News, info, and opinion by Mac users, for Mac users.

February 28, 2006

hardware

The Mac mini dilemma

Posted Feb. 28, ’06, 6:55 PM PT by Derik DeLong
Category | Hardware

Mac mini I’ve been waiting, somewhat impatiently, for the Intel version of the Mac mini, which arrived today. Macworld’s Jason Snell has already shared his thoughts. I had been waiting for two reasons. One, I wanted a dedicated media center (well, not totally dedicated, I thought maybe it could also do all my Bittorrent heavy lifting). I was hoping for DVR functionality, which didn’t come. My aging EyeTV USB (original) can augment it and make up for that. Two, I wanted to get my hands on a Macintel. I wanted to see if I could be swayed by Rosetta.

I was disappointed by the new, slightly higher price points, but considering I would have wanted to add Airport Extreme and Bluetooth, I don’t see the new pricing as a huge issue. My problem now is deciding which model to get. We’re not talking about an incremental price difference between the low and high end models. It’s a gulf of difference between a single core 1.5 GHz Core Solo and a dual core 1.67 GHz Core Duo. Not only is the base processor speed greater, but there’s a second core. That puts me at an $800 price-point, which is more than I really wanted to spend (at one point, I was considering a $380 refurbished low end Mac mini).

Can I really restrain myself when I gain that much for a couple hundred more (don’t forget the dual layer Superdrive)? Is that high end Mac mini looking real good to any of you right now?


1 Comments

Chase said:

I am in the same position. I bought a new mini 8 days ago. I am going to send it back, but I am having a dilemma, same as you. The real kick in the pants, is upgrading the RAM to 1GB, which puts the total, with tax, around $950. Plus the caveat of the integrated video...

I placed an order for the high end one minus the extra RAM, earlier today, but I am second guessing that choice.

Perhaps I should just be happy with my choice and be quiet.

February 28, 2006 7:28 PM

Leave a comment

 



Visit other IDG sites: