Mac mini. What is it?

scottduffy

scottduffy

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Guy's i have only ever owned Windows laptops and desktops but when i decided to buy my son a pc for Christmas i decided I'd go down the Apple route. I was actually going to purchase the Apple M1 2020 laptop until someone recommended the mac mini.

Is this a complete pc? Do i simply need to purchase a compatible monitor and nothing else? It's a strange looking device and I'm wondering whether I'll see any benefit to this over the laptop. It's going to be used for browsing and homework etc.

This is 699.99 and when the monitor is added i assume it'll be around 1k so just about the same as the Apple laptop.

Any advice welcome.
 
Yep basically a full computer.
The mini you are looking at is the same as my base mac air (£999) without the screen.
Great for general use and works incredibly smoothly.
Battery on my Mac air lasts longer than my phone sometimes!

I used it for lightroom/Photoshop for a while and it works fairly well for that too but it got a little tiresome especially while handling large files due to lack of RAM.
 
scottduffy said:
Guy's i have only ever owned Windows laptops and desktops but when i decided to buy my son a pc for Christmas i decided I'd go down the Apple route. I was actually going to purchase the Apple M1 2020 laptop until someone recommended the mac mini.

Is this a complete pc? Do i simply need to purchase a compatible monitor and nothing else? It's a strange looking device and I'm wondering whether I'll see any benefit to this over the laptop. It's going to be used for browsing and homework etc.

This is 699.99 and when the monitor is added i assume it'll be around 1k so just about the same as the Apple laptop.

Any advice welcome.
Click to expand...

The advantage of the mini is that you only bin the computer at upgrade time, rather than screen, battery etc too.
 
If you do buy the mini I recommend spending the extra £200 for 16gb ram. It can’t be upgraded. You can always add external storage.

the advantage of not have a screen is that your not paying to replace a screen each ti e you upgrade. It’s the reason why I’ve moved away from imacs.
 
We've had a couple of Mac Minis and they're not as reliable nor as long lived as the other Macintosh computers. My opinion is based on having used Macintoshes since 1985.

Here are my 2017 and 2011 MacBook Pros, both of which are still in use. Neither of the Minis we had lasted more than 4 years.

2011 and 2019 MacBook Pros GX7 P1140558.JPG
 
A Mac mini is the "base" of a desktop computer, you need to add monitor/keyboard/mouse etc. An iMac is a full desktop system, or a MacBook (Air) would be a good starter laptop Mac.
 
AndrewFlannigan said:
We've had a couple of Mac Minis and they're not as reliable nor as long lived as the other Macintosh computers. My opinion is based on having used Macintoshes since 1985.

Here are my 2017 and 2011 MacBook Pros, both of which are still in use. Neither of the Minis we had lasted more than 4 years.

View attachment 334489
Click to expand...
My Mac mini has lasted 17 years so far.

None of my MacBook Pros have lasted anything like that.
 
Thanks guys. I had assumed it was the tower except smaller and the keyboard, mouse and monitor would need added but was worried that I'd need to add other things too. Can i ask does it come with pre installed software just like the imac? Would there be a mac version of windows etc or does that need purchased? I just want it ready to go for him on Christmas morning. Will i need anti virus software or is there a version pre installed?
 
It comes with Apple operating software etc. If you want windows to run on it too, that can be done. Of course, you will have to purchase that too. Same as an anti virus or, download a free anti virus program.
 
scottduffy said:
Thanks guys. I had assumed it was the tower except smaller and the keyboard, mouse and monitor would need added but was worried that I'd need to add other things too. Can i ask does it come with pre installed software just like the imac? Would there be a mac version of windows etc or does that need purchased? I just want it ready to go for him on Christmas morning. Will i need anti virus software or is there a version pre installed?
Click to expand...

it comes with the OS, pages, numbers, keynote (Apple versions of word, excel and PowerPoint) and various other useful and not so useful apps plus there is the AppStore.

you really don’t need anti virus unless you’re visiting some very dodgy websites. I’m not saying viruses don’t exist for Mac, they do but are rarely seen, I’ve been using Mac for 13 years now at home and for work and have never had an anti virus installed.
The OS already has a good fire wall built in and browsers like safari, brave etc are very good avoiding site with viruses.

malware is probably more of a concern than viruses these days anyway. I do have the free malware bytes installed but not running, once in a blue moon I run a scan but touch wood have never found anything,
 
It's worth saying that the mini is essentially laptop hardware in a small box. Just like MacBooks, some models have better design choices than others. There's no reason not to get one if the Apple operating system and hardware is what you want.

AFAIK windows will not run on the M1 chip, but that may change in the future.
 
You cannot run Intel Windows on an M1 mac, but there are going to be useful ARM versions of Windows, I understand.
 
