Make me switch

[AmativeSound]

Hello Macintosh world.

I am a long-time PC user that is very intrigued by the Mac Mini. My family didn't get our first decent computer until 2001, and unfortunately, that is the one I am still using. It's a really slow no-name 128 MB RAM, 20 GB hard drive, integrated video piece of garbage.

I will be going to college this fall and decided that I need a new computer. After checking out hundreds of other PCs, I went in a completely different direction and now I believe that an Apple Computer is the way to go for me.

What I was wondering is what specs I should be looking at in the Mac Mini. I plan on mainly using it to listen to and download music off of iTunes, browse the internet, chat on some sort of AIM variant, and do some occasional light photo editing. I also plan on doing some home recording with GarageBand and my guitars, perhaps making some excellent techno . In the future I want to do some light <10 min clips of video editing.

I was planning on getting the full 1 GB memory upgrade, but due to price constraints, I might have to fall back on the 512 MB. Would this be suitable for what I am planning on using it for? The PC specs and Mac specs seem to differ slightly to me and I have been a little confused. Perhaps it is because Windows is a "memory hog?"

I also heard that you can actually leave these things running all the time, is this true? Currently, I have to restart my computer every few hours or else it tells me there is not enough memory.

My final question has to do with the video card in the Mini and Tiger. I have heard that the low powered card puts a bit of a constraint on Tiger's features. How true is this and will I be missing out on a lot?

Thank you very much Mac users. I have noticed you are much friendlier than Windows users when it comes to new people and I look forward to your responses.

P.S. I apologize if any of my questions are repeats, as I'm sure they are. My computer crashes every time I try to do a search of these forums!!!
Stupid Windows

[devo]

WOW!

"I was planning on getting the full 1 GB memory upgrade, but due to price constraints, I might have to fall back on the 512 MB. Would this be suitable for what I am planning on using it for? The PC specs and Mac specs seem to differ slightly to me and I have been a little confused. Perhaps it is because Windows is a "memory hog?" "

512MB should be fine, but you can get some 1GB sticks for under a hundred now. XP has slightly better memory management.

"I also heard that you can actually leave these things running all the time, is this true? Currently, I have to restart my computer every few hours or else it tells me there is not enough memory. "

OS X is rock solid! I've had my mini on for 2-3 days before turning it off. I never have to re-boot.

"My final question has to do with the video card in the Mini and Tiger. I have heard that the low powered card puts a bit of a constraint on Tiger's features. How true is this and will I be missing out on a lot? "

The mini has a 32MB video card and is not Core image ready. You'll miss a few features in Tiger like the ripple effect in dashboard, but not enough to worry about. If you're going to buy a mini before you go back to school "my favorite movie" you might want to wait for the next mini to come out. Maybe Apple will boost the video up to 64MB!

[DoFa]

Mini is the perfect choice for the average PC user who wants to check out the mac world. First if you find out it isn't your thing, resell it at about 90-95% of its retail value on ebay.
If you are a big into gaming, then it would obviously be a poor choice, but for typing papers, playing movies or music, cruising the net etc. It is a great machine. The mac mini only consumes 20-30w of electricity compared to 160-200w for the average PC. That alone will save you $50-100 in electricity per year if you anticipate paying your own utilities.

[AmativeSound]

Thanks guys. I think that I will go with the 512MB 80GB HD model. That is, unless they have a price drop with the 1 GB memory by late July... I've got my fingers crossed. I'm just excited that I won't have to turn it off every five minutes... I'll have to tell my parents about that energy consumption thing. They probably won't even realize it's on though!!!

Thanks again guys, if anyone else has any comments I'm open ears.

Now to find a new flat panel monitor...
_________________
Future Mac Mini Owner

Can't wait for July

[DoFa]

Get the 256mb standard and then put a stick of $80 newegg.com PQI 1GB memory in yourself. You'll need to buy a $3 putty knife. It takes 5 minutes and it not much harder than opening a bag of potato chips.

Go to macsales.com. They have an excellent Quicktime video of how to open your mini and install memory.

[rgsaunders]

For that matter, unless my dealer is unusual, the dealer will install the memory for free. He told me just bring it in, I will install the memory and that way if anything breaks its covered under warranty.
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Mac Mini 1.42,1GB DDR400, 80GB, Combo Drive, Ext DVR109 FW, Boot Drive external WD 250GB 7200rpm FW. MacBook Core Duo 1GB, etc
A64 X2 4400+, 2GB DDR500, 1.25TB, DVR 212D, BenQ 1655, etc
They share 2 LG2010Ps.

[Dual G5 Fireman]

I would certainly recommend putting in a gig of RAM if you are going to use GarageBand at all - that was the only red flag in your message for me. GarageBand strains my old Dual 1 Gig G4 with 1.75 gigs of RAM! Of course, it runs smooth as silk on my new Dual G5 with 4 gigs of RAM, but hey, everything does. Welcome to Macintosh!
_________________
The Seduction of the Extraordinary at the Expense of the Mundane..
PowerMac G5 Quad Core 2.5 Ghz 6 gb RAM, PowerMac G5 Dual Core 2.3 Ghz 5 gb RAM, Mac Mini 1.42 1 gb RAM, MacBook Pro 2 Ghz 1.5 Gb RAM, Mac Mini 1.66 Ghz Core Duo 1 GB RAM

[Susurrus]

Wow, talk about reviving a LONG dead thread...
_________________
Computer Engineer
Junior, Brown University
15" NC8430 HP Laptop
1.42Ghz PPC Mac Mini, 1Gb RAM, 1st Gen
40GB G4 iPod
2GB Black iPod Nano

[Dual G5 Fireman]

Didn't look at the date. Bad me.
_________________
The Seduction of the Extraordinary at the Expense of the Mundane..
PowerMac G5 Quad Core 2.5 Ghz 6 gb RAM, PowerMac G5 Dual Core 2.3 Ghz 5 gb RAM, Mac Mini 1.42 1 gb RAM, MacBook Pro 2 Ghz 1.5 Gb RAM, Mac Mini 1.66 Ghz Core Duo 1 GB RAM