Unfortunately, the Mac Mini is NOT a $500 computer. Where have you been? The Mac Mini is the only Mac that has increased in price since the introduction. Unfortunately, the Mini is a $600 and $800 computer. It is not worth either price, either. If Apple wanted to have the low cost computer for PC switchers, topping the price at $800 isn't the way to do it.
How do you figure it's overpriced? If there's a less expensive alternative for operating Apple's software, I haven't heard about it.
Consider that if I were to update iLife and then add the new OS when that arrives, it would set me back $208 here in Canada. Compared to what it would cost me to gather up Windows software of a similar quality, that's very, very cheap. Now I've got a mini that is closing in on two years and probably about a year from now the hard drive will go, which likely will set me back maybe $150 to replace, especially considering how difficult the mini is to service, so installing it myself is not an option.
So now I'm at $358 and all I've done is update software and perform some maintenance.
Complicating this is that later this year I intend to buy an HD camcorder so the new iMovie would come in handy and so, too, would an upgrade in performance which both the next OS X release and the likely component upgrades (the 9400 M, faster processor, more faster memory) will bring with the revised mini. Here in Canada the base mini, which is what I have, retails for $649. Considering the current economic climate, that price will certainly not go up any time soon.
To whine that $650 is too much money for all the upgrades that would bring is not looking at the big picture. I would be getting updated software and a substantial performance boost that will prove critical considering what I intend to do with the computer a few months down the road. If instead I chose to turn to the dark side ? being as an upgrade is needed to properly edit HD video and the current mini isn't quite powerful enough ? do you really think that factoring in software, etc. I'd be able to make the switch for much less than $650 Cdn.? Myself, I doubt it. And then I'd be stuck with a PC instead of a Mac. No thank you.
boring. boring. boring. fine for those who want an entry level machine, of course. but, i want a new mac cube! 1 quad core processor, up to 8gb of ram, imac level nvidia graphics, and up to 1tb 7200rpm drive. please! i cant afford a mac pro, dont need all that empty space for expansion anyway. but, i already have drives keyboard and monitor... i just need a decent little box for graphic design. at the least, give me top-of-the-line imac specs in my box (and, use use of full 4gb of ram). and, make it $999. i would pay that in a heartbeat. bring back the cube!
What I am having a hard time getting my head around is the fact that if all they were going to do is upgrade the components, why not do this a while ago?
One possibility for the delay was they needed to also upgrade the iMac first or in parallel, and there may have been delays for the new iMac. The performance boost these rumored specs would give the mini could results in cannibalization of the more profitable iMac sales.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alfiejr
but i really expect it to get a new form factor too - the same bigger/flatter size/style as AppleTV, Airport Extreme, and Time Capsule. in particular they need more room for an "n" wifi antenna.
Just a point of correction, the Airport Extreme's footprint is exactly the same as the current mini. It's not the bigger footprint of AppleTV or Time Capsule. So if they make the mini with the larger footprint, now their base station is the odd-man out size-wise. I also don't think the n antenna is so big that it wouldn't fit in a mini of the current size.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ruDog
The photo is obviously a fake. I'm not talking about macroblocks or anything like that. Just look at the mini's back showing the ports. And notice the wood floor. There is absolutely no depth to the mini. One should be able to see parts of the sides of the mini along with part of the top. They don't exist. Someone with below average photoshop skills and, worse yet, no grasp of how 3-dimensional objects appear in 2-dimensional space obviously hobbled together the picture.
Um, might I suggest you try getting a camera and taking a few photos? Or perhaps taking an art class to learn about perspective? At the angle the photo was taken, you should NOT be able to see the top or sides as you claim. Don't believe me? Try standing directly in front or your house from about 10 feet away. Can you see the sides?
It may be a prototype that never sees the light of day. It might be a hacked or mocked up mini that some hobbiest built. But your basis for claiming the photo itself is fake are totally wrong.
boring. boring. boring. fine for those who want an entry level machine, of course. but, i want a new mac cube! 1 quad core processor, up to 8gb of ram, imac level nvidia graphics, and up to 1tb 7200rpm drive. please! i cant afford a mac pro, dont need all that empty space for expansion anyway. but, i already have drives keyboard and monitor... i just need a decent little box for graphic design. at the least, give me top-of-the-line imac specs in my box (and, use use of full 4gb of ram). and, make it $999. i would pay that in a heartbeat. bring back the cube!
