Now that you've seen it: Are you gettin a Mac Mini

[mac15]

I do not care what mac lovers say... Photoshop and all other Adobe progs run faster on a PC.

585278698[/snapback]

Well I don't care what PC lovers say... Photoshop runs faster on a mac. Why else would the whole industry use macs for? :yes:

[oniq]

Already ordered one ;)

[enklus]

don't know :huh:

starting at $499 -- no no no -- a quick calculation from NOK to USD shows me it'll be more like $736 here.. <-but cheap nonetheless.

most probably after I bought myself a car and an apartement - two-three months.

[Vice]

I am going to buy one.

heh could buy like 20 and stack them inside a G5 case :laugh:

[angrybrit]

I've used a USB-PS/2 adapter with my iBook before, and it works fine.  The one I used was one of the ones with both a keyboard and mouse connection, GE brand, I think.  Picked it up for like $5 at Big Lots.

585278656[/snapback]

Great! And does it cause a problem with the Keyboard layout?

[NetGX]

what form factor is the hard drive in the machine and wha connection. 2.5" sata???

[jamend]

I'm not sure about it yet. The last Mac I had was a PowerMac G4 733 MHz with just 128 MB of RAM (I bought it without RAM and then just added a spare stick) and it was enough to play around with, browse the web, iTunes, etc., so I wouldn't mind the speed of the Mini too much, but there are a few things keeping my credit card in my wallet:

1) Radeon 9200: It's fine for what can be done with it now, considering there aren't too many (or any?) games ported to the Mac that can take advantage of the new DirectX 9-equivalent features, but considering how soon Tiger is coming out, I'm not too sure about spending money on a Mac that won't be able to run it at its full potential (Core Image).

2) No PS/2 ports: This is supposed to be a budget computer that you just swap with your old PC. Do old PCs have USB mice and keyboards? No. How many spare USB mice and keyboards do you have lying around? I don't have any. Even if I go out and buy a mouse and keyboard to go with it, that'll leave me with 0 free ports unless I get one of the expensive Apple ones that have a built-in USB hub.

3) Stereo sound: Considering this is supposed to be a media-enabled computer, it should at least have functionality for surround sound with either the anologue plugs or SPDIF. I don't want to have to buy some laggy and expensive external USB sound card with surround sound support. It also lacks a mic/line in, which is ironic because Apple's page for the Mini has such phrases as "blissing out on your guitar". Hmm, where exactly am I supposed to plug my guitar in?

4) Laptop parts: Except for the RAM, the Mini uses laptop parts. Once again considering that this is supposed to be a budget computer, using cheaper desktop parts would have made more sense. It also reduces upgradability since laptop parts are not up to spec with desktop parts (the biggest upgrade would be to 100 GB), and what worries me is that there's no mention of the drive speed on the site, so chances are I'll be stuck with a blazingly-slow 4200 RPM.

[angrybrit]

what form factor is the hard drive in the machine and wha connection. 2.5" sata???

585278783[/snapback]

It's Ultra ATA HDs. Not SATA. And yes it's highly probable it features 2.5" HDs.

Apple - Mac mini - Technical Specifications

[NetGX]

Ok thankyou, in that case buying a larger HD could be quite costly

[Huy]

I would have liked an extra DIMM somewhere to expand the memory, rather than one slot. Nonetheless, does anybody know what the "security slot" is supposed to do (or can tell me something about it? I can't see anything on Apple's site). It's on the back of the casing.

[forster]

Hmm. I dont know. Im currently spending less time playing games, and more time doing Photoshop-type things.

Perhaps, if the price is right, Id sell up my PC and opt for the baby mac. It would wholly depend on price as Id be moving from a decent, mid end current system, to a low end Mac.

[Southern Patriot]

Great!  And does it cause a problem with the Keyboard layout?

585278780[/snapback]

No, not really. CTRL is the same, ALT becomes Option, Windows key becomes Apple key. Pretty straightforward.

[DrZoidberg]

im curious about macs... would mind one but my oline mates will go against me so i guess not..

585278685[/snapback]

If all your friends jumped off a cliff, would you do the same? Whatever happened to independent thinking?

Not buying one just because you're afraid your so-called "mates" would laugh at you is not a valid reason.

