Are Mac Mini refurbs a good deal? Relaible?

I've purchased three minis, two Mac Pros, two MacBooks and a MacBook Pro as refurbs. They have been just as reliable, if not more reliable, than buying new. It was said before: you get the same warranty and AppleCare options as if you were buying new. I would not purchase a refurb from anyone but Apple though. There can be some side benefits too, you just have to be lucky I guess. One of the minis I ordered was only supposed to have an 80GB hdd and 1GB RAM, when it was delivered, I was delighted to see that it had a 120GB hdd and 2GB RAM. One of the Mac Pros was supposed to have the 7300GT card but shipped with the 1900XT upgrade. I called Apple to see if there was some mistake, but was told not to worry about it.
I would recommend buying a refurb if you are comfortable with it.
D.

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Mac mini refurbs?

Hope it isnt a problem posting a similar thread as on the older mini pages...
I am dying to get a mac mini refurb.
I thought I had snagged one on the AppleStore refurb pages but until you have it in the shopping cart and see a confirm purchase it can go byebye. I fumbled getting my credit card and UGH!!!
Anyone know of another source for refurb minis than the apple store?
btw, what are the minimum specs I need of a mini to use the 20" AppleCinema Display LCD (model # A1081) that has been sitting around waiting for its mini mate!
Thanks for any info.

btw, what are the minimum specs I need of a mini to use the 20" AppleCinema Display LCD (model # A1081) that has been sitting around waiting for its mini mate!
The base model should be fine. And it should ship with an Apple min-DVI to DVI adapter, so you should be plug & play!
Dah•veed

Are mac minis 40megahertz compatible

are mac minis and iphones 40mghzt compatioble?

According to this http://support.apple.com/kb/ht4199 the 2.4 GHz wi-fi should be set to 20 MHz and 5 GHz should be set to 20 MHz and 40 MHz.

Getting mac min to look good on Sony Wega 30" HDTV CRT (KV-30HS420

Got a new mac mini (Intel 1.83 GHz) and am hooking it up to a Sony Wega 30" HDTV CRT (model no. KV-30HS420) using an DVI to HDMI cable. No problems selecting input and getting an image, but at 1280 x 720 the desktop looks horrible. Turning off "overlace" gets all of my desktop back in view, but everything is blurry and it is simply not acceptable for my 78 year old father.
Is it simply not possible to get a descent image on this set? Should I just opt for buying him a wide screen flat panel display?
Please advise.
--ron

Unfortunately a CRT-based HDTV is never going to look very good when used as a computer monitor. You will probably need to get a nice LCD TV for your father.
How far away will he sit from the TV? Even if the screen were clear, as it will be with an LCD, there are still limits to what can be seen when you are too far away. Keep that in mind.

Mac Mini or iMac good for graphic apps?

I currently have an older G4, dual processor, 450 MHz, 768mb RAM running Tiger. I'm a graphic designer working mainly with Quark, Freehand, Photoshop. I'm not a heavy Photoshop user. I'm trying to decide if I should upgrade to a G5 tower, or if the new iMacs or Mac Mini would work for me. I've heard that the Mac Mini could be a step backwards for my type of use. Any informed opinions would greatly help. Obviously speed is not my number one concern, but I wouldn't want to be slower! I do have an external CD/DVD burner and I need to keep my external ZIP drive.
Thanks,
Kristi

The Mac Mini may not be good for your use (Intel Macs in gerneral) do not have a native version of Photoshop (PPC only app so it would run under PPC emulation), so unless you have 1+GB RAM it would run slow, not as slow as on your current machine though so you might not notice the way some others might. The Mac Mini (even the core solo 1.5Ghz) will be much faster than your current machine, any modern Mac would be.I would go for an iMac since it, IMO, is going to be a better buy, since it doesn't cost that much more, and is a top of the line consumer machine. If you don't do much Photoshoping the G5 Power Mac is overkill, IMO. You may even want to look at refurb G5 iMacs if you want to save a little money.

