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I hope the other shoe to drop is an M1X Mac mini with support for 64 GiB RAM and 10GigE.
They might also discontinue that, though. |
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Which way is up?
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Boyzeee
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As I have said many times, Apple has a road map and a plan for Apple Silicon. There will be a Mac Mini in the not terribly distant future (1-3 years) with support for more RAM.
This is a time for patience. I'm excited about the transition, and can't wait to see where it goes. - AppleNova is the best Mac-users forum on the internet. We are smart, educated, capable, and helpful. We are also loaded with smart-alecks! :) - Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. (Mat 5:9) |
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Lord of the Rant.
Formerly turtle2472 Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Upstate South Carolina
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When VMware releases ESXi for the M1 mini I'll care. I have always loved the mini and it was even my transition machine from PC lover to Mac lover in the early 2000's.
If I'm just using it as a general computer, I really need it to have more RAM. Other than that, I'm good with the specs as they are now. Would it be nice to have a cheaper "mini Pro" sure, but I don't expect it. Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.” Visit our archived Minecraft world! | Maybe someday I'll proof read, until then deal with it. |
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9" monochrome
Join Date: May 2004
Location: 🇦🇺
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I wish they kept Space Grey for this update.
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Mr. Vieira
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
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For the past few days, and for the first time since they've existed, I'm kinda mulling a Mac mini as my next Mac.
I'd need to get a monitor of some sort, but I don't think I'm super picky on that. I already have an Apple keyboard and mouse from my iMac. I'm 2/3 there on the BYODKM thing. AppleInsider had an article recently about how a Mac mini with a decent 24" 4K display (of which there are quite a few, from LG and others) comes in less than a new 24" iMac, plus you get some traditional, usable ports right out of the box (a nice mix of the old and new). Lots of pros, very few cons, the more I think on it. That article recommends the LG 24UD58-B with is just under $300 and seems to get good reviews. Pairing something like that with a $899 (with the 16GB RAM upgrade) Mac mini gets me the equivalent performance of a $1,299 13" MacBook Pro or new 24" iMac for just under $1,200 (but because I'd want to upgrade those to 16GB, I'm looking at $1,499 and $1,699. I'd be coming in $300 under the upgraded 13" MacBook Pro (and $500 under the iMac). Just seems to make a lot of sense. Not the most stylish (or portable) thing, but I'm the only person here, so who cares. I've never really considered the Mac mini before, but I am now (the M1-based model, of course). |
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Lord of the Rant.
Formerly turtle2472 Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Upstate South Carolina
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The real flexibility comes if you find you don't need a monitor that good. I mean, if you can use a lesser monitor then you can get away with way cheaper. If you need a high quality monitor though, you would need to consider that for the cost.
I'm loved the mini since the G4 that got me to switch from PC to Mac back in the day. I still have one now, though it is the latest Intel one running as a server. Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.” Visit our archived Minecraft world! | Maybe someday I'll proof read, until then deal with it. |
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Mr. Vieira
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
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Yeah, I may not need a $300 monitor. I'd like something decent, for sure. But I'm certainly not needing anything in the $600+ neighborhood. I do vector illustration, and less of it now than ever, so my demands aren't super high end (no serious video or imaging/photo-based work, I don't game at all, etc.).
That will be my flexible area. But since I've never even thought about third-party displays (always an iMac or notebook), that's something I'll have to bone up on and educate myself on (brands, specs/features, etc.). In fact, any help/suggestions in that area are appreciated. My tasks are listed above. I don't need anything 27" or larger. In fact, 24" is the absolute largest I need. For 11 years all I knew was a 20" display, and for the last 16 months, a 13" (so 24" will feel huge). It just can't be complete crap, but I don't need every bell-and-whistle in existence either. Just something that looks good enough to draw on and offer reasonable accuracy, will last, etc. I suppose I'm kinda spoiled on Retina now, so I suppose it should be that sort of resolution? I probably need to go to Office Depot and/or Best Buy and see what 24" looks like in real life, 4K and otherwise, and then go from there... And if I can find a refurb M1 mini with 16GB RAM/256GB SSD, that'll be well under the $899 new price too. So, yeah, it could be more in the $1,000-1,100 range, for sure if I go refurb, and/or go a bit cheaper on the monitor. I like that even an M1 Mac mini comes with regular USB ports, meaning I don't have to go and buy any sort of dongle to connect my phone or thumb drive, the way I would on the others. It's future-looking (M1, Thunderbolt, etc.), but they still included two "regular" USB ports, which are nice, still. Last edited by psmith2.0 : 2021-05-03 at 08:42. |
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Lord of the Rant.
