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Do you guys like your mac mini?

N

nazedayo

macrumors member
Original poster
Jan 18, 2012
35
0
Hey all,

Recent traveling consultant now turned full-time work-from-home guy. I've given back my macbook pro to my former employer so I don't have a laptop anymore.

Here's my question: do you like your mac minis? I'm so used to the full "integrated" experience of the macbook air/pro (iSight camera, trackpad's gestures, trackpad's clickability as a mouse, I'm actually scared to switch to a desktop (and am scared of creating clutter with more stuff like the magic trackpad and an additional webcam). I'll be getting a laptop from my new employer anyway (a Lenovo), so I think it may be an opportunity for me to save me money by getting a mac mini.

I do some light photography editing in Lightroom, and some light PHP coding, so I don't need much processing power. Thinking about customizing RAM, and am contemplating surgery with a custom SSD via ifixit.

Thoughts?
 
I have a mini for my kids. I use it when they're in the living room (the computer is in the living room) and I'm very happy with it. Its a great computer.
 
I have the i7. Upgraded ram to 16 GB and used data doubler kit to add an SSD.

Use it for PHP/Python development for my job as well as iOS development on the side. I dabble in Photoshop/blender from time to time as well.

No complaints at all, other than the integrated graphics. Would be nice if it had at least a mid-line mobile GPU in there. Then again I have a Samsung laptop I use for my gaming (nothing major, just Wow/starcraft/skyrim) so the integrated isn't a huge deal.
 
I love my Mini. Installed a second HD and replaced the original with a Hybrid 750 GB Drive. Start ups now are in the 25 second range.

16 GB RAM.

Have a Blue Yeti microphone and two HD 24" monitors.

It's slick!

AND, I have a 16" AOC USB monitor and a 15' cord (both from Amazon) for when I need to be mobile. It all fits in a laptop case with my USB keyboard and mouse. Much more portable than you might think.

Good Luck!
 
and am contemplating surgery with a custom SSD via ifixit.

I did surgery with samsung 840 256gb and am happy with it but i don't think it was worth the risk and uncertainty to save $100.00
 
jwjsr said:
and am contemplating surgery with a custom SSD via ifixit.

I did surgery with samsung 840 256gb and am happy with it but i don't think it was worth the risk and uncertainty to save $100.00
Click to expand...

Unless you get the base model (runs cooler, 35 W TDP verus 45 W TDP for mid and server models) - that one does not come with an option to select SSD. However with USB 3.0 you can always use an external enclosure with SSD, it is fast enough. You'll have to be very, very careful and go slowly. I used to be a Thinkpad fan but since IBM is no longer involved in the design (last one was T61p) quality has gone downhill and have turned to a Mac mini. After 20+ laptops my eyes no longer appreciated the small screen (illness) and I went to a 27" screen. Main advantages of the Mac mini are two fold: small enough to take with you (no need for carrying a screen, you almost always can find a TV or monitor at destination) and silent - you don't hear the thing if you are not stressing to 100% it with video encoding etc. Was never designed to do that - this is where you have the Mac Pro for.

I would get more RAM though, 4Gb is no longer enough.
 
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I've had lots of Macs, including MacBooks, and my current (June 2011) Mac mini is my favourite Mac ever. I personally love the modularness, and it's been powerful enough for me to do in-depth audio editing, and some video editing, with no major hangups.

I'm guessing my next Mac will be a next-level-up Mac mini (or maybe the Mac Pro?), but this one has been a very steady and reliable friend for two years.
 
Mac Mini 2012-2013

I have had my Refurbished 2012 Mac Mini fired-up for a week or so and I really like it. It is the base model which meets my needs for surfing the web, movie watching, etc. I also have A Dell Inspiron Laptop along side,so, I am switching back and forth which is kind of fun. I bought it through the Apple Store in the USA and I took the Applecare.
 
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nazedayo said:
Here's my question: do you like your mac minis? I'm so used to the full "integrated" experience of the macbook air/pro (iSight camera, trackpad's gestures, trackpad's clickability as a mouse, I'm actually scared to switch to a desktop (and am scared of creating clutter with more stuff like the magic trackpad and an additional webcam).
Click to expand...

I prefer my desktops not have everything integrated.
 
Starfia said:
I've had lots of Macs, including MacBooks, and my current (June 2011) Mac mini is my favourite Mac ever. I personally love the modularness, and it's been powerful enough for me to do in-depth audio editing, and some video editing, with no major hangups.

I'm guessing my next Mac will be a next-level-up Mac mini (or maybe the Mac Pro?), but this one has been a very steady and reliable friend for two years.
Click to expand...

Ditto all of the above... my 2011 server has been rock solid, and the quad-core i7 with 16GB takes everything I throw at it-- Aperture, Blu-ray conversion, Logic X.
My only complaint is that the HD3000 GPU struggles a bit with my new 27" Dell monitor, just slightly laggy for window animations.

