All the toys are updated!! Now for the macpro!!!!!!

[derbothaus]

No, that would be very weird with a 3000 bucks BTO model. The mini does beat the basic 4 core model though on GB. For 36% of the money. One 6 core model allows you to buy 3 employees a only slightly less powerfull computer. If you upgrade to 16Gb you get a 256Gb SSD+16Gb at 1600mhz for the same price that buys a lousy 16 Gb 1066Mhz RAM for a Pro.

The Mac Pro is not for the budget conscious and never has been. Xeon is always very spendy.
If you were to bust out 24 hour extended renders on that same mini you'd see it throttle down and slow to a heat filled mess in a matter of hours not to mention dramatically shortening it's life. The consumer small package Mac's are amazing at sprinting speed but will keel over in a marathon like too much fettuccine.
If you need it for Office and basic non-memory limited Photoshop then get one. They'll work great. But because they win by a slight margin on a 30 second test they are still not in the same league. They have laptop components (Macbook without a screen) and stringent thermal confines. When or if the Mac Pro ever get's updated parts based on similar silicon it will completely destroy Apple's consumer line in power department. Take a Macmini and x4 it.

 

[linuxcooldude]

The Mac Pro is not for the budget conscious and never has been. Xeon is always very spendy.
If you were to bust out 24 hour extended renders on that same mini you'd see it throttle down and slow to a heat filled mess in a matter of hours not to mention dramatically shortening it's life. The consumer small package Mac's are amazing at sprinting speed but will keel over in a marathon like too much fettuccine.
If you need it for Office and basic non-memory limited Photoshop then get one. They'll work great. But because they win by a slight margin on a 30 second test they are still not in the same league. They have laptop components (Macbook without a screen) and stringent thermal confines. When or if the Mac Pro ever get's updated parts based on similar silicon it will completely destroy Apple's consumer line in power department. Take a Macmini and x4 it.

Yes, I think people see the benchmarks comparing the new Mac Mini, iMac, MacBook Pro, with the previous generation Mac Pro and think thats the whole story. Without comparing memory capacity, upgradable dedicated video cards, storage space, up to 12 cores & advanced cooling system.
Sure its great for short videos, but you start doing long time renders in excess of 24 hours at a time I think you will see the performance degrade exponentially over time.