while the 1GB stick is �100. what have others done? gone straight to the maximum capacity?

how have people found the ram bump? vast improvement for using various different programs? efficient when more than one program open? renders better in photoshop? less beachballs?

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secondly i am looking for an external hard drive.

either a ide hdd & enclosure or a cased external hdd. should i be looking to get usb2? firewire? combo? though usb seems the cheapest.

i am looking to store all my documents on it and then use the mac hdd primarily for working on new documents etc.

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thirdly i am looking to get an external dvd-rw

again should i look for usb2 or firewire? will all brands work with mac osx? will software recognise it?

thanks in advance for any input in relation to this topic

nickw311 · Apr 6, 2005, 08:50 PM

I ordered mine with 512 because I knew from the start that I would need more. I think it runs pretty well with 512 in it. Compared to my buddies iBook (G4 1ghz) with 256, mine is much faster.

Mad4Mac · Apr 6, 2005, 09:50 PM

Originally posted by mak_attack:

thus the 256mb can not really cut it for me. the 512mb stick is ?5 while the 1GB stick is ?00. what have others done? gone straight to the maximum capacity?

how have people found the ram bump? vast improvement for using various different programs? efficient when more than one program open? renders better in photoshop? less beachballs?

I haven't got a mac mini yet. Does the Ram upgrade have to be done by an Apple Authroized Reseller?

DoFa · Apr 7, 2005, 02:00 AM

I bought a $135 stick of 1GB PQI Ram from newegg.com, popped it open with a putty knife and put in in. Under 5 minutes for the operation. Just took my mini in for a failed HD. Apple didn't seem to care that I upgraded the memory.

It does make a huge difference if your work habits have you keeping a lot of programs open at the same time. XBench scores show improvement as well.

I'm hoping that Apple will replace my 4200rpm drive with a 5400rpm 80gb. I'll know in a day or so.

Big Mac · Apr 7, 2005, 07:00 AM

Originally posted by Mad4Mac:
I haven't got a mac mini yet. Does the Ram upgrade have to be done by an Apple Authroized Reseller?

There are a number of guides online and in print detailing the putty knife case crack procedure, including a low rez Apple instructional video. Upgrading your mini's RAM will not void the warranty, unless you happen to break something in the process.

southtdi · Apr 7, 2005, 01:57 PM

From what I have seen at an Apple store it appears the special tool that Apple supplies the stores with to open the Mac Mini is, in fact, a putty knife.

neowolf · Apr 7, 2005, 09:34 PM

No no no no. It's not a putty knife. It's a putty knife with a beveled edge, same effect as taking it to sand paper. Even by their directions.

mak_attack · Apr 8, 2005, 06:31 AM

hi,

so the general feeling amongst people is to go for the 1 GIG Stick

so will order ASAP.

what about the hard drive and dvd-rw Q's i posted?

any helpful replies appreciated.

thanks,

DoFa · Apr 10, 2005, 09:18 PM

Build your own DVD burner and FW hard drive. Get a cheap After Rebate drive from BestBuy, CompUSA etc. and put it in a lnice aluminum FW case. For DVD burners, newegg can't be beat. Just make sure to stop by xlr8yourmac.com to make sure you get one that can be Patchburned to work with iDVD, iTunes etc. Then get another nice aluminum FW or USB2 case.

Prices: $40AR for a 160gb drive
3.5 FW case $40
$55 for a dual layer NEC 16x DVD burner (or equivalent)
$40 for FW case.

$200 should do it all if you shop smart.

I have the NEC dual layer drive. It works with iDVD and all the Apple Apps.

ajbaker · Apr 14, 2005, 11:33 AM

I have also been thinking about a mini instead of an iMac (since I can get a screen and use it for both Mac and Windows laptop) but was concerned about the performance.

My thinking was to get a 1.2Ghz mini, add memory (having had a 512mb powerbook for 3 years I would be inclined to go to 1gb) and a hard disk.

Would people be inclined to get an expensive 2.5"hard disk (7200rpm) to replace the internal OR get an external firewire high performance 3.5" hard disk. If the latter is the case, would it be beneficial to use the external firewire as the boot device? Is there any significant benefit from using the internal ide versuses external firewire?

ajbaker · Apr 19, 2005, 06:55 AM

Bump.

Which is faster for use as a boot disk? An internal ATA/100 2.5" 7200rpm hard disk or an external firewire 400 3.5" 7200rpm hard disk?

The reason I ask is that the latter is so much cheaper.

Has anyone attempted to mod their Mac Mini to host an internal 3.5" drive?!!

Dog Like Nature · Apr 20, 2005, 12:21 AM

Originally Posted by ajbaker

Bump.

Which is faster for use as a boot disk? An internal ATA/100 2.5" 7200rpm hard disk or an external firewire 400 3.5" 7200rpm hard disk?

The reason I ask is that the latter is so much cheaper.

Has anyone attempted to mod their Mac Mini to host an internal 3.5" drive?!!

Ignoring the protocol overheads, ATA/100 is 100MB/sec and 1394a is 50MB/sec. Both the drives you mention are the same rotational speed, so that's a wash. What are the cache sizes of these two drives?