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Stupid=buying a Mac Mini

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thumper

thumper

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Oct 25, 2003
292
0
Under the Sea
Mac Mini

1.66GHz Intel Core Duo
$799.00
1.66GHz Intel Core Duo processor
2MB L2 Cache
667MHz Frontside Bus
512MB memory (667MHz DDR2 SDRAM)
80GB Serial ATA hard drive
Double-layer SuperDrive (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Built-in AirPort Extreme and Bluetooth 2.0
Apple Remote

---------------------------------------------------------------

iMac

17-inch : 1.83GHZ Intel Core Duo
$1,299.00
17-inch widescreen LCD with 1440x900 resolution
1.83GHz Intel Core Duo with 2MB shared L2 cache
512MB (single SO-DIMM) 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM
160GB Serial ATA hard drive
Slot-load 8x double-layer SuperDrive
ATI Radeon X1600 graphics with 128MB GDDR3 memory
Built-in AirPort Extreme and Bluetooth 2.0

----------------------------------------------------------------

Now is it just me or would you be stupid to by a Mac Mini
when for $500 you get double your Harddrive, a faster Intel chip
a pimped out SuperDrive, a graphics card which could play almost ALL
new games on the market and a 17" flat screen monitor!!!!!!...

... oh ya.. and an iSight camera..

oh oh and an Apple Mouse and
keyboard...

does this make sence to anyone???

id like to get a little mini mac.. but the cheap one is useless
and then the higher end is just too much money for getting nothing.. really..

i think the Mac Mini's are over priced!!!
 
It makes sense for all those who already have a good monitor, already have a keyboard and mouse, already have an iSight, don't play games, and don't need the extra storage/speed.

...or those who have a limited budget. (I know this may surprise some people, but $500 can make a big difference in some people's budget.)
 
EricNau said:
...or those who have a limited budget. (I know this may surprise some people, but $500 can make a big difference in some people's budget.)
Click to expand...

exactly, this the same reason apple sells a 1gb nano and shuffle. Not everyone can shell out $400 for a video iPod
 
the OP is right; the imac is a better deal. But $1300 may just be an impossible number for some people while $800 isn't.

It's all about what a particular buyer wants/needs. If a person doesn't need/want an isight, a graphics card capable of playing new games, or a new mouse/keyboard/monitor, then the imac isn't a better value; it's paying $500 for features that are useless to that particular buyer.
 
Well, I've been looking to replace a dead PowerMac and I considered the new Mac mini but it doesn't seem enough machine but then, the new iMac has the built-in monitor and all. It's a good deal but I don't like the idea of being stuck without a computer, if there is a problem with the monitor.

I was thinking about getting by with the Mac mini. Then, I was thinking that I could get an iMac for a "little" more money. After that the PowerMac refurbs didn't seem so expensive.

I think that you can talk yourself into anything but if you don't have the money, you'll have to buy what you can afford.
 
thumper said:
Mac Mini

1.66GHz Intel Core Duo
$799.00
1.66GHz Intel Core Duo processor
2MB L2 Cache
667MHz Frontside Bus
512MB memory (667MHz DDR2 SDRAM)
80GB Serial ATA hard drive
Double-layer SuperDrive (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Built-in AirPort Extreme and Bluetooth 2.0
Apple Remote

---------------------------------------------------------------

iMac

17-inch : 1.83GHZ Intel Core Duo
$1,299.00
17-inch widescreen LCD with 1440x900 resolution
1.83GHz Intel Core Duo with 2MB shared L2 cache
512MB (single SO-DIMM) 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM
160GB Serial ATA hard drive
Slot-load 8x double-layer SuperDrive
ATI Radeon X1600 graphics with 128MB GDDR3 memory
Built-in AirPort Extreme and Bluetooth 2.0

----------------------------------------------------------------

Now is it just me or would you be stupid to by a Mac Mini
when for $500 you get double your Harddrive, a faster Intel chip
a pimped out SuperDrive, a graphics card which could play almost ALL
new games on the market and a 17" flat screen monitor!!!!!!...

... oh ya.. and an iSight camera..

oh oh and an Apple Mouse and
keyboard...

does this make sence to anyone???

id like to get a little mini mac.. but the cheap one is useless
and then the higher end is just too much money for getting nothing.. really..

i think the Mac Mini's are over priced!!!
Click to expand...

Wow... of course you are right. I mean. How could anyone possibly have a use for a Mac Mini if the almighty thumper can't figure out how the Mac Mini might be useful.

I have a PC and a PowerMac both sitting under my desk and I flip between them w/a KVM. I'm looking to replace my PC w/a Mac. I don't need the PC replacement to do any heavy lifting 'cause that's what the PM is for. I just need the basics to be covered (internet, Word, e-mail, etc.,). Now, in my situation, can you care to explain to me why an iMac would be a better choice? Or does my situation just not make sense to you?


