The Mac Mini no longer comes with an optical disc reader, so I had to loan a USB DVD drive, better known as Apple’s SuperDrive.
Unfortunately, I only have a copy of Windows 7 Upgrade on disc.
It is possible to install Windows 7 within Bootcamp from a USB drive. Installing a Windows 7 upgrade on a fresh Bootcamp partition can be problematic. Now I had my platform on which I could build my Mac Mini Media Center Installed it with Bootcamp without any issue (see below). These are the two main reasons why I decided to go with Windows 7 as the preferred OS for my media center. Sounds negligible, but I can’t accept it. The majority of my video library and other HD content out there is 23.976 hertz! This means a double frame every 41 seconds to keep in sync (more under Awesome picture quality) which shows a small stutter. OS X (Mountain) Lion doesn’t support 23.976 hertz, only 24 Hz. I also like to experiment with RGB colorspaces and YCrCb, force refresh rates, et cetera.Ģ.
To prevent them from working against each other, you need full control over the graphics card’s settings, something that’s just not possible in OS X but easily done with the Windows drivers. I want my media player to provide a relative raw and unaltered image and let my Samsung do it’s magic. My Samsung d8000 does a very good job at improving the input signal with all kinds of filters and image processing. No control over the display settings whatsoever. I’ve got two practical problems with OS X ġ. Apple’s philosophy ‘It just works’ is applicable to 90% of my work and home needs, but not to my tweaked media center. It customizability is very limited, hardware and OS. But here we immediately hit the Mac’s biggest drawback.
Although pricey, the prefect marriage between soft- and hardware makes for a very stable environment. I spend many many hours less on keeping my workstations problem free compared to my Windows days. The simplest of simple examples I can think of being the window beneath the mouse arrow is the one affected by scrolling and not necessarily the active one. Having worked with (and against) Windows professionally for many years, I can say I prefer the more minimalistic, efficient and ‘thought-through’ approach of OS X. I really liked the idea of complementing my home setup with another OS X driven device, but I ended up with Windows 7… In this article however,I will elaborate on the battle of the operating systems. The list of goals will serve as the index.
I will post separate articles on the different subjects and link to them as I go. The whole process of getting the MacMini exactly how I want it to work and for it to surpass the image quality, functionality and ease of use of the PopcornHour C2oo will be an ongoing one. More details later, first here’s my list of demands. It’s a free and very powerful media indexer/streamer/transcoder.
For those who enjoy downloaded movies and TV shows and not familiar with Plex, I suggest you check it out here. The main focus is on Plex, both the server and client. I’ve only had a few hours playtime with Lion 10.7, so I’m not an expert on it, but Mountain Lion feels snappier and the implementation of various iOS elements like message center, spell check, and specially iCloud feels more natural and better integrated.įor the Mac Mini to become the beating heart of my media experiences, I had a list of pre set goals in mind. Because it was purchased after the 11th of June 2012, I was eligible for a free upgrade to OS X Mountain Lion and after a somewhat elaborate licensing procedure and one hour of downloading and installing the upgrade was complete. It came with OS X Lion and the first-time-setup was fast and smooth.
The only giveaway it’s on is the subtle tiny white LED on the front. In a typical environment, I have to put my ear to it to hear anything at all. Sound production is virtually non existent. Now it’s time to construct a proper media center from this little aluminum box.įirst some initial impression. It will take it’s place tucked away in a cupboard beneath my TV set. Not having a DVD drive helps with the small form factor and who needs one anyway.
It’s amazing how Apple manages to put a full sized PC into such a tiny, beautiful, well shaped box. I love the smell of a freshly opened Apple box. My brand spanking new Mac Mini came in today. It reduces the energy bill by 200 euros and at the same time adds a lot of functionality. As a result of my research on how much power is used by my various media equipment at home, I’ve treated myself to a Mac Mini.