[Southern Patriot]

2) No PS/2 ports: This is supposed to be a budget computer that you just swap with your old PC. Do old PCs have USB mice and keyboards? No. How many spare USB mice and keyboards do you have lying around? I don't have any. Even if I go out and buy a mouse and keyboard to go with it, that'll leave me with 0 free ports unless I get one of the expensive Apple ones that have a built-in USB hub.

585278796[/snapback]

As someone asked above, USB to PS/2 adapters work just fine , and can be found pretty cheap (I got mine for $5 or so). There are plenty of other options too, like getting a USB hub (they are cheap, around $12-15 for a 2.0 hub), and lots of other USB keyboards have USB hubs as well (Logitech's and Microsoft's do, I know).

[jamend]

I would have liked an extra DIMM somewhere to expand the memory, rather than one slot. Nonetheless, does anybody know what the "security slot" is supposed to do (or can tell me something about it? I can't see anything on Apple's site). It's on the back of the casing.

585278824[/snapback]

It's a Kensington security lock hole. You can use it in combination with products such as the following:

http://www.kensington.com/html/1434.html

[snippet1]

Honestly I'd only ever buy a PowerMac or PowerBook. The rest - I just see not the point to getting a Mac (and enduring their annoyingness :p).

[Dust]

I would but I already have a 12" 1ghz powerbook. :(

[FiB3R]

What I want to know is if it will be upgradeable?  I mean I can find parts for much cheaper than what they are charging on the Apple store.  I can't find any pictures of a case lock or switch so Im thinking it may be sealed up tighter than a nun's ######.

585276715[/snapback]

nun's ######. LOL thats funny :rofl:

Personaly I think it looks fantastic (so tiny)

But (theres always a but) it's just not powerful enough, and the upgrade options are to limited.

I guess it's not aimed at the power user. In which case, it seems perfect.

[Hurmoth]

Pre-ordered yesterday :D

Mac mini

80GB HDD

1.42GHz PowerPC G4

512MB Memory

SuperDrive

Internal Bluetooth

Wireless Keybord & Mouse Set

Total: $923.00

[Devoto.]

I ordered mine earlier today. It will be my first Mac, I'm not a Power User. Just use it surf the net/read emails and use iTunes w/ my iPod Mini.

1.42 GHz

80 GB HDD

512 MB Memory

Combo Drive

Internal Bluetooth

Wired Keyboard & Mouse Set

Came to ?522 GBP

Also just ordered a 17" TFT Monitor to compliment the Mini Mac.

Looking forward tomaking the switch>.

[brettm133]

I don't get the sound issue. Can I just plug in my speakers using the head phone jack there?

[Devoto.]

I don't get the sound issue.  Can I just plug in my speakers using the head phone jack there?

585279479[/snapback]

Yeah, I wondered about that as well. Surely that would be the way to do it. Just plug your speakers into the headphone jack?

[Trauma]

Nope. I'm a gamer. :ninja:

[jackwanders]

I guess it's not aimed at the power user. In which case, it seems perfect.

585279374[/snapback]

Well duhhhh.

I hear a lot of complaining going on about the mac mini, and they're all complaints from people who want more power or more customization options. Guess what? The mac mini is not for you! Would you ever look at an entry level Dell and complain, "that's not powerful enough" or "it should have more internal drive cases" or "i want it with 4 DIMM slots, not 2".

Of course you wouldn't, because you'd never even bother looking. You're a power user and you know better than to look to consumer PCs for the needs you want met.

So why look at this entry level Mac and say the same thing? People's logic in this thread confounds me.

And people complaining that it's not powerful enough to run OSX well, that's just plain wrong.

I have a 1.0GHz powerbook and it runs everything I can throw at it perfectly fine. OSX 10.3, Photoshop CS, Dreamweaver MX 2004, Virtual PC 7, etc. To claim that a 1.25GHz G4 is too slow only shows that you have no experience using Macs.

[jackwanders]

I ordered mine earlier today. It will be my first Mac, I'm not a Power User. Just use it surf the net/read emails and use iTunes w/ my iPod Mini.

1.42 GHz

80 GB HDD

512 MB Memory

Combo Drive

Internal Bluetooth

Wired Keyboard & Mouse Set

Came to ?522 GBP

Also just ordered a 17" TFT Monitor to compliment the Mini Mac.

Looking forward tomaking the switch>.

585279467[/snapback]

How much did the upgrade to 512MB ram cost you? Apple severely overcharges for RAM, and if you can install it yourself, I'd recommend looking elsewhere for your RAM.