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Electric Bugaloo posted:Any word yet on how Fusion drives handle Windows partitions? I'm lustily eyeing the new 27" iMac and I'd like to put the Windows on it (no idea if I should go with 7 or 8) so I can play some of them newfangled steam powered Skyrim-land computer games on it.
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Dec 12, 2012 18:03
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wang souffle posted:Boot Camp partition can be on the hard drive only--no fusion nor SSD support. That's what I figured- but how does it show up/the computer treat it? I mean, the whole point behind the fusion drive seems to be that both drives are treated as one and the software handles all of the differentiation/moving about. Would I simply run bootcamp on this computer the same way as I would on an older machine? For that matter, how does a Time Machine backup treat a Windows partition? Does the partition simply not exist as far as the backup is concerned, or does the whole shebang get copied? If my current partitioned mac were to go nuclear, and I cloned the old disk onto the new one through a Time Machine backup, would the Windows partition simply cease to be? (I know this is technically pushing the definition of a "hardware" question.)
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Dec 12, 2012 18:22
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Time Machine works on a partition basis, and will only backup partitions formatted as HFS+ Journaled, I believe. So yes, the TM backup completely ignores any partition you don't tell it to back up, and restoring an OS X partition that used to co-exist with a Windows partition to a blank drive will result in one OS X partition spanning the whole drive (it's a file level backup, so this also defragments the drive  ). As far as Fusion Drive, this article on ars investigates how it works, including creating a Boot Camp partition.
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Dec 12, 2012 18:40
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For this reason, Mr. Bugaloo, when I slice off some disk for Bootcamp, I also slice off something of equal or greater size for a scheduled Windows Backup. It backs itself up when you're running Windows based on your designated schedule, so even if your BC partition goes south or corrupts, you have something that's restore-compatible the next time you want to install Win7 or w/e. Obviously worthless if the whole disk dies, but you could offline that backup and let it rest on an exfat partition before installing again the next time for faster restore.
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Dec 12, 2012 19:04
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kuskus posted:For this reason, Mr. Bugaloo, when I slice off some disk for Bootcamp, I also slice off something of equal or greater size for a scheduled Windows Backup. It backs itself up when you're running Windows based on your designated schedule, so even if your BC partition goes south or corrupts, you have something that's restore-compatible the next time you want to install Win7 or w/e. Neat. Can you make that backup partition on the same drive that time machine backs up to- or is that impossible/inadvisable?
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Dec 12, 2012 19:49
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My first thought is that Win 7 and OS X and both read each other's drives but not write (save for exFAT) without a third party plugin (but I wouldn't want Windows writing to my HFS drives). To say nothing of local- if you have Pro or Ultimate you can backup to network, which means if you had a Time Capsule you could have a partition of the drive / (or an AEBS with) a USB external drive on the router. Scope out the Windows Backup & Restore FAQ. I think they're decent tools for being bundled.
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Dec 12, 2012 20:13
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Having a backup on the same drive you're using is pretty worthless. If you have anything important on windows, you should just get some cheap USB harddrive. It doesn't have to be too big (assuming you're not making a 1tb partition for games) and it doesn't have to be fast because it's just for backups.
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Dec 12, 2012 20:35
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Haggins posted:Having a backup on the same drive you're using is pretty worthless. I meant on the external harddrive being used as a backup destination by OSX. Let's say I have a USB drive already plugged into the computer for Time Machine. The question was if I could back up the Windows partition to the same physical drive. Of course I could back it up to another external drive, but using one drive for two backups would save space and money. No poo poo it's worthless to put a backup partition on your boot drive.
