chunkrock Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 Does anyone here have any experience with a mac mini? I have a macbook pro that just died. Five months ago the video card chip on the logic board burnt out and I got it replaced for $300 and I'm pretty sure the exact same thing happened last night. The mac book is about 4 or 5 years old so it's probably not worth fixing again. I'm debating going the route of a mac mini, does anyone have any experience with them? Also I don't want this to turn into a mac vs pc debate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuzzersonKillwell Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 We have a couple at the office to power things like scanners and presentation flat screens and they all work just fine, but not a lot of horsepower. If your not designing, editing video or anything like that you should be fine. With a new on you might even be fine doing that stuff. Problem is by the time you buy a monitor, keyboard and the other stuff you need you almost to the price of an iMac or laptop. Plus, no CD drive. Personally, I'd spend a little more on another product. But if you go with the mini I don't think you'll be having a lot of problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chunkrock Posted January 22, 2012 Author Share Posted January 22, 2012 The new ones seem fast enough. I do audio editing. But I just realized your right it doesn't come with a superdrive. I could in theory buy a separate one but that will add a bit more money. I can also get a monitor and keyboard and mouse for $100 so it doesn't bring the price up that much. This sucks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kylekrische Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 Do the new mini's not have a CD drive? I had one for 3 years and it was honestly the best desktop computer I've had, I'd say I had less issues with it than my 20" iMac I got right after. I did recording with it so it was great for moving around and I never had any issues flopping between Photoshop and Illustrator on it. I just upgraded the ram to start and it was fantastic. Honestly, can't say enough good things about them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuzzersonKillwell Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 Mac sells a super drive for under $100 I think, so it isn't a huge expense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
controlthebleeding Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 Do the new mini's not have a CD drive?I had one for 3 years and it was honestly the best desktop computer I've had, I'd say I had less issues with it than my 20" iMac I got right after. I did recording with it so it was great for moving around and I never had any issues flopping between Photoshop and Illustrator on it. I just upgraded the ram to start and it was fantastic. Honestly, can't say enough good things about them. same here. I used photoshop and illustrator extensively and never had a problem with mine. the only thing now is that the mac mini's don't have a super drive, but seriously, how often does someone use a super drive. i haven't used mine more than twice in almost 3 or 4 years. if you need one, external's aren't that expensive. yet, i enjoy having a laptop more than anything though. that's just me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hipsterasfolk Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 The Mac Mini's are too bad now-a-days, that's assuming you are using it to dabble w/ web browsing and some other miscellaneous tasks. Sure they are not anything like the Mac Pros and iMacs, but they are still nice. I say do it! or go for an iMac, not much more money and more power! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidamnesiac Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 I work at a certified Apple service provider and we use a Mac Mini with Snow Leopard Server as our bench machine. I love it and I really want one to use as a media server at home. As for the graphics processor in your MacBook Pro, if it's a 2008 model it may be covered under the Apple warranty extension for the nVidia issue. Basically nVidia and Apple used a bunch of faulty GPUs in 2008 MacBook Pros and they fail like crazy. If you are within 4 years from your purchase date and it turns on and chimes but gives no video, I'd take it in to an Apple store or a certified service provider and have them test for the nVidia issue. You might get logic board replacement for free. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chunkrock Posted January 22, 2012 Author Share Posted January 22, 2012 I think it is the 2008 model but I bought mine used from someone two years ago so I assume I wouldn't be able to get a free logic board replacement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chunkrock Posted January 22, 2012 Author Share Posted January 22, 2012 Well I called apple and the model is still under warranty another two months and it wouldn't be though. I didn't mention I bought it used (which should really matter I guess) and I didn't mention I already had this fixed once from another computer company. Hopefully they either don't notice or it doesn't void the warranty. Thanks a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidamnesiac Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 The warranty extension is tied to the serial number not any kind of proof of purchase. It's worth trying if you have an Apple store or service provider near you, in my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chunkrock Posted January 24, 2012 Author Share Posted January 24, 2012 So I think I've settled on getting a hackintosh. I can get one for $800 and it's got a 4.1Ghz processor. 8 gigs of ram, it's a quad core, 1.88 Bus Speed (no idea if that's good but i'll assume it is). Comes with a monitor, keyboard mouse and speakers. Also here's hoping my laptop gets the free repair. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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