2008 Mac Pro Dual Quad vs 2011 Mac Mini
Hello,
I'm currently using a 2011 Mac Mini with 8gb ram. I have an opportunity to get a Mac Pro with dual 2.8GHz quad-core and 18 gigabytes of memory with 5.8 terabytes of internal hard drive storage. Will I see a speed improvement or loss? I use it for surfing the net, playing some games and occasional video editing.
Opinions?
Comments
If you play higher-end games and plan to upgrade the GPU then it would be better, otherwise not really. If it's the 2008 one here with the 2600XT:
http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/mac_pro/specs/mac-pro-eight-core-2.8-2008-specs.html
the CPU is about 30% faster than the 2011 mini but the mini GPU is 20% faster. If you get a 680 for ~$300, that would be 12x faster than the Mini for graphics:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Apple-Mac-Pro-GTX-680-2GB-CUDA-Video-Card-3-1-to-5-1-4K-GTX-770-GTX-780-/141503523323
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-HD-Graphics-4000.69168.0.html
http://www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-680.92915.0.html
It's easier to put an SSD and bulk storage into the MP. If you put in a 128-256GB SSD boot drive and a 680, you'd get a powerful machine. You can pick them up on eBay for $575 with the 8800:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/APPLE-MAC-PRO-Dual-Quad-8-core-2-8GHz-6GB-8800GT-Desktop-1TB-3-1-Wifi-BT-2008-/390999494354
If you've never owned one before, be aware that they are ridiculously heavy. If you want better performance than the Mini, another option to consider is a refurb MBP:
http://store.apple.com/us/product/FE293LL/A/refurbished-154-inch-macbook-pro-20ghz-quad-core-intel-i7-with-retina-display
It's a bit more expensive than a $600 MP but you get a warranty with it and the cost is the difference between what you buy it for and what you sell it for.