The right computer for PP (Mac Mini for processing)

jung

I am trying to get my business off of the ground and I am looking at buying a computer for PP, but I have a son on the way so I can not shell out $2K for the Mac book Pro and for that matter $1,300 for any mac book. I just started looking at the Mac mini, and it looks like it could do the trick for a few years until I start making more money then I could add a Mac book, has anyone had any experience with the "mini". I am curious as to how it works with CS3, light room and other powerful editing software.

Thanks,

DoctorIt

Hi jung,
I've moved this thread over to the Dig Darkroom Gear forum - where you will get more appropriate answers/discussion. If the advice you get here convinces you this is the right machine for you, come on back to the flea market with a specific "WTB" thread.

For an answer: the Mini is the "oldest" Mac in the lineup, and as such, there is much speculation that it may be discontinued altogether, or get an update soon. That being said, this can be a bit of an advantage since you can get a slightly used Mini that isn't lacking much from a brand new one (except warranty, etc). As for its performance, sure it can't hold as much RAM as the bigger Macs (this is one of the key factors), but with the Intel chip, it will still work just fine with CS3. People will have different answers, and of course you can go "faster", but it will most definitely work just fine.

thanks,

cdub

careful...
I'm not a pro, but my opinion is, be careful spending any dollar amount on a computer that might be insufficient for the work. Because $500 spent on something that doesn't work is $500 more than you should have spent.

I've got Aperture 2 on a 2 y.o. 20" iMac Intel Core Duo - 2.16 gz and 3gb of RAM. Sounds like a solid setup, yes? Well, even it chugs at times, but works good...

Here's the kicker - I had Aperture 2 running on my 1 y.o. MacBook 13" - 2.2gz and 2gb of RAM and it barely worked, crashing or stalling more often than not.

Point is, if your system set up is close to sufficient, it might not make the grade - whether it's Aperture, LR or Photoshop. Plus, consider the amount of work you'll be doing - are your pictures big? Are you committing yourself to dozens at a time? Hundreds? Just because your computer looks like it will fundamentally work, doesn't mean it'll realistically work for you, what with perhaps having to give your computer 5 minutes to complete every process. Also, increasingly it seems, PP software is requiring a capable graphics card in addition to tons of RAM and processing speed - this is why my MacBook didn't cut the mustard I think.

Good luck! And congrats on the new baby!

CWSkopec

Well... OK... so I'm a PC guy... I've always had them and almost always used them for school and work... Now I have used Macs and they're nice... But there's nothing on them you can't get with a PC...

If price is a concern (and it sounds like it is) you will find a PC system far cheaper than the comprable Mac system. I don't want to start a PC vs. Mac war here, but you may want to go with a PC for now, and if you don't like it, when you've got more money you'll be able to transfer to a Mac. Unlike the olden days when Macs and PCs used completely different code and you couldn't transfer files from one to the other, the underlying code is so similar today that migrating from one to the other isn't even an issue.

Just my 2 cents...

cmason

My experience is that the Mac Mini can be used for PP and Lightroom. It works, as I have tried it. However, it suffers when loading multiple images in PP, and when doing exports in LR. It is slow, not unmanageable, but slow. Since it only has the Intel basic graphics, and adding memory is very limited, there really isn't anyway to improve it much. Plus, you have to get a monitor if you dont have one...more $$. In my opinion, you would be better off with a Windows option, as you can get more memory and dedicated video for similar $$.

On the other hand, my iMac runs these apps beautifully. It has 128k dedicated graphics, and adding memory was a snap (3GB). I run PP and Lightroom and tons of other stuff and it never blinks an eye. Oh and it is a 2GHz Core2 Duo.

There is a refurb 20" iMac for $999 on the apple store, so you may want to consider that option. It is 2.4Ghz Core2Duo core, dedicated graphics, and a monitor all included. Great way to star IMHO if you must have Mac.

If you are open to Windows, the Dell Outlet has amazing deals as well. Any Core2Duo, or of course quad cores, plus dedicated graphic card, 2+GB memory and you are all set. Harddrives can be easily added to any machine, so dont worry so much about that.

catspaw

I've a 2.5 year old mac mini with no upgrades (except extra RAM at purchase) that runs LR and PS just fine. Sure, it's not an omg-zippy machine but it's more than decent enough for the massive number of photos I work with (typically in batches of 20 but I upload in batches of 1000+). I definitely haven't felt like I need to replace it any time soon at all. With a 23inch monitor, it has a sleek feel to it and more than enough kick for anything I need it for :ivar

moggi1964

On a budget I would suggest a PC if you have the software that is appropriate.

You can get a lot for your money if you have $600 and keep your eyes peeled on sites like fatwallet.com and slickdeals.net.

Good luck.

colourbox

i just wanted to say, be sure to price the Mini at the spec you need, which is not the base spec on the site. You'll need to max out the RAM and you might want a bigger hard drive. Keep in mind that the disk inside the mini is a slower, little laptop drive that can't be ordered with more than 160GB, on the small side these days. You might want to add external hard drives to compensate for the limited processor and RAM in the mini, such as one external to store your mass of photos, and another (preferably FireWire) as a Photoshop scratch disk. Getting Photoshop's scratch file off the mini's wimpy internal disk should make a noticeable performance difference.

It might even make sense to add one of these fitted external drives that also adds ports to the mini.

But after you spec it out the way you need it, see how close the total price is to a low-end or refurbished iMac, which comes with a far larger and faster drive, dedicated video card, higher RAM ceiling, DVD burner, decent widescreen monitor, keyboard, and mouse. There are $999 refurb iMacs at the Apple Store. The mini may turn out to be penny wise and pound foolish.