Mac Mini as a first Mac?

Hello

I am considering switching to Mac. Why? Well, i'm unusually open-minded this year, so i'm thinking about making the switch

The problem is that my expectations are probably a lot higher than my budget Plus, i do have a fairly good PC, so i may be better just sticking with it (P4 dual core 3ghz, 2 gig ram, 512mb video, SATA II hard drives, etc.)

BUT, i'm very interested in the "Mac experience". My brother has a macbook Pro that he absolutely loves, but I don't want to invest that much (and i can't try his macbook, since we live in different countries now).

I am eliminating the iMac, mainly because of the screen. I do some photography, and from what i've read and was told, the iMac screens are horrible in regards to color precision. Plus, i just hate glossy screens.

I'm not too interested in laptops period, so my only option left is pretty much the Mac Mini.

What I plan to do with it is mainly internet, some photoshop (editing RAW photo files mostly - Nikon NEF files), iTunes, chatting ...stuff like that.

My only concern, I think, is the fact that the HD in the Mini is 5400rpm, can it get to be a problem for transfering files or just plain file writing?

Also, the router is on my roommates computer. She has a PC, it's probably a G router .. will I have problems connecting to it?

Thanks!

NumberSix said:

Hello

I am considering switching to Mac. Why? Well, i'm unusually open-minded this year, so i'm thinking about making the switch

The problem is that my expectations are probably a lot higher than my budget Plus, i do have a fairly good PC, so i may be better just sticking with it (P4 dual core 3ghz, 2 gig ram, 512mb video, SATA II hard drives, etc.)

BUT, i'm very interested in the "Mac experience". My brother has a macbook Pro that he absolutely loves, but I don't want to invest that much (and i can't try his macbook, since we live in different countries now).

I am eliminating the iMac, mainly because of the screen. I do some photography, and from what i've read and was told, the iMac screens are horrible in regards to color precision. Plus, i just hate glossy screens.

I'm not too interested in laptops period, so my only option left is pretty much the Mac Mini.

What I plan to do with it is mainly internet, some photoshop (editing RAW photo files mostly - Nikon NEF files), iTunes, chatting ...stuff like that.

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It should be fine for those purposes. Obviously, the more RAM, the better - but it's best to upgrade that aftermarket as Apple tends to be very expensive for memory. I recommend Crucial.com.

My only concern, I think, is the fact that the HD in the Mini is 5400rpm, can it get to be a problem for transfering files or just plain file writing?

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Well, it won't be unusable, but you can expect disk I/O to be more in-line with what you'd see on your average laptop.

Also, the router is on my roommates computer. She has a PC, it's probably a G router .. will I have problems connecting to it?

Thanks!

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Probably not. 802.11a/b/g/n is an IEEE standard and the Mac's "AirPort" card is just another 802.11a/b/g/n-compliant card. With that said, I say "probably not" only because in my experience OS X can be picky about how the router is configured. If your roommate isn't broadcasting SSID, you may have some issues if there are other competing routers in the area.

Would using a good old cable eliminate any potential problems regarding the internet connection?

Another question, is there a noticeable difference in performance between the Mini 1.83ghz and the 2ghz?

Can't remember the last time i used a DVD writer, so I don't think I'd really need the SuperDrive.

Any other differences i'm missing between the 2 models, apart from HD, CPU and Drive?

I just want to comment on your iMac statement. I have seen both in person. You are right, the 20" iMac turns yellow from the side if viewed at the wrong angle. However, the 24" is beautiful and best looking screen I have ever seen. The speed of Macs with same spec as windows runs faster due to less requirements for performance with Vista especially.

NumberSix said:

Hello
I am eliminating the iMac, mainly because of the screen. I do some photography, and from what i've read and was told, the iMac screens are horrible in regards to color precision. Plus, i just hate glossy screens.

Click to expand...

What you saw was probably the 20" iMac which uses the horrible TN panel. The panel to REALLY avoid when doing any color critical work. The bigger model uses a different panel (forgot what type) but is more forgiving in color reproduction.

A Mac Mini was my first Mac, and a PPC with 512mb RAM at that. I called it "The great Mac experiment of 2005". Could I switch completely over from Linux/Windows as my primary computer to this whole Apple thing? Now that Jobs saw fit to provide a relatively low cost mechanism to switch why not?

Boy could I. Soon there was a Mini on my wife's desk. Then there was a Macbook on my lap. Then a Macbook on her lap. Now there is no turning back. Sure, one of them (mine) runs Windows XP in a Parallels VM, but that's only for the flexibility aspect. Otherwise it's OS X all the way. Of the old Minis, one went to my parents to get them over to the Mac world, the other is hooked up to my HDTV to play the odd iTunes movie on the big screen.

First off, as soon as you get a 24" imac in a properly lit environment. ie: not a huge store with metal halide lighting.... It's absolutely awesome.