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Dec 12, 2012 20:48
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Joe Don Baker posted:I've got an SSD in my MBP and Win PC so I know how awesome they are  )
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Dec 12, 2012 21:02
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Behold. First Impressions Let me caveat my first impressions by saying that I am upgrading from a 2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4GB, 24" early 2008 iMac. It's a pretty big jump. My 2008 was working fine for some basic recording and photo editing, but it was clearly starting to hang as my projects got more complex. Where it once handled 8 tracks like a hot knife through butter, when I started expanding into 16 to 24 track projects (I use my iMac primarily for music and home recording), the software started to choke. Forget mastering. The process just ended up being too tedious because of a lack of horsepower. I had originally planned on waiting till the Mac Pro line was updated, but timing became an issue. My wife and I just found out we're expecting, so I figured I had one last big purchase to make before priorities begin to shift toward being, y'know, a dad, so I went as big as I could realistically afford on a new computer purchase. I ordered a 3.1 GHz i7 21.5" iMac with the full 16GB of RAM. Had to go small on the hard drive, as I intend to upgrade to one of the external Thunderbolt SSDs after Christmas, so I stuck with the old school 1 TB HD. For what I do, processing power is a priority. I also figured the NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M with 512MB would be fine. My video and photo editing will work just fine with that amount of power, and I don't use this thing to game. Unboxing was the usual joy... the smell that comes out of Apple packaging when you open a new product is stifling. In a good way. (You all know this.) Honestly, the first thing I noticed was how light this drat thing is. I actually considered that to be a positive... moving this thing will be easy, especially if I want to record in another space. It doesn't have the clunky handle the original iMac had, but hey, it's still pretty light. Feels like a blown up iPad. Weird.  Setup Well, Apple isn't loving around when it comes to its ecosystem. I recall setting up my 2008 in, er, 2008, and setting up the iMac felt a lot like setting up a PC. "What time is it?" "What's your name?" "Network connection?" etc. The new iMac/Mountain Lion setup process felt like I was actually setting up an iOS device. I'm not sure if this is because Apple wants to build around the iOS experience or if they just figured out the best way to talk to old people. I got my first taste of the iMac's speed turning it on. I plugged it in, leaned back to turn it on, and in 10 seconds or so I had a welcome screen. Less than 5 minutes later I was in the OS, in the App store, downloading my old apps. I decided against migration assistant, simply because all my pertinent information was either in the Cloud (no poo poo), or I could just re-download my primary apps, like Logic, Aperture, iWork, etc. In fact, I did all this simultaneously. I updated Mountain Lion, synced my iPhone, reloaded my music from my external hard drive (USB 2.0, as my firewire adapter for thunderbolt has yet to ship - wtf Apple), installed Logic, Aperture, and iWork... and it took under 40 minutes. Now, technically, after booting up Logic, I had to run an additional install of the gigs and gigs of bonus content it comes with, which took another 2 hours. But if we're talking a basic, user setup experience, under 40 minutes is just fanfuckingtastic.  Peripherals, Hardware Well, it's certainly an iMac. There's been some awkward 'backlash' in some blogs and user comments about the 5mm thick frame of the iMac's body, that Apple was somehow misleading people into thinking they magically crammed AND flattened all the internals to allow the body of a computer to look more like something akin to a LCD TV. This is horseshit. Yes, it's thin. Even with the rounded bezel, the fucker is thin. It's 12 pounds for Chrissakes. And while most desktop users will argue that the thinness is simply a luxury aesthetic, for a guy about to move his workspace into a room 30 percent smaller than the one he's currently in, thin becomes something more of a necessity. I've got an extra half foot of space on my desk now thanks to the compact design of the new iMac. The thinness of the unit coupled with the new USB port I purchased and installed under desk allowed for me to push the unit all the way back on my desk. It's a nice improvement. I stuck with the trust magic mouse and wireless keyboard. No surprises here, except for the F4 key now being the hotkey for your Launchpad (still a stupid name). The new HD Facetime Camera didn't blow my socks off, but I hardly use Facetime, and don't think I have a face for HD to begin with. I don't miss having a CD-ROM. In fact, I'm pretty sure I can remote access my wife's MacBook Pro disc drive if I ever need to again so... yeah. No sweat there.  Display This thing is loving bright. Reviews early on said that the process for binding the display to the iMac body had slipped (mostly because of the glue used, as opposed to the previously employed magnet system), but the key thing here is the lack of space felt between you and the display contents. It's not retina, but I can tell this was designed with retina in mind. Had to be. It's hard to explain without seeing it in person, and after cranking up the brightness I was shocked. I didn't realize how dim my 2008 display was. The newer iMac feels sharper and definitely... whiter. The color profile has been cooled considerably over the years, and it's a nice update for photographers and people in visual arts. Can't wait to edit my first movie or photo on this thing. I didn't realize how much I'd been missing out on. So, no buyers' remorse here. I've got some personalization tweaks to make, but other than that, I'm less than 24 hours out of the box on this thing I can't stop staring at it. Apple always brings their A game when it comes to interface, and the iMac formula continues to please. I don't regret the smaller screen space, my secondary 24" Dell monitor is a fine companion space for surfing and word processing tasks. But the iMac's real estate on the 21"5 inch display is more than enough for my artsy fartsy poo poo. And did I mention this thing was screaming fast? 12591 on Geekbench. If anyone has any specific requests for benchmarks or user tests you'd like me to run for their own edification, I'm happy to. Point is, I'm happy with the purchase, and I can't wait to put it to a real test. 
