Upgrading My Apple
While playing with Ajax I suddenly realised how out of date my Mac is. As they release 10.4 ("Tiger") of OS X I am still stuck on 10.2 ("Pussy"?). This doesn't bother me so much, as its main use is as a jukebox. Its other use is testing sites in Safari (and for the ultra-fussy clients - IE on Mac). The version of Safari I am using is 1.0.3. The current version is 1.2, which requires OS X 10.3. It feels like I'm stuck on the equivalent of IE4 and Windows 98. Time for an upgrade!
As well as getting up to date I want to get rid of the iBook, which no longer serves its purpose. There's no need for the extra screen on my desk. My plan is to get rid of the iBook and replace it with a Mac Mini.
The Mac Mini is cheap. Partly because it comes with no KVM. Not a problem for me as I'll just plug it in to my KVM switch. If anything it's going to makes my desk a tidier place.
Now, to the figures. The model I want has a 1.25Ghz processor and 40GB HDD costing a mere £289 (ex VAT). What it doesn't have enough of is RAM - with a default 256MB. You can upgrade to 512MB for an extra £50 or to 1GB for £220. Pricey, no? A quick trip to my favourite RAMshop and I found it a lot cheaper. Crucial will sell 512MB for £35 and 1GB for £90. An amazing difference in price. Why do manufacturers still insist on ripping us off for RAM upgrades?
Obviously I am going to upgrade the RAM myself. Apparently this isn't easy but is possible. As much as I loath the idea of prizing something so well made apart with "putty knifes" there's no way I am paying more than double what I need to for extra RAM.
So, unless anybody has a good reason why I shouldn't, I will be ordering myself a Mac Mini this time tomorrow. Unless I get too excited and do it later today. I was going to order it last Wednesday but the girl I spoke to at Apple only went as far as saying it would "probably" ship with Tiger (due out that Friday).
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I love my Mini. I'm a first time Mac user, so there was a little learning curve. I opted for the 80GB drive and faster cpu. The default 256MB RAM is definitely not enough. The Mini has one memory slot, so I wish I had just ordered the extra ram installed before delivery. My only complaint (which is minor) is that the combo dvd/DC-R drive seems very noisy when a disk is playing.
How much do you want for your iBook?
Noise was a factor in my decision Ed. I Googled for it and found enough people who said the Mac Mini was almost silent in operation. Not too worried about the CD noise as I won't be using it much.
Tyron. Not sure. Just looked on eBay and found this very similar model {Link} with an hour to go and at £360. It does have OS 10.3 and mine's only 10.2! That one's a 900MHz whereas mine is 700. Although mine has twice the RAM and *does* have a wireless card inside. I'll have a think and let you know.
i'll wait for when they'll ship it with tiger
unoacaso. It doesn't now?
Jake -
Couldn't agree with you more about getting new stuff. Doesn't really matter what it is. If it's delivered in a box ... oooooh fun.
Definitely keep us posted on the Mac, especially from a home networking persepective. I've been feeling like it's time to dive in to the Mac world myself. There's an Apple store waaaaay too close to my house and I'm afraid I'll be walking out one day with a Mac and a 60GB iPod photo.
-- Mike
If you're only using it for a Jukebox, and the occasional testing of websites in Mac browsers... I don't believe it's really neccesary to add more memory. My 1.2GHz iBook only has 256, and although I struggle when having lots of browsers windows etc. etc. open, it is fine for those two purposes you have in mind.
I'd wait if I were you before ordering the memory, then see how it goes!
Mike. Which part of home networking? The iBook sits fairly happily in my network. Not perfectly but it's there.
ChrisJ. For an extra £30 I'd rather just add the RAM and never have to worry about slow opening windows.
Noise(2)
Other than the noisy combo drive, the Mini is virtually silent. Very pleasant compared to my Wintel machine with 3 loud fans going at all times.
Nothing can quite prepare you for when the box arrives and you realize how small this thing really is. Definitely a very nice early x-mas gift.
Enjoy!
Jake -
Integration with wintel machines. For example: I have a external USB HD hanging off of my wintel desktop. How does the mac talk to that machine so I can access the files on the external HD. Stuff like that.
Strap a chain to it, add some stripes or dress it up as a can of spam. There's gotta be someone out there modding those lily white bricks. Personally I don't get the Mactraction phenom. Some guy at work here was trying to give his Powerbook voice commands and it could say the time. Simply amazing. :)
As I type this, FedEx just dropped off his Tiger package and the graphic on the box seems to shout out Xbox, albeit in charcoal gray. Maybe they went monochrome again, who knows. Anything to be different.
Me? I'll mod a Moulinex toaster and jam a shuttle pc inside using the bread slots for cd drives. Maybe the mini might be a better fit, who knows.
Apple just updated their iMac line, I wonder how much time apple will wait before updating the mac mini (RAM mostly)
I received my copy of Tiger on Friday but I haven't had the chance to even open the fed-ex box yet. I'm still wet behind the ears with my mac but it's what I consider another necessary tool.
Mike -
One piece of advice, get the ipod and run. I ordered an ipod and a powerbook after looking at the ipods online ($$$ - OUCH). I really enjoy both though and I had to replace my aging notebook anyway, kind of.
Jake -
I ordered RAM from Crucial right after I ordered the powerbook. I suggest you do the same. No sense in any new computer only having 256MB RAM, that falls in the same category as gaming systems coming with only one remote. Enjoy.
-John
*I don't need a mac-mini*
*I don't need a mac-mini*
Jerry - Dito, I've not spent any money on technology for ages now (altho i'm sure my other half will disagree!), very hard to resist temptation...
Jake - what have you done?!!
Mike. Apple machine should be able to "see" the extra HDD via a Windows share and using the Samba protocol. That's how I connect to the Windows server that shares all my MP3s, which are mainly used by iTunes on the Mac.
Jerry. You DO need a Mac. You know it's true!
Jake, yes it does ship with tiger now!
ps: I would like to know what kvm switch do you use...
unoacaso. I use an ATen model called CS-154, which is so old it's no longer listed on their site {Link}
Might be a good time to upgrade now as my KVM only supports PS/2 mice and the Mini is USB only.
Mind you. I've now ordered the Mac Mini and opted for a keyboard and mouse as extras (they look SO cool I couldn't resist). Ordered 521MB of RAM from Crucial as well. Should have it all within 3-7 busyness days,
521 MB of ram? Tres exotica. ;-)
Letsee... $8000 laser sculpting work station, $5000 commercial lawn mower, $4500 goat fence, $900 Digital SLR or $499 for Mac mini. I think I can guess which one wins for budget. :-) Now comes convincing 'the boss'. If I get the fence, I don't need the mower, but at a tenth the cost, how can the mac-mini be resisted. Plus, she'll probably be the one using it!
Self control, where art thou??!
One good way to get rid of noisy RAM is to try a different brand or speed. Something helps that I know of is a little WD-40.
Further generations back, G3, could be noisy in the RAM department. G3s had energy pulses going to the memory bays which could make a little racquet.