I use dual 23" lcd's at work with a matte screen and I was soo mad I couldn't get my imac with one....until i got it home and wow. As far as color reproduction, I would say it's better than good but not amazing. I actually have my screen brightness tuned down halfway before calibration. After it really helped alot. I run a large digital printer and I haven't noticed any difference in files I build at home and bring to work.

As eggo said above though, only 24" have a decent panel so go big or go play on your pc. haha.

Also, if you get that little mini it's going to disappoint you even more, I wouldn't let that make or break the imac as a great desktop.

Your Crazy. j/k

I would go with the mac mini personally. I'm not a big fan of all in ones. If the monitor dies then your stuck with an external monitor and a broken one. The mini is easier to hide as well. and since you already have PC you can just use all the stuff from it or get a KVM switch

EGGO said:

What you saw was probably the 20" iMac which uses the horrible TN panel. The panel to REALLY avoid when doing any color critical work. The bigger model uses a different panel (forgot what type) but is more forgiving in color reproduction.

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I believe its an IPS panel in the 24, but don't ask me with the initials stand for

I was chatting (online) with an apple rep and she claimed they upgraded the 20 inch screen, but I have yet to bother to go and check it out myself. If so the 20 could be a viable option.

i personally love the iMac screen! i have a 24 incher and its prob the best i've seen, the colours have a high range, photography should be awesome on it, so should photoshop/gimp. and the new ones are a little faster for a little less...!

EGGO said:

What you saw was probably the 20" iMac which uses the horrible TN panel. The panel to REALLY avoid when doing any color critical work. The bigger model uses a different panel (forgot what type) but is more forgiving in color reproduction.

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I believe it's an H-IPS screen.

Dysfunction said:

I believe it's an H-IPS screen.

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That's good. The viewing angle will be a bit lower but that should mean it's using a newer panel than even their ACDs.

Am I the only person who like the 20" glossy screen? Sure the viewing angle is very poor, but photos look amazing on it. The colour is rich as anything and images have a vibrancy you don't get with the old machine. I love the gloss on it too.

And I'm not biased - I use a 20" white iMac at work all day and the aluminium at home.

I have both an Intel Mini and Power PC Mini. They are great especially for their small size and lower price. I am a VERY picky person and do not regret in the least purchasing either of them.


The Power PC mini performs every bit as well as a similar specked iBook or Powerbook. The Intel Mini is just as fast as a Macbook with similar specs. What more could you expect from a machine the size of the Mini? I am very happy with both of them. If you are a power user and expect to play demanding 3d games and do heavy 3d work, then no system with Integrated graphics would do it for you. But for most everything else the mini is fine.

Do remember a 7200 RPM Hard Drive could be installed in a Mini just like any other system that uses a 2.5" Laptop drive. The Mini is a Laptop in a SMALL desktop case.

Hello

I want to thank everyone for their inputs. You're all making the 24" iMac very tempting, but it's a little over the price i'm willing to put on this experiment right now I'll keep it in mind as my next purchase if I like Macs overall

dtravis7 said:

Do remember a 7200 RPM Hard Drive could be installed in a Mini just like any other system that uses a 2.5" Laptop drive. The Mini is a Laptop in a SMALL desktop case.

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That comment right there all but sold me to the Mini. I had not realized the Mini could be upgraded. But i suppose it voids the warranty?

Does the warranty get voided when using third party RAM also ?

Hopefully, i will order my first Mac in the coming weeks

The Mini is basically un-upgradeable. You have to take the thing apart to put in even memory and taking it apart voids the warranty.

Greetings NumberSix! Number6 here...

I have a Dell and a mini on my desk at work with a KVM switch in between and use both constantly. That's one of the nifty thinks about a mini- you don't have to surrender your current desktop setup to take the plunge; you can integrate it into your current setup.

It took me a while to get used to the "Mac way" of doing things, but now that I have I only use the Dell on my desk when I absolutely have to (and I'm writing this on my MacBook at home!).

Best advice I got when learning to use a Mac - don't think "Windows does thus-and-such; how do I do it on a Mac?" Think "I need to do thus-and-such" and start poking around. The Mac OS is pretty intuitive if you let it be (and don't try to impose Windows methodology).

Number6 said:

Greetings NumberSix! Number6 here...

I have a Dell and a mini on my desk at work with a KVM switch in between and use both constantly. That's one of the nifty thinks about a mini- you don't have to surrender your current desktop setup to take the plunge; you can integrate it into your current setup.

It took me a while to get used to the "Mac way" of doing things, but now that I have I only use the Dell on my desk when I absolutely have to (and I'm writing this on my MacBook at home!).

Best advice I got when learning to use a Mac - don't think "Windows does thus-and-such; how do I do it on a Mac?" Think "I need to do thus-and-such" and start poking around. The Mac OS is pretty intuitive if you let it be (and don't try to impose Windows methodology).

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Excellent advice!

babarnette said:

Excellent advice!

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Agreed totally! Words to live by when trying out a Mac with OSX for the first time.

thanks for the advice