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Dec 12, 2012 21:25
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I'm disappointed that it looks exactly the same as the previous model from the front. You think they'd go with edge-to-edge glass, unless they like the illusion you get from having a big black border around the screen.
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Dec 12, 2012 21:29
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So anyone ever get extra-lucky with one of those Apple refurb deals? A friend at work just upgraded his laptop from his old plastic MBP with a Apple direct $1250 2012 MBA 256GB SSD deal and somehow also got 8GB of RAM included as well.
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Dec 13, 2012 00:47
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I'm trying to work up the courage to drop some cash on a new iMac, but I can't quite convince myself to do it. Admittedly, I really don't understand what I do and don't need, which is pretty much why I'm posting about it. I'm a graphic design student graduating at the end of this semester (May), mostly doing motion stuff. I'm starting to crank it up and want to get into more 3D modeling type stuff, Cinema 4D/more intense effects in After Effects, that kind of thing, start teaching myself Maya at some point. I want to be able to handle all this pretty decently. Right now I'm looking at the $1999 iMac with an upgraded i7 processor, which pretty much puts me at the very, very top of my budget (with student discount it ends up being about $2270, all things considered). Mostly I'm concerned about either spending money unnecessarily, or not spending enough on something I may sorely end up needing (the Fusion drive, which basically means I'll have to sit out buying the computer for a while). Anyone a bit more educated on these things have any light to shed on it? I very rarely spend so much money on anything, so I'm really antsy about dropping the savings. Right now I'm working off a 15" macbook pro I bought when I started college four years ago. It really works great and all, but I don't think it really handles what I want to start learning. Plus I figure getting the iMac would be a nice transition into a personal computer I can work on when I graduate.
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Dec 13, 2012 05:36
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redjenova posted:I'm trying to work up the courage to drop some cash on a new iMac, but I can't quite convince myself to do it. Admittedly, I really don't understand what I do and don't need, which is pretty much why I'm posting about it. I do a lot of photo and video work both as a hobby and for my job. Given your age and the fact that you're more likely to be moving around, I'd really just buy a 15-inch rMBP. With the student discount, they're what, $1999? Then just sell your old laptop for whatever you can get and either recoup some of the cost or pick up something like an external Thunderbolt drive, or a secondary display, or something. Beaucoup Cuckoo posted:Double-tapping Cmd is also a nice way to do it. Isn't that the new dictation shortcut tho?