Just because so many folks have responded that they would love a computer like this I have to point out that this is a really bad design for a small computer.
It would have a huge amount of that same "empty space" that you say you don't like about the Mac Pro. Making the mini taller like this would just add about 200% more empty space than it has now. There is no reason to add all that space to get the specs that you want on the internals.
The cube was smaller than this overall and worked by convection cooling which is why it was also silent. The internals were oriented at 90 degrees to the internals in the Mac mini, with the cooling slots, and the CD slot on the top. Components were slid in and out of the bottom or top depending.
This design on the other hand, is a big metal box that is fan cooled and has the vents at the back on the bottom, so the heat would build up inside the top like crazy. It's internals would have to be oriented the same as the current mini, It would run very hot and the fan would be very loud.
Both this design and the coloured ones on the next page look very cool indeed, but they are not good designs by a long shot. There is more to a design that just making it look cool.
It's probably already been said, but why would Apple wait so long only to release the new Mini with the same tired appearance? Not gonna happen. Hopefully. Please?
I own a Mini and it sits comfortably under my 40" Sony LCD in my living room. Throw in a wireless mouse and keyboard and you've got some hardcore couch net surfing!
That's right, the Mini is probably the only Mac I've ever know that hasn't had a single widespread problem in its entire existence. The only issue I have found is that the heat build up inside with the hard drive being above the CPU causes it to start making a clunk noise. The drives keep going but it's annoying.
My old mini did this as well except it was more of a sharp cracking noise and the drive burned out after 14 months. I added RAM and made a heat sink for underneath of copper and aluminium etching plates which almost completely got rid of the cracking noise but obviously didn't prevent the drive breaking.
Still, I love it, and would happily have one again for internet type stuff, not heavy work.
I see the potential in this mock up and if I was looking for a desktop computer this year I might be interested. What holds me back at full commitment to the unit is the quoted processor specs of 2GHz which would be way to slow unless that was a quad core chip. Quad core would be nice on a development machine as the GNU tools can make use of al the cores easily for building software. Of course the issue of having a slow hard drive would adversely affect the machines use in that manner. Hopefully the option of having a 3.5" drive in the unit is real. Moreso I hope the unit is a bit more serviceable.
I have a hard time believing, after about a year and a half, that Apple would release something so similar looking to the predecessor. Why wouldn't they go with the black and aluminum theme?
This is exactly what Apple does. If they believe a form factor is good, they are not changing it for many years to come.
Let's take a look at the Mac Pro. With the exception of the second optical drive, the machine is optically virtually the the same as a 2003 PowerMac G5. Never mind the port layout and internal config. That's 6 years!
Same this with the previous Macbook Pro, the 15" model; Not too different than the first aluminum Powerbook G4. Same thing: 6 years...
To me, this is exactly what Apple would be doing with the Mac Mini. That said, this one could easily be an internal development unit. I ended up having several of those in the past.
This is exactly what Apple does. If they believe a form factor is good, they are not changing it for many years to come.
Let's take a look at the Mac Pro. With the exception of the second optical drive, the machine is optically virtually the the same as a 2003 PowerMac G5. Never mind the port layout and internal config. That's 6 years!
Same this with the previous Macbook Pro, the 15" model; Not too different than the first aluminum Powerbook G4. Same thing: 6 years...
To me, this is exactly what Apple would be doing with the Mac Mini. That said, this one could easily be an internal development unit. I ended up having several of those in the past.
Looking at this from Apple's perspective, what would be the likelihood that Apple would lose a single sale as a result of not changing the machine's outward appearance?
I would guess no lost sales from retaining the existing form factor. More sales would likely be lost if the machine is weak in terms of its specs and being as current economic conditions dictate that even Apple hold the line on pricing, whatever development cost goes into the device it will focus on providing the best specs possible for a given price.
