All:
I am in the pleasant position of having top to bottom options on my new computer purchase. I have read articles and forum posts regarding performance, but they all leave me scratching my head. To the point:
I want the computer that will best run business productivity apps (Pages, Numbers, etc.) occasionally rips movies and music, and act as a server for a very small business (access to the server from outside will come in spurts).
I am fairly certain that I need a dedicated server (for which I believe a Mini Server with a 256GB SSD and 750GB HD will do well - I am happy to be corrected; I assume the SSD will speed response and upload time for users).
Sorry for all of the questions, but the entire situation is bewildering. It looks like the MM and the iMac are the best choices. It also appears that a quad core MM with 16GB of ram and a Rev. 3, or even Rev. 2, SSD would perform so well, that the savings make any other choice a non-starter.
Any thoughts would be appreciated.
My Lion client computer:
Questions regarding components that may or may not be relevant:
SSD - SATA Rev. 2.0 v. Rev. 3.0; does it matter in real life?
1. I do not need a portable computer (my iPad and iPhone work very well in that area).
2. Do SATA Rev. 3.0 speeds really matter if I am not doing audio or video (or whatever it is that requires 500 mb/s read and/or write)? That is, is the difference between SATA Rev2 and 3 significant for application responsivenesss?
3. I looked at these test results: http://marketingtactics.com/Speedmark/:
A. the i7quad-core iMac generally beat all contestants;
B. it looks like the mighty, mighty MP is more scared kitten than roaring Lion;
C. the i7 2.7 Ghz dual core MM with a SSD stomps, kicks, and kills;
D. the dual core MM outperformed the also mighty, mighty i7 2.2Ghz quad core MBP.
E. Stunningly, having scored 218 in Speedmark 7, the MM (1) beats the MBP (207) and comes within 1 point of the 2.8Ghz quad core MP!
WTF? The mighty, mighty Mac Mini? What would the quad-core server version, w/ 16GB of ram and SSD do? Would such a thing outperform the MBP and MP with HD0(s)?
I am confused. The MM's SSD is presumably the SATA Rev. 2 256GB offered by Apple. If so, would a SATA Rev. 3 result in similarly disproportionate increase in performance from the Rev. 2.0?
Of note: the MM did very well in things like Pages '09 import and Parallels worldbench 6 (kept pace with MBP and outperformed the MP). In fact, the MP scored abysmally there.
Assuming 16GB ram:
1. Is the quad core MP a non-starter for anything other than CPU intensive tasks? Or was it unfairly handicapped by the 3GB ram limitation? Would an SSD even matter?
2. Would a i7 3.1Ghz iMac with a Rev. 3 SSD show a proportionate (100%) increase in performance over a Rev. 2 SSD iMac (clearly it would outperform all of the other computers)?
3. Would the quad-core MM (with a Rev. 3 SSD - since it is easy to install) outperform or at least keep pace with the iMac with a Rev. 2 SSD?
Thanks for your advice, if you are able to offer any. P-504
I am in the pleasant position of having top to bottom options on my new computer purchase. I have read articles and forum posts regarding performance, but they all leave me scratching my head. To the point:
I want the computer that will best run business productivity apps (Pages, Numbers, etc.) occasionally rips movies and music, and act as a server for a very small business (access to the server from outside will come in spurts).
I am fairly certain that I need a dedicated server (for which I believe a Mini Server with a 256GB SSD and 750GB HD will do well - I am happy to be corrected; I assume the SSD will speed response and upload time for users).
Sorry for all of the questions, but the entire situation is bewildering. It looks like the MM and the iMac are the best choices. It also appears that a quad core MM with 16GB of ram and a Rev. 3, or even Rev. 2, SSD would perform so well, that the savings make any other choice a non-starter.
Any thoughts would be appreciated.
My Lion client computer:
Questions regarding components that may or may not be relevant:
SSD - SATA Rev. 2.0 v. Rev. 3.0; does it matter in real life?
1. I do not need a portable computer (my iPad and iPhone work very well in that area).
2. Do SATA Rev. 3.0 speeds really matter if I am not doing audio or video (or whatever it is that requires 500 mb/s read and/or write)? That is, is the difference between SATA Rev2 and 3 significant for application responsivenesss?
3. I looked at these test results: http://marketingtactics.com/Speedmark/:
A. the i7quad-core iMac generally beat all contestants;
B. it looks like the mighty, mighty MP is more scared kitten than roaring Lion;
C. the i7 2.7 Ghz dual core MM with a SSD stomps, kicks, and kills;
D. the dual core MM outperformed the also mighty, mighty i7 2.2Ghz quad core MBP.
E. Stunningly, having scored 218 in Speedmark 7, the MM (1) beats the MBP (207) and comes within 1 point of the 2.8Ghz quad core MP!
WTF? The mighty, mighty Mac Mini? What would the quad-core server version, w/ 16GB of ram and SSD do? Would such a thing outperform the MBP and MP with HD0(s)?
I am confused. The MM's SSD is presumably the SATA Rev. 2 256GB offered by Apple. If so, would a SATA Rev. 3 result in similarly disproportionate increase in performance from the Rev. 2.0?
Of note: the MM did very well in things like Pages '09 import and Parallels worldbench 6 (kept pace with MBP and outperformed the MP). In fact, the MP scored abysmally there.
Assuming 16GB ram:
1. Is the quad core MP a non-starter for anything other than CPU intensive tasks? Or was it unfairly handicapped by the 3GB ram limitation? Would an SSD even matter?
2. Would a i7 3.1Ghz iMac with a Rev. 3 SSD show a proportionate (100%) increase in performance over a Rev. 2 SSD iMac (clearly it would outperform all of the other computers)?
3. Would the quad-core MM (with a Rev. 3 SSD - since it is easy to install) outperform or at least keep pace with the iMac with a Rev. 2 SSD?
Thanks for your advice, if you are able to offer any. P-504
