Intel Mac mini Upgraded to 2.16GHz Core Duo

MacRumors · Mar 5, 2006, 03:58 PM

http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif

XtremeSystems.org documented their upgrade of a 1.5GHz Mac mini Single Core to a 2.16GHz Dual Core processor.

This appears to confirm that the Mac mini's Intel processor is upgradable. Disassembly pictures posted last week revealed that the Mac mini Intel processor is socketed like the Intel iMac, suggesting that a simple processor replacement could be performed.

Quote:

I picked up an Apple Mini Mac for $599 and Fry's Electronics today. It was the low end unit with plans to swap out some of the guts for a mega upgrade that would be an unavailable configuration from Apple.

For those with access to Yonah chips or prefer to purchase from an online retailer but did not have a platform to run it on, this is very cool interim machine to check out.

The author posts screenshots showing Before (1.5GHz) and After (2.16GHz) system information screens documenting the upgrade.

ReanimationLP · Mar 5, 2006, 04:00 PM

Sweeeeeeeet.

Thats quite a nice upgrade.

I wonder how hot it gets?

runninmac · Mar 5, 2006, 04:01 PM

Wow thats amazing, So you can get MacBook Pros power for about 1/2 the price. (Just guessing on that, I have no idea how much the 2.16 chips cost)

yoda13 · Mar 5, 2006, 04:02 PM

Where can you buy just Core Duo chips and how much do they cost?

schatten · Mar 5, 2006, 04:03 PM

That's great & all, but what about the heat factor? It's not like the Mac Mini has lots of fans to cool a more powerful chip.

miketcool · Mar 5, 2006, 04:05 PM

First fuel cells now toasty minis. Hell may have frozen over with the transition to Intel, but it doesn't feel that way in the Apple of tomorrow.

mgargan1 · Mar 5, 2006, 04:06 PM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...ubCategory=343

yoda13 · Mar 5, 2006, 04:09 PM

Wow, that is fairly pricey...

Now I know why the minis cost so much these days.

ScottB · Mar 5, 2006, 04:10 PM

Wow, that's cool. They've got to be talented to get a new processor in that thing, and I guess it opens a whole lot of upgrade possibilities in the future. Oh, and I guess that things very hot.

NEENAHBOY · Mar 5, 2006, 04:14 PM

Hmm, NewEgg must've added them since I last checked a couple weeks ago.

pizzach · Mar 5, 2006, 04:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ScottB

Wow, that's cool. They've got to be talented to get a new processor in that thing, and I guess it opens a whole lot of upgrade possibilities in the future. Oh, and I guess that things very hot.

Is the surface of the mini non-stick? I hate having to apply butter for my eggs. (Unhealthy.)

zap2 · Mar 5, 2006, 04:16 PM

so can you also upgrade other 478 intel chips?

capran · Mar 5, 2006, 04:16 PM

It's very cool that we finally have a relatively low priced upgradeable Mac. (I guess it would be too much to ask for an upgradeable GPU as well...)

But it does suck that Intel's chips cost more than PPC chips. Is that just Intel's price premium, or is there something in the design/manufacturing process that's inherently more expensive? Or is it just that the PPC G(n) series were designed to be low cost?

I bought my 1.25 GHz Mini last year, upgraded RAM and OC'd it to 1.58, and have been wishing for a faster one for a while, but now that it's here, money is tight for me and they increased the price! Plus I'm a bit sour on the integrated graphics/shared memory deal.

Well, here's to (the thin sliver of) hoping the next desktop tower Mac will be both upgradeable and afffordable!

macorama · Mar 5, 2006, 04:16 PM

Very cool, but by the time you've bought a mini, and then gone and bought another CPU, you've suddenly spent an awful lot on a Mini. Add a display and you might as well have bought an iMac...

Voidness · Mar 5, 2006, 04:17 PM

Only if Apple would use this in thier Macs (Atleast the iMac and Mac Mini):

http://www.gen-x-pc.com/note_AU259IA_MXM.htm

That would rock!

(For those of you too lazy to click on the link, it's about a PCI Express graphics card that's designed for notebooks, and is designed to be easily upgradeble)

leftbanke7 · Mar 5, 2006, 04:17 PM

I agree, a sweet upgrade but why would anybody want to sully it by installing XP?

leftbanke7 · Mar 5, 2006, 04:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Voidness

Only if Apple would use this in thier Macs (Atleast the iMac and Mac Mini):

http://www.gen-x-pc.com/note_AU259IA_MXM.htm

That would rock!

(For those of you too lazy to click on the link, it's about a PCI Express graphics card that's designed for notebooks, and is designed to be easily upgradeble)

That is also pretty cool but I wonder what this would do to the cost? Would it be worth upping the cost of the low end machine for this assuming, of course, that the cost per machine would increase?