The Cube failed because it represented an emphasis on form over function. The mini corrected that by being a remarkably small device that carried on in spirit what I'm sure Jobs had envisioned long-term for the Cube only doing so in a very appealing cost vs. performance overall package.
That would hit the home theater and the desktop crowd.
I'd bet this is a prototype, with the MiniDVI swapped over to HDMI.
Quote:
Originally Posted by m2002brian
I was thinking about why it would need 5 USB ports, and then it hit me. This computer, although portable, is meant for the Multimedia Room. That would mean you need 1. ATV, 2. TimeCap, 3. iPod / iPhone dock, and two for whatever (USB Flash, EXT HD, camcorder, etc). This makes sense to me because being the size the mini is, a usb hub would kind of clutter it's area. Also, I believe they left firewire on it because many cable companies are required to include firewire on their boxes, and firewire is also found on many other CONSUMER LEVEL A/V equipment (multimedia).
Apple had already indicated that they are quite happy with their AppleTV pet project, which means the mini will not be designed as a media center, which means no HDMI.
BTW, monoprice will soon release a miniDP to HDMI adapter.
"Most minis are actually purchased by corporations for use in server and processing farms".
How does showing a picture of one server farm using the Mac mini (which everyone here has already seen) any kind of proof or even support of his claim?
If this is real...which I absolutely think so...maybe Apple will offer a MiniDisplay Port to HDMI adapter for those that want to use this in conjunction with their TV? I hope for a merger of the AppleTV and Mac mini — At least it could be done via software and a dongle in this case...
If this is real...which I absolutely think so...maybe Apple will offer a MiniDisplay Port to HDMI adapter for those that want to use this in conjunction with their TV? I hope for a merger of the AppleTV and Mac mini — At least it could be done via software and a dongle in this case...
mDP-to-HDMI adaptor and HD movie rentals via iTunes (not just the AppleTV) would cover it for me. Update FrontRow with a few other of AppleTVs online tricks and it would seal the deal.
Apple had already indicated that they are quite happy with their AppleTV pet project, which means the mini will not be designed as a media center, which means no HDMI.
BTW, monoprice will soon release a miniDP to HDMI adapter.
So if we have miniDP to hdmi, vga and dvi, why bother with the miniDVI?
How do you figure it's overpriced? If there's a less expensive alternative for operating Apple's software, I haven't heard about it.
Consider that if I were to update iLife and then add the new OS when that arrives, it would set me back $208 here in Canada. Compared to what it would cost me to gather up Windows software of a similar quality, that's very, very cheap. Now I've got a mini that is closing in on two years and probably about a year from now the hard drive will go, which likely will set me back maybe $150 to replace, especially considering how difficult the mini is to service, so installing it myself is not an option.
So now I'm at $358 and all I've done is update software and perform some maintenance.
Complicating this is that later this year I intend to buy an HD camcorder so the new iMovie would come in handy and so, too, would an upgrade in performance which both the next OS X release and the likely component upgrades (the 9400 M, faster processor, more faster memory) will bring with the revised mini. Here in Canada the base mini, which is what I have, retails for $649. Considering the current economic climate, that price will certainly not go up any time soon.
To whine that $650 is too much money for all the upgrades that would bring is not looking at the big picture. I would be getting updated software and a substantial performance boost that will prove critical considering what I intend to do with the computer a few months down the road. If instead I chose to turn to the dark side ? being as an upgrade is needed to properly edit HD video and the current mini isn't quite powerful enough ? do you really think that factoring in software, etc. I'd be able to make the switch for much less than $650 Cdn.? Myself, I doubt it. And then I'd be stuck with a PC instead of a Mac. No thank you.
The Mini is overpriced, because it's hardware sucks - 80 and 120 GB HDs are pathetically small in this day and age, 1 GB standard is pretty bad too, it's C2D is a couple generations old, not to mention the graphics chip, lack of full 4 GB RAM support, 802.11n, included Superdrive on all models.
The OS is great, iLife is just so so, but the HW is really, really bad at this point. For what it is, it shouldn't be more than $500 at the very most for the $800 model, the HW just is not up to par anymore.
