Thank you for reading this question. In 2013 I became the proud owner of a late 2012 Mac mini. I already owned a dell U2713H display, Logitech wired keyboard, Logitech Z3 or 4 speakers, Logitech 720p webcam and a LaCie external 7200 rpm external HDD. Somewhere along the road I got myself a Samsung ML3160 laser printer. Unfortunately I bought a wired one due to money concerns. Sometimes I need to connect an identity card reader too and I don’t like to pull and plug cables as doing so might hurt the device.
Somehow the year 2023 came along. I got fatter, grey hair, my financials are worsening again and I decided to get myself a new Mac mini 2023 M2 Pro 10/16/16/512. A bit in doubt as WWDC might bring a new iMac 27 inch, and I ‘d probably snatch that if Amazon hadn’t offered me a 200 euro discount on the mini. The mini has proven to be an awesome device and it has the plus that when an all in one breaks you’ve lost everything. Unfortunately it meant going from a 1 TB disk to a 512 GB version. Then again the SSD I added to my late mini lasted 2 years...
I also ordered a new Magic Mouse, a Samsung external 2TB SSD (once again on sale on Amazon), and will also buy a Magic Keyboard (probably the old one as comes cheaper and I don’t really see the added value of Touch ID. I can always authenticate myself through another device, which is kind of a hassle, but the premium for Touch ID is what it is. Will miss the black layout though. The old Magic Keyboard comes with a usb to lightning cable and I wonder if I can use the usb c to lightning cable on it provided with the Magic Mouse? Or the Amazon generics?
Now the dilemmas I am facing. A lot of my peripherals are old and they come with old connectors. I can make head nor tales of the difference in usb 2, usb, thunderbolt, usb 3.x, usb c and whatever. I already figured out I need a new cable to connect my old display to the new mini being a thunderbolt to DisplayPort one. At least I think that would be the best solution. Feel free to acknowledge so?
What I do know. The display is working fine. The speakers sound pretty good but are no longer as crisp as they used to be, the subwoofer died. The webcam isn’t that great but the microphone is the most used aspect of it. I have no clue how long the LaCie will keep working. I actually might have another somewhere still boxed. The printer’s toner is empty. I bought a cheap replacement but I am clumsy and might end up breaking it as I did with my old brother laser printer.
I also took a look at the technical specifications of the dell u2713H versus the Apple studio display. I got the impression the Apple studio display comes with twice as much pixels (dell 2560 versus the double) and more clarity 600 vs 400. The Apple studio display of course comes with great speakers, great microphone and a webcam which is said to be not that good. If we’re talking plain display wise I wonder if I’d see the difference? The U2713H is non reflective and has ergonomic features. I’d reckon I ‘d need to get the nano Apple version then (what a lot of people seem to say you shouldn’t do) and the adjustable stands costing me another 2500 euro. Really Apple? Amazon offers a 200 euro discount though. Somehow I prefer to buy a display locally though instead of in another country. We don’t have Amazon here.
It comes with the plus I have a new display (does anyone have any idea how long the U2713H will last?), new speakers, new microphone, some extra ports and a new webcam. Of course the compatibility for I can imagine the dell won’t work out of the box on the new mini or at least it didn’t in 2013. Had to do some patch.
If I go cheap I keep all the old stuff but I am looking at the connectors issue. One thunderbolt goes to the cable for the charging of the keyboard, another one to the U2713H. The U2713H has some old usb ports which I never used in the past because it would spoil the looks and cables mess but to get them working I’d need to sacrifice another port and probably buy the cable. Doing the maths and the new ports I think I’d have to buy some hub or dock or so. Once again, no clue what connection works with what?
I saw docks being sold adding a nve.M2 SSD drive. Some with 40 Gbs which are kind of expensive, other ones with 10 Gbs. This looks as a nice add-on though I am not entirely convinced as they are said to get warm (fire hazard). Furthermore if they come with a fan, one of the nice features of a Mac is it’s silence, isn’t it? Anyhow if I were to keep the old peripherals feel free to advice one. Adding a dock will add to the price tag of course. The more I add the relatively cheaper the Apple studio display becomes.
So everyone,
1 should I have waited till WWWDC?
