Mac Mini

[novon]

Obviously you can't compare a mac on speed or price to a PC - but you shouldn't. You're paying a premium for good design - and that could be priceless depending on what you're doing with the computer.

 

[EyeMWing]

Originally posted by: dwell
Not getting good reviews. (the subtlety may be lost on many here).

I dunno dude, I think he's serious.

Jorge Lopez is a DeVry graduate with an MCSE certification and is currently the Chief Software Reviewer at Divisiontwo.com's Technology Insider.

DeVry + MCSE = TEH STUPID

 

[mpitts]

I am so sick of listening to the same people make the same comments regarding Macs and Apple on this forum.

No matter how inexpensive or robust Apple makes their products, the Anti-Zealots will find some reason that they don't like them.

 

[IGBT]

..better off getting a laptop instead of that lego box.

 

[StormRider]

It's cool because it's really small. Society should admire and want more small things if you know what I mean...

 

[mrpaco]

Originally posted by: novon
Obviously you can't compare a mac on speed or price to a PC - but you shouldn't. You're paying a premium for good design - and that could be priceless depending on what you're doing with the computer.

Like what? Put it on display in an art gallery? However, I must say kudos to Apple. I'll make no bones about the fact that I am a PC guy, but the Mac Mini has me considering buying an Apple (exactly what they are going for here, to state the obvious). Maybe this could be the start of a full-on conversion .

 

[novon]

I didn't mean external design, but that too. I meant the intuitive design of OS X, and the lack of having to upkeep it. It's very well thought out - saves time.

 

[mrpaco]

Originally posted by: novon
I didn't mean external design, but that too. I meant the intuitive design of OS X, and the lack of having to upkeep it. It's very well thought out - saves time.

Agree with you there. I will say that OS X is much simpler and straightforward.

 

[ultimatebob]

Originally posted by: piroroadkill
Any fu cknut that read the spoof review and actually took a serious response to it is silly. It was written in a purely ironic style, if it had any more sarcasm, it would have flashing text across the screen in bright pink all caps saying SARCASM.

I got the joke... it just wasn't all that funny. The only part that I got a chuckle from was the last paragraph, and by then I was bored.

 

[n0cmonkey]

I think they're great, but not made for the super elite anandtech off topic people. Obviously you all know more than every Mac user evar, so why bother right? And I don't think any of us have extra parts like a monitor, keyboard, or mouse. That would be silly. And we'd never install our own ram. Oh the horror. :roll:

 

[konakona]

i guess the problem is people have WAAAY too much money on their hands. if $499 is not a lot for a grossly underpowered castrated machine then what is? my entire computer as quite as mac mini (passive cooling here) with superior visuals (p650) and superb sound (EMU1212M) cost less than that. sure its a great thing for computer illiterates, there is nothing worse than a desperate fool trying to get tech support from a lazy and reluctant computer geek.

 

[n0cmonkey]

Originally posted by: VanillaH
i guess the problem is people have WAAAY too much money on their hands. if $499 is not a lot for a grossly underpowered castrated machine then what is? my entire computer as quite as mac mini (passive cooling here) with superior visuals (p650) and superb sound (EMU1212M) cost less than that. sure its a great thing for computer illiterates, there is nothing worse than a desperate fool trying to get tech support from a lazy and reluctant computer geek.

Is your machine the same size? Just as quiet? And run OS X?

 

[konakona]

i firmly believe its the ends that matter the most, not the means. its a HTPC, not some kind of professional authoring machine where macs supposed to have alledged edge in performance (photoshop anyone?). great, it can mimic everything non-demanding a x86 computer could do... what are some of the things you can do exclusively on mac minis (or any mac for that matter) that you would need for a HTPC environment?


my computer is damn quite since i replaced the PSU fan also, and has no other fan (no fan on cpu, vga and northbridge heatsinks). one of primary uses for my computer is quality music listening, therefore noise level was the key consideration when i built it.

the size argument is truly lame, i have lived in the smallest room of the dormitory few years ago, and had zero trouble fitting my mini tower. the aria i gave to my parents wasnt too bad either, but i came to realize i really havnt gained much at all from going a regular ATX to cramped up mATX. of course this is YMMV since people have varying degree of efficient space management ability.

so again, i am not bashing this mac mini thing per se; all i am saying is there are always suckers for worse products in any market segements, so apple once again did a great job at capitalizing on "common" folks' fear of dealing with computers.

