Mac mini: What we want to see in an update to Apple's low-cost desktop

13567

Comments

  • Reply 41 of 127
    mike1mike1 Posts: 3,275member
    mattinoz said:
    mrakoplas said:
    Or they can just put MacBook (Pro) mainboard inside a Magic Keyboard. It definitely would fit there. Of course, with at least two TB3 ports :)
    I do like the idea but it might stir up a few old arguements....

    Hardware
    By Evan-Amos - Own work, Public Domain, Link


    I had one of those and the Vic20 before it. Thanks for surfacing some old memories.
    king editor the gratewatto_cobra
  • Reply 42 of 127
    What we *really* want to see is Apple to get its act together and make regular upgrades – something, anything – to the Mac Mini and Power Mac. Our advertising and design studio depends on Macs of all types, and it's embarrassing and frustrating. iMacs are wonderful for design but they aren't adaptable. There are great ideas here, but they're all pie in the sky given that Apple has been killing the Mini and Power with inattention :-(
    edited April 2018
  • Reply 43 of 127
    wozwozwozwoz Posts: 263member
    Nothing wrong with the Mac Mini design - it is close to perfect. It just needs an update - like 10G ethernet, faster RAM, processor etc. The usuals. Can't see Apple dropping HDMI - many people buy these to hook up to the TV, and have a real computer - not just an AppleTV.
    tenthousandthingsNergrettezpscooter63watto_cobramacguillama
  • Reply 44 of 127
    asdasd said:  Probably there would be one or two ports at the back, about as many ports as a MacBook Pro. I don't get the in front of the monitor problem, my MacBook Pro is in front of my monitor as I speak.
    Look at the render again: why isn't it showing a power cable and a monitor cable running from the Mac Mini? Because the person that designed it knows that ruins the concept. Apple doesn't make any desktop computers that require the cable attachments to be visible from the front. They also have a heavy emphasis on the keyboard, mouse, and trackpads being wireless. Why would Apple suddenly design a Mini that required cables to run in front just to add the Touch Bar? Or to have that used in combination with non-wired keyboards/mice/trackpads. Doesn't really make sense. 
    bkkcanuckwatto_cobra
  • Reply 45 of 127
    bkkcanuckbkkcanuck Posts: 864member
    wozwoz said:
    Nothing wrong with the Mac Mini design - it is close to perfect. It just needs an update - like 10G ethernet, faster RAM, processor etc. The usuals. Can't see Apple dropping HDMI - many people buy these to hook up to the TV, and have a real computer - not just an AppleTV.
    10G Ethernet in a base low-end mac - is rather an expensive addition (still).  
    watto_cobraargonaut
  • Reply 46 of 127
    macguimacgui Posts: 2,350member
    bkkcanuck said:
    wozwoz said:
    Nothing wrong with the Mac Mini design - it is close to perfect. It just needs an update - like 10G ethernet, faster RAM, processor etc. The usuals. Can't see Apple dropping HDMI - many people buy these to hook up to the TV, and have a real computer - not just an AppleTV.
    10G Ethernet in a base low-end mac - is rather an expensive addition (still).  
    It is. Seems people want a mini Pro and it's not going to happen. The purpose of the mini was to bring Windows users into the fold.

    Many of us bought it because it was a de facto replacement for the Cube. We wanted a Mac that wasn't near useless with the monitor died, and gave us a choice in monitors that works for us and not just some segment of computerdom.

    Just say NO! to 'a bit of glue'. It doesn't get us anything we need. The current form factor is great— clean, subtle, and very functional. Sure Apple buries the storage compared to the early minis. It's tedious and unnecessary, but it can be done by mere mortals, if so moved. That's more that I can say for the current line of MacBooks. Adding RAM to a 21" iMac is an adventure nobody wants to undertake.

    So NO MORE GLUE. Change the shape for style is a huge, erroneous concession to style over substance. Glue and it's associated changes really only benefit Apple, not us.