So if we have miniDP to hdmi, vga and dvi, why bother with the miniDVI?
Mini DVI is more flexible that Mini DP. If large part of the Mac mini's "mission" is to lure switchers into the light.
A big part o the sales pitch for the mini is to be able to use ALL your current peripherals, that includes the monitor.
Unless Apple suddenly gets religion and gives away the Mini DP adaptors (DVI and VGA), having to spend ANOTHER $30 on a display adaptor sours the taste.
And a minor detail... Currently, how many monitors actually USE Mini Display Port connectors? How many have been announced that will INCLUDE them?
Oh, yeah, right. ONE. Yes, ONE monitor supports Mini DP. That means the great majority of mini buyers will be forced to buy an adaptor to be able to use it with current hardware.
Great solution.
Quote:
Originally Posted by guinness
The Mini is overpriced, because it's hardware sucks - 80 and 120 GB HDs are pathetically small in this day and age, 1 GB standard is pretty bad too, it's C2D is a couple generations old, not to mention the graphics chip, lack of full 4 GB RAM support, 802.11n, included Superdrive on all models.
The OS is great, iLife is just so so, but the HW is really, really bad at this point. For what it is, it shouldn't be more than $500 at the very most for the $800 model, the HW just is not up to par anymore.
Why complain about the old specs? I'd guess that most people here agree on that point.
From what appears to be included on the mystery mini, it may be answering a lot of nagging shortcomings of the mini, especially, one would HOPE, the woeful integrated graphics.
One suspects that Apple would try and bring the mini's architecture up to the same standard as the MacBook line. Why do you think the MacBook and MacBook Pro and iMac share so many of the same components? It's a way to economize and maximize profits. So 4GB RAM capability, 'N' wireless and gigabit Ethernet should be in the new box. I pray that while they're at it, Apple redesigns the box make it easier for users to install RAM and swap hard drives!
200GB hard drives are pretty much the norm these days. Besides, there's a FireWire 800 port on the thing. That's what FireWire is for (NOT USB): adding external storage devices! Connect a honking big 7200 rpm external FireWire drive to it and boot from it. Problem solved.
This is why Apple adds ports to their machines and doesn't add bullshit stuff like card readers and superfluous buttons and lights, like cheap asian audio gear. Figure out your own solution. Buy the stuff you need and do it. Not everyone has the same computing and peripheral needs.
Comments
Unfortunately, the Mac Mini is NOT a $500 computer. Where have you been? The Mac Mini is the only Mac that has increased in price since the introduction. Unfortunately, the Mini is a $600 and $800 computer. It is not worth either price, either. If Apple wanted to have the low cost computer for PC switchers, topping the price at $800 isn't the way to do it.
How do you figure it's overpriced? If there's a less expensive alternative for operating Apple's software, I haven't heard about it.
Consider that if I were to update iLife and then add the new OS when that arrives, it would set me back $208 here in Canada. Compared to what it would cost me to gather up Windows software of a similar quality, that's very, very cheap. Now I've got a mini that is closing in on two years and probably about a year from now the hard drive will go, which likely will set me back maybe $150 to replace, especially considering how difficult the mini is to service, so installing it myself is not an option.
So now I'm at $358 and all I've done is update software and perform some maintenance.
Complicating this is that later this year I intend to buy an HD camcorder so the new iMovie would come in handy and so, too, would an upgrade in performance which both the next OS X release and the likely component upgrades (the 9400 M, faster processor, more faster memory) will bring with the revised mini. Here in Canada the base mini, which is what I have, retails for $649. Considering the current economic climate, that price will certainly not go up any time soon.
