Trading in a G5 PowerMac for an Intel Mac Mini - any advice or comments?
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From: Jaimie Vandenbergh on 5 Mar 2010 07:26 On Fri, 5 Mar 2010 11:22:04 +0000, djmaizels(a)mac.com (Debbie Wilson) wrote: >David Empson <dempson(a)actrix.gen.nz> wrote: > >> The main limitation you might run into is that the integrated graphics >> chipset in the Mac Mini isn't particularly good at doing 3D graphics >> (compared to what could be achieved with an iMac or Mac Pro). It should >> be fine for 2D, and will probably beat the pants off whatever graphics >> card is in your G4. > >Thanks for your advice, David. I upgraded the G4's graphics card to an >ATI Radeon 9600 so it could run the 30" cinema display. Though I'm sure >it's still outclassed by any of the current offerings. After looking at >the Apple Store for some time I'm completely unsure as the the best >options now. The Mini's max 4GB memory seems very limiting when thinking >of future upgrades to apps such as Photoshop which eat up RAM. A 21.5" >iMac could run the 30" screen as well but after adding extra RAM and >storage it's not far off the price of a Mac Pro, and I don't have desk >space for 50" of screen :-) Guess I need to play the waiting game a bit >longer.... I'd definitely suggest getting the current Mini - you can bump those to 2x4gig memory, same as the current MBPs, which should be enough for a little while (and will be a lot cheaper by the time you want to go past 4gig - ie next year!). Also, you can sell Minis for 80% of their purchase price. Ceeers - Jaimie -- Networking is well understood and well standardized, unfortunately not by the same people.
From: David Empson on 5 Mar 2010 07:33 zoara <me18(a)privacy.net> wrote: > David Empson <dempson(a)actrix.gen.nz> wrote: > > > With Valve's Steam rumoured to be appearing on the Mac soon, there > > will be more Mac games and they are more likely to be up to date in > > future. > > Am I correct in thinking that if I bought Portal through Steam running > in a VM, then when (if) Steam comes to the Mac, I can just redownload > Portal with the same account and without re-paying? I expect that will depend on policy decisions by each game vendor. First, they have to do a Mac port of the game. Then they have to decide whether the Mac and Windows versions of the game are the same product and allow unlimited downloads on either platform (to computers registered on the same Steam account), or whether the Mac and Windows versions are different products which must be purchased separately (but compatible for game play). One would hope that the former is the more common scenario. -- David Empson dempson(a)actrix.gen.nz
From: Debbie Wilson on 5 Mar 2010 08:02 Jaimie Vandenbergh <jaimie(a)sometimes.sessile.org> wrote: > I'd definitely suggest getting the current Mini - you can bump those > to 2x4gig memory, same as the current MBPs, which should be enough for > a little while (and will be a lot cheaper by the time you want to go > past 4gig - ie next year!). > > Also, you can sell Minis for 80% of their purchase price. OK - I didn't realise they could take 8GB, if you do a DIY job. Interesting... it is certainly a hell of a lot less than an iMac or a Mac Pro, so even if it didn't last me quite as long, it's not such a problem. Deb. -- http://www.scientific-art.com "He looked a fierce and quarrelsome cat, but claw he never would; He only bit the ones he loved, because they tasted good." S. Greenfield
From: Chris Ridd on 5 Mar 2010 08:26 On 2010-03-05 12:33:47 +0000, David Empson said: > Chris Ridd <chrisridd(a)mac.com> wrote: > >> On 2010-03-05 11:22:04 +0000, Debbie Wilson said: >> >>> David Empson <dempson(a)actrix.gen.nz> wrote: >>> >>>> The main limitation you might run into is that the integrated graphics >>>> chipset in the Mac Mini isn't particularly good at doing 3D graphics >>>> (compared to what could be achieved with an iMac or Mac Pro). It should >>>> be fine for 2D, and will probably beat the pants off whatever graphics >>>> card is in your G4. >>> >>> Thanks for your advice, David. I upgraded the G4's graphics card to an >>> ATI Radeon 9600 so it could run the 30" cinema display. Though I'm sure >>> it's still outclassed by any of the current offerings. After looking at >>> the Apple Store for some time I'm completely unsure as the the best >>> options now. The Mini's max 4GB memory seems very limiting when thinking >>> of future upgrades to apps such as Photoshop which eat up RAM. >> >> That seems like the main limitation to me. Having said that, OWC do >> sell 8GB upgrades for the current models of Mini. $349.99 though... > > Yes, the iMac has a big advantage with four memory slots, allowing four > cheaper 2 GB modules to be used. 4 GB modules are still too expensive. Yes, though even then the 2GB stick prices (at least the DDR3 sticks for MacBook Pros) are still rather high. They've doubled since the middle of last year! As a slight aside - has anyone successfully purchased RAM direct from OWC? What costs are incurred on import and delivery? -- Chris
From: Jaimie Vandenbergh on 5 Mar 2010 08:36
On Fri, 5 Mar 2010 13:02:35 +0000, djmaizels(a)mac.com (Debbie Wilson) wrote: >Jaimie Vandenbergh <jaimie(a)sometimes.sessile.org> wrote: > >> I'd definitely suggest getting the current Mini - you can bump those >> to 2x4gig memory, same as the current MBPs, which should be enough for >> a little while (and will be a lot cheaper by the time you want to go >> past 4gig - ie next year!). >> >> Also, you can sell Minis for 80% of their purchase price. > >OK - I didn't realise they could take 8GB, if you do a DIY job. >Interesting... it is certainly a hell of a lot less than an iMac or a >Mac Pro, so even if it didn't last me quite as long, it's not such a >problem. Since you've already got the best screen, it's ideal. Do you have need of vast amounts of storage? The Minis take a single 2.5" SATA, which is restrictive internally, but they do have FW800 and GigE for external disks. Or you can get the Server edition, with no optical (�50 for the Air external drive, or share one from another Mac via network) but space for two hard drives. Hm. WD make a 1Tb 5400rpm 10mm/2.5" disk, which would surely fit. Inneresting. The 500gig 7200rpms are probably the same speed, and much cheaper. Cheers - Jaimie -- "The answer to the second question," said Merry, "is that we could get off in an hour. I have prepared practically everything. There are six ponies in the stable across the fields." -- J R R Tolkien |