    I'd like to see updated performance. I'll give up an i7 processor for a faster mini with better graphics. No, we'll never get discrete graphics in a mini, but I could live with that. 4K at 60 Hz capability would be a good start. And better ventilation.

    If running macOS on non-Apple kit weren't such a daily PITA in terms of seemingly every update throwing a wrench in the works, I'd get a NUC and be done with Apple hardware. Sooner or later there won't be a mini worth owning for more than a couple of OSs. 

    The mini is a mini truck and Apple is replacing most and maybe all it's truck fleet with Corollas.
    GeorgeBMacargonaut
  • Reply 47 of 127
    pentaepentae Posts: 36member
    I mean call me simple but I don't know, how about reliably and consistently updating the machine to the latest Intel architecture every year? Keep it as a simple silver box for the next 100 years for all I care just stop ripping off your customers by selling outdated hardware. 
    entropys
  • Reply 48 of 127
    Owl10Owl10 Posts: 1member
    Bought a 2012 Mac Mini about 3 years ago and have never looked back.  Awesome little machine (Intel i7 upgraded to 16GB RAM & 512GB SSD plus added A/C WiFi).  Still, it's getting 'long in the tooth' but have zero desire to buy Apple's 2014 'upgrade'.  Ever since Steve Jobs passed & Tim Cook took over, Apple lost its' way IMO.  Steve had such a fantastic vision and seemed intent on bringing that vision to 'the masses'.  Tim cook?  Not so much, although no one can argue that Cook has made the company a ton of money.  Pity, because Google has now skunked Apple in the education market (60% share to less than 20% share).  A new Mac Mini could provide some nice competition to the relatively inexpensive PCs running Microsoft's Windows 10 and Chromebooks running Google's Chrome OS now flooding the market.
    llama
  • Reply 49 of 127
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,801member
    Owl10 said:
    Bought a 2012 Mac Mini about 3 years ago and have never looked back.  Awesome little machine (Intel i7 upgraded to 16GB RAM & 512GB SSD plus added A/C WiFi).  Still, it's getting 'long in the tooth' but have zero desire to buy Apple's 2014 'upgrade'.  Ever since Steve Jobs passed & Tim Cook took over, Apple lost its' way IMO.  Steve had such a fantastic vision and seemed intent on bringing that vision to 'the masses'.  Tim cook?  Not so much, although no one can argue that Cook has made the company a ton of money.  Pity, because Google has now skunked Apple in the education market (60% share to less than 20% share).  A new Mac Mini could provide some nice competition to the relatively inexpensive PCs running Microsoft's Windows 10 and Chromebooks running Google's Chrome OS now flooding the market.
    A Mac mini wouldn't have don't anything to save Apple in the education sector. K-12 is buying laptops, not desktops and even if they were, they wouldn't buy the Mac mini, but rather iMacs. 

    Just because Apple isn't releasing new Macs every 6 months doesn't mean its lost its way. I know its great to sit and think how nice Apple was back when it was Apple Computer, but there's a reason why they changed their name to Apple, Inc from Apple Computer. Apple today is so much more of just Macs. Apple cannot survive on Macs. If thats all it focused on it would eventually die out. Apple today is so much better than the Apple of "back in the day". It's making more money than pretty much any other tech company out there. It has wonderful products other than Mac such as iPhone, iPad, HomePod, Apple Watch, AirPods, etc...not to mention great services such as iCloud, Apple Music, and the App Stores. Apple needed to expand past Mac...it will not survive without it. 
    edited April 2018 StrangeDayswatto_cobra
  • Reply 50 of 127
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,801member
    I still believe the Mac mini will be the first Mac without an Intel processor in it, but rather an Apple CPU/chipset. Give it a few USB-C ports, Ethernet, Audio Out, perhaps even a SD Card reader and I think it could be a nice little Mac. I can't see Apple selling any Mac cheaper than $499 so I'd say thats a good price point to start. 