Can I just ask why you are going down the apple route rather than sticking with windows?
 
troutfisher said:
Can I just ask why you are going down the apple route rather than sticking with windows?
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The last laptop i purchased was a toshiba one with windows 10 and it's been shocking since day 1. Updates constantly and takes forever to do almost anything. It was a medium spec laptop at the time and i just don't want to buy my son something he's disappointed with so when i decided to buy him either a laptop or desktop i decided I'd purchase an apple one. If i knew a good fast windows desktop or laptop i might buy it but my last experience still puts me off a bit.
 
TBH Toshiba made some of the worst laptops I've ever used, and I'd be loathe to buy one. I've had them for work and helped fix problems with friends laptops too.

For your budget it will be hard to beat M1 Mac performance. I'd look at Lenovo or Dell if a Windows machine appeals still. My Dell XPS is still good after 7 1/2 years, although the battery needs replacing because it swelled (happens with many brands including Apple). Look for a quad core i5 processor at least 10th generation, NVME hard drive and minimum 8gb RAM, but better 16gb.
 
Guy's I've done a 180 and after a chat with my wife we've decided to get him a gaming pc. I've been looking at one from Chillblast because of their reviews online. It also falls within my budget at £1799.99.

Can i ask will he have any problems playing the likes of Fortnite, Fifa and Rocket League with this? I've included the spec but some of it means nothing to me.




Processor

• Intel Core i5-11600K Rocket Lake Processor
• 12MB L3 Cache

CPU Cooler

• Chillblast Centurion Direct Contact ARGB CPU Cooler

Motherboard

• Asus TUF B560M-PLUS (WI-FI) Motherboard

Memory

• 16GB DDR4 3200MHz
• Configuration 2 x 8GB
• Dual Channel Support on 2 DIMMs
• 4 x DIMM Slot

Solid State Drive

• 500GB Seagate FireCuda 510 M.2 PCIe Solid State Drive

Hard Drive

• 1TB Samsung 870 QVO Solid State Drive

Optical Drive

• None

Software

• Operating System: Windows 10 Home 64bit

Display

• 27" Chillblast 27QHD165V1 QHD 165Hz Gaming Monitor

Graphics

• NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti 8GB Graphics Card

Audio

• Onboard High Definition Audio

Input Devices

• TT E-Sports Challenger RGB Gaming Keyboard
• TT E-Sports Challenger RGB Gaming Mouse

Networking

• LAN: 10/100/1000 2.5Gb Ethernet
• Wireless: 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax WiFi 6
• Bluetooth v5.0

Power Supply

• Chillblast 700W 80+ Bronze PSU

Dimensions

• Width 190mm
• Depth 400mm
• Height 440mm

Interfaces

• 2 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Ports
• 2 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Ports
• 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C Port
• 4 x USB 2.0 Ports
• 1 x RJ45 LAN Port
• 1 x HDMI Port
• 1 x DisplayPort
• 1 x PS/2
• 3 x Audio Jack

Expansion

• 1 x PCIe x16 Slot
• 1 x PCIe x4 Slot
• 1 x PCIe x1 Slot
• 4 x SATA ports

Warranty

• 5 Year Standard Warranty (2 Year Collect & Return, 5 Years Labour)
• Lifetime Tech Support by Chillblast
 
The most important parts for gaming - graphics card and monitor - are decent spec and well matched, there's enough ram, decent SSD, ok processor. It should be fine AFAIK.
 
ancient_mariner said:
The most important parts for gaming - graphics card and monitor - are decent spec and well matched, there's enough ram, decent SSD, ok processor. It should be fine AFAIK.
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Thanks. I am emailing Chillblast now as they are tweaking the system to suit his needs. Not sure to what end just now but I'll let you know what is decided. Thanks again guys.
 
I was reading online that the best monitor to use for gaming is the 1080p but the one provided with this one has a higher refresh rate. The guy from chillblast said the following about this.

"One thing possibly worth mentioning is that the monitor in the bundle is a 1440p display. However, we wouldn't have bundled this higher-resolution monitor with this PC if we didn't think it was capable of good performance at 1440p, so although you may find some AAA games may need some settings dialled down slightly in the future."

Would i be better asking them to provide a 1080p monitor instead or do you think the higher refresh rate will be fine?
 
scottduffy said:
I was reading online that the best monitor to use for gaming is the 1080p but the one provided with this one has a higher refresh rate. The guy from chillblast said the following about this.

"One thing possibly worth mentioning is that the monitor in the bundle is a 1440p display. However, we wouldn't have bundled this higher-resolution monitor with this PC if we didn't think it was capable of good performance at 1440p, so although you may find some AAA games may need some settings dialled down slightly in the future."

Would i be better asking them to provide a 1080p monitor instead or do you think the higher refresh rate will be fine?
Click to expand...

I think go with the 1440p - 1080p seems low res.

RAM is lacking, you really want 32gb or 64gb to future proof the machine - it isn't especially cheap but thats the lay of the land now.
 
scottduffy said:
I was reading online that the best monitor to use for gaming is the 1080p but the one provided with this one has a higher refresh rate. The guy from chillblast said the following about this.

