Mac Mini
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- Raniator
Anyone use a Mac Mini for InDesign/Photoshop/Illustrator etc... with a smidgen of video editing (usually iMovie, sometimes Premiere Pro)?
Are they up to the job?
Also, is there such a thing as a Thunderbolt to "old-cinema-display-dvi-plug-soc... as I've got two of those connected to my 6ish year old Mac Pro.
Thanks!
*Can't remember what it's called.
- animatedgif0
Should be absolutely fine for it.
Processors have stagnated and Adobe fucking sucks at muti-core and GPU programming so a Mac Mini probably runs them about the same as a Macbook Pro would (unless it has an SSD).
- Raniator0
I'm asking because I'm currently running an old Mac Pro at work, with 2 x cinema displays – not the new Thunderbolt ones.
It's pretty knackered, needs a new HD and could do with some more RAM to keep it going and I'm thinking of the cheapest was of either upgrading it or replacing it. Asking them to spend £1,500+ on an iMac or even more on a the new Mac Pro when it arrives probably won't get me too far.
If there is such a cable to allow me to connect the two cinema displays that would be awesome.
A couple of hundred quid on a new HD and RAM could go towards a Mac Mini – at least that way I'll be able to run the new operating systems, this Mac Pro is stuck on 10.7.
- Ianbolton0
Thunderbolt is still just a mini display port so you can buy adaptors to connect whatever you want to it.
I've been using my Macbook Air to do basic work on, connected to a monitor, and it seems to be okay.
- inteliboy0
Mac Pros, even old ones are BEASTS. You may be disappointed with how a mac mini performs - though they definitely can handle what you're after.
- monospaced0
Get the most beefy one you can get
- GeorgesIV0
Hey raniator, if you're on a budget,
why don't you build a hackintosh, for a €1000 euro you can get a beast, it still depends if you're able to put a computer together,
I'm about to put another one together, I'm just waiting to have the budget and i'll build something similar to this, probably with a faster i7 though
http://www.tonymacx86.com/user-b…
- GeorgesIV0
- that doesn't look half bad, quite intriguingmonospaced
- but he spent more on this than he would on an actual Mac Minimonospaced
- hahaha yeah, but you can't update a mini, this one you can,GeorgesIV
- kirshar120
I've been using one at work for a couple years with dual monitors. In the beginning (with just 4gb memory) I would get white screens (lock-up) at least once a week, if not once a day, and that would be just from running PS along with my browser and maybe one other random program.
After upgrading the memory up to 8gb and having our IT guy sit down with it, it still locks up, but only once every two or three weeks, which is still frustrating, but for some reason this is what I'm stuck with......I try to not have too many things running at one time on here to help mitigate the problem.......
- nikdaum0
I'm using my 2012 model to do all this. Upgraded to 16gb ram and 512 ssd from third party site. The little guy is fast. Maybe not Mac Pro fast, but definitely fast enough for what I'm doing, which includes some HD editing in Final Cut Pro. I suspect that when the Haswell version is released, it will actually be decent for gaming too.
- ideaist0
- Yeah 'cause they will cost £500, won't they? Pffffffft.Raniator
- Just breakin' balls Raniator!
: )ideaist - Don't get me wrong I'd love one, but I don't think they'll let me :(Raniator
- I waited for a year or two to get a Mac Pro; anxiously awaiting THIS upgrade. Couldn't wait any longer... Such is life my friend...ideaist
- utopian0
2.6GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i7
16GB 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x8GB
1TB Fusion Drive
- utopian0
I personally think that you should just get an iMac.
The time you spend upgrading, purchasing a new display, etc... you will end spending just as much if not more than the iMac. the iMac is perfect for "InDesign/Photoshop/Illustrator etc... with a smidgen of video editing"
- Chimp0
I have one at work as Macs cost a bomb in Argentina.
Its ok for some light photoshop work but for more than that its a bit slow. (2.3 GHz Core i5, 6GB ram)
- Raniator0
I'll wait for the Haswell versions to come out and see how they are priced. Can get 16GB from Crucial for about £80 so can max-out the ram for loads less than Apple quote.
If there is a way of hooking up both my old-school cinema displays I'm sold.
- section_0140
If you're not doing any OSX or iOS development (ie. using Xcode), I'd go down the hackintosh route in a heartbeat. Compared to my first hackintosh build, it's so easy to get one up and running.
I have a hackintosh as my studio (audio production) computer and it's rock solid. Everything works perfect. Firewire audio interface, usb midi controllers, everything.
- ArmandoEstrada0
I think your main issue is your hard drive. It slows everything to a crawl. Get a SSD drive and upgrade your ram as much as you can. It will feel like a new computer.