I'm looking at picking myself up an Intel based Mac Mini. Currently I've got a G4 1.42Ghz Mini with 512Meg RAM in it that is serving as my home media center. The Intel Mini wouldn't be a replacement for the G4.

What I intend to use it for is as a home office PC hooked up to a 21" Blueberry Studio Display that I picked up from work along with a B&W G3 (trying to use the G3 for this purpose now, but it just can't keep up). It'll primarily running OS X but also running Win XP (haven't decided if I want to use Boot Camp or Parallels yet). I'll be using Adobe Photoshop CS 2 (initially, until CS3 comes out), Dreamwaever 8, some other productivity apps and of course XP when the need arises.

My main questions is in regards to the performance difference between the Core Solo and Core Duo chips. Does the second core really make that much difference? Is it worth the extra couple of hundred? Does anyone have any real world experience with both?

I'm leaning towards the Duo, but I want to make sure that it's worth the extra cash. I'll be running a Gig of RAM and probably a 100gig internal disc regardless of which chip I go for.

BR,
TFS

Almost double the speed for $300. Seemed like a good deal to me, so that's the way I went.

Edit :: Btw, why the internal HD? It'll look nicer, but for the same price you'll be able to pick up a much bigger 3.5" HD and case...

I was thinking of sticking with an internal drive for the sake of simplicity. I've already got a second drive hooked up to the G4 and it's in a Nexstar NST-370GX. So I might just pick up another one of them when I need more space.

interesting story about the core solo, the core solo is actually a core duo. let me explain.

the core solo is the same die as the core duo however, they where faulty so they just turned off the faulty core to pass quality and safety control.

so there you have it, if your buying a core solo, your actually buying a defective core duo.

talk about recycling

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(designers_hub @ Aug 8 2006, 03:28 PM) [snapback]202597[/snapback]</div>
is that so?

well im going to order my mac mini duo now cya all :P

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(designers_hub @ Aug 8 2006, 02:58 PM) [snapback]202597[/snapback]</div>
Seems like a good solution to me.

a core duo is soo soo sweet, its like bread and soft butter.

but you should wait for the core 2 updates as it will bring significant performance boost.