"One thing possibly worth mentioning is that the monitor in the bundle is a 1440p display. However, we wouldn't have bundled this higher-resolution monitor with this PC if we didn't think it was capable of good performance at 1440p, so although you may find some AAA games may need some settings dialled down slightly in the future."

Would i be better asking them to provide a 1080p monitor instead or do you think the higher refresh rate will be fine?
Click to expand...

A lot of older graphics cards would struggle with refresh rate at 1440, but the 3060ti should be OK, The high refresh rate (165hz) is preferred by gamers to get greater precision.

This is a gaming machine rather than image processor, is it not? 32GB will be nice, but 16 is probably OK, however there apparently can be performance advantages to 2 X 16GB sticks compared to 4 X 8GB.
 
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Guy's i just seen this in a black Friday sale. Seems to have the same graphics card as above but since i have no clue about other pc parts does this stack up quality wise? Hard drives, motherboard etc?

SPECIFICATIONS

Processor:

AMD Ryzen 7 3700X (8 Cores up to 4.4GHz, 36MB Cache)

Memory:

16GB Corsair Vengeance LPX 3200MHz (2x8GB)

Hard Drive:

Seagate FireCuda 510 M.2 500GB PCI Express 3.0 NVMe & Seagate 2TB BarraCuda

GPU:

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060Ti *

Power Supply:

Corsair 650W CV650

Motherboard:

ASUS PRIME B550M-K

Cooling:

120mm Air Cooler

WiFi:

ADDON AC Dual Band 1200Mbps

Operating System:

Windows 11 Home

Case:

EG Diamond
 
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This is another option. Laptop with decent spec at around 1400 quid.
 

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scottduffy said:
Guy's i just seen this in a black Friday sale. Seems to have the same graphics card as above but since i have no clue about other pc parts does this stack up quality wise? Hard drives, motherboard etc?

SPECIFICATIONS

Processor:

AMD Ryzen 7 3700X (8 Cores up to 4.4GHz, 36MB Cache)

Memory:

16GB Corsair Vengeance LPX 3200MHz (2x8GB)

Hard Drive:

Seagate FireCuda 510 M.2 500GB PCI Express 3.0 NVMe & Seagate 2TB BarraCuda

GPU:

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060Ti *

Power Supply:

Corsair 650W CV650

Motherboard:

ASUS PRIME B550M-K

Cooling:

120mm Air Cooler

WiFi:

ADDON AC Dual Band 1200Mbps

Operating System:

Windows 11 Home

Case:

EG Diamond
Click to expand...

Under £1000 it's OK (graphics card would be £450 alone).
 
Right last one as I'm about to pull the trigger. Seems to a novice like a good deal. Anything i should be wary of?

£1299.00

ProcessorAMD Ryzen 5Processor SpeedAMD Ryzen 5 5600G 6 core (16MB Cache up to 4.4GHz)
Operating SystemWindows 11 Home
Memory16GB
Storage1TB SSD (NVMe Drives M.2)
Graphics CardNVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070
Optical DriveNo
Wireless802.11ac
Ports1 x HDMI
1 x VGA
1 x DVI-D
2 x USB 3.1 Type-A (Top)
4 x USB 3.1 Type-A (Rear)
4 x USB 2.0 Type-A (Rear)
1x PS/2 Keyboard or Mouse Port
1x RJ45 Ethernet
Combo Headphone/Microphone Jack (Top)
Audio Jacks (Rear)

ColourBlackBrandCyberpowerTypeGaming Desktop PCDimensionsH 48.2 x W 21.5 x D 46.2 cmWeight10 kg
 
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Thanks. Buying it later. Fed up arguing with myself whether to wait for back Friday proper.
 
ancient_mariner said:
Looks OK - the RTX3070 is quite a powerful card.
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Sorry 1 last question. I am looking at a msi monitor which states it's qwhd with freesync premium. I remember reading something about certain graphics cards working better with freesync or gsync or something. Will the pc mentioned above work okay with a 165hz freesync monitor? Sorry if that sounds dumb but i don't want to have a s***ty display on a decent pc.
 
https://www.reddit.com/r/nvidia/comments/kglmtt
View: https://www.reddit.com/r/nvidia/comments/kglmtt/will_the_rtx_3070_look_good_on_a_freesync_monitor/


www.quora.com

What happens if you use an RTX 3070 with a FreeSync monitor?

Answer: It will work like a standard monitor. But hey, if you’re feeling adventurous you can even turn “Adaptive Sync” on in the Geforce graphics card driver software and see if your monitor’s Freesync can be supported by the RTX3070! [1] 1. Nvidia driver unlocks FreeSync monitor support for Ge...
www.quora.com www.quora.com
 
Windows 11 ....... be careful as it is reported that a good few games will not work :eek:
 
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