I went to Compusa yesterday to buy a 1.66 Mac Mini to use as an office computer (running mostly iApps and Microsoft Office). However, my local store is offering the 2.3GHz PowerMac G5 (1.15GHz frontside bus, 1MB L2 cache, 512MB RAM, 250GB hard drive, 16x SuperDrive, Three PCI-Express slots, & NVIDIA GeForce 6600 with 256MB GDDR SDRAM) for $1,499 as a "Manager's Special." I know this machine will be old news in two weeks but--for that price--which would you recommend buying?
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1.66 Mini v. 2.3 PowerMac
- Thread starter mattiowa
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Do you NEED a Power Mac? If you're just running office and the iLife apps, the Mini is more than adequate. I'd venture to say that the iLife apps will perform almost as well as the Power Mac anyway. I'd only drop the money on the PM if you plan on doing any high end gaming, intense video editing (Final Cut Pro/Motion), or intense graphics work.
Need v. Want
I won't be doing any high end gaming, video editing or graphics work; I just want a computer with enought power to make the Finder and other applications feel "zippy." I wouldn't spend $2,000 or more for a new PowerMac but, since there is only a few hundred dollars difference between the intel mini and this $1,500 PowerMac, I'm thinking about buying the high end cpu instead.
I won't be doing any high end gaming, video editing or graphics work; I just want a computer with enought power to make the Finder and other applications feel "zippy." I wouldn't spend $2,000 or more for a new PowerMac but, since there is only a few hundred dollars difference between the intel mini and this $1,500 PowerMac, I'm thinking about buying the high end cpu instead.
mattiowa said:
Hmm.....very convincing. No, I think that unless you're using photoshop or need massive amounts of hard drive space you'll be ok with a mini.
There is a reason that G5 PM has a "managers special" price. We are less than 3 weeks to WWDC and there is a chance Apple will reveal a medium desktop that will rival that G5 PM. If they use Conroe it will be cheaper too! If you can wait, then wait to see what Steve says on the 7th.
Other than that.. if you need a machine today, the G5 PM is still a great machine. At least it will be for another few weeks! The axiom dicates that you always buy the best machine you can afford. If you believe that, then the G5 PM is the machine to get in your situation. The mini will save you a few dollars and a lot of desktop space, the G5 PM will give you more bang for the buck.
You might also look for refurbs on Apple. There is always going to be a special pricing to be had if you look for it. Especially the beginning of next month.
Other than that.. if you need a machine today, the G5 PM is still a great machine. At least it will be for another few weeks! The axiom dicates that you always buy the best machine you can afford. If you believe that, then the G5 PM is the machine to get in your situation. The mini will save you a few dollars and a lot of desktop space, the G5 PM will give you more bang for the buck.
You might also look for refurbs on Apple. There is always going to be a special pricing to be had if you look for it. Especially the beginning of next month.
GET THE PM, it will last you for years, it has a way better resale value, and is an awesome machine. That price is a joke anyway, you could sell it for 1000 USD in a heartbeat.
unless you absloutely need a machine right now, wait for WWDC. Smart buyers are going to hold off until the store comes back up that morning.
Best Post I have seen, The Intel stuff today is very impressive indeed. Conroe is awesome.Some_Big_Spoon said:
netdog said:
I seriously doubt they would update the processor grade of a non-pro machine.
They mini power pc processor had no official upgrades for about 1.5 years.
I'd say the only big question is would you like to use Parallels or Boot Camp?
If not, the Powermac is an awesome computer and can be upgraded for a long time to come. The sheer amount of RAM the Powermac can hold will last you a long time, not too mention the Powermac is built like a Tank! It's very well engineered & designed. It's also physically easier to upgrade. What else...hmmm, it's easier & cheaper to add more storage.
