mlmorg Posted June 7, 2007 Share Posted June 7, 2007 Don't know if this is the right section...but I have been thinking about getting a mac mini for downloading/media center. I want to be able to remotely connect to the mini to download torrents etc. (as a server hub type deal) but also have it connected to my tv so that I can play back movies, tv shows, etc. I want it to be able to play back on hdtvs, surround sound, etc. (so that it can be used long into the future). I also want it to be able to connect to networks and play stuff off of other computers. Is the mac mini the right hardware for this? Will the mini be able to play back hd content? I'm not too worried about dvr capabilities etc. because I've never been that into it since I usually just torrent so much. What about the appletv? I wouldn't have thought that could do as much as the mac mini but I dunno. I guess I'm just looking for a piece of hardware that I can download a lot (so I'll have externals connected to it I assume) but also use as a media center (for shows, movies on the hardware) and possible dvr (but not necessary). Also, would dvds played on the mini be as good quality as a dvd player connected to an hdtv with hdmi? I know it wouldnt' be able to play hd dvds or blu ray but maybe in the future I could replace the existing drive in the mac mini with one of those? I hope people undersatnd exactly what I'm saying here. Or maybe if the mac mini cant do all this...then the mac mini for downloading/server hub and then the apple tv to connect to the tv? and then a dvd player? Anyway, any help would be appreciated, thanks! Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sarahbau Posted June 7, 2007 Share Posted June 7, 2007 I have a Mac Mini G4 doing all of this. The only thing in your list that mine can't do very well is play HD video. It's just too slow (it's the CPU, not the video card). A new Mini is somewhere around 2-3 times as fast as the G4 Mini, so it shouldn't have any problem with HD at all. There's no reason to get the AppleTV to connect to the TV unless you just want it for the interface and remote. Here's what I have mine doing: • Stores DVDs on external drives • Plays back DVDs locally • Plays DivX stuff in VLC over the network (stored on my main computer) • Allows other computers to stream DVDs from it • Use VNC to connect to it to control it remotely Some things to note: DVD quality is excellent. I think a standalone DVD player that could rival it would cost nearly as much as the Mini itself. There already is a Blu-Ray burner for MacBooks, so it wouldn't be hard to get one for the Mini. The only problem is I don't think there's currently any software for playing them on Macs yet. lol. Here's my Mini's page - http://sarahbau.webhop.org/mini/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mlmorg Posted June 8, 2007 Author Share Posted June 8, 2007 nice nice, i think im definitely going to go this route...maybe wait for *hopefully* new mac minis...if not, getting the old discontinued ones off ebay ha thanks very much for the reply...and that mini looks nice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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