iMac or Mac Mini?

[_S_]

I was thinking about buying a new computer, preferably a Mac. I'm dual boxing right now using Synergy with an older pc + macbook air combo, but I'm getting a really bad framerate on both computers, even with low settings. Thanks in advance for reading!

Specs:
iMac: $1,199.00
21.5-inch: 3.06GHz
3.06GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
4GB memory
500GB hard drive
8x double-layer SuperDrive
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M

Mac Mini: $750.00 + Dual PC monitors (suggestions where to buy?)
2.26GHz : 160GB
2.26GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
4 GB memory
8x double-layer SuperDrive
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M

[Fef]

I would go for the iMac, but adding the optional ATI Radeon HD 4670. The Mac Mini cannot get that video card. You will get much better performances than with the 9400M.

I used to 5-box rather confortably on my 24' iMac. Great machine, really.

[_S_]

EDIT: Never mind, I didn't look at the buffed 21.5 inch. Thanks for the help! More comments are appreciated.

[Gadzooks]

Do NOT get the GeForce 9400, it's shared memory with system memory. Get the cash for the 4670 upgrade.

I have a 24" iMac, and a Mini, last generation. They look similar on paper, but they are most definitely NOT equal - the Mini is a lot slower than the iMac, they use more laptop parts for it, like the HD.

The Mini is a nice machine, and the new one is bumped up nicely - the two display ports is nice - but the 9400 is just not a good idea, even for running one account.

[_S_]

Thanks! What kind of framerate do you get running two accounts on your iMac?

[Gadzooks]

Thanks! What kind of framerate do you get running two accounts on your iMac?

I'm running 5 accounts.

I have the 2.8Ghz 24" iMac, 4 gigs ram, and the HD Radeon 2600 Pro. I run an external 20" monitor next to it, through the display port.

This is why you want the iMac - the new 21.5" with the good video card will run 5 with no effort at all, and you can put 8 gigs in (DO NOT buy Apple's ram, you can get it dirt cheap elsewhere, and it's dead easy to install). Drop $30 for the adapter, and throw a second monitor in.

My frame rates are usually very decent, 30-40 is about average, probably higher in some areas. I could cap the slave accounts at 30, but it doesn't seem to be an issue. Dalaran can be painful when it's full, as is the ToC area, but other than that, no issues.

Also, don't copy the folders to run more than one. Do the symbolic link technique, where you just copy the app and links to the original folders. It makes it a lot easier to manage, and I get better performance:

http://www.wowwiki.com/Mac - look about halfway down the page. It's pretty easy, don't be intimidated by the Terminal.

There's two "gotchas" in this to be aware of:

One, you have to create a "wowcopy.sh" as part of the process - and they say to use TextEdit. Problem is, TextEdit cannot write .sh files, so download a shareware text editor like TextWrangler to create the file.

Two, if you want more than one copy, you create the first copy, then rename it "Wow2" or whatever, otherwise you'll just keep overwriting the same file.