To whine that $650 is too much money for all the upgrades that would bring is not looking at the big picture. I would be getting updated software and a substantial performance boost that will prove critical considering what I intend to do with the computer a few months down the road. If instead I chose to turn to the dark side ? being as an upgrade is needed to properly edit HD video and the current mini isn't quite powerful enough ? do you really think that factoring in software, etc. I'd be able to make the switch for much less than $650 Cdn.? Myself, I doubt it. And then I'd be stuck with a PC instead of a Mac. No thank you.
boring. boring. boring. fine for those who want an entry level machine, of course. but, i want a new mac cube! 1 quad core processor, up to 8gb of ram, imac level nvidia graphics, and up to 1tb 7200rpm drive. please! i cant afford a mac pro, dont need all that empty space for expansion anyway. but, i already have drives keyboard and monitor... i just need a decent little box for graphic design. at the least, give me top-of-the-line imac specs in my box (and, use use of full 4gb of ram). and, make it $999. i would pay that in a heartbeat. bring back the cube!
Amen.
Lemon Bon Bon.
What I am having a hard time getting my head around is the fact that if all they were going to do is upgrade the components, why not do this a while ago?
One possibility for the delay was they needed to also upgrade the iMac first or in parallel, and there may have been delays for the new iMac. The performance boost these rumored specs would give the mini could results in cannibalization of the more profitable iMac sales.
but i really expect it to get a new form factor too - the same bigger/flatter size/style as AppleTV, Airport Extreme, and Time Capsule. in particular they need more room for an "n" wifi antenna.
Just a point of correction, the Airport Extreme's footprint is exactly the same as the current mini. It's not the bigger footprint of AppleTV or Time Capsule. So if they make the mini with the larger footprint, now their base station is the odd-man out size-wise. I also don't think the n antenna is so big that it wouldn't fit in a mini of the current size.
The photo is obviously a fake. I'm not talking about macroblocks or anything like that. Just look at the mini's back showing the ports. And notice the wood floor. There is absolutely no depth to the mini. One should be able to see parts of the sides of the mini along with part of the top. They don't exist. Someone with below average photoshop skills and, worse yet, no grasp of how 3-dimensional objects appear in 2-dimensional space obviously hobbled together the picture.
Um, might I suggest you try getting a camera and taking a few photos? Or perhaps taking an art class to learn about perspective? At the angle the photo was taken, you should NOT be able to see the top or sides as you claim. Don't believe me? Try standing directly in front or your house from about 10 feet away. Can you see the sides?
It may be a prototype that never sees the light of day. It might be a hacked or mocked up mini that some hobbiest built. But your basis for claiming the photo itself is fake are totally wrong.
boring. boring. boring. fine for those who want an entry level machine, of course. but, i want a new mac cube! 1 quad core processor, up to 8gb of ram, imac level nvidia graphics, and up to 1tb 7200rpm drive. please! i cant afford a mac pro, dont need all that empty space for expansion anyway. but, i already have drives keyboard and monitor... i just need a decent little box for graphic design. at the least, give me top-of-the-line imac specs in my box (and, use use of full 4gb of ram). and, make it $999. i would pay that in a heartbeat. bring back the cube!
Just because so many folks have responded that they would love a computer like this I have to point out that this is a really bad design for a small computer.
It would have a huge amount of that same "empty space" that you say you don't like about the Mac Pro. Making the mini taller like this would just add about 200% more empty space than it has now. There is no reason to add all that space to get the specs that you want on the internals.
The cube was smaller than this overall and worked by convection cooling which is why it was also silent. The internals were oriented at 90 degrees to the internals in the Mac mini, with the cooling slots, and the CD slot on the top. Components were slid in and out of the bottom or top depending.
This design on the other hand, is a big metal box that is fan cooled and has the vents at the back on the bottom, so the heat would build up inside the top like crazy. It's internals would have to be oriented the same as the current mini, It would run very hot and the fan would be very loud.
Both this design and the coloured ones on the next page look very cool indeed, but they are not good designs by a long shot. There is more to a design that just making it look cool.
I own a Mini and it sits comfortably under my 40" Sony LCD in my living room. Throw in a wireless mouse and keyboard and you've got some hardcore couch net surfing!
That's right, the Mini is probably the only Mac I've ever know that hasn't had a single widespread problem in its entire existence. The only issue I have found is that the heat build up inside with the hard drive being above the CPU causes it to start making a clunk noise. The drives keep going but it's annoying.