2 If I stay with the Mac mini should I buy the Apple studio display or stay with the old stuff?
3 If the latter what dock would you recommend? Are there any out there working without external charging by the way or don’t they work then anymore? All those cables…
4 Feel free to comment on anything in this long long question.
5 Who is still using the U2713H or when did it break? I recall many of you using the HM in 2013. Yeah, I know.
Thank you as always. MacRumors is an awesome forum.
Somehow the year 2023 came along. I got fatter, grey hair, my financials are worsening again and I decided to get myself a new Mac mini 2023 M2 Pro 10/16/16/512. A bit in doubt as WWDC might bring a new iMac 27 inch, and I ‘d probably snatch that if Amazon hadn’t offered me a 200 euro discount on the mini. The mini has proven to be an awesome device and it has the plus that when an all in one breaks you’ve lost everything. Unfortunately it meant going from a 1 TB disk to a 512 GB version. Then again the SSD I added to my late mini lasted 2 years...
I also ordered a new Magic Mouse, a Samsung external 2TB SSD (once again on sale on Amazon), and will also buy a Magic Keyboard (probably the old one as comes cheaper and I don’t really see the added value of Touch ID. I can always authenticate myself through another device, which is kind of a hassle, but the premium for Touch ID is what it is. Will miss the black layout though. The old Magic Keyboard comes with a usb to lightning cable and I wonder if I can use the usb c to lightning cable on it provided with the Magic Mouse? Or the Amazon generics?
Now the dilemmas I am facing. A lot of my peripherals are old and they come with old connectors. I can make head nor tales of the difference in usb 2, usb, thunderbolt, usb 3.x, usb c and whatever. I already figured out I need a new cable to connect my old display to the new mini being a thunderbolt to DisplayPort one. At least I think that would be the best solution. Feel free to acknowledge so?
What I do know. The display is working fine. The speakers sound pretty good but are no longer as crisp as they used to be, the subwoofer died. The webcam isn’t that great but the microphone is the most used aspect of it. I have no clue how long the LaCie will keep working. I actually might have another somewhere still boxed. The printer’s toner is empty. I bought a cheap replacement but I am clumsy and might end up breaking it as I did with my old brother laser printer.
I also took a look at the technical specifications of the dell u2713H versus the Apple studio display. I got the impression the Apple studio display comes with twice as much pixels (dell 2560 versus the double) and more clarity 600 vs 400. The Apple studio display of course comes with great speakers, great microphone and a webcam which is said to be not that good. If we’re talking plain display wise I wonder if I’d see the difference? The U2713H is non reflective and has ergonomic features. I’d reckon I ‘d need to get the nano Apple version then (what a lot of people seem to say you shouldn’t do) and the adjustable stands costing me another 2500 euro. Really Apple? Amazon offers a 200 euro discount though. Somehow I prefer to buy a display locally though instead of in another country. We don’t have Amazon here.
It comes with the plus I have a new display (does anyone have any idea how long the U2713H will last?), new speakers, new microphone, some extra ports and a new webcam. Of course the compatibility for I can imagine the dell won’t work out of the box on the new mini or at least it didn’t in 2013. Had to do some patch.
If I go cheap I keep all the old stuff but I am looking at the connectors issue. One thunderbolt goes to the cable for the charging of the keyboard, another one to the U2713H. The U2713H has some old usb ports which I never used in the past because it would spoil the looks and cables mess but to get them working I’d need to sacrifice another port and probably buy the cable. Doing the maths and the new ports I think I’d have to buy some hub or dock or so. Once again, no clue what connection works with what?
I saw docks being sold adding a nve.M2 SSD drive. Some with 40 Gbs which are kind of expensive, other ones with 10 Gbs. This looks as a nice add-on though I am not entirely convinced as they are said to get warm (fire hazard). Furthermore if they come with a fan, one of the nice features of a Mac is it’s silence, isn’t it? Anyhow if I were to keep the old peripherals feel free to advice one. Adding a dock will add to the price tag of course. The more I add the relatively cheaper the Apple studio display becomes.
So everyone,
1 should I have waited till WWWDC?
2 If I stay with the Mac mini should I buy the Apple studio display or stay with the old stuff?
3 If the latter what dock would you recommend? Are there any out there working without external charging by the way or don’t they work then anymore? All those cables…
4 Feel free to comment on anything in this long long question.
5 Who is still using the U2713H or when did it break? I recall many of you using the HM in 2013. Yeah, I know.
Thank you as always. MacRumors is an awesome forum.
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