Formerly turtle2472 Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Upstate South Carolina
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So I'm using 27" 1080p monitors on my MBP and I can say text isn't a problem. Not to say it couldn't be "crisper" but all day I stare at these things. I would rather be upgraded to QHD 2,560 x 1,440 pixels or 1440p.
I'm also running Big Sur so not sure how much better it would look on a Retina display. I can say it doesn't make me hate my job looking at these things all day and it is just about all text I deal with all day. Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.” Visit our archived Minecraft world! | Maybe someday I'll proof read, until then deal with it. |
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Veteran Member
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Promise Land of Trustafarians
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+1 to this. Things just look weird on 1440p.
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Lord of the Rant.
Formerly turtle2472 Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Upstate South Carolina
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That is kinda horrifying... Especially since that is the route I was thinking of heading. Maybe I get one from a local store and test it out. Then I can return it easily if it sucks so bad.
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.” Visit our archived Minecraft world! | Maybe someday I'll proof read, until then deal with it. |
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Space Pirate
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Atlanta
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Scates I'm using my 2019 Mini on a fricking 10 year old Sony TELEVISION at the dining room table (it's my back-up machine so I can do "modern" things with it until they release the new M1x MBP) – I know this television's resolution is less than a modern affordable monitor, but I could NOT do ANY real graphic design work on it.
It's marginally better than the rPlank™. ... |
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Which way is up?
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Boyzeee
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I was using a Mac Mini, but it's back to iMac for me. Too many cables, and 3rd-party displays aren't at the level of Apple (I use a 10+ year-old Apple 24" ACD because it's superior to most 3rd-party 4k displays).
I swapped out my 2012 Mini for a 2013 27" iMac until I jump on the new 24" iMac. The Mac Mini became a file server. No more Mini's as main computer for me. - AppleNova is the best Mac-users forum on the internet. We are smart, educated, capable, and helpful. We are also loaded with smart-alecks! :) - Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. (Mat 5:9) |
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Mr. Vieira
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
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Yeah, good points. I don’t love the idea of a Mac mini for those very reasons. I’ve always been an iMac or MacBook guy, with the display quality that entails. I’m not excited about the idea of having to research third-party stuff that I’ve never had to before. Every Mac I’ve bought/owned since February 2000 (iMac DV, iBook, iMac G4, 15” PowerBook G4, 20” iMac, 13” MacBook Pro) have all come with a display attached.
Cool thing is, there’s a good chance those new MacBook Pros don’t hit until autumn. Which, 4-5 months from now, would traditionally be about when these new iMacs started to show up as refurbs. Making those a viable option, in the ~$1,500 neighborhood and outfitted the way I’d prefer. |
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Sneaky Punk
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Can’t say I’d take an iMac over a Mini, given that they have the same specs under the hood. The Mini tucks away out of sight, then all you have on the desk is a monitor. Not to mention the Mini is easy to move between rooms/monitors if needed.
I’d rather put the money into a high quality Adobe colour space, high refresh rate monitor. I haven’t found any motivation to get a 4K monitor yet, rather have dual 1440p ones. Work flow preference I suppose. As for refresh rate, once you get beyond 60Hz, it’s almost painful to go back. Opening windows in the Finder, drop down menus, even moving the mouse around, feels painfully slow on a 60Hz monitor. Of course if all you do is look at spreadsheets all day, 30Hz would do. |
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Dark Cat of the Sith
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I'm addicted to my three-monitor setup for my gaming PC, so even if I got an iMac, I'd still be hooking up a minimum of 1 additional displays to it.
If you're concerned about researching displays and about the cabling, I can happily recommend things for you; I have go-to recommendations for what I use as my personal displays and what I recommend to doctors as their dictation and medical record display to go with their Mac. And adding one of these to a refurb iMac might be a really nice option for you too! "A blind, deaf, comatose, lobotomy patient could feel my anger!" - Darth Baras twitter ; amateur photographer ; fanfiction writer ; roleplayer and worldbuilder |
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Mr. Vieira
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
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I've never done the multiple monitor thing, but if I wound up with a 24" iMac, larger in size/resolution than anything I've ever known, I'll be okay with just that. It's only if I got a Mac mini would I have to look to third-party displays. But I will keep that/you in mind should it go that way. Thank you!