My old mini did this as well except it was more of a sharp cracking noise and the drive burned out after 14 months. I added RAM and made a heat sink for underneath of copper and aluminium etching plates which almost completely got rid of the cracking noise but obviously didn't prevent the drive breaking.
Still, I love it, and would happily have one again for internet type stuff, not heavy work.
Dave
I have a hard time believing, after about a year and a half, that Apple would release something so similar looking to the predecessor. Why wouldn't they go with the black and aluminum theme?
This is exactly what Apple does. If they believe a form factor is good, they are not changing it for many years to come.
Let's take a look at the Mac Pro. With the exception of the second optical drive, the machine is optically virtually the the same as a 2003 PowerMac G5. Never mind the port layout and internal config. That's 6 years!
Same this with the previous Macbook Pro, the 15" model; Not too different than the first aluminum Powerbook G4. Same thing: 6 years...
To me, this is exactly what Apple would be doing with the Mac Mini. That said, this one could easily be an internal development unit. I ended up having several of those in the past.
This is exactly what Apple does. If they believe a form factor is good, they are not changing it for many years to come.
Let's take a look at the Mac Pro. With the exception of the second optical drive, the machine is optically virtually the the same as a 2003 PowerMac G5. Never mind the port layout and internal config. That's 6 years!
Same this with the previous Macbook Pro, the 15" model; Not too different than the first aluminum Powerbook G4. Same thing: 6 years...
To me, this is exactly what Apple would be doing with the Mac Mini. That said, this one could easily be an internal development unit. I ended up having several of those in the past.
Looking at this from Apple's perspective, what would be the likelihood that Apple would lose a single sale as a result of not changing the machine's outward appearance?
I would guess no lost sales from retaining the existing form factor. More sales would likely be lost if the machine is weak in terms of its specs and being as current economic conditions dictate that even Apple hold the line on pricing, whatever development cost goes into the device it will focus on providing the best specs possible for a given price.
The Cube failed because it represented an emphasis on form over function. The mini corrected that by being a remarkably small device that carried on in spirit what I'm sure Jobs had envisioned long-term for the Cube only doing so in a very appealing cost vs. performance overall package.
Bang for the buck, people, bang for the buck.
I'd bet this is a prototype, with the MiniDVI swapped over to HDMI.
I was thinking about why it would need 5 USB ports, and then it hit me. This computer, although portable, is meant for the Multimedia Room. That would mean you need 1. ATV, 2. TimeCap, 3. iPod / iPhone dock, and two for whatever (USB Flash, EXT HD, camcorder, etc). This makes sense to me because being the size the mini is, a usb hub would kind of clutter it's area. Also, I believe they left firewire on it because many cable companies are required to include firewire on their boxes, and firewire is also found on many other CONSUMER LEVEL A/V equipment (multimedia).
BTW, monoprice will soon release a miniDP to HDMI adapter.
Viral marketing?
http://www.dannychoo.com/detail/mac/...rver+Farm.html
The assertion made by 'astrosmash' was...
"Most minis are actually purchased by corporations for use in server and processing farms".
How does showing a picture of one server farm using the Mac mini (which everyone here has already seen) any kind of proof or even support of his claim?
If this is real...which I absolutely think so...maybe Apple will offer a MiniDisplay Port to HDMI adapter for those that want to use this in conjunction with their TV? I hope for a merger of the AppleTV and Mac mini — At least it could be done via software and a dongle in this case...
mDP-to-HDMI adaptor and HD movie rentals via iTunes (not just the AppleTV) would cover it for me. Update FrontRow with a few other of AppleTVs online tricks and it would seal the deal.
Apple had already indicated that they are quite happy with their AppleTV pet project, which means the mini will not be designed as a media center, which means no HDMI.
BTW, monoprice will soon release a miniDP to HDMI adapter.
So if we have miniDP to hdmi, vga and dvi, why bother with the miniDVI?
I'd guess the MiniDVI is gone by production.
How do you figure it's overpriced? If there's a less expensive alternative for operating Apple's software, I haven't heard about it.
