2012 Mac Mini and Yosemite....

[das22]

Is there anything a nicely equipped 2012 Mac Mini will not be able to do in Yosemite that a new 2014 can? What I'm getting at would there be any Yosemite continuity features it can't do?

 

[Cryates]

Is there anything a nicely equipped 2012 Mac Mini will not be able to do in Yosemite that a new 2014 can? What I'm getting at would there be any Yosemite continuity features it can't do?

No. I have a 2012 that delivers all the features the newer model does. The newer model just has slightly beefier internals.

 

[BJonson]

No. I have a 2012 that delivers all the features the newer model does. The newer model just has slightly beefier internals.

You meant to say the 2012 model has beefier internals.

 

[ZipZilla]

The newer model just has slightly beefier internals.

Said no one ever

 

[Intell]

The 2012 model cannot easily drive a 4K display or connect two Thunderbolt devices directly to the machine.

 

[ZipZilla]

The 2012 model cannot easily drive a 4K display or connect two Thunderbolt devices directly to the machine.

Very true. The updated graphics and the Thunderbolt 2 ports are the only real advantages.

But the soldered RAM ruins any value proposition for the Haswell mini. You're paying the Apple RAM tax to buy one because you have no choice but to buy 16GB of RAM at inflated prices at the outset. This is Apple's choice to do it this way, but it is our choice to buy 2012 Minis while they last too.

 

[incognito6174]

Absolutely. That's what made me purchase a 2012 version and upgrade the RAM myself. Apple charges ridiculous prices for RAM

 

[Mr. Retrofire]

Very true. The updated graphics and the Thunderbolt 2 ports are the only real advantages.

But the soldered RAM ruins any value proposition for the Haswell mini.

We better wait for Broadwell Mac minis. I use two Quad Core 2012 Mac minis at the moment and a fast Quad Core Sandy Bridge 17" MBP. I hope that Apple does the right things regarding Broadwell (Iris Pro iGPU, Quad Core, ...).

 

[Larry-K]

The 2012 model cannot easily drive a 4K display or connect two Thunderbolt devices directly to the machine.

And, of course, that's what every budget-conscious, entry-level user needs in a Mini.

 

[scottsjack]

And, of course, that's what every budget-conscious, entry-level user needs in a Mini.

Exactly the point that a lot of posters across this mini forum seem to ignore.
Many mini owners are people spending $500 to $700 on a computer. All this talk about stupidly expensive CTO OEM SSDs, RAM and Apple TB displays is just not in the world of thrifty mini owners.

One can find lots of great USB3 storage for reasonable prices. Unfortunately the mini does not have enough USB ports to support a keyboard and mouse and iPhone, and iPad and EyeTV and CF card reader and printer ad nauseam.

So an expensive TB dock is supposed to be a cure for that? Hardly. I use a supper great OWC ThunderBay 4 TB dock loaded with WD 4TB RE drives with my mini. At $449.00 for an empty one it is not much competition for USB3 boxes.

Finally the talk about eGPU. For a fiddler and hobbyist definitely a cool project. Buying a TB PCI box, a dGPU and pounding a bunch of instructions into Terminal for someone buying their first Mac? Come on, please return to reality.