Refurbished Mac Minis starting at $429 with free shipping

[Kaido]

link

I don't know if the link will work since it may be session-based, but just go into the Apple Store online, click on the Refurb section on the right side, and click on the Mac button. Pricing is as follows:

$429 - 1.66 Core Duo, 512MB RAM, 60GB HDD, Combo drive (CD burner + DVD reader)
$479 - 1.83 Core Duo, 512MB RAM, 80GB HDD, Super Drive (DVD burner)
$649 - 1.66 Core Duo, 512MB RAM, 80GB HDD, Super Drive (DVD burner)

You can do quite a bit of upgrades to these things:

1. Processor: Yonah or Merom, up to 2.33ghz
2. Ram: Up to 2GB (2x1GB)
3. Hard drive: Any SATA 2.5" hard drive (200gb 7200rpm, 250gb 5400rpm, etc.)
4. DVD drive: 8x DVD burner, slimline Bluray drive, etc.
5. Wireless card: 802.11n + b/g

The best deal for hacking is the $429 deal. If you don't want to upgrade it, then the best deal is the $479 deal. You can also boot off external hard drives if you want for increased capacity and speed, although I would recommend Firewire over USB because Firewire gives more steady speed. NewerTech has a variety of drives that match the Mini, all the way up to a 1TB 7200rpm hard drive:

http://www.newertech.com/products/externalhd.php

You can also run Windows on these, either in Boot Camp (dual boot) or using virtualization in a package such as VMware's Fusion or Parallels' Desktop for Mac. I personally like Parallels the best; they update often and have a very useful and stable product:

http://www.parallels.com/en/products/desktop/

Anandtech has their very own Mac forum, so if you have any questions pop in and join us:

http://forums.anandtech.com/ca...atid=81&flcache=639843

You can check out more info on the Mini at Apple's official site:

http://www.apple.com/macmini/

The Mini comes with an integrated Intel GMA950 video card; while it's not designed for playing games, it excels at playing high-definition material. You will need an appropriate amount of ram and processor speed for that though. I have successfully played back 1080p movies on my Mini. The Mini can drive any monitor at up to 1920x1080, meaning you can use up to a 27" Dell LCD monitor or pretty much any HDTV set on the market. It makes a great set-top box with Front Row and the remote control is Logitech Harmony-compatible. You can output using HDMI, DVI, VGA, S-video, or Composite as well as optical or analog audio using the appropriate adapters. The Mini is Leopard compatible (OS X 10.5) and will be able to use the AppleTV's interface for multimedia in Front Row (hint: google "Backrow" if you want that feature now!). This is a great starter Mac for those who won't be doing any heavy 3D gaming and has plenty of expansion options.

 

[BuGG]

What some of the sites that sell upgraded processors for the mini s? Newegg? To up the DVD drove does one need the slim style drives? Im a newb to macs so I have no idea about its hardware. I have been intrested in a dual boot style setup. Are both hd and dvd drives sata?

 

[Kaido]

Originally posted by: BuGG
What some of the sites that sell upgraded processors for the mini s? Newegg? To up the DVD drove does one need the slim style drives? Im a newb to macs so I have no idea about its hardware. I have been intrested in a dual boot style setup. Are both hd and dvd drives sata?

Sure, Newegg would sell processor upgrades. The Mac Mini takes either a Yonah or Merom processor, nothing else. As far as the DVD drive goes, if it's going to be internal then yes it has to be a slim style drive. You can also do external, either USB or Firewire (I'd recommend Firewire), so you can go full-sized with that. The benefit is that you get better speeds plus you can do neat stuff like Lightscribe. Pretty much anything that works on Windows will work on a Mac. The hard drive is SATA and the DVD drive is IDE. The hard drive uses a standard SATA connection, so all you need is a special cable to use a 3.5" drive with that, if you feel like cutting apart the Mini to make a hole for it. The DVD drive requires a special adapter kit and you can use two full-sized drives with that, if you want one of those I have a friend who makes the kit for $60 or so. If you use a few full-sized drives then you'll need a seperate power supply because of the extra power requirements the full-sized drives have.

