Apple preferred

[Klassik]

Also, can you get something similar size to a laptop but without the screen? also needs to be reaosnably quiet?

as longs as I can use the net, is pretty quick, with a medium sized HDD (80-100gb) and can burn and play CD/DVD's then I'm not fussed, but I dont have a lot of room for it, so hence me wanting to connect it to the TV I'm considering just add a wireless keyboard mouse board thingy and jobs a good un

There are all kinds of small form factor PCs out there from many different manufacturers. There are even Intel NUC kits and other similar very small form factor PCs which might fit Careym's needs. It sounds like maybe Careym doesn't need anything more than an Intel Core i3.

At least here in the US, it's possible to buy HP Business computers without an OS (well, they may throw FreeDOS on it) if one simply does not want Windows. The discount is quite nice. It takes about $100 USD off the price. Klassik knows not if this is possible in the UK. HP Business certainly has some small form factor PCs though.

One issue with small form factor PCs is that they won't have integrated CD drives. This is not a problem if one is willing to use a portable USB drive. Also, it's possible to use a desktop optical disc drive via USB using an inexpensive SATA-to-USB cable. Klassik discussed this a couple years ago on Klassik's Optical Disc Korner: https://www.hifiwigwam.com/forum/th...c-korner-optical-drives-for-modern-pcs.97615/

Klassik uses such a device in Linux and burns audio CDs using K3b.

 

[Chumpchops]

There is more to Apple silicon than just being ARM architecture. The M1 and M2 are far more power efficient and faster than anything else at the moment.

That’s a bid so what for most users, unless they must have biggest/fastsest etc, and i sense that is not our OP here.

Most laptop devices are more than powerful enough for most users, regardless of chipset. The incremental advantages of one silicon over the other, are marginal at best, given the price deltas.

They are all good enough.

 

[rdale]

That’s a bid so what for most users, unless they must have biggest/fastsest etc, and i sense that is not our OP here.

Most laptop devices are more than powerful enough for most users, regardless of chipset. The incremental advantages of one silicon over the other, are marginal at best, given the price deltas.

They are all good enough.

I was replying to your point about Windows running on ARM - it is useless on ARM and not powerful enough for various reasons. Your points may be valid for Windows running on Intel, but that wasn’t what I was talking about.

I have a couple of ARM based Chromebooks which work well, as well as an M1 based iMac which I use for music management and XLD ripping software with an external drive. Until I recently bought the new iMac my previous iMac had lasted 12 years, and I think Apple computers are more economical in the long run because they last longer than PCs.

 

[Chumpchops]

I was replying to your point about Windows running on ARM - it is useless on ARM and not powerful enough for various reasons. Your points may be valid for Windows running on Intel, but that wasn’t what I was talking about.

I have a couple of ARM based Chromebooks which work well, as well as an M1 based iMac which I use for music management and XLD ripping software with an external drive. Until I recently bought the new iMac my previous iMac had lasted 12 years, and I think Apple computers are more economical in the long run because they last longer than PCs.

I should have said AMD silicon!

 

[StingRay]

This means a lot to me, I have been reading through every section of this suggestion and advise.

Yeah it seems a bit of a no brainer, I cant imagine how people use windows full time for work stuff, the amount of errors and slowing down I get just for personal use isnt funny.

I made a mistake in the first post its an mac mini I'm thinking about not the imac.

Do mac minis have cd burning?

I think for what you are doing its over the top. A laptop or chromebook should suffice.

I have a 11 year Win computer it works fine, very few errors. Maybe yours needs a clean?

 

[Sumdumgi]

I think for what you are doing its over the top.

Precisely what some people say about HiFi systems

 

[Camverton]

I moved from Windows to Apple three years ago, partly because I use an iPhone and an iPad a fair bit and it’s much easier to have all devices from the same maker. The OS does take a bit of getting used to especially if you’ve been using Windows fairly intensively for many years.

The downside is that you have to have what auntie Apple says. Need an optical disk drive and you have to buy an additional item and that uses up one of the ports of which Apple items already have too few. The iMacs with a screen, once you get a decent spec, are very expensive but that scree is excellent. To get the same resolution monitor and quality for a PC would also be very expensive though. It’s great for editing photos and videos but probably overkill if you’re not.

I think the general build quality is very good but it is possible to build a really nice PC, albeit at a price. With Apple you get what they decide to offer. With a PC you can choose every item and save cash on bits that are less important to you whilst spending more on things that are.

Overall I’d say if your PC does what you want without too many problems stick with it, especially if you don’t want to spend time getting used to a different way of doing things. Of course, if you fancy a change, have the cash, have other Apple devices, and enjoy the design of their products go for it. The Mac Mini is very nice but allow extra cash for an optical disk drive and bear in mind that the base model doesn’t have much storage and Apple charges the earth for extra inbuilt storage and memory. Thankfully, the Mac Mini works fine with an external SSD drive.

Good luck!