 

[n0cmonkey]

Originally posted by: VanillaH
i firmly believe its the ends that matter the most, not the means. its a HTPC, not some kind of professional authoring machine where macs supposed to have alledged edge in performance (photoshop anyone?). great, it can mimic everything non-demanding a x86 computer could do... what are some of the things you can do exclusively on mac minis (or any mac for that matter) that you would need for a HTPC environment? it is damn quite since i replaced the PSU fan also, and has no other fan (no fan on cpu, vga and northbridge heatsinks).

size argument is truly lame, i have lived in the smallest room of the dormitory few years ago, and had zero trouble fitting my mini tower. the aria i gave to my parents wasnt too bad either, but i realize i really havnt gained much at all from going a regular ATX to cramped up mATX. of course this is YMMV since people have varying degree of efficient space management ability.

so again, i am not bashing this mac mini thing per se; all i am saying is there are always suckers for worse products in any market segements, so apple once again did a great job at capitalizing on "common" folks' fear of dealing with computers.

Quiet quiet quiet quiet quiet quiet quiet quiet quiet quiet quiet.

I don't want a huge ugly computer in my living room, especially when I can have something that is barely seen.

Like I said in a previous post, it isn't made for most of the people on this forum. It's made for people.

 

[konakona]

beauty is in the eye of the beholder. i would really have to try hard to come up with something worse looking than a mac. of course there are worse looking cases out there if you really want to find one so if you dont like the 'hassle' and 'ugliness' of computers, why not get some dvd player? i almost got tempted to get one of those newer phillips that even support .smi subtitles. i am questioning the logic where you want something simple and functional, yet it has to be a computer.

face it, if you know enough to see its weaknesses and still buying one, then you must be paying for the 'coolness'.

 

[n0cmonkey]

Originally posted by: VanillaH
beauty is in the eye of the beholder. i would really have to try hard to come up with something worse looking than a mac. of course there are worse looking cases out there if you really want to find one so if you dont like the 'hassle' and 'ugliness' of computers, why not get some dvd player? i almost got tempted to get one of those newer phillips that even support .smi subtitles. i am questioning the logic where you want something simple and functional, yet it has to be a computer.

face it, if you know enough to see its weaknesses and still buying one, then you must be paying for the 'coolness'.

I think it has some things going for it, not just "coolness." Like I said: size, noise, heat, and the fact it runs Mac OS X are all good things for me. The simplicity of the cases makes them pretty, but my Sonatas are almost as nice.

It definitely wouldn't be my _only_ computer, but I do want one or two.

 

[ZeroEffect]

No viruses, No spyware, No updating = happy computer owner.

PC's are not user friendly enough... to difficult for the average joe.

I would have no problem reccomending Apple, if they just weren't so dang expensive.

 

[konakona]

whats this virus/spyware buisness i keep hearing? same thing comes up in IE vs Firefox threads, and that really makes me wonder. i like FF for its multi-tab browsing capability, but thats not to say IE has given me a hard time. none of my roomates/close friends suffer from that problem either, except those who use p2p software like edonkey. sure, things like data miner registry entry come up every once in a while - only like 3-5 in few month tho. i could definitely live with that, and i ghost periodically anyway.
no updating more often than not means crappy customer support or a piece of hardware rendered ineffective and out of focus of customer support.

isnt AOL supposed to be so much easier then 'the internets'?

i wouldnt mind one either if it was for free, but there are other things that take priority and my recources are limited, which is the harsh reality.

again my question stands : what is so friendly about mac mini compared to standalone dvd players? what are some possible benefits of having mac mini costing well over x2 of a very reputable dvd player?

 

[chuckywang]

This is going to turn into the FireFox Sucks thread.

 

[n0cmonkey]

Originally posted by: VanillaH
whats this virus/spyware buisness i keep hearing? same thing comes up in IE vs Firefox threads, and that really makes me wonder. i like FF for its multi-tab browsing capability, but thats not to say IE has given me a hard time. none of my roomates/close friends suffer from that problem either, except those who use p2p software like edonkey. sure, things like data miner registry entry come up every once in a while - only like 3-5 in few month tho. i could definitely live with that, and i ghost periodically anyway.
no updating more often than not means crappy customer support or a piece of hardware rendered ineffective and out of focus of customer support.

isnt AOL supposed to be so much easier then 'the internets'?

i wouldnt mind one either if it was for free, but there are other things that take priority and my recources are limited, which is the harsh reality.

