Does the 2012 mac mini compare to any recent rMBP

[willydimes]

I know this is sort of silly question but Ive searched and haven't had much luck finding comparisons. I currently have a late 2013 rMBP 15 inch base model. I am in the market for a desktop but being as I already have an ATD and another monitor I am not looking for an iMac. I also would prefer not to have a laptop that outperforms my desktop.

So does say a base model i7 mac mini with perhaps an upgraded SSD and some extra RAM stack up or is this just a colossal waste of money. I would buy the mini refurbished or used and do the upgrades myself.

I do some video editing here and there. I would certainly wait if we had any inkling that something new was coming soon but I sort of need it by end of August so looking for options. Would if I could get a nMP but that doesn't seem to be worth my money for what I do although I'm sure its capacity would last me plenty in the long run given my uses.

 

[simsaladimbamba]

The 2012 Mac mini with an i7 as CPU is not faster than the base 2013 15" MacBook Pro with Retina Display, since the Mac mini uses a notebook CPU like the ones found in the rMBPs.
The integrated graphics processor (IGP) HD4000 is also less powerful than that Iris Pro GPU.

If you do not mind to use your MacBook Pro with Retina Display in clamshell mode with an external display, why get a Mac mini?

 

[willydimes]

Well one because I would like a desktop with some more storage space to keep some files I don't need on my laptop. Secondly for the ease. I don't always have the laptop with me whether its at school. Id like to be able to hop on and use the desktop without needing to plug in the laptop. Just makes things much simpler for the way that I use my computers. But thats what I figured about power, so I guess wait it out and see what happens.

 

[BrettApple]

The Ivy bridge i7 in the Mac Mini is plenty powerful, and you can cram two drives in there for an SSD/HDD combo for speed and storage. But the GPU is quite a bit slower than the Iris in the rMBP. Though you can upgrade the RAM to 16GB and a good SSD will come close to saturating the SATA III bus. It'll benchmark slower than the rMBP's, sure, but in real world performance it wouldn't be huge.

For the cost though, it's a heck of a lot less than your rMBP is anyway. And a good secondary machine to keep in one place.

For reference I've got a 2012 i7 mini with 16GB RAM, 1TB HDD, and a 24" ACD at work. And at home I'm using a 13" rMBP 8GB/256GB and the differences aren't huge. Sure the SSD is faster, but with everything open, it's marginal. Unless you play games on it or use anything GPU intensive, it'll run a thunderbolt display with no issue.

Totally up to you. But yes, your 15" rMBP is still going to be faster.

 

[willydimes]

Yea it just stinks apple hasn't done much to update it. Sure it'll do what I like now but Id like something that'll last a few years at least until I finish my residency. I guess this is what happens when you like the have the newer stuff. I almost wish I needed the Mac Prom it seems like an awesome machine. I would just hate to drop a grand or so on a mini that is 2 year behind in tech. I wish apple would let me give them my money hahah anyway thanks for the input

 

[Fishrrman]

OP wrote above:
[[ I would just hate to drop a grand or so on a mini that is 2 year behind in tech. I wish apple would let me give them my money hahah anyway thanks for the input ]]

If you keep a close eye on the Apple refurbished page (check refurbme.com), you might be able to pick up a 2.3ghz i7 in the $650 range. That's quite a bit less than "a grand".

Add RAM yourself.
Add an SSD, either internally or externally (little performance difference).

Unless Apple decides to go with a "lesser update" and release a Mini with a Haswell CPU, we probably won't see a next-generation Mini (IF there is to be one) prior to January 2015, perhaps later...

 

[willydimes]

Yea I can grab one cheap but memory and an ssd plus id just get a data doubler package will most certainly bring it close to a grand.

 

[mad3inch1na]

I know this is sort of silly question but Ive searched and haven't had much luck finding comparisons. I currently have a late 2013 rMBP 15 inch base model. I am in the market for a desktop but being as I already have an ATD and another monitor I am not looking for an iMac. I also would prefer not to have a laptop that outperforms my desktop.

So does say a base model i7 mac mini with perhaps an upgraded SSD and some extra RAM stack up or is this just a colossal waste of money. I would buy the mini refurbished or used and do the upgrades myself.

I do some video editing here and there. I would certainly wait if we had any inkling that something new was coming soon but I sort of need it by end of August so looking for options. Would if I could get a nMP but that doesn't seem to be worth my money for what I do although I'm sure its capacity would last me plenty in the long run given my uses.

The maxed out mini (i7/8GB RAM/256GB SSD) actually uses the exact same components as the baseline 2012 15" MBP. The only difference, components-wise, is the lack of a dGPU. It will definitely be a worse performer than a 2013 rMBP.

The 2012 rMBP and the Mac Mini use the i7-3615QM, the same SATA 3 SSDs, the same 1600MHz DDR3 RAM. The 2013 rMBP has a better processor, better SSDs, comparable RAM (lower voltage though), and better graphics.

You might as well just plug your rMBP into an external display.

Matt