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Dec 13, 2012 16:07
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Hello everyone! So... I'm completely new to Macs--I've never owned one. They're so expensive that I could never justify the cost over a PC. However, this Christmas, I think I'm going to ask my wife to buy me one. From what I've seen in Macs, I love their design, UI, and user experience. I have a PC work laptop which I hate to use, and I want to buy something that's mine that I can use for fun. Additionally, I own two iPads (gens 1 and 3), two iPhone 5s, my watch is an iPod nano in a LunaTik band, 3 Apple TVs, and I've owned a bunch of iPods / iPod Touches / etc over the years. I figure it's about time that I make the switch. However, if I buy a laptop, I want to invest in a better system, as I want something that will last longer. However, I'm trying to adhere to a relative budget... So, that being said, I need a little encouragement. Here are my questions and reservations: -Am I doing this for the right reasons? Will I regret this purchase? Has anyone here been in a similar situation, or am I the only one that's having this internal struggle? -How long does the battery last in these laptops before they need to be replaced? What's the cost of replacing them? (I assume you have to send it back to Apple for servicing.) -Per one of the OP's in this thread, I noticed that the best way to buy the Mac is to use the education discount. (I'm a grad student and have access to this.) Is this still the best way to go? -One of the reasons that I want the mac is I like how fast they boot. (Especially the laptops with solid state memory.) Is there a "Tom's Hardware" style chart of compared boot times / frame rates / etc of different mac laptop models doing different tasks? -Again, I really like the concept of using a solid state drive over one of the 5400 RPM drives in order to increase boot time, computer speed, etc. However, the smaller size of the SSD options concern me... How much space does OS X take up? If I was to go with a 128 GB SSD, would that be enough space? Also, what do you all typically do to help add space to work with to your Mac laptop? (Do you tote around an external HDD? Do you use SD cards? Or is there another, better performing option other than just getting a bigger SSD for 1k more?) I'm sure I have more questions, but these are the burning ones right now... Thanks in advance for your help and advice!
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Dec 13, 2012 16:23
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Frank Zappa posted:-Am I doing this for the right reasons? Will I regret this purchase? Has anyone here been in a similar situation, or am I the only one that's having this internal struggle?
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Dec 13, 2012 16:30
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In re boot times: I really like my Mac laptop, and it boots lightning quick with its SSD, but Windows 8 boots a hair faster on it, so that's not an advantage. Just FYI.
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Dec 13, 2012 16:35
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Is there really any advantage to buying a new Mac Mini compared to getting a open box Mid 2011 model from Microcenter? The difference is about $100 ($629 and $519 respectively after tax). Macofalltrades is selling refurb'd 2009's for about the same price as a Microcenter 2011. For what it's worth it's all part of me diving further into the Mac ecosystem. Already have an iPhone, iPad, and an 2009 MBP 5,5. It would be used in conjunction with my main gaming PC.
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Dec 13, 2012 17:00
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JayKay posted:Is there really any advantage to buying a new Mac Mini compared to getting a open box Mid 2011 model from Microcenter? The difference is about $100 ($629 and $519 respectively after tax). Macofalltrades is selling refurb'd 2009's for about the same price as a Microcenter 2011. Ivy Bridge Intel HD 4000 USB 3.0
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Dec 13, 2012 17:01
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Bob Morales posted:Ivy Bridge Derp, I knew about the HD 4000, but completely overlooked the IB and USB differences. Looks like new 2012 model it is! Edit: Looks like Amazon has the newest Mini for $588 anyways which beats out Microcenter. JayKay fucked around with this message at 17:22 on Dec 13, 2012 |
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Dec 13, 2012 17:15
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Binary Badger posted:Finally got my Early 2008 Mac Pro hooked up for USB 3.0. And I did it for $36 bucks. If you don't give a poo poo about USB 3.0 or Mac Pros, skip this post. Also, I take no responsibility for whatever you decide to do, this is how I did it with the help of posts on the OSX86 and InsanelyMac forums. Can the "flash in a PC" step be done using boot camp and the Mac Pro?
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Dec 13, 2012 17:30
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redjenova posted:I'm trying to work up the courage to drop some cash on a new iMac, but I can't quite convince myself to do it. Admittedly, I really don't understand what I do and don't need, which is pretty much why I'm posting about it. I don't agree with mediaphage to go with a 15 inch rMBP. Since you're doing visual work you'll want the biggest screen you can possibly get your hands on. If you're going for the top end imac, I'd go for the video card upgrade instead of the CPU. I'd also probably wait until you can afford the fusion drive, as hard drives are the biggest bottle necks.
