A few Mac Mini questions

I am a complete newcomer to Apple computers (although I do own an iPod ). I'm looking to switch from my tower PC (Windows 7) to Apple. I would like to reuse as many of my hardware accessories from my PC as possible.

I currently have the following accesories:

1. Dell 27" monitor (has HDMI, DisplayPort, VGA and DVI connectors)
2. Logitech wireless mouse (has USB receiver)
3. Microsoft and Logitech HD webcams (USB)

Would I be able to reuse the above accessories with a Mac Mini? I'm fairly sure I could reuse the monitor as I could connect the Mac Mini to it via an HDMI cable. However, what about the webcams and the Logitech wireless mouse?

Also, i'm looking to buy the 2.5GHz, 4GB RAM Max Mini as I understand that this has a much better graphic chip. Is this correct?

Finally, how easy/difficult is it to upgrde the memory to 8GB if I purchased the memory from a third-party supplier and installed it myself?

The only thing I am not sure about are the Webcams but probably on them.

The Logitech mouse will work great as will the Dell monitor.

romatech said:

1. Dell 27" monitor (has HDMI, DisplayPort, VGA and DVI connectors)
2. Logitech wireless mouse (has USB receiver)
3. Microsoft and Logitech HD webcams (USB)

Finally, how easy/difficult is it to upgrde the memory to 8GB if I purchased the memory from a third-party supplier and installed it myself?

Click to expand...

USB webcam should not be a problem. When I purchased one, there wasn't any issue about whether it was for a Mac or Windows computer.

The newer Minis, I'm led to believe from a "how to" web page (sorry, I didn't save the link) are rather easy to open. The one I have, from 2007, requires a special tool to get the bottom off of it and access the RAM. If it has a circular "plate" on the bottom, it should be a snap.

Thank you all for the replies. I'm inclined to purchase the 2.5GHz, 4GB model due to it having a superior graphics chip. However, I intend to upgrade the memory by buying it directly from Crucial.

Crucial recommend a 16GB memory kit (2 x 8GB sticks). Does anyone know how many memory slots the Mac Mini has and whether I could be adding to the 4GB memory or replacing it with 16GB? I other words, would I end up with 20GB or 16GB?

The Mini has 2 RAM slots, so you'd be replacing what is currently in the machine.

I highly recommend the 2.5 with the ATI video card. especially if you plan on using it as a media center as well. It is plenty fast.

Also, look into your mouse and see if it has a Mac utility to configure all the buttons. I use an app called Steer Mouse (dont have the link) to configure all the buttons on my Logitech gaming mouse. works nicely if the mouse is not officially supported with a config utility.