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Four cores good, two cores bad

The OP didn't say what he was using the machine for. If he's using anything that takes advantage of the quad-core he could be doubling his performance over the dual-core version. In any case, unless you like apples new disposable computer model, why not get one that you know will be able to run your software with ease into the future?
 
crazzapple said:
The OP didn't say what he was using the machine for.
Click to expand...

I'm a heavyweight user - lots of design work, several virtual machines and am getting into video editing.

I didn't really mean that two cores are 'bad' - just couldn't resist the reverse reference to Animal Farm.

M.
 
marclondon said:
I'm a heavyweight user - lots of design work, several virtual machines and am getting into video editing.

I didn't really mean that two cores are 'bad' - just couldn't resist the reverse reference to Animal Farm.

M.
Click to expand...

and that's the problem with Apple not offering a quad core 2014 Mini. Vital Machines, design work and video editing are much more efficient on quads.

The Mini is a great machine and I don't think people would be so upset with soldered ram but the lose of the second bay and quad is a big blow to us that need these options in a headless Mac and have no need for a pro machine.

Possibly Apple will take notice of the hole in their line up and give us better options when Skylake makes its appearance.

The offerings for the 2014 are ridiculously priced for a dual at a minimum of $1000 for a 16gb fusion machine.
 
Crosscreek said:
...I don't think people would be so upset with soldered ram...
Click to expand...

Soldered ram in 2014 models was the reason I had to buy the 2012 mini.
I bought it for a project which I don't know will go well or not so I want a mac
that I can upgrade instead of paying all upfront.
 
Crosscreek said:
Possibly Apple will take notice of the hole in their line up and give us better options when Skylake makes its appearance.

The offerings for the 2014 are ridiculously priced for a dual at a minimum of $1000 for a 16gb fusion machine.
Click to expand...

i doubt we'll see that hole filled now.

Price is an issue. I was looking at the new high end Mini - say the 3GHz dual i7 with 16GB ram and fusion or 256GB SSD. In the UK I can get that for about £850 (that's without the 20% sales tax as I reclaim that as it's a business expense. I also get a trade union discount).

The 2.3 i7 quad refurb cost me £399 plus 16GB ram and a bigger 500GB SSD, about £600 in total (sales tax would add 20%). So a big difference and I did enjoy taking it apart - that's worth something.

I appreciate that the speed for most tasks and graphics are both probably better in the new one.

M.
 
for this said:
Soldered ram in 2014 models was the reason I had to buy the 2012 mini.
I bought it for a project which I don't know will go well or not so I want a mac
that I can upgrade instead of paying all upfront.
Click to expand...

I understand your situation and Apples inflated price of RAM they manufacture in partner ship with Micron is a double dip price.

But if it was a trade off for dual bay and quad core with user accessibility to the bays then it wouldn't be as bad as Apple to swallow.
 
Crosscreek said:
and that's the problem with Apple not offering a quad core 2014 Mini. Vital Machines, design work and video editing are much more efficient on quads.

The offerings for the 2014 are ridiculously priced for a dual at a minimum of $1000 for a 16gb fusion machine.
Click to expand...

Does Photoshop takes advantage of many cores?
I would be curious to see a PSD benchmark for the 2012 Quad Mini against the 2014 Dual.
 
Looks like the OP knew what he was doing when purchasing the quad-core. Funny how so many people here think they know better.
 
marclondon said:
i doubt we'll see that hole filled now.

Price is an issue. I was looking at the new high end Mini - say the 3GHz dual i7 with 16GB ram and fusion or 256GB SSD. In the UK I can get that for about £850 (that's without the 20% sales tax as I reclaim that as it's a business expense. I also get a trade union discount).

The 2.3 i7 quad refurb cost me £399 plus 16GB ram and a bigger 500GB SSD, about £600 in total (sales tax would add 20%). So a big difference and I did enjoy taking it apart - that's worth something.

I appreciate that the speed for most tasks and graphics are both probably better in the new one.

M.
Click to expand...
Imagine not being able to have all those discounts... Apple is REALLY expensive in Europe. This major premium ought to be addressed by Apple.

Say for one I'd like to upgrade with an apple SSD: it truly costs a fortune. Why does apple charge it double or triple the market value of competitors? You can exaggerate but one day it comes back at you like any boomerang...
 
grandM said:
Imagine not being able to have all those discounts... Apple is REALLY expensive in Europe. This major premium ought to be addressed by Apple.

Say for one I'd like to upgrade with an apple SSD: it truly costs a fortune. Why does apple charge it double or triple the market value of competitors? You can exaggerate but one day it comes back at you like any boomerang...
Click to expand...

Your best bet is to upgrade yourself while you still can. I suspect the days of the mini being upgradable at all are numbered.
 
Darby67 said:
Yep, the minority of us mini owners that like to tinker, modify or upgrade may have to figure something else out.
Click to expand...

Agree with you there... for me the golden days of apple hardware is long over. My 2008 macbook is the best laptop I will ever own: tool-less door for battery removal and hdd access, replaceable ram. 6 years later it runs better than when I got it thanks to a fast ssd and 8GB of ram. A real workhorse that is still my main workstation.
 
crazzapple said:
Agree with you there... for me the golden days of apple hardware is long over. My 2008 macbook is the best laptop I will ever own: tool-less door for battery removal and hdd access, replaceable ram. 6 years later it runs better than when I got it thanks to a fast ssd and 8GB of ram. A real workhorse that is still my main workstation.
Click to expand...

Correct my 2008 MBP ended up with 8GB RAM and a 750GB WD 7200 RPM HDD. Neither of those were available at any price when I bought the MBP.

Similarly my late 2009 mini ended up with the same model of RAM and HDD. When I got it a 500GP 5400 RPM and 4GB RAM were the max available at the time.
 
I'm hoping to see a good difference day to day. I'm coming from a maxed out late 2008 MBP 2.66 C2D, nvidia 9400m & 9600m gt, 8 GB ram, crucial m4 512gb ssd and Samsung 1TB. And I just ordered a i7 server which I'll put a SSD and 16 GB ram. I bought a i5 mini the other day but I'll prob just sell that now. I know the processor will be way faster with the i7 quad but I've read some things saying the integrated Intel HD 4000 GPU is better than the 9400m but only slightly better than the old nvidia 9600m gt.
 
grandM said:
Imagine not being able to have all those discounts... Apple is REALLY expensive in Europe. This major premium ought to be addressed by Apple.
Click to expand...

Indeed - the top end new Mini with dual i7, Fusion/256GB SSD and 16GB ram with VAT is over £1000 in the UK. That's a lot for a machine with average graphics and only a dual core CPU. My son and I specced up a gaming machine for him awhile ago - for about £1000 you can order a custom machine with an amazing graphics processor, quad i7, big power supply, a nice case with loads of ports, SSD boot disk, 2TB hard drive etc. Of course it's Windows and also uses a lot more power.

M.
 
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