Lethal
 
yeah, $500 is a lot. maybe that's why the macmini and the imac are two different computers. just some food for though.
 
I like the Mini, it is not like for that extra $500 I can get an iMac with a 20" display (which I already have), and don't tell me about dual monitors, since it will look butt ugly with a small 17" iMac besides a black framed 20" LCD monitor, plus I couldn't spare the desktop space.

My only complaint about the Mini is it is damned difficult to open, that's all.
 
QCassidy352 said:
the OP is right; the imac is a better deal. But $1300 may just be an impossible number for some people while $800 isn't.

It's all about what a particular buyer wants/needs. If a person doesn't need/want an isight, a graphics card capable of playing new games, or a new mouse/keyboard/monitor, then the imac isn't a better value; it's paying $500 for features that are useless to that particular buyer.
Click to expand...

Exactly. For most, the iMac would probably stand out as the better deal when comparing hardware, but in the end, the user who knows that the extra power of an iMac will go unused is getting a better deal in the mini.
 
iHeartTheApple said:
... in the end, the user who knows that the extra power of an iMac will go unused is getting a better deal in the mini.
Click to expand...

It is easy to be dazzled by all the eye candy that various models have, but many buy on the basis of looks and specs even though features substantially exceed all their needs for the forseeable future. If one is fortunate and the money is unimportant, get whatever makes you happy. For most, a $500 differential is very meaningful and will be a key factor ... for what it offers, the mini can be the smarter choice in certain cases.
 
I think that it's harsh to say that buying a Mac Mini = stupid.

At least the person was smart enough to buy an Apple :D
 
thumper said:
Now is it just me or would you be stupid to by a Mac Mini
when for $500 you get double your Harddrive, a faster Intel chip
a pimped out SuperDrive, a graphics card which could play almost ALL
new games on the market and a 17" flat screen monitor!!!!!!...

... oh ya.. and an iSight camera..

oh oh and an Apple Mouse and
keyboard...

does this make sence to anyone???

id like to get a little mini mac.. but the cheap one is useless
and then the higher end is just too much money for getting nothing.. really..

i think the Mac Mini's are over priced!!!
Click to expand...
I completely disagree. For starters, you always pay a premium for the smallest form factors.

While the iMac represents excellent value it's still an all-in-one. It'd be a far bigger waste of money to pay extra for that integrated LCD if all you want to do is plug the output into your TV.
 
Buying a mini is stupid. That's a bit harsh. Not everyone could come up with that extra $500, and some people already own the periphials. Some people might say that buying an all-in-one is stupid, one thing breaks and you're out an entire computing system. I'm not one of those people. I would never say someones computing choice is stupid just because I might not agree with it. That would be...stupid.
Officially sick of the word "stupid"
 
My friend already has an iSight and a mouse. He has never once played games on his mac. For $1300 he could get Mac Mini that would not be noticibly slower for anything that he does and get at least a 20" monitor that would be noticibly bigger than the iMac's. And then, in a few years when you replace your computers, while you can afford to upgrade to a 20" iMac, he'd be able to keep that monitor and get a PowerMac.

For now, he'll have the better monitor. And in a few years, everything in his system will be better.
 
i wonder where apple makes the most profit.
given the spec's of the imac's compared to the mini's i guess apple makes a lot more profit (percentage wise) on the mini's.

while i think there are many reasons to go with the mini i also think that it is too expensive.

my two cents.
 
The Mini fits so many peoples buying slots -

Media center
Switcher computer
2nd/3rd Mac
or even the first Mac

for a price thats affordable to many more people then the iMac is
 
andiwm2003 said:
i wonder where apple makes the most profit.
given the spec's of the imac's compared to the mini's i guess apple makes a lot more profit (percentage wise) on the mini's.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure, but I thought the general impression was that Apple's more expensive computers had higher margins. I would think the iMac Core Duo has a higher margin than the Mac Mini. As very loose evidence of that, I'm pretty sure that, if you price out "comparable" (specs-wise only) Wintel computers to both, you will find that the cost differential to the Mini is smaller than it is to the iMac. But I'm lazy to do that, and I'm sure someone else will anyways. :)

I think another things that contributes to the relatively low margins on the Mac Mini is that it has to use a laptop hard drive and other tricks to get its cost down. It has a small (volume-wise) hard drive, but it isn't necessarily all that cheap, since it's a 2.5" model.
 
andiwm2003 said:
i wonder where apple makes the most profit.
given the spec's of the imac's compared to the mini's i guess apple makes a lot more profit (percentage wise) on the mini's.

while i think there are many reasons to go with the mini i also think that it is too expensive.

my two cents.
Click to expand...

Actually, I think Apple makes more money percentage-wise on the iMac than the Mac Mini. Most of the stuff in the mini is notebook components. Desktop components are almost always significantly cheaper than notebook components.

Anyone expect the Mac Nano to debut on April 1st? :)
 
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