Someone dropped a friend's Mac Mini a few inches while it was not running, and today someone else slid it a few inches with a bang against a desk edge while it was running. I ran a disk verify and it's okay, but how tough are Mac Mini hard drives?

Am I being a little paranoid about hard drive failure like a 1980s relic, or are chances good that a year or so's been knocked off the life of this thing?
Thanks,
L
P.S. Wasn't me.

With platter-based hard drives, as long as they aren't powered up and spinning, drops have little-to-no impact. If it were dropped while the read/write heads were moving across the platters, that's when you might see a problem.
these machines use standard hard drives that you can by from any website or electronics store. they aren't tougher (or weaker) than any other, so you should apply the same amount of care that you would with any other system.

Mac Mini good starting choice?

Hello fellow members, I was thinking of changing from Windows PC to a Mac Mini is the Mac Mini a good Mac to start off with. I have never ever touched a Mac PC and really want one. Am I thinking in the right direction? any advice?
Thanks Rich

Rich,
The Mac Mini is a good starting point only if you already have an acceptable Display, Keyboard, and Mouse.
If you don't have a Display, Keyboard and Mouse that are the size and condition that you can live with, then I would suggest an iMac at $1199 which comes with 20 inch display, keyboard, and mouse.
If you have to buy the Mac Mini, Display, Keyboard, and Mouse, then the price can get way up there real quick. An iMac would be a better buy in this case in my opinion.
Joseph Kriz

Mac Mini v iMac as Media Centre

Quick question (sorry - being a pest today)
I already have a powerbook G4 (which I'll upgrade in a year or so) but I was all set to buy a mac mini for use as a media centre with Front Row to play my DVDs, movie files, iTunes stuff etc.
However, I'm just seeing that the iMacs are not that much more expensive plus they are higher spec.
Is there any particular reason why I should pick the mac mini over the imac as a media centre (other than that it is cheaper)?
I'm just thinking that it would be handy having the imac display on for running the main stuff in front row etc, then when I want to watch a video, I just play it on the second display attached to the iMac (ie my 32" LCD TV). I would leave th iMac running 24/7, never sleeping, with just the display sleeping, and set up EyeTV on the iMac etc.....
Any comments?
David

Hello again! I have an Intel iMac set-up as my "media center" now. One thing to keep in mind about the iMac is the fact that it has a built-in screen. Front Row will only display on the "main" display (the display that contains the Dock and menu bar) if you have two screens. If you want your Front Row to display on the TV, it will have be the "main" display or it will have to "mirror" the main display. For me, with the HDTV and the computer only five feet apart, it's a little annoying to see the same thing displayed on both screens at the same time (with mirroring turned on) and the audio coming out from behind the TV (where the stereo is centered). I don't really want the Dock and menubar to appear on the TV and not the iMac's screen when I'm actually using the iMac as a computer and switching the two around got a bit frustrating for me.
Both the DVD Player application and the EyeTV software can display the video on a separate screen, but Front Row has no preferences to change, so you can't tell it to display on the other screen. So, depending on your physical arrangement of the two screens, this may or may not be an issue for you.
The Mac mini would only be able to have the TV as the display. As long as you're not looking to browse the Web and do e-mail on the Mac mini, an HDTV should make a very good display for your media. Mac OS X 10.4 allows you to turn on VNC sharing so you could download some free software to remote control your Mac mini from the PowerBook when you needed to do something that the Apple remote can't control. But, you will need a keyboard and mouse to set it up the very first time.
So, if you're only looking for a media center and not a complete desktop computer, the Mac mini is a good option. The iMac should be able to handle the job well, but depending on your physical situation, you may or may not encounter some slightly annoying configurations. Since Front Row will be included for all compatible Macs when Mac OS X 10.5 ships, we might hope there'll be an update for Front Row that will allow you to select which screen Front Row displays on. But, that remains to be seen.
-Doug

Mac Mini audio probelms

Hi guys I'm having trouble with a intel CD Mac mini. For no apparent reason it's decided to think there are no sound devices. I've never seen this kind of thing before and I'm hoping that it isn't a hardware fault 'cause as far as I know the audio is integrated onto the motherboard.
I already did a backup and fresh install. didn't solve the problem. That's what is making me think hardware issue.
I did add some new ram about 5 or 6 months ago but this only happened recently. Also did a hardware test with the restore cd utility and found no problems or faults.
specs are: Mac Mini | Intel CD 1.83 GHz, 1.25GB RAM, 80GB HDD, Mac OS 10.4.11
Ill put up some more info when I can.