Going to swap it with a Haswell mini for sure and the old one will be a hand-me-down to my wife (who currently is using my old Core2Duo Mini). :D

For what it's worth, my Mini replaced a dinosaur Windows tower / gaming PC that I built years ago and kept upgrading over the years. It felt really good to "downsize."
 
I love the Mac mini. While I don't use it as a traditional desktop, I know that so long as you use the apple wireless keyboard and Magic Trackpad the experience is very similar to your old trusty MacBook Pro.
 
Best computer ever made! Tiny, portable, powerful, easy to tweak (for an Apple product), reserved design (not the generic posh Apple I AM HERE looks), energy efficient, best TCO (total cost of ownership) because of high resell value and low price and does everything.

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CausticPuppy said:
just slightly laggy for window animations.
Click to expand...

Turn'm off. The animations are cause lag anyway. And the current HD4000 is double as fast. The HD6630M in hte 2011 model even was the Mac that could drive the most external displays. 2 2560x1600 and 1 1920x1200 screen at the same time.
 
Yes, of course

I wanted a computer that to be easily transportable (for when I move, which I have done quite often over the years) but not portable (I like to close the door to my home office, and leave my computer behind).

The first Mac Mini fitted my criteria back in 2005. It had its shortcomings, that were addressed in my second, bought in 2009. It looks to be good for a few more years yet.

A plus is the Mini's modular nature.... get the peripherals you want, and up date or upgrade as needs dictate. I am still using the monitor and speakers I bought back in 2005, but have replaced the keyboard and the mouse.
 
CausticPuppy said:
For what it's worth, my Mini replaced a dinosaur Windows tower / gaming PC that I built years ago and kept upgrading over the years. It felt really good to "downsize."
Click to expand...

Interesting you said that. I actually was contemplating a mini versus a hackintosh, but I've heard that keeping up with the kernel/software updates get weary after a while- hence my desire to stay with an Apple Mac.

I also like the integrated design of the iMac, but I figured if I was going to spend that much money, I might'll spend it on a nice Dell monitor in addition to my current 21.5" ASUS monitor for dual-screening.

Thanks all, I think I'll be going with the Haswell Minis when they come up this year.
 
My primary machine is a MBP but I got a Mini for the family. The Mini is very low profile and fits great in the kitchen nook. I finally got a Synology NAS almost a year ago, and I think it makes for a nice ecosystem at home. Works nicely.
 
I bought one of the first quite some time ago. It was a great little box. When it was time to be replaced I bought another and have had nothing but good reliable service from it.
 
Great machine.
Silent and small.. Gonna give my mini to my daughter when i buy me an imac.
She now has a laptop pc but i want her to grow up with a quality machine that works awesome with no fuzz.
 
ioannis2005gr said:
I am not very sure but "rumors" show Oct.-Nov. 2013 timeframe for Mac mini update
Click to expand...
Rumors for the mini here never were anywhere close. Don't trust them. Just take all platform-change introduction dates of mini's in the past, and interpolate to the next step. It is a pretty steady pace. If MR had did that last time, they would have been one week off instead of half a year.
 
tmanto02 said:
I love the Mac mini. While I don't use it as a traditional desktop, I know that so long as you use the apple wireless keyboard and Magic Trackpad the experience is very similar to your old trusty MacBook Pro.
Click to expand...

While I don't use it as a traditional desktop,
Click to expand...

Could the Mac Mini be used as a traditional desktop for everyday use? Just curious.:D
 
iMacUnsure said:
Could the Mac Mini be used as a traditional desktop for everyday use? Just curious.:D
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Certainly. However it's sleek and unique form factor also makes it attractive as a HTPC which is what I use it for. But put it this way, if the Mac mini can handle decoding multiple uncompressed blu-Ray movies simultaneously then it can definitely handle everyday desktop activities :)
 
I went from a home built windows tower to the mini for all my home and work needs. Got the 512GB SSD Vector by OCZ and never looked back. So much more neat looking office.

Super fast 2.3 i7.

I win Win 8 in Parallels and all runs super fast. Boot (in to win 8 parallels) in abut 20 sec. Fastest I have ever seen ANY computer boot this fast.

I am a total nut for silence and consider this silent.
 
Cape Dave said:
I win Win 8 in Parallels and all runs super fast. Boot (in to win 8 parallels) in abut 20 sec. Fastest I have ever seen ANY computer boot this fast.
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My Win 8 pro 64 bit boots in 8 seconds on a 2011 mini with Samsung 830 and Virtual Box 4. Weird thing is that save state is slower than reboot. With WinXP it is the other way. Save state is then 3-4 secs, while boot is around 20.
 
blanka said:
My Win 8 pro 64 bit boots in 8 seconds on a 2011 mini with Samsung 830 and Virtual Box 4. Weird thing is that save state is slower than reboot. With WinXP it is the other way. Save state is then 3-4 secs, while boot is around 20.
Click to expand...

I could not get windows on Bootcamp. I would love to know how fast that would boot!

If the new mini has the PCIe SSD, I may get that. The only reason I suspect I could not bootcamp is because I put the SSD in the wrong SATA position. I tried everything else except for taking it apart and switching it.
 
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