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I find the iPad fascinating because it's so divisive. The device is very Apple. A lot of enthusiasts flat out hate it. It deviates so far from traditional computers, and it has severe technical limitations. But it does offer a very compelling user experience that a lot of everyday people enjoy using, and find easy to use. I personally get excited when technology gets "regular" people excited, and Apple has been doing a lot of that lately. I feel we should embrace that. And that leads me nicely into gaming.
Honesty, I had high hopes for the iPad, when I first heard about it I was hoping it would be a full fledged slate with keyboard and mouse support instead of just the keyboard. If apple had used a CLV or CULV (c2d or i3), thrown in a decent IGP from ATI/NVIDIA such as the 9400m or even a 3200m, and supported full OS X for a decent price ($800 max w/ suggested specs). I would have set aside the money to buy one.
Unfortunately that is not the case, if apple is listening, go out and make a good slate and I'll give it a shot. I like Unix, but as of late, Apple has not given me a reason to even consider switching platforms.
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Just a quick correction that the Mac mini is not $1000. The $1000 gets you a small workgroup server with dual hard drives and a full version of Snow Leopard Server. The standard mini did go up in price to $700, which I feel is too much. I still want a low end model at $500. I'll be keeping my current mini, thanks.
Yeah, I should have been more clear. I'm assuming the main expense is the snow leopard. Because two hard drives don't cost an extra $300. 2 500 GB 7200 rpm 2.5'' HDD should cost $150 total for the 2 (
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148374&cm_re=seagate_2.5_500_gb-_-22-148-374-_-Product; +$100 from 1 320 gb). It should be less since it's an upgrade. As far as the RAM I'm assuming it's DDR3 1066 because Apple goes out of its way to avoid telling you what you are really getting (4; 2 x 2 gb costs $110 (
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820134786&cm_re=ddr3_1066-_-20-134-786-_-Product; +$50 from 2 GB). So unless Apple is using notebook components which cost more than desktop components you are getting ripped off. For the record Linux is better for servers and there is paid support teams if thats the issue.
I think Apple could be a great company if they would just sell at a reasonable price, but there's a demand so they toy with the economics. Higher demand = raise price.
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Is your SFF build a definite go? You'll have to start a new thread detailing the project. It will be fun to follow. Or if you're in one of the case mod forums, send us a link.
As far as the mod is. I'm definitely going to be doing something, just not sure what that exactly is quite yet. I'm in the peculiar position of having tons of great ideas and the will and desire to go through and do them, but I lack the time and resources to make them all happen in the short term. So it's a bit of a juggling act to decide what to do now and what to postpone until I can afford it a few years down the road. I don't want to spend much more than $1000 for this mod which is why I am thoroughly researching it to make an informed decision. I've already torn through at least 5 concepts; usually I look around, find an idea, pick components based on specifications, power requirements, performance, dimensions, and price and build a few renders to see how I like it.
If anyone has any suggestions I would love to hear them. Possible new forum topic on a separate forum if anyone is interested. I've already toyed with the idea of building a desktop in a laptop form. My design mounted a 21.5'' monitor and full sized keyboard but was big and bulky. 3-4 in thick; I also encountered several issues such as how to do crossfire/sli since the gpu's were both horizontal and facing each other; using risers and custom PSU's; heating was also an issue and airflow.
Other ideas I toyed with included cloud computing gaming terminals, sff pc with external GPU (tether pcie x16 from mobo to side of chassis where it would connect to separate GPU housing. Think external graphics (ATI/NVIDIA, vidock and recently MSI have all considered this application but not implemented it satisfactorily).
I also thought of mounting monitors in a cube array and using Linux w/ Beryl; don't know why, but you know it would be cool. I also though it would be funny to build a PC in the shape of a GPU and do a Crysis themed mod. I was going to design it off of ASUS' ROG 5870 2 GB and write across it "CAN I RUN CRYSIS?" The mobo I was going to use was a mini-itx (6.7 x 6.7) so if that's my size limitation for the smallest dimension imagine how long the case would be
. I was even considering throwing in a little 1337 here and there. I just want to do a mod that's clever, original, and feasible on a reasonable budget.
This mod is long term, I won't build till August at the earliest even though I have the money. I want to explore all my options. Right now I'm still working on booting halo/bf2142 on my eSATA HDD. I might even buy a SSD to throw in there. Just for fun on the side. I have everything I need here so no incurred cost.
But I plan on doing a proper log once I dive full into the mod. I'm just worried if I post it now it will get closed before August since it's still 2 months off.
7H3 L457 H0P3
Is your SFF build a definite go? You'll have to start a new thread detailing the project. It will be fun to follow. Or if you're in one of the case mod forums, send us a link.
Is your SFF build a definite go? You'll have to start a new thread detailing the project. It will be fun to follow. Or if you're in one of the case mod forums, send us a link.