    It would also be interesting to see Apple use an AMD processor in the Mac mini as well...
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 51 of 127
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    Personally I'd like the Intel NUC approach for a Mac mini.  Small but not too small as to prevent expandability (the NUC has two alternative depths), infinitely configurable with a choice of CPUs, SSDs  and RAM with a good array of ports Thunderbolt 3, HDMI, USB c and a range of prices from low to high.  Unlike the Intel NUC boots macOS High Sierra or Windows 10.  What's not to like.
    edited April 2018 watto_cobraargonautllama
  • Reply 52 of 127
    19831983 Posts: 1,225member
    dewme said:
    These new concepts are quite intriguing and very clever. As much as I like the Mini concept I’m not really sure where it fits into Apple’s product line unless it becomes radically different than the current Mini. Intel already has a very broad range of capabilities in its NUC product line, some with reasonable modularity and expansion capability, but are these things flying off the shelf? They are very expensive when optioned up with real horsepower. Some of the things being requested for a Mini refresh seem very similar at a hardware level to the higher end NUCs. Would anyone buy them in sufficient numbers to justify the R&D and potential cannibalization of the iMac and MacBook Pro product lines?  
    This is exactly what I was thinking too! The ideas expressed in this article are indeed intriguing. But as you said, I don’t think the market for these Macs financially justify the R&D outlay required. I actually think Apple will quietly drop the Mac Mini line in the near future anyway. However much the techie in me would love to see an imaginitive redesign of this product.
    edited April 2018
  • Reply 53 of 127
    AI_liasAI_lias Posts: 434member
    I still think they should miniaturize the Mac Pro, trash can design, and make it cheaper to manufacture, and call it a Mac mini. That form factor is much more suited to a Mac mini than a Mac Pro. That only if development money can be saved by reusing that design.
  • Reply 54 of 127
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,834member
    How about a lego type approach
    That worked so well for Google and the Project Ara...

    https://daringfireball.net/linked/2016/09/01/reuters-project-ara
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 55 of 127
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,834member

    rfrmac said:
    I don’t know why we keep talking about this. Tim Cook doesn’t like the Mac so he just lets it go.  He thinks that Apple no longer needs to have a Mac.  Take a look at what has happened to the Macs since Steve died. It continues to break my heart. I haven’t bought a Mac in years.  Not because I didn’t want to, there just wasn’t  a new Mac that could justify the cost.  The new iMac just doesn’t do it for my profession.  Would love a couple of mini's for movie servers but I’m not buying that old of technology. 

    Boy, that's some of the stupidest shit I've read here in a long time, considering Cook just went on record (again) about how he and Apple love the Mac and that they serve different use cases than Apple's mobile devices.

    Also, since Jobs died the Mac has become even more awesome -- retina displays in both the MBP and iMac lines, and an incredible iMP workstation. I really have no idea what youre whining about, my Macs are the best PCs I've ever owned.
    edited April 2018 watto_cobraargonaut
  • Reply 56 of 127

    rfrmac said:
    I don’t know why we keep talking about this. Tim Cook doesn’t like the Mac so he just lets it go.  He thinks that Apple no longer needs to have a Mac.  Take a look at what has happened to the Macs since Steve died. It continues to break my heart. I haven’t bought a Mac in years.  Not because I didn’t want to, there just wasn’t  a new Mac that could justify the cost.  The new iMac just doesn’t do it for my profession.  Would love a couple of mini's for movie servers but I’m not buying that old of technology. 

    Boy, that's some of the stupidest shit I've read here in a long time, considering Cook just went on record (again) about how he and Apple love the Mac and that they serve different use cases than Apple's mobile devices.

    Also, since Jobs died the Mac has become even more awesome -- retina displays in both the MBP and iMac lines, and an incredible iMP workstation. I really have no idea what youre whining about, my Macs are the best PCs I've ever owned.

    I would not say necessarily more awesome, there are a few bright spots - and some major neglect (assuming you are on the wrong side of the equation).  