Consider that if I were to update iLife and then add the new OS when that arrives, it would set me back $208 here in Canada. Compared to what it would cost me to gather up Windows software of a similar quality, that's very, very cheap. Now I've got a mini that is closing in on two years and probably about a year from now the hard drive will go, which likely will set me back maybe $150 to replace, especially considering how difficult the mini is to service, so installing it myself is not an option.
So now I'm at $358 and all I've done is update software and perform some maintenance.
Complicating this is that later this year I intend to buy an HD camcorder so the new iMovie would come in handy and so, too, would an upgrade in performance which both the next OS X release and the likely component upgrades (the 9400 M, faster processor, more faster memory) will bring with the revised mini. Here in Canada the base mini, which is what I have, retails for $649. Considering the current economic climate, that price will certainly not go up any time soon.
To whine that $650 is too much money for all the upgrades that would bring is not looking at the big picture. I would be getting updated software and a substantial performance boost that will prove critical considering what I intend to do with the computer a few months down the road. If instead I chose to turn to the dark side ? being as an upgrade is needed to properly edit HD video and the current mini isn't quite powerful enough ? do you really think that factoring in software, etc. I'd be able to make the switch for much less than $650 Cdn.? Myself, I doubt it. And then I'd be stuck with a PC instead of a Mac. No thank you.
The Mini is overpriced, because it's hardware sucks - 80 and 120 GB HDs are pathetically small in this day and age, 1 GB standard is pretty bad too, it's C2D is a couple generations old, not to mention the graphics chip, lack of full 4 GB RAM support, 802.11n, included Superdrive on all models.
The OS is great, iLife is just so so, but the HW is really, really bad at this point. For what it is, it shouldn't be more than $500 at the very most for the $800 model, the HW just is not up to par anymore.
Viral marketing?
Throwing a bone to the people waiting for this update? "It's coming, just a little longer, we promise."
So if we have miniDP to hdmi, vga and dvi, why bother with the miniDVI?
Mini DVI is more flexible that Mini DP. If large part of the Mac mini's "mission" is to lure switchers into the light.
A big part o the sales pitch for the mini is to be able to use ALL your current peripherals, that includes the monitor.
Unless Apple suddenly gets religion and gives away the Mini DP adaptors (DVI and VGA), having to spend ANOTHER $30 on a display adaptor sours the taste.
And a minor detail... Currently, how many monitors actually USE Mini Display Port connectors? How many have been announced that will INCLUDE them?
Oh, yeah, right. ONE. Yes, ONE monitor supports Mini DP. That means the great majority of mini buyers will be forced to buy an adaptor to be able to use it with current hardware.
Great solution.
The Mini is overpriced, because it's hardware sucks - 80 and 120 GB HDs are pathetically small in this day and age, 1 GB standard is pretty bad too, it's C2D is a couple generations old, not to mention the graphics chip, lack of full 4 GB RAM support, 802.11n, included Superdrive on all models.
The OS is great, iLife is just so so, but the HW is really, really bad at this point. For what it is, it shouldn't be more than $500 at the very most for the $800 model, the HW just is not up to par anymore.
Why complain about the old specs? I'd guess that most people here agree on that point.
From what appears to be included on the mystery mini, it may be answering a lot of nagging shortcomings of the mini, especially, one would HOPE, the woeful integrated graphics.
One suspects that Apple would try and bring the mini's architecture up to the same standard as the MacBook line. Why do you think the MacBook and MacBook Pro and iMac share so many of the same components? It's a way to economize and maximize profits. So 4GB RAM capability, 'N' wireless and gigabit Ethernet should be in the new box. I pray that while they're at it, Apple redesigns the box make it easier for users to install RAM and swap hard drives!
200GB hard drives are pretty much the norm these days. Besides, there's a FireWire 800 port on the thing. That's what FireWire is for (NOT USB): adding external storage devices! Connect a honking big 7200 rpm external FireWire drive to it and boot from it. Problem solved.
This is why Apple adds ports to their machines and doesn't add bullshit stuff like card readers and superfluous buttons and lights, like cheap asian audio gear. Figure out your own solution. Buy the stuff you need and do it. Not everyone has the same computing and peripheral needs.