Xavier,
If your system profiler does not list "Intel High Definition Audio" and instead says no audio device detected - then you might just need to have someone carefully open the mini and reattach the ribbon cable. It has to be removed to upgrade RAM or the HD - and I had my mini at a very good tech, but it came loose after 5 months. I was moving the mini the other day and perhaps jostled it, but it does want to pop up over time.
Someone that works on macs should have a nice tool to open the mini and it really takes 5 minutes total to reconnect that cable and put it back together. No parts needed...
If this doesn't fix it - you might have a failure of some component, but I was happy that reseating the cable in the connector was all that I needed...
Good luck!
Mike

Whether samsung monitor SYNC Master B2230 is compatible to Mac mini

MAC MINI CONNECTED WITH SAMSUNG MONITOR SYNC MASTER B2230 TEXT IS BLURRY

AMOS HYD wrote:
MAC MINI CONNECTED WITH SAMSUNG MONITOR SYNC MASTER B2230
Yes a Samsung B2230 is compatible, it has both DVI and VGA inputs if I am correct.
The question is, what adapter and cable connection are you using..?
1. The Apple HDMI to DVI adapter that came with the Mac Mini and a good DVI cable.
2. A MiniDisplay Port to DVI adapter (if so, what brand adapter) and a good DVI cable.
3. A MiniDisplay Port to VGA adapter (if so, what brand adapter) and a good VGA cable.
4. Or some other adapter to adapter and cable configuration.....?
AMOS HYD wrote:
TEXT IS BLURRY
Go to: Apple > System Preferences > Displays > select the Display tab > for Resolution: > select Best for Display.
Then if it is still blurry, consult your Samsung User Manual and adjust the setting using Monitor's Menu.
If you do not have the User Manual, go to > Support - LCD B2230 | Samsung Monitors

HT204291 Apple TV 3rd generation. Bad image when mirroring second user's desktop from Mac mini 2012

Hello All,
There are Mac Mini 2012 with OS X 10.8.2 and Apple TV 3rd G with 5.2 (6010.96). There are 2 users on the Mac.
The problem is when I start Mac Mini and log on with one user I am able to mirror the desktop. When I switch to another user and try to mirrow the desktop, I see bad image (image full of green artifacts) with good sound.
One user is admin. It does not matter which user is sharing the screen first. It is always the second one that will not be able to mirror the screen till Mac Mini is rebooted.
At the same time if I try to airplay something from iPhone or iPad, it goes well.
Please help to solve the problem.
Kind Regards,
Kirill

With update to OS X Mavericks the problem is gone

Before I buy my Mac Mini

Although the answers to the questions below will probably not sway my decision to buy a Mini, they may well enhance the experience even more.
With Boot Camp, can I load Windows MCE?
I currently have all of my DVD's ripped to several terrabytes of hard disc [external] and use an extention of MCE called my movies which allows me to see trailors, artwork etc for all of my ripped DVD's, understanding that if the former answer is positive then this would not be an issue, if the answer id negative, will front row "see" and "play" these DVD's on my external drives? and will I be able to use a similar MAC application to see cover artwork etc?
I notice that the Mini has an optical audio out, so I can feed this to my AV AMP, is this 5:1?
thx in anticipation
PC Windows XP

