So about these new Minis...

[M A V I C]

As I mentioned a few weeks back, I'm helping a church upgrade their AV stuff. One of the tasks is to upgrade the computers in the classrooms. I had priced out a Mini vs a Intel NUC (similar form factor and hardware.) The Mini was slightly more expensive but the advantage of having easy support and not having to build my own made it worth it. I was just waiting for a refresh.

But now, I look at the Minis and they just don't seem worth it anymore. They were going to be about $600ea before. There was some skepticism about switching to OS X from Windows, but I said "hey, if OS X doesn't work out, we can just install Windows on them." For some, they think we should at least have a Windows VM available.

And that's the issue now. I just don't see running a VM on a dual core machine. I know it's the 4th gen of the i series, but I'd be giving one core to OS X and one to Windows. Plus, if I want to go with a flash drive, I'm looking at $900 - 50% more than the Windows alternative with 4 cores.

I am going to buy TVs for each of these... I'd be tempted to get iMacs, but the screens just aren't big enough... probably want 40"+

It looks like the old Minis are scarce and expensive.

Suggestions? Thanks.