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Dec 13, 2012 18:36
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Frank Zappa posted:However, if I buy a laptop, I want to invest in a better system, as I want something that will last longer. However, I'm trying to adhere to a relative budget... So, that being said, I need a little encouragement. Other than Amazon and others which may have discounts and might save you on tax, keep an eye out on Apple's own refurbished section (don't worry about them being refurbs, they're good as new and fully warrantied like a new one). quote:-Again, I really like the concept of using a solid state drive over one of the 5400 RPM drives in order to increase boot time, computer speed, etc. However, the smaller size of the SSD options concern me... How much space does OS X take up? If I was to go with a 128 GB SSD, would that be enough space? Also, what do you all typically do to help add space to work with to your Mac laptop? (Do you tote around an external HDD? Do you use SD cards? Or is there another, better performing option other than just getting a bigger SSD for 1k more?) Haggins posted:I don't agree with mediaphage to go with a 15 inch rMBP. Since you're doing visual work you'll want the biggest screen you can possibly get your hands on. If you're going for the top end imac, I'd go for the video card upgrade instead of the CPU. I'd also probably wait until you can afford the fusion drive, as hard drives are the biggest bottle necks. And yeah, always get a SSD! Theoretically you could upgrade down the line but it'll cost you (Thunderbolt) or be a massive pain (upgrade the insides).
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Dec 13, 2012 21:32
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What exactly is hyper threading and why would someone want it? I'm about a week away from buying a 27 inch and I was planning on getting the top end iMac with 2gb gfx card, and 3tb fusion. I figured I should just skip the CPU upgrade since it was pretty pricy. My main use for the machine would be aperture. I might do some gaming too but it's not too important.
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Dec 14, 2012 01:07
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Uh, well short version is that it gives you two threads per core (which is why the 2 core notebooks show up as 4 to the system, or 4 as 8 in this case) and can make things a bit faster, albeit it varies by process. Long version is...hard to explain, but basically there's usually some free time in a core due to whatever inefficiencies, and hyper threading jams in a second thread to try to put that free time to use. So with the iMac upgrade you get whatever the clock increase (consistent) is plus whatever extra boost hyper threading gives (varies). On the other hand you could say it's already pretty drat fast to begin with, so putting money into the GPU or SSD instead would make more sense to you if you're not dealing with CPU bound tasks often (again with the caveat that you can at least upgrade to SSD later vs being stuck with the CPU/GPU you get).
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Dec 14, 2012 02:32
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I am back. I just pulled the trigger on a 15" macbook pro a few days ago. I figured I would upgrade the ram. Is there any difference in brands? I am so out of touch with this, so I figured I would ask. Mushkin is $65 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226323 Corsair's has low CAS timing, although I do not see that making any difference $83 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233265 Gail seems the same for cheaper. $70 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820144593 There is also crucial which seems decent. I do not know, I find the whole thing confusing. I am leaning towards the GeiL but there are not many newegg reviews, so I was hoping someone else had a recommendation.
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Dec 14, 2012 04:05
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unlawfulsoup posted:I am back. I just pulled the trigger on a 15" macbook pro a few days ago. I figured I would upgrade the ram. Is there any difference in brands? I am so out of touch with this, so I figured I would ask. Really doesn't matter but I would avoid stuff like KomputerBay just on principle.
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Dec 14, 2012 04:14
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Bob Morales posted:Really doesn't matter but I would avoid stuff like KomputerBay just on principle. edit: Nevermind, misread your post. Did not think a company that makes ram would have such a goofy name. 
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Dec 14, 2012 04:19
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unlawfulsoup posted:edit: Nevermind, misread your post. Did not think a company that makes ram would have such a goofy name.
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Dec 14, 2012 04:31
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Wow, I didn't realize that laptop RAM had gotten that cheap. I'm definitely going to have to pick up 16GB once I get an SSD in this thing.
