Hey y'all I'm contemplating a purchase soon and have reached an impasse. Should I opt for the Mac mini quad core or a refurb rmbp 13in with 8gb or ram and a 128gb ssd. I like that I can modify and upgrade the Mac mini yet I'm drawn to the Pros retina display and portability also the pros very powerful. Any thoughts and advice are welcome. Also the mini would be purchased with a fusion drive so the cost will be very close in the end.
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Mac mini or rmbp refurb?
- Thread starter ray6712
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Why would you buy a fusion mini when you could just buy your own ssd drop it in the spare slot with a kit and have a larger DIY fusion drive for like $200 less than the Apple cost.
Also these can't really be compared.
One is a retina portable laptop the other is a desktop which comes with no peripherals also a refurb rmbp is gonna start at like 1.8k vs 0.8k for a mini.
Regardless of that, IMO unless you really need the retina screen or portability just get a quad core mini with stock drive and ram. Then buy yourself 16 gb ram for $140, a 128 gb SSD for like $90 plus a 27" monitor for like $200-300
Overall mini just seems like such a better option:
i7 instead of i5
24 or 27" screen instead of 13"
1TB + 128GB SSD vs just a 128GB SSG
16GB RAM vs 8GB
You'll also be able to swap out or upgrade a few parts manually if they die or need upgrading in the future and with the money you save vs buying the rmbp you can buy yourself some nice HeadPhones/Speakers, a Microphone, Bluetooth keyboard and mouse
That's just me though I also feel like 128GB is really small amount of storage for the rmbp and would likely force you to get some external storage unless you keep like nothing movie/photo/music related on your computer.
I'm sure plenty of people would recommend the rmbp because it's portable and much more of an All In One product where you just buy it and it's ready to go. Also factors like pcie flash storage and the iris graphics are a big reason to consider buying that over the 2012 mini.
If portability is important to you, go for the MacBook.
If not, with the Mini you will be able to put together a system that suits your needs now, and update as your needs or desires change.
If you need to transport your computer just occasionally, it is easy enough done to disconnect a Mini, and carry it around to connect to peripherals elsewhere.
If not, with the Mini you will be able to put together a system that suits your needs now, and update as your needs or desires change.
If you need to transport your computer just occasionally, it is easy enough done to disconnect a Mini, and carry it around to connect to peripherals elsewhere.
If you want to put something together, you don't need to get a Mac. Why not just build a Hackintosh if you want to do "mods". I think Macs are built a way for a reason, so I'd say if you really want a rMBP, then get one. If you want to mod stuff, then build your own computer. I think the Mini doesn't really serve the purpose you intend it to.
To me, Mac Mini is an iMac where you can switch screens (portable), a server device, or a media centre device. I could be wrong though...
To me, Mac Mini is an iMac where you can switch screens (portable), a server device, or a media centre device. I could be wrong though...