A Windows XP Home system, in default configuration, is much more virus/spyware friendly than comparable systems. That's it.

again my question stands : what is so friendly about mac mini compared to standalone dvd players? what are some possible benefits of having mac mini costing well over x2 of a very reputable dvd player?

Because it's not a DVD player.

 

[DaveSimmons]

Which computer do you think will be easier for your grandparents to keep up and running
(a) a $500 Dell that will get infected with Gator, GAIM, Weatherbug, trojan email attachments, ... .
(b) a Mac Mini ($700 after adding keyb & 15" LCD) where none of the above will install properly yet.

Right now the Mac is much safer for someone who just wants basic email and web surfing and has no experience with computers. Sleazy pops now exactly mimic Windows message boxes, so someone who doesn't understand the difference will click "yes" and install all kinds of malware.

If I were buying grandma a computer I'd think hard about the mac, just to save myself endless support calls or having the Dell end up "broken" and gathering dust.

 

[jst0ney]

Originally posted by: Wheatmaster
the point is size. it's perfect for college students and with an lcd, this thing is lethal.

agreed. Apple isn't going after the high end market. But the high end users continue to bash on it. Relax OP, this computer isn't for you.

For price, size and power (including os) there is no competition.

 

[Lorn]

To the people claiming that their "mini pc" beats any "mini mac" - go lay down. There is no comparison at all.

Design - Come on, those lazer stripes and cheap chrome painted accents aren't fooling anybody. Yeah it is just a tiny bit bigger than the mac, but it is ugly as hell. The apple is small, clean and to the point. Those of you who are still stuck on LEDs and see through windows need to realize that you aren't running a Honda Civic, and this isnt Gone in 60 Seconds. Pretty much the only pc company with a nice designed case in Lian Li... because it doesn't have a design.

Performance - What has a fast G4 processor, PC3200 memory, 9700 graphics, a DVD/CDRW drive, 40/80gigs of hard drive space? A mac mini. You know what else? A Powerbook... the prime choice for professionals. If you want to start talking about "oh the mini is only X GHz" then you seriously need to read up on the megahertz myth. There's a reason why AMD owns Intel now . The mac mini is pretty much a Powerbook put into a well designed box. It is no G5 but even at stock it runs well.

Reliability - The thing is rock solid, ok. It just works. I have yet to see a pop up, get spyware or a virus, and I dont press ALT-CTRL-DEL to find that Windows has 982439 running in the background on a stock startup. Even when it comes to a warranty, Apple is good. Period. You call Apple with a problem about your system and not only will they fix it, but they will offer you something for compensation. You had to buy all separate

Go take a long hard look at your ugly, comparatively slow, and unreliable mini pc...
Stop trying to justify why you wasted your money with ignorant claims and comments.

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Originally posted by: NOLOVE
Those of you who are still stuck on LEDs and see through windows need to realize that you aren't running a Honda Civic, and this isnt Gone in 60 Seconds.

Wrong movie reference, you want Fast and the Furious.

Performance - What has a fast G4 processor, PC3200 memory, 9700 graphics, a DVD/CDRW drive, 40/80gigs of hard drive space?

Radeon 9700? NOT a Mac Mini.

Reliability - The thing is rock solid, ok. It just works. I have yet to see a pop up, get spyware or a virus, and I dont press ALT-CTRL-DEL to find that Windows has 982439 running in the background on a stock startup.

I build systems that don't suck, thanks.

Go take a long hard look at your ugly, comparatively slow, and unreliable mini pc...
Stop trying to justify why you wasted your money with ignorant claims and comments.

Here's what a hundred bucks built me. Oh, and it can play Doom 3 probably just as well as that Mini will.

Just tossing out random ideas. I happen to like the Mac Mini. I'd never buy one, but it's a cute little lifestyle accessory.

- M4H

 

[Lorn]

I stand corrected on 2 points, the movie reference (hahah) and the graphics card. But I do encourage you to go buy a 6800 Ultra so you can play the PC games that are coming out. Or, with that money, you could buy a Mini Mac! I guess if you like to spend your time playing games instead of getting work done, then a PC is the clear choice.

As far as the Windows background applications. That's just how it is. You start up windows from a FRESH installation and you're going to have a handful of items, that you don't even know what they are, eating away at your memory. OSX works.