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Dec 14, 2012 04:46
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Okay I think I may need some advice please. I'd been planning for ages to get a 27 inch iMac when it came out but I've almost convinced myself to get a Mac Mini instead. I plan to use it mostly for casual use but I also want to be able to run Ableton Live on it with a bunch of VSTs (Komplete 8 mostly) as well as recording. The two models I'm comparing are: Mac Mini, 2.3GHz Intel i7, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD, integrated graphics. 27" iMac, 3.4GHz Intel i7, 32GB RAM, 1TB Fusion Drive, with either the 1GB or 2GB graphics card, not sure which. My reasoning being: From what I hear processor speeds aren't nearly as important as they used to be, but it would still be good to have the i7, therefore I would leave the Mac Mini as is but upgrade the iMac. Is this a good approach or is the difference between 2.3 and 3.4 GHz really quite big? I need as much RAM as possible for music production, especially with lots of VSTs, so I would max out each computer. Either way I'll install it myself. Anyone have any idea what effect the difference would be? Would I be able to have twice as many VSTs running, ready to be called upon with the 32GB or does it not work that way? Any music goons know if I actually need this much anyway? SSDs sound awesome but the iMac only comes with the option of a 768GB SSD which is ridiculous and ridiculously expensive. Plus the more I think about the Fusion Drive the less I like it. It sounds like you can't designate where on the SSDs things are and sounds a bit risky too in that if one drive fails both fail. Also if it's constantly reading/writing to and from the SSD won't that significantly reduce its lifespan? It also doesn't work with Boot Camp. If I got the Mac Mini I would either get an additional external hard drive, either 7200 rpm or a SSD and put half my stuff on that OR I would install an additional internal SSD in the Mac Mini. This is a significant point of deliberation for me. Finally the graphics card. I honestly don't know what effect it has apart from helping with games/movie making etc. If I got the Mac Mini I probably wouldn't really play games since I probably wouldn't use Boot Camp on it. I will however be using dual monitors either way in case it has any effect on that (I've never bought a Mac before, are dual monitors not a good idea?). I also will be doing some light photoshop work. I've already ordered a new Dell U2412M for the Mac Mini but I think I can probably sell that for about the same price I got it since I got it quite cheap and they seem to be popular. Obviously the iMac's screen would be better but the U2412M would still be pretty good right? Some final questions: Is installing an additional SSD on a Mac Mini not advisable? I'm pretty mediocre in terms of computer knowledge and sure as hell not going to try on the iMac. Is it as simple as having another usable drive just appear once it's in or not so much? Is it worth losing Applecare/risking bricking the computer? Similarly is it not advisable to use an external hard drive in the same way as an internal drive? Should I not be installing applications on it? Any music people know if installing VSTs on an SSD is actually worth it as opposed to a HDD? (This is where a lot of space will be taken up) Also does anyone know how loud each computer is in relation to each other? I'm only doing amateur recording and don't have any baffling or sound isolation from the computer. I have the money for either at the moment (having expected to get the iMac) but the Mac Mini would come out as $1000 cheaper even including the new monitor, a trackpad and an additional 256GB SSD. Sorry for all those words, any help/advice/entirely new suggestions are very much appreciated!
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Dec 14, 2012 06:23
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The mac mini will take two hard drives just fine. You will however need the mac mini dual hard drive kit: http://www.ifixit.com/Apple-Parts/Mac-Mini-Dual-Hard-Drive-Kit/IF171-005 installation took about 20 minutes for me. As far as using a external hard drive to put apps on? No big deal there either. As far as ram goes, if you do go with the mini, keep the ram stock and save yourself 300$ on ram and upgrade it yourself. For warranty problems, just keep your old stuff and put it back if something dies? *note* The Mac mini supposedly does support 32gigs of ram, the only problem though is that there is only two DDR ports and nobody makes a 16gig 204pin DDR3 module yet.