Abstract · Mar 5, 2006, 04:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by runninmac

Wow thats amazing, So you can get MacBook Pros power for about 1/2 the price. (Just guessing on that, I have no idea how much the 2.16 chips cost)

You can't upgrade the procs in the MBPs, only in the new iMacs and Minis.

Quote:

Originally Posted by schatten

That's great & all, but what about the heat factor? It's not like the Mac Mini has lots of fans to cool a more powerful chip.

Exactly, which is why Apple doesn't care if the chip was soldered on or not. It probably would have cost extra to have the CPU soldered on, but since you'd just end up busting your machine if you made a significant upgrade, then it's your problem. And nobody would spend that type of money to get a 2.16 GHz Core Duo Mac Mini, since buying that chip separate would cost a fortune. Apple knows that.

MacSA · Mar 5, 2006, 04:23 PM

This guy must have spent a $1000 doillars on a mini to run XP LOL

geerlingguy · Mar 5, 2006, 04:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by schatten

That's great & all, but what about the heat factor? It's not like the Mac Mini has lots of fans to cool a more powerful chip.

A little further down in the discussion thread, he states that the fan inside the mini is adequate for cooling the processor, and he also says that he would probably be able to fit a copper water cooling system on the chip, as Apple is using standard sizes/clips/mounts now...

In my opinion, it's awesome that Apple is using more and more standard hardware components. The Mac should be fine for anyone, but also have some hidden goodies inside that modders can play around with. (And a $599 computer with optical audio in/out??? that's a good deal, too! I wonder if they'll do that to the iBook too...).

admanimal · Mar 5, 2006, 04:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by macorama

Very cool, but by the time you've bought a mini, and then gone and bought another CPU, you've suddenly spent an awful lot on a Mini. Add a display and you might as well have bought an iMac...

It's actually not a bad deal for someone like me who bought a Core Solo and might want to upgrade in a year or two, when the price of say the 1.66GHz Duo like in the higher end Mini might be closer to $150. Plus in theory I could find someone who wants to buy the Core Solo I would be removing, making the net cost of the new CPU closer to $100.

Voidness · Mar 5, 2006, 04:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by leftbanke7

That is also pretty cool but I wonder what this would do to the cost? Would it be worth upping the cost of the low end machine for this assuming, of course, that the cost per machine would increase?

I'm assuming it shouldn't have much effect on the cost, if any. It's just a slot and a daughter card to hold the GPU. But i'm guessing it wouldn't fit in a Powerbook (I refuse calling it a Macbook Pro

), since the casing seems to be too thin.

zap2 · Mar 5, 2006, 04:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by macorama

Very cool, but by the time you've bought a mini, and then gone and bought another CPU, you've suddenly spent an awful lot on a Mini. Add a display and you might as well have bought an iMac...

not if you buy *Nice* CPU upgrade, a bigger screen then the iMac, and don't need the GPU, the Mac Mini could be faster then the iMac

Spanky Deluxe · Mar 5, 2006, 04:32 PM

This is fantastic news!!

It'll mean that by the time the Yonah chips are old news we'll be able to purchase decent priced upgrades - we won't be locked down by the overinflated prices by Powerlogix and the like.
Now I wonder if Merom will work in these minis - that would be seriously cool!!

nagromme · Mar 5, 2006, 04:34 PM

Cool.

Upgrades may not make $$$ sense TODAY, but maybe the Core Duo will hang around as a low-end chip even after Merom is out--and it may offer higher Ghz for less money then. That could make it a tempting upgrade in a year or two.

Mar 5, 2006, 04:00 PM	#2
ReanimationLP macrumors 68030 Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: On the moon.	Sweeeeeeeet. Thats quite a nice upgrade. I wonder how hot it gets? __________________ Corei7 920 @ 4GHz, Radeon 4850X2 2GB, 2TB, 6GB DDR3 July 17, 2009 can't come soon enough.

Mar 5, 2006, 04:01 PM	#3
runninmac macrumors 65816 Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Rockford MI	Wow thats amazing, So you can get MacBook Pros power for about 1/2 the price. (Just guessing on that, I have no idea how much the 2.16 chips cost) __________________ 2.0 Ghz CoreDuo. 2 GB Ram. 80 Gig HDD. Black MacBook

Mar 5, 2006, 04:02 PM	#4
yoda13 macrumors 65816 Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Texas	Where can you buy just Core Duo chips and how much do they cost? __________________ For over a thousand generations, the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic. Before the dark times, before the Empire.

Mar 5, 2006, 04:03 PM	#5
schatten macrumors member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Cleveland, OH, USA	But what about heat? That's great & all, but what about the heat factor? It's not like the Mac Mini has lots of fans to cool a more powerful chip. __________________ --schatten You will live in happiness too, like the Oompa Loompa doopity do!

Mar 5, 2006, 04:