    The iMac Pro while one of the better Macs (all-in-one) that Apple has come out with... I am still incredibly wary of any all-in-one computer -- since other than hard drives - monitors have been the next most common component on my computers to croak.  I have had probably 5 die over the last 10 years (usually have between 2 and 4 monitors going at the same time).  It might be because of the tropics (it can be very hard on everything).  The fact that the computer will go up to a consistent 94C under full load is a little worrying for me.  I have been known to have my old Mac Pro under full load for 6 months straight 7/24 (and no it was not mining :o )   Anything that is not a laptop or an all-in-one has suffered major neglect.  And no, I know I am not entitled to the machine I want from Apple - but then Apple is not entitled to my business either.  I may end up going with another solution for the power side of the equation and then mixing in a lower end laptop for coding and that sort of stuff.  

    There are major design issues with the current class of laptops that needs to be fixed.  Specifically things like the keyboard.  I actually like the keyboards -- but the fact that a smidgen of hard dust can basically cripple your laptop is problematic.  The bar across some laptops top instead of function keys is, for the most part, a half-baked idea.  The fact you cannot feel it is problematic for touch typists.  The fact that if you "dock" your computer you end up with a different metaphor than you do if you are working on the laptop directly -- is also problematic.  It should be the same interface.  

    I would not classify having half your lineup with major issues or neglect - awesome.

  • Reply 57 of 127
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,801member

    rfrmac said:
    I don’t know why we keep talking about this. Tim Cook doesn’t like the Mac so he just lets it go.  He thinks that Apple no longer needs to have a Mac.  Take a look at what has happened to the Macs since Steve died. It continues to break my heart. I haven’t bought a Mac in years.  Not because I didn’t want to, there just wasn’t  a new Mac that could justify the cost.  The new iMac just doesn’t do it for my profession.  Would love a couple of mini's for movie servers but I’m not buying that old of technology. 

    Boy, that's some of the stupidest shit I've read here in a long time, considering Cook just went on record (again) about how he and Apple love the Mac and that they serve different use cases than Apple's mobile devices.

    Also, since Jobs died the Mac has become even more awesome -- retina displays in both the MBP and iMac lines, and an incredible iMP workstation. I really have no idea what youre whining about, my Macs are the best PCs I've ever owned.
    Well Apple doesn't release a new Mac every 6 months so Tim doesn't give a shit about the Mac. Never mind there isn't anything to upgrade to every 6 months...that's besides the point. Never mind we recently received a totally brand new MacBook Pro, a new iMac Pro, a 12" MacBook, and updates to iMac. Yes, the sticking point is the Mac mini which is a very slow seller anyways. I hardly doubt the Mac mini provides any significant revenue for Apple. As I've always said, it pretty much exists just so Apple can say they have an "affordable" Mac. And, Apple is working on a new Mac Pro. We all know its coming. We also know Apple has their own displays coming as well. Apple is doing a lot for the Mac, but I guess just because we don't see something every 6 months it really doesn't matter...

    I think people have very obscured views of Apple (and the Mac) when Steve was CEO...it wasn't as great as everyone is making it out to be. We all saw Apple with Steve at the helm when it was mostly Apple Computer, not Apple, Inc...and, we also saw the Mac when Intel was firing on all cylinders so there was almost constantly something to update to and Apple was making the transition so we continuously saw something new for a year or two while everything was migrating over to Intel. Nowadays, its little updates for the CPU that don't really justify an update. I guess we want the PowerMac G4 days when it was minuscule updates that were pretty much meaningless just for the sake of updating. Do people remember those days? Remember the G5, when it was damn near impossible to get an update out of it because of its thermal issues? 
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 58 of 127
    analogjackanalogjack Posts: 1,073member
    How many cores do we want

    Four.

    When do we want them

    Four years ago.
  • Reply 59 of 127
    analogjackanalogjack Posts: 1,073member
     It has literally been years since the last "update" which wasn't really much of one over the previous generation. 

    It was in fact a downgrade, which is why I was able to sell my 2012 4 core i7 for the same price I bought it for last year!
    argonaut
  • Reply 60 of 127
    bkkcanuckbkkcanuck Posts: 864member
    How many cores do we want

    Four.

    When do we want them

    Four years ago.
    But now there is a 6 core laptop processor...
Sign In or Register to comment.