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OP:

The Minis you should be considering:

EIther this midrange one:
http://apple.portableone.com/Apple-Mac-Mini-Z0R7-Customize
NOTE: you need to choose the 1tb fusion drive from the popup "storage" menu -- final price will be $876

or the top-end model (fusion is standard with this one):
http://apple.portableone.com/Apple-Mac-Mini-Server-i5-8GB-1TB-Flash

If you don't understand what is a fusion drive is, best to learn before you order.
A Mac with a fusion drive actually comes with TWO hard drives inside:
1. A small SSD (usually 128gb)
and
2. A platter based HDD (usually 1tb).

They are "merged together" in software (called "CORE storage") so that the two drives appear on your desktop as ONE drive icon.
The OS and apps (and other frequently-used files) get stored on the SSD portion of the drive, while less-often-used stuff gets moved off onto the HDD portion.

Thus, you get speeds that rival that of an SSD, but have plenty of cheap storage space by virtue of the HDD portion.

Also, the factory-installed SSD on the 2014 Minis is a PCIe "blade drive" that is VERY fast. These are more expensive to add later on, than they are to buy "up front". Worth paying $$$ for.
 
This is easy snow755, No! :eek:

To clarify, I say no you should not get that iMac even though it is better in many ways. Despite the Iris Pro graphics, fast RAM, nice monitor, premium keyboard & mouse, and Quad Core CPU, the iMac lacks the main upgrade that a Mac needs in this price range.

For this kind of money you must get SSD storage! Both the mini and iMac that you are considering should have headers on the logic board for PCIe connectors. it takes plenty of effort, cash, and expertise to add a PCIe SSD after the fact. PCIe SSDs are faster than SATA SSDs and much faster than everything else.

Purchase either machine with the SSD or Fusion Drive storage option to get maximum performance for your money. I predict that Fishrrman and many others will agree with this advice. Even users who bought base models with SATA storage for rock bottom prices should agree that 2X or even 3X their purchase price should get you SSD storage. :apple:

From the On-Line Apple Store I bought a Refurbished i5 MM(Late 2014), 2.8GHZ,8GB Ram,256 PCIe SSD which boots-up in a matter seconds and opens my Apps much faster than my Refurbished i5 MM(Late 2012) 2.5GHZ,16GB Ram, 500 GB HD. I NOW will not buy a Mac Computer without an SSD! The SSD MM cost me around $1000 which included Texas State Tax and AppleCare.
 
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OP:

I think both of the choices you mentioned in the post above are good ones.

I predict you'll be very satisfied with the performance of the Mini with 1tb fusion drive...
 
OP:

I think both of the choices you mentioned in the post above are good ones.

I predict you'll be very satisfied with the performance of the Mini with 1tb fusion drive...



that is what i am getting thanks for the help and feed back guys
 
hey i have a ? for you all i have a HP laptop i all so have HDMI on it could i hock up my mac mini once i get it too my hp laptop but the thing is will the mouse and key board work?
 
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