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Dec 14, 2012 06:55
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Can't answer the audio specific stuff but can get the general tech nerd stuff, lotta  incoming:canned_fruit posted:From what I hear processor speeds aren't nearly as important as they used to be, but it would still be good to have the i7, therefore I would leave the Mac Mini as is but upgrade the iMac. Is this a good approach or is the difference between 2.3 and 3.4 GHz really quite big? quote:Plus the more I think about the Fusion Drive the less I like it. It sounds like you can't designate where on the SSDs things are and sounds a bit risky too in that if one drive fails both fail. Also if it's constantly reading/writing to and from the SSD won't that significantly reduce its lifespan? . Sure it's risky, but I figure that's partially mitigated by one part being a (hopefully reliable) SSD. Granted still less reliable the SSD itself, but if you needed the space of the platter drive to begin with i'm not sure it's a huge deal.And as far as I could tell from reading the Ars article a little back, it sounded like everything went on the SSD until it filled up before doing the whole moving data around trick. It'd be no worse than using the SSD alone, but worse than separate dual drives when writing to the platter (since it'd be writing to the SSD first). Considering some people have done stress tests going into the petabytes I'm not too concerned about it, but again this could be another audio specific issue to tackle (like I imagine y'all do a lot of writes to disk with your work like video people). quote:Finally the graphics card. I honestly don't know what effect it has apart from helping with games/movie making etc. quote:I've already ordered a new Dell U2412M for the Mac Mini but I think I can probably sell that for about the same price I got it since I got it quite cheap and they seem to be popular. Obviously the iMac's screen would be better but the U2412M would still be pretty good right?  (and yeah those are fine iirc)quote:Is installing an additional SSD on a Mac Mini not advisable? (edit: least painful TB option is this thing which is hackable with the help of a hair dryer/heat gun, $165!, or if you want more 2.5" drives there's this thing for a bunch more...but hey they both come with a TB cable, a $50 value!) As for external vs internal use, there's a lot of "it depends" with that. Mac OS is pretty good about not giving much of a drat about where you launch stuff from (you can boot off externals no problem even), but some software suites don't like being anywhere but their default install location, or at the least on the boot drive. quote:Also does anyone know how loud each computer is in relation to each other? japtor fucked around with this message at 09:08 on Dec 14, 2012 |
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Dec 14, 2012 07:35
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Awesome, thanks for all the info. I think I've pretty much decided on a Mac mini at this point. Checking the Geekbench score, a maxed out mini only gets about 1000 less than a maxed iMac. Interestingly the bump from 2.3 to 2.6GHz has about the same difference in score as the maxed mini to maxed iMac, so for $100 I think I'll definitely do that after all. Granted, I'm not too sure how Geekbench works and I'm pretty sure it doesn't take GPU into account. Hopefully graphics won't be an issue. I get along fine at the moment and the integrated graphics will still be better than my current discrete card. The fact that the mini can support 32GB RAM makes me happy too, and means that I'll be able to upgrade it should I need to once 16GB sticks of RAM eventually come out. I think I will go for an external hard drive over installing one myself, that one you listed japtor looks pretty good, although I'm not sure if Thunderbolt would have any benefit over USB 3.0. From what I read it should be limited by the drive speed rather than transfer speed (for mechanical drives at least). japtor posted:Why'd you order if you haven't decided yet Impulse buy, sort of. There was a deal on the Dell website giving 30% off with literally an hour left. Checking Ebay, the monitors seem to go for $40 more than what I paid and the RRP is like $120 more so hopefully it will be worth it even if I change my mind.
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Dec 14, 2012 11:47
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I love my Dell U2412. I just wish it had usb 3.0 ports. Otherwise I have no real complaints. Matte is really nice too.
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Dec 14, 2012 13:15
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The touchpad on my Mid-2009 15" MBP is beginning to act up. The tap-to-click function occasionally takes a couple of tries to work, seemingly at random. The adjustment screw under the battery has failed to help. If I want to replace this, do I need the entire top case or just the touchpad assembly? And I should probably replace the battery as long as it's open. What's the best source for OEM (not cheap fire hazard Chinese poo poo) batteries?
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Dec 14, 2012 17:36
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27" Teardown from iFixIt Dang.
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Dec 14, 2012 19:17
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Link? Can't find it on their site, twitter, or anywhere. Premature celebration: looks like the same MXM graphics & heat pipe! Hooray Kepler for older iMacs!
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Dec 14, 2012 19:45
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Is it true the memory in the 21" iMac is not user replaceable and the 27" is?
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Dec 14, 2012 19:48
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| # ? Jun 7, 2024 21:34 |
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Legdiian posted:Is it true the memory in the 21" iMac is not user replaceable and the 27" is? I don't think it's soldered to the board, but the screen is glued on rather than having magnets hold it-- so while it may be user serviceable, it's not easily accessed, especially without a heat gun and a ridiculous amount of trouble.
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Dec 14, 2012 19:50
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