Mac mini HDTV update

Since I wrote the last piece on the Mac mini and its potential as a media center, there's been a great deal of debate on whether it could do the job or not. I've now had the chance to play with the Core Duo version for a couple of weeks and am happy to report that it plays 1080p content flawlessly.

Where my iMac G5 and Mac mini G4 stutter and choke on HD content, the Intel mini sails through. So despite the fact that Apple's System Requirements for HD content on QuickTime 7 call for a 1.83GHz Core Duo, the Mac mini does the job nicely.

Some people have suggested that the integrated Intel graphics chip in the mini might disdavantage it as a media center. Not so. In fact, crunching video is much more of a processor intensive task than a graphics chip task, and besides, the GMA950 in the Intel mini is a step forward from the Radeon 9200 in the previous mini. An example of this is the mini's ability to display the ripple effect in Mac OS X Tiger's Dashboard and its support for the gorgeous Front Row user interface, complete with reflections and transparency.

The only thing I would say, is that if you buy a mini, whatever you use it for, upgrade the memory at purchase. This is because the Mac mini isn't easily upgradeable after-purchase and both the RAM slots are filled in the standard configuration. In fact, whether you choose 512MB, 1GB, or 2GB, both slots are filled. This is because the memory is dual-channel and so its beneficial to install it in pairs. If you go for the 512MB version and then find you need more RAM in the future, you'll need to ditch both the installed 256MB chips and start from scratch.

In terms of using an Intel mini as an HDTV personal video recorder, El Gato has now updated EyeTV 2 to universal binary, meaning it will run natively on Intel Macs. So you can now watch and record HDTV on a Core Duo Mac mini using either one of El Gato's TV tuners or Miglia's TV Mini HD.

One other point worth noting is that the mini's audio out jack doubles as an analogue and digital output. By connecting an adaptor, you can hook the mini up to the optical input on an amplifier or home theater receiver and pass a Dolby Digital signal to it for decoding.