Hi Again ani4ani
You said:
"Just for clarity, assuming that the Mini sees my external drives, would the DVD's be played via iTunes or Front Row? Or is Front Row just another view of iTunes?"
OS X plays DVD's in either of two ways. You can either watch them on your desktop and resize the playback window accordingly using DVD Player, or you can have them instantly displayed full screen from the push of a button in front row. They are not played in iTunes! Front row is a media centre like application that ties all of your audio, pictures and video together in one easy to control, graphic rich environment on screen. It generally acts the same way that media centre does in windows, only it looks nicer and works better!
You Said:
"Would I be able to see DVD artwork as I can see in MCE now or is it simple cut-n-paste like I would for CD album artwork which I can do in "Windows" iTunes now?"
I don't actually think that OS X displays DVD artwork for some reason, however I may be wrong. Take a look at the mac mini front row demonstration here http://www.apple.com/uk/macmini/frontrow.html just to see an example of what you would be getting.
You Said:
"My external drives are obviously full of CD's in WMA format along with my ripped DVD's. I can assume that these would just be "seen" by iTunes and / or Front Row and wouldn't have to anything special to the drives. These drives are USB2 / 1394 btw
iTunes for Mac does not import WMA files, and therefore you would not be able to play them on a mac mini. The good news is, however, that WMA files can be imported into iTunes for Windows. You could simply import all of your WMA music into iTunes on your windows pc, select which audio file type you would like it to be converted to, and then the new audio format will be compatible with iTunes on the mac. It's a little confusing and a mystery why they don't allow WMA support in iTunes on the mac. You can read this article for a little more help - http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=107958
If you need to ask for anything else clarrifying clearing up etc, dont be afraid to ask!
Hope that I may have been of further help
-Pos

Mac mini won't visit websites or do ping from the terminal.

I'm having some issues with my internet connection.
The Mac mini does have good wireless connection to my router (a Belkin) but most of the time it won't open any websites (or even ping xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx from the terminal). Then suddenly it will and works for some minutes and then it won't again.
I can connect to my wireless router via 192.168.2.1 and it says the internet connection is on.
Does anyone have any idea on what the problem can be and perhaps how to solve it?
The Airport in the Mac mini is a Broadcom BCM43xx 1.0 (5.10.91.27).

Welcome to the discussion forums!
During the times that you can't ping xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx, are you able to connect to your wireless router via 192.168.2.1 ?
If yes, then it seems the difficulty is somewhere between the router, your dsl/cable modem, and your ISP (Internet Service Provider).
When things are working OK, are you able to ping xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx successfully?

Mac mini and Apple TV Question?

Hey,
     I want to make "The ultimate entertainment center" and need to know what display i should look for.
the items i need to hook up to it are:
     -Mac mini
     -Apple TV
     -PS3
     -PS2
     -Over the air antenna
I don't think a Apple Display works for this but I don't know what display I should get. Also, I'm looking for a cheaper display, with a 15-27" screen.
Thanks!!

Also, they don't all have to be connected at once.

How can I remove a CD in Combo Drive of Mac Mini?

This is a Mac Mini operating on OS 10.58. I have a CD in the combo drive, and it apparently has something recorded on it. I think this CD had started to be burned and I stopped it. The computer indicates that this CD is not blank. The result is that it will not eject, even after several attempts using the small eject arrow at the top of the desktop, the use of apple-E, and after repeated efforts with a complete shutdown -- still the disk is stuck in the drive. I suspect that it's in a loop situation, where it tries to run the CD with not effect, but it also cannot eject it.
I notice a small black square, appearing to be black plastic, at the far right end of the CD/DVD player slot at the top of the Mac Mini. In the old days there was such a hole into which one could stick a straight wire, like a heavy duty straightened paper clip, and it would physically eject a stuck disk. Is there such a thing on this Mac Mini?
Any good suggestions, please!? Thanks!!
George

Five ways to eject a stuck CD or DVD from the optical drive
Ejecting the stuck disc can usually be done in one of the following ways:
1. Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the left mouse button until the disc ejects.
2. Press the Eject button on your keyboard.
3. Click on the Eject button in the menubar.
4. Press COMMAND-E.
5. If none of the above work try this: Open the Terminal application in your Utilities folder. At the prompt enter or paste the following:
/usr/bin/drutil eject
If this fails then try this:
Boot the computer into Single-user Mode. At the prompt enter the same command as used above. To restart the computer enter "reboot" at the prompt without quotes.

Are Mac Mini refurbs a good deal? Relaible?

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