360 or Mac Mini

[Noddy]

Simple question really. Come the sales, I'm either going to get a 360 (Premium or Elite) or I'm gunna get a Mac Mini and dual boot it with Vista.

What shall I go for peeps? Its a tough choice. Would games run on the Mac under Vista or not?

 

[Traxata]

Just go look at Vib's Mac pro, then laugh and you have your decision Noddy

 

[Noddy]

I've seen his mac pro - havn't got that much space for that. thats why its either the Mini or 360. I'm presuming that a number of games will run on the Mac then? (Vibs has turned me to the Mac after being quite reluctant about them)

 

[BiG D]

I wouldn't recommend Vista for gaming under any circumstances.

 

[Nanor]

Well if you're buying either of the two for the main purpose of gaming then I'd say X-Box.

 

[Noddy]

Yeah thats what I was thinking - gaming is going to be a major thing although I may just build myself a new pc as well.

You know what, hell to it, I'll take all 3

 

[Ronin Storm]

Worth noting that despite my love for my 360, the hardware is notoriously unreliable and if/when it fails you'll be without your 360 for a week or two while it is repaired. My latest one has been running for nearly a year, though, so maybe they've ironed out the kinks?

Personally, I fail to see the attraction of Macs, mini or otherwise.

Just for reference, THN focuses on PC gaming as its core but as more people acquire 360s I guess there's more scope for 360-based events.

 

[BiG D]

On the hardware reliability, I think the current gen 360's have that stuff ironed out now. I've got an elite, and I don't expect any issues.

That being said, a friend of mine that works at xbox support said I should avoid plugging the 360 into a surge protector -- directly into the wall is best. Apparantly the surge protectors make the red ring more likely somehow.

 

[Noddy]

ok then that seems to have cleared the air a bit. I'm getting myslef a new TV first then I'll decide what i'll get as the TV will be my monitor for whatever i decide to get :y:

 

[waterproofbob]

Don't get a MAC for the love of god, if you wany a computer give bob the money and he'll build you one up real nice. MACs are a waste of money they are far too expensive for what you end up with. Okay you'll probably get a kick ass CPU but you'll end up with a pitiful graphics card and mediocre memory after paying all the money in the world. leopard may well have some quite cool features but it still not worth it. If you ever want to play games on it DON'T get a MAC. Vibs for some reason loves macs because he's a nugget.

If you want an awesome PC for the same budget then drop me a PM and I'll build you one.

 

[Ronin Storm]

I'm getting myslef a new TV first then I'll decide what i'll get as the TV will be my monitor for whatever i decide to get :y:

You can plug a 360 into a monitor, via a D-Sub port (the old style). I don't have a TV and I've found that I get very high quality pictures that way. If you're not worried about the TV aspect, I can recommend that as an option and a cheap way to get near to HD quality.

 

[Noddy]

Right then, the mac option is off the list. I've spec'd and built PCs before Bob and I enjoy doing that myself. I'm in need of a new TV hence the reason for it doubling up as a 2nd screen.

I'll stick with getting the 360 for now and will start to sort out a spec for a new rig :y:

 

[[THN]Buffalo_Hunter]

ok then that seems to have cleared the air a bit. I'm getting myslef a new TV first then I'll decide what i'll get as the TV will be my monitor for whatever i decide to get :y:

Don't know what size TV you're looking at, but the LG M228WA may be worth looking at - 22" widescreen monitor (1680x1050, 5ms) with built-in TV tuner as well as SCART/S-VHS/composite video inputs.

Linky

 

[Noddy]

The one i'm getting is an LG 22" widescreen.

Comes with the DVB tuner, HDMI, composite, scart, VGA, s-vid. Very nice screen. ~£260