Every one of these models has their pros and cons. Tricky, sometimes. I can see the good, and the not-so-good, about each model/decision. But, being completely honest/realistic...if $1,500 fell out of the sky this afternoon, to be used only for a new Mac, I'd be ordering one of those 24" iMacs (I believe I'd rather have 24" that never left my desk than 13" that barely did; I'm just not a "mobile" user...I don't travel, I don't work from my couch or remotely, etc. I sit at my desk, and have for 15+ years). Yes, I'd spend another 2-7 weeks deciding/obsessing on the color...but that's another story. |
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Veteran Member
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Unknown
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We are on our second iMac, but I really wanted to go the mini route last time. Unfortunately, the mini was too out-dated at the time. My issue is that I’d prefer to upgrade the computer more often than I do, and if it was just the cost of the mini, that would be easier. But there’s a large sunk cost in the screen that you have to replace each time with the iMac. So I’d rather get a nice monitor that would easily last through 2 or 3 minis. Then I could swap the mini out every few years instead of making the iMac last 6+ years - where the last few years it is really showing it’s age.
Do you know where children get all of their energy? - They suck it right out of their parents! |
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Sneaky Punk
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Exactly my issue with the iMac, you throw away a good screen when you move on.
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Mr. Vieira
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
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Of course. That's the benefit of the mini. Once your iMac is done, out the whole thing goes. But if you keep it for 4-6 years (or 8+, like my dumb ass tends to) won't there be advances in display tech in that time that makes it all a wash? I don't know, I'm asking.
Everyone's situation is different, so no one line of thinking/approach is going to be the best for everyone, but for someone like me who tends to keep things a really long time, by the time I did upgrade a 24" iMac - 2028ish at the earliest - there will be a better, sharper, clearer, higher-resolution, faster, brighter, smoother, etc. iMac by then anyway. If you get a new computer every 2-3 years, then yeah...a Mac mini, paired with a really good third-party display, makes more sense. Just upgrade the mini for ~$800 every few years, absolutely. |
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Sneaky Punk
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Displays have improved, no question about it. That said, I still think the screens on 2009-2012 era iMac are more than good enough even now (for most use cases). They have LED backlights, wide colour range, and many still work very well. That’s the sad part about those iMacs, the screens could easily be used for years more, as a secondary display, but they cannot be because they are tied to what are essentially paper weight machines.
We still use a screen I got 15+ years ago for a machine that is used just for typing documents. That’s how long lived a good display can be. The same couldn’t be said of a 15+ year old iMac, not with modern software anyway. |
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Lord of the Rant.
Formerly turtle2472 Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Upstate South Carolina
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Yeah, you guys put into work one of my big reasons for sticking with headless computers. I never spent the time thinking through why but that is it. It gives far great flexibility sure, but I'm not throwing out a computer and monitor because the motherboard went bad, just the part that failed.
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.” Visit our archived Minecraft world! | Maybe someday I'll proof read, until then deal with it. |
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Mr. Vieira
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
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That is indeed one of the plusses/pros of the Mac mini vs. the iMac. $599 (plus whatever RAM/SSD upgrades one might want) is an easier swing than $1,299 and up.
I'll feel better about this new iMac once they start to exist in the real world and reviews start to hit. Right now, that machine is quite "up in the air", just because nobody outside Apple has seen/used one yet (or if they have, they're not allowed to say anything just yet; I have a feeling Gruber and others had one sent to their house within the past 7-10 days). So many things are just unknown right now, during this transition. I'm hoping the second half of 2021 things are much clearer and easier to weigh out. |
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Which way is up?
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Boyzeee
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I'm not going to bother starting a new thread for this. Maybe, could be, but probably not a Mac Pro Mini. Just a Mac mini with a faster chip option.
- AppleNova is the best Mac-users forum on the internet. We are smart, educated, capable, and helpful. We are also loaded with smart-alecks! :) - Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. (Mat 5:9) Last edited by kscherer : 2021-05-18 at 12:18. |
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