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Mini vs i5 Hackintosh

MacFanUK said:
Thanks for your reply. Have been looking at CPU's, etc, and maybe I don't need anything like an i5 yet. How about the below improvements on my current system:

Upgrade CPU from E5200 2.5GHz to Intel E6700 3.20 GHz
Upgrade Ram from 4GB to 8GB
Upgrade main system hard drive to 64GB SSD
Add Wifi card
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Are you currently having slowdowns? I wouldn't upgrade unless you really need more speed. The goodness of PC is that you can overclock, that CPU should go to around 3GHz without issues. What RAM does your system use? If it's DDR2, don't as it won't work in your possible future machine (future'proofing your purchase). I wouldn't grab SSD yet, they are coming down all the time.

If it does what you want it to do, just let it be. Save the money towards bigger update in the future (possibly Sandy Bridge in early 2011) and then pull the trigger. Of course adding 8GB RAM and switching the CPU to quad core would make it a decent machine for years but for almost the same money, you can pull the trigger on new mobo and a lot newer CPU
 
voyager03 said:
Why do you need to bother about a wi-fi adapter? The box you've got works doesn't it? This is going to be a work tool. Blowing money on processor upgrades, memory and SSD's won't help you earn you anything.

Get a length of cat 5 and plug it into your router (or use power line networking if necessary) and spend money on kit when you've actually earned something!
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Because my router is downstairs and my office is upstairs and a power line network kit will cost more than a wifi adapter. Additionally, I already use my Ethernet port for a router connected to 2 network printers.
 
MacFanUK said:
Because my router is downstairs and my office is upstairs and a power line network kit will cost more than a wifi adapter. Additionally, I already use my Ethernet port for a router connected to 2 network printers.
Click to expand...
Then spend a few quid on a used Buffalo WHR G215 and use it as a wireless bridge with Tomato?

Seriously, spending money to 'upgrade' something that, for all intent and purpose, works perfectly well smacks of fiddling for a hobby and not as a tool for work.
 
voyager03 said:
Then spend a few quid on a used Buffalo WHR G215 and use it as a wireless bridge with Tomato?

Seriously, spending money to 'upgrade' something that, for all intent and purpose, works perfectly well smacks of fiddling for a hobby and not as a tool for work.
Click to expand...

Again, that option would cost more than the wireless adapter so what would be the point?

p.s. there's no harm in fiddling for a hobby :D
 
This is my way of thinking now.

I don't mind too much about the EULA, I bought OSX fair and square and the amount of modifications needed to get it running is so minimal that updates install perfectly on my kit (which isn't brilliant). Also, the Apple items which have no brilliant competitors in terms of entire package, I have bought.

I'm thinking about putting together something stronger than my current PC, this is because of a few factors:

- Sometimes I notice a little delay when accessing files on the software raid drive
- Aperture 2 (an application which I would really like to use more runs a little slow for my liking)
- When connecting my iPhone/iPad, iTunes goes slow.
- The only RAM compatible with the motherboard is ECC unbuffered, which seems to be expensive.

I'm thinking of getting something i5 based and a motherboard which is easily overclocked, but I haven't looked into this much yet.

Sorry I hijacked your thread MAcFanUK...

I would say that compared to 10.4, running a business using a Hack is a lot less risky. The other upside is you could build a lower spec machine as a backup in case you get a hardware issue with your PC whilst you get the part repaired...
 
MacFanUK said:
That's why I'm looking for a Wifi adapter that will work - I've been advised to get a Mini-PCIe Airport card and a Mini-PCIe - PCIe adapter.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't hassle with PCIe cards as USB dongle is just fine. PCIe might be worth it if you have very fast internet connection or do a lot file transfers over home network. The one I linked is only 19 bucks anyway so it's not a huge investment and is guaranteed to work in OS X 10.6. At least it's a good temporary solution
 
Hellhammer said:
I wouldn't hassle with PCIe cards as USB dongle is just fine. PCIe might be worth it if you have very fast internet connection or do a lot file transfers over home network. The one I linked is only 19 bucks anyway so it's not a huge investment and is guaranteed to work in OS X 10.6. At least it's a good temporary solution
Click to expand...