As for the Mini, I think it's an awesome computer but you are sort of 'limited' in my mind to upgradability, the only way I'd pick the Mini is for using Windows/Parallels. That said, with Windows Vista coming out, I think the Mini will be strained to run Vista's eye candy because of the on-board graphics. Either way you can't go wrong, but my vote goes to the Powermac because it simply beats the mini for future proofing. With the Powermac you get a really powerful videocard, lots of RAM space, easier to throw in more hard drives, a faster processor, more ports/expansion.
All said and done, I'm typing on a dual 2.5Ghz Powermac G5 from last March waiting until WWDC so I can buy an Intel 'Powermac' because I have a very strong need to use a few Windows programs. But this machine is still blazing fast for me, so that dual 2.3 machine looks good.
Hope this helps?
If not, the Powermac is an awesome computer and can be upgraded for a long time to come. The sheer amount of RAM the Powermac can hold will last you a long time, not too mention the Powermac is built like a Tank! It's very well engineered & designed. It's also physically easier to upgrade. What else...hmmm, it's easier & cheaper to add more storage.
As for the Mini, I think it's an awesome computer but you are sort of 'limited' in my mind to upgradability, the only way I'd pick the Mini is for using Windows/Parallels. That said, with Windows Vista coming out, I think the Mini will be strained to run Vista's eye candy because of the on-board graphics. Either way you can't go wrong, but my vote goes to the Powermac because it simply beats the mini for future proofing. With the Powermac you get a really powerful videocard, lots of RAM space, easier to throw in more hard drives, a faster processor, more ports/expansion.
All said and done, I'm typing on a dual 2.5Ghz Powermac G5 from last March waiting until WWDC so I can buy an Intel 'Powermac' because I have a very strong need to use a few Windows programs. But this machine is still blazing fast for me, so that dual 2.3 machine looks good.
Hope this helps?
The PowerMac seems almost like overkill for what you're looking to do. I'm running a Core Solo Mini right now, and it's perfect for what I do (which seems to be what you want to do with it at well). If you need the computer now, and can't wait for WWDC, I'd say go with the Mini. The Core Duo will be more than enough power for you.
Winstonp said:
yeah, but that's because the G4 was pretty much dead in the water. As faster intel processors becomes available, why wouldn't apple use them?
If you're truly going to use the machine just for the applications you mentioned, or even if you're going to use Parallels or Boot Camp, then the mini should be adequate. However, if you ever think you're gonna want to do video editing or gaming, you probably want a more powerful machine.
That said, I'm still not sure I'd get the PM today. The price isn't going to go up anytime soon...in a few weeks, you may see even better deals, especially when people start dumping their G5s for a new Intel Mac Pro. If you want a higher-end machine than the mini, it might be worth waiting if you can.
Even if you buy the mini now, you'll still be able to sell it later for a good price and trade up...I've sold lots of machines on eBay and have had very good luck retaining most of my money (which gets plowed into a new Mac of course
That said, I'm still not sure I'd get the PM today. The price isn't going to go up anytime soon...in a few weeks, you may see even better deals, especially when people start dumping their G5s for a new Intel Mac Pro. If you want a higher-end machine than the mini, it might be worth waiting if you can.
Even if you buy the mini now, you'll still be able to sell it later for a good price and trade up...I've sold lots of machines on eBay and have had very good luck retaining most of my money (which gets plowed into a new Mac of course
Don't buy the Powermac. I would wait until WWDC and then look at your options. The mini may see a price-drop or a CPU boost, and there may be some kind of low-end mac pro with a conroe that will kill that G5 in performance and cost $1499 as well. Just wait! It's only a couple weeks away.
Dont Hurt Me said:
I agree, wait to after WWDC '06 before buying anything.
EDIT
mattiowa said:
Well enjoy, the current Mac Mini is a fine machine, I hope that you enjoy it mattiowa.
dollystereo said:GET THE PM, it will last you for years, it has a way better resale value, and is an awesome machine. That price is a joke anyway, you could sell it for 1000 USD in a heartbeat.
That's a pretty convincing arguement