Is the Mac Mini the right choice for me?

[donnation]

I'm in the market for a new desktop. My 6 year old iMac is starting to slow down and I'm thinking of going with a Mac Mini this time around with a really good monitor as I'd also like to have my XBox One hooked up to the same monitor as well. My iMac has somewhat become stale lately even with complete wipe and reload of the latest version of OSX.

I was thinking of buying the maxed out version of the Mini. Is the Mini a good option for me? I'd really like to future proof it and get the maxed out version of it. Any help would be great appreciated. I've never owned a Mini and was curious to how it performs. Thanks!

 

[robertk328]

If you get the maxed out version, and make sure to get an SSD (not the fusion), you should have a lot of great years out of the Mini.

They've locked it down, so RAM can't be upgraded, and if you're brave, and out of warranty, you may be able to swap out an HDD for an SSD but save yourself the trouble and just order it the way you want it.

Depending on what that price-point is, however, you may be able to get another machine, i.e. a MacBook Pro that could be used as a desktop, while give you the option to go portable if you want. I did that when replacing my Mini earlier this year (wow today is the last day I can say that ) I'm using a TwelveSouth stand to hold it up, and have connected a wireless mouse, USB keyboard, and two monitors to it (via Thunderbolt adapter)

Just something to consider ...

 

[donnation]

Thanks for the advice. I do t really need a laptop as my work provides me with one and the new MacBooks are a little princely for me. Thank you again for the feedback.

 

[robertk328]

Thanks for the advice. I do t really need a laptop as my work provides me with one and the new MacBooks are a little princely for me. Thank you again for the feedback.

I would only go with one if pricing and specs were similar. Then you'd be able to have the option for both.

Let us know what you end up getting

 

[donnation]

I would only go with one if pricing and specs were similar. Then you'd be able to have the option for both.

Let us know what you end up getting

Well I found a 2012 quad core i7 with 16GB of RAM and 1TB fusion drive. That would be a good model correct?

 

[darius_robin]

Well I found a 2012 quad core i7 with 16GB of RAM and 1TB fusion drive. That would be a good model correct?

Get the 1TB/512GB SSD model, as Robert said.

 

[Tech198]

I think you said the magic word "future-proof" its 2014 last update.

Updates this year i think

 

[robertk328]

Well I found a 2012 quad core i7 with 16GB of RAM and 1TB fusion drive. That would be a good model correct?

Get the 1TB/512GB SSD model, as Robert said.

Ideally all SSD -- that way all files are on the SSD, not managed between the HDD and SSD. If that ends up being cost prohibitive, the fusion would probably be ok depending on how much SSD space is there in the 1TB calculation.

And you can probably get by with 256GB SSD, but keep your large files (iTunes, photo library, etc.) on an external disc. Those typically aren't accessed often and when they are it's not needing to serve much data at one time (at least in the case of iTunes). Your photo library is probably best served by the SSD but with a decent drive, it should be plenty. If you get a larger SSD, you can probably keep your photos on the SSD and iTunes on the external drive as they really don't need to be fast access.

 

[donnation]

Ideally all SSD -- that way all files are on the SSD, not managed between the HDD and SSD. If that ends up being cost prohibitive, the fusion would probably be ok depending on how much SSD space is there in the 1TB calculation.

And you can probably get by with 256GB SSD, but keep your large files (iTunes, photo library, etc.) on an external disc. Those typically aren't accessed often and when they are it's not needing to serve much data at one time (at least in the case of iTunes). Your photo library is probably best served by the SSD but with a decent drive, it should be plenty. If you get a larger SSD, you can probably keep your photos on the SSD and iTunes on the external drive as they really don't need to be fast access.

Thank you so much for the advice. I will look for the best deal I can find on one with a large SSD. Thank you!

 

[robertk328]

Thank you so much for the advice. I will look for the best deal I can find on one with a large SSD. Thank you!

Good luck

 

[wkelly24]

Mini is a good option, but I would set a 'deadline' for when Apple should refresh the Mini and if they don't by that time, then make the purchase. With CES in a couple weeks, hold off to see what Monitors come out from that event as well. Good luck!

 

[Matty]

I'm in the market for a new desktop. My 6 year old iMac is starting to slow down and I'm thinking of going with a Mac Mini this time around with a really good monitor as I'd also like to have my XBox One hooked up to the same monitor as well. My iMac has somewhat become stale lately even with complete wipe and reload of the latest version of OSX.

I was thinking of buying the maxed out version of the Mini. Is the Mini a good option for me? I'd really like to future proof it and get the maxed out version of it. Any help would be great appreciated. I've never owned a Mini and was curious to how it performs. Thanks!

I would say HOLD OFF on buying the Mac Mini just for a little while longer. I say this because you mentioned you want to purchase the maxed out version and its intended to 'Future Proof' it. The Mac Mini hasn't been updated in 808 days. Now thats quite a long time. I have a feeling they will be updating it in March this year (2017) with updated graphics, processors ect.

But if you ok with hardware from 2014 then go for it
Its still a lovely machine on its own.