As far as dual boot goes, Boot Camp is Apple's app that lets you dual-boot. Right now it's in beta, but when Leopard comes out it will be the full version. Leopard is due out in October. What exactly do you want to dual-boot for? Parallels lets you do pretty much everything you would do dual-booting.

 

[eyeballs2]

see below

 

[eyeballs2]

Originally posted by: BuGG
What some of the sites that sell upgraded processors for the mini s? Newegg? To up the DVD drove does one need the slim style drives? Im a newb to macs so I have no idea about its hardware. I have been intrested in a dual boot style setup. Are both hd and dvd drives sata?

Excellent worded question, very professional... Based on your question, I'll bet you actually look like the avatar you chose.

 

[Spike]

Originally posted by: eyeballs2

Originally posted by: BuGG
What some of the sites that sell upgraded processors for the mini s? Newegg? To up the DVD drove does one need the slim style drives? Im a newb to macs so I have no idea about its hardware. I have been intrested in a dual boot style setup. Are both hd and dvd drives sata?

Excellent worded question, very professional... Based on your question, I'll bet you actually look like the avatar you chose.

At least he didn't double post...

Definitly a decent deal here, good enough that I might even consider getting one. I have been looking at these for a while now...

Thanks OP!

 

[jalaram]

$479 - 1.83 Core Duo, 512MB RAM, 80GB HDD, Super Drive (DVD burner)
$649 - 1.66 Core Duo, 512MB RAM, 80GB HDD, Super Drive (DVD burner)

I'm confused. Why is the slower chip more expensive?

 

[secretanchitman]

Originally posted by: jalaram

$479 - 1.83 Core Duo, 512MB RAM, 80GB HDD, Super Drive (DVD burner)
$649 - 1.66 Core Duo, 512MB RAM, 80GB HDD, Super Drive (DVD burner)

I'm confused. Why is the slower chip more expensive?

exactly what i was thinking....maybe its the 1.83Ghz c2d?

 

[iseestars]

You know I wonder about apple sometimes. You can buy a PC laptop with better specs than this that's new for the same price. I'm tempted to consider one of these, except for the fact that it's still a ripoff componenet for component. But yeah, I would like a way other than OSX86 to try a mac so I may bite anyway.... *shakes fist in anger at the fascist steve jobs and his dictatorial hardware policies*

 

[randomlinh]

Originally posted by: iseestars
You know I wonder about apple sometimes. You can buy a PC laptop with better specs than this that's new for the same price. I'm tempted to consider one of these, except for the fact that it's still a ripoff componenet for component. But yeah, I would like a way other than OSX86 to try a mac so I may bite anyway.... *shakes fist in anger at the fascist steve jobs and his dictatorial hardware policies*

those cheap ass laptops are cheap for a reason. they feel like they'll fall apart in 10 days (assuming you actually travel with it.. but if they just sit at home for grandma.. works out very nicely).

but yes, I still shake my fist at the lack of a true consumer mini tower.

if it were 399 I'd snap one up and throw another half gig in. perfect "apple tv"... albeit a bit pricey...

 

[Kaido]

Originally posted by: jalaram

$479 - 1.83 Core Duo, 512MB RAM, 80GB HDD, Super Drive (DVD burner)
$649 - 1.66 Core Duo, 512MB RAM, 80GB HDD, Super Drive (DVD burner)

I'm confused. Why is the slower chip more expensive?

It makes no sense to me at all. But heck, the other 1.66 is $429 and the 1.83 is only $50 more...it doesn't really make sense for the $649 model to even be there; a NEW base Mini is only $599...

 

[BuGG]

Haha actually when I wrote that I had a few in me. Kinda still do. Im sure you guys can follow what Im saying without burnin' a few cells. I want Dual boot cuz I never messed with any kinda mac software before and I want to give it a try. Been using Windows for so many years and I just want to dab a bit without giving up Windows. I was going to use it as a media player as well. So the HD needs to be on the large size. That extension unit that you put on top would be needed for a big HD right? I might just give this a wallop.