iPhone dev box

Question

I would like to try some iPhone development but am not a Mac user. I'm not keen to spend a load of cash on a new mac, so if I were to buy an old Mac on ebay, what system should I look at as a minimum for an acceptable iphone dev machine. Cheaper the better obviously.

Note: Not keen on running mac os on a pc so really looking for an apple hardware option. Is an old mac mini suitable?

Answer 1

If you really want a cheap option you could go for a Dell Mini 9. It runs OS X very well and if you upgrade to 2M ram you could probably make it work for you. I picked it up for a bit over $200, have been reasonably happy with it.

Answer 2

Any Mac with an Intel processor will do fine.

Answer 3

You can use PearPC, i used it for the same reason as you. Check it here: PearPC Mac OS X on PC

But i just wanted to experiment something with the iphone SDK, if you want to develop seriously you should consider getting a MAC because a virtual machine is terribly slow.

Answer 4

Of course, if you're happy to jailbreak your iphone, you can ssh into it and compile apps directly on the device (the jailbreak can install gcc and make and the rest). I've done this for a couple of experimental projects while trying to learn objective C and all that stuff. Worth trying out if you're not totally sure whether or not you want to go ahead with it.

Answer 5

You can spend your time searching eBay for an old Intel Mac but in my experience it a false economy (especially if it's more than 3 year old).

One tip for anyone looking for a secondhand Mac, as I did in the late 90s during the last economic downturn, buy computers from graphic design agencies or software houses that have gone bust.

Good

Mac Mini - It'll do every thing you need (albeit not very fast). You might consider extra memory and if you have a a spare keyboard and monitor (or KVM switch) your away.

Better

New MacBook - released yesterday (2009-06-08) the new MacBooks are reasonably priced and a great option especially if you want (or are replacing) a laptop. Again RAM is a consideration and if you plan on long coding sessions a decent keyboard and monitor are essential.

Best

Dive right in and get a iMac (20" or 24")! I suggest you only do this if you want to replace an older non-Apple box. The calculation you have to make is: How much would I spend on a new PC plus how much would I spend on my development Mac. If the total is even close the price of an iMac it's an option.

You'll have the option of virtualized Windows, (unlimited) Linux installs, Boot Camp if your a Gamer and Mac OS X for your iPhone/Cocoa development.

If money is no problem you can even go for a Mac Pro.

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My system is a Mac Pro - I run Windows XP, Vista and 2 x Cent OS's (simultaneously). Also I have Windows 7 Beta and a few Ubuntu's for ad hoc work.

It works great - but wont be for everyone taste. I replaced my Uni set up of: 1 x Mac, 1 x PowerBook, 1 x Wintel box and only using Linux on campus with MacPro and iPhone (I still have the PowerBook, but it's hardly ever used).

Answer 6

Also, if wanting to buy a 'new' mac, you can buy refurbished macs from Applestore which are hundreds less than their newer equivalents. They have full warranty and are pretty much brand new anyway. (Returned for some issue that has since been fixed)

Answer 7

I use a mac mini, works ok so far. In addition you need a monitor with dvi, a usb mouse and usb keyboard.

The main drawback is, that i use a regular usb keyboard and the keyboard layout is terrible, e.g. POS1, END, PAGE_UP, PAGE_DOWN are not where they should be.