When would be the time to upgrade?

So I have had my mac mini for a month or so (or more) and i really love it. Basically it's a 2007 Mac Min intel core duo 2 - 250 gig hdd 4 gig ram,Mac OS Lion 10.7.5 and runs really well considering my friend had it for a long time for his business. Looked after rather well and works like a charm. Not issues to note till date. I paid about $150 for it.

So my logical thinking is - how long can I keep running this little monster for, with Mavericks coming out this fall. I'm starting to look at upgrading already. Not that I really want to at this point, but maybe sometime in the new year.

The system itself runs fine , programs run well and multimedia and ipod/ipad synching iTunes and watching tv has no issues either. Again 100% perfect.

Realistically is Lion going to be still supported by this time next year? When should I realistically start looking to upgrade to the new mac mini? Which looks fricken sweet and awesome! I know i can do it, it's within my budget, but I am debating whether it's actually necessary to upgrade this year. I'm thinking maybe middle of 2014?

Any thoughts for a mac newbie and his mini, any advice will be most grateful.

beermac2013 said:

Basically it's a 2007 Mac Min intel core duo 2 - 250 gig hdd 4 gig ram,Mac OS Lion 10.7.5...

Any thoughts for a mac newbie and his mini, any advice will be most grateful.

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If this truly is a 2007 Mac-Mini...then it is already maxed out. 4gig of ram is its max. ram...and OS 10.7.5 is the maximum OS it can run.

- Nick

I already knew that it was maxed out. Do know that OS 10.7.5 is the maximum that can run on it. Just debating whether i should upgrade later rather than sooner considering I DON'T have any major issues with it as such. And it runs pretty sweet. And yes it is a Mac Mini 2007 - why would I lie about it?

Probably can do with it for at least for another 6 months and then do a major upgrade around this time next year, there is no hurry unless this machine does caput itself.

pigoo3 didn't accuse you of lying, it's just that a lot of folks come here who say they have a certain model and later it turns out that the actual model is something else. FWIW, the term "upgrade" is generally used here to describe memory increases, not the purchase of a new machine.

As for your original question, you don't have to replace what you have until either the mini doesn't do what you need it to do, or until you want a certain application that doesn't run on your version of the OS. And even then you can repurpose your mini as an itunes server, or a video server. From what you've said so far, I see no reason to spend any money on a replacement machine at this point.

beermac2013 said:

I already knew that it was maxed out. Do know that OS 10.7.5 is the maximum that can run on it. Just debating whether i should upgrade later rather than sooner considering I DON'T have any major issues with it as such. And it runs pretty sweet.

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Your initial post was a bit confusing/unclear regarding your upgrade plans. You didn't really say that you knew that your current Mac-Mini was maxed out.

beermac2013 said:

And yes it is a Mac Mini 2007 - why would I lie about it?

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Like MacInWin mentioned...many many times...folks mis-identify what model Mac they have. And when that happens...the answers to questions can be very different.

- Nick

Lion is the latest that machine can run, so yes you're "maxed out."

Will Lion still be supported this time next year? Absolutely yes in terms of security and iTunes/Safari/QuickTime upgrades. Probably nothing else though (no further point upgrades as is already obvious).

How much longer? Well, Apple is still updating Snow Leopard with required updates (the security/iTunes/Safari/QT stuff I mentioned), and Snow is three years old. Most new programs are still compatible with it, but a growing percentage isn't.

So based on tradition and barring the lack of any major engineering breakthroughs that change the whole playing field, you should expect that Mac mini to keep on humming for another year or two. Beyond that you'll certain run into more and more obstacles.

Thank for that information, with that in mind chas_m I now have an idea when I will get a new Mac Mini.