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statenine

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Feb 12, 2008
27
0
I am looking to get the mid level mac mini with the upgraded 2.6 i7 CPU. I will be adding 16GB RAM myself as well as 2 internal SSD drives (512GB Crucial M4 for boot drive, and 256GB Crucial M4 for Lightroom/PS cache). Can I expect this setup to be a good deal faster than my current 2008 Mac Pro:

2 x 2.8 quad core (8-core total)
10GB 800mhz RAM
512GB 7200RPM boot drive
Radeon HD 2600 256mb video card

I am hoping that with the new Ivy bridge i7 CPU, double the memory speed (1600mhz vs 800mhz), and SSD drives in the mac mini that it will smoke my current setup.

Thanks for any input!
 
well since my main use of this computer is Lightroom (which does not rely heavily on GPU) I was thinking it would be fine. And the Intel HD 4000 gpu, even though non-discreet, must still be faster/better than my outdated HD2600 with 256mb, right?
 
Geekbench shows a virtual tie between your 2.8 (10,755) and the i7 2.3 Mini (11,444).

The real world isn't Geekbench, of course.

Interestingly, one of the differences between the i5 and i7 is Hyper-Threading. So, the i7 Mini will report 8 cores to the OS.

I think a 2.6 i7 Mini with SSD's would be a big performance jump for you.
 
Interestingly, one of the differences between the i5 and i7 is Hyper-Threading. So, the i7 Mini will report 8 cores to the OS.
This is the difference between i3 and i5/i7. The i5 has double threads per core too. The i7 boosts higher and has more cache. The i7 2.6 mini will do similar as the top-of-the line MBPro with similar processor, so it will score around 13000. Don't forget to upgrade the drive though. The Pro will blow away the Mini with HDD on disk speed.
 
well since my main use of this computer is Lightroom (which does not rely heavily on GPU) I was thinking it would be fine. And the Intel HD 4000 gpu, even though non-discreet, must still be faster/better than my outdated HD2600 with 256mb, right?

Photographers on the DP Review forum who use Lightroom, CS6 and Aperture report good experiences with Macs running previous-generation CPUs and GPUs in the Minis and 13" MBPs. I use an early 2011 13"MBP and an NEC 24" display with various pro image editing apps and it is a surprisingly capable computer. So you are Good To Go with the new Mini.

I went with the 2.3GHz quad-core because the slight increase in speed isn't worth $100 to me. I put that money toward 16GB of RAM from Crucial. (The added RAM also increases the amount of shared VRAM available to the HD4000.)

You will definitely notice a big difference between the Mini and your old Mac. And you will save a bunch of bucks in the process!
 
This is the difference between i3 and i5/i7. The i5 has double threads per core too. The i7 boosts higher and has more cache. The i7 2.6 mini will do similar as the top-of-the line MBPro with similar processor, so it will score around 13000. Don't forget to upgrade the drive though. The Pro will blow away the Mini with HDD on disk speed.

Quad-core i5's do not support HyperThreading. i5's are limited to 4 cores, real or HT.

All Mobile i5's are 2 physical/4 virtual cores, all desktop i5's are 4/4.

http://www.intel.com/content/www/us...n/compare-intel-processors.html?select=laptop
 
Quad-core i5's do not support HyperThreading. i5's are limited to 4 cores, real or HT.

In your previous post you just said the difference between i5 and i7 is the HT, which is not true. The dual cores do have HT and 4 threads, so they are similar in speed than the older i5 iMacs with quad cores.
 
In your previous post you just said the difference between i5 and i7 is the HT, which is not true. The dual cores do have HT and 4 threads, so they are similar in speed than the older i5 iMacs with quad cores.

Yup. I was thinking only in terms of the i5's that were available for the OP to purchase from Apple since this is a thread about the Mac Mini replacing a Mac Pro.

BTW- You are correct. My original response implied no i5's had HT. I should have been more clear.
 
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great news thanks guys! just placed my order, looking forward to getting this little powerhouse and testing it out!
 
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