The PCIe alternative I linked to is guaranteed to work, too – without installing additional drivers.
The decision between USB and PCIe doesn't depend on the speed of one's internet connection. Both USB and PCIe are capable of transferring more than 300Mbit/s (which is the maximum of wireless n, I think, but hardly ever reached) and a fast consumer internet connection is just around 50Mbit/s.
If you really shove a lot of files around on your home network you won't be happy with any wireless connection anyway.

I thought about using a wireless n USB dongle for my Hack because I wanted to keep another PCIe slot free; however, I ended up going the PCIe-route for compatibility reasons.
 
flatfoot said:
The PCIe alternative I linked to is guaranteed to work, too – without installing additional drivers.
The decision between USB and PCIe doesn't depend on the speed of one's internet connection. Both USB and PCIe are capable of transferring more than 300Mbit/s (which is the maximum of wireless n, I think) and a fast consumer internet connection is just around 50Mbit/s.
Click to expand...

Most USB dongles what I've seen have pretty weak antennas so if you do file sharing in home network, the weak antennas may be the bottleneck. Of course this depends on the dongle you get and I would still get USB over PCI (easier and likely cheaper + works in other machines). It's not USB limitation, more like the bad quality of 15$ WiFi adapters but they are fine for not so intensive usage

To be honest, this is up to OP and what he wants. No need for huge debate :cool: I would get USB as it's plug&play but PCIe is never a bad choice. The benefit of USB is that it can be extended via USB cable so it's not stuck under your desk ;)
 
Hellhammer said:
Most USB dongles what I've seen have pretty weak antennas so if you do file sharing in home network, the weak antennas may be the bottleneck. Of course this depends on the dongle you get and I would still get USB over PCI (easier and likely cheaper + works in other machines). It's not USB limitation, more like the bad quality of 15$ WiFi adapters but they are fine for not so intensive usage

To be honest, this is up to OP and what he wants. No need for huge debate :cool: I would get USB as it's plug&play but PCIe is never a bad choice. The benefit of USB is that it can be extended via USB cable so it's not stuck under your desk ;)
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's true. As for price: I paid €38,94 for both parts incl. shipping & handling, which is not too bad for a 100% compatible solution. Could have saved some money on the AirPort card by not buying it from a German (local for me) seller; had to wait for the adaptor from China for 11 days anyway...

Anyway, you're right about the antennae. However, my PCIe solution only gives me ~54Mbit/s (yes, it is n-draft) but I think that's due to the position of the Hack halfway under my desk, against the wall with a metal cabinet beside it... d'oh! :eek:
I'll compare that with my Mac Pro's wireless tonight but I think it wasn't better, positioned where the Hack is now.
 
Isn't this the perfect use for a Airport Express?

Also there are cheap travel routers and game routers designed to bridge your wired network affordably (I hate wireless, so I don't know if the standard $10 Trendnet wireless access point stuff bridges reliably) with the wireless - see a Trendnet for $50 with n. Then everybody can use the printers
 
Cave Man said:
If you're competent working with hackintoshes, then there's only one reason to buy a Mini: size.

If you buy parts with a hackintosh in mind, putting one together and maintaining it requires a bit more effort, but it's not overwhelmingly difficult.
Click to expand...

I would agree with this. I didn't really have a problem setting mine up and it was fun. But over the long haul I got tired of tweaking it for upgrades and just stuck Ubuntu on mine.
 
A bit of progress - I've ordered a Gigabyte P55-UD5 motherboard and 2 Belkin powerline adapters (instead of going down the wifi route). Now I just need the rest of the kit :)
 
How well do you guys think a Core i5 2.8GHz Quad hackintosh will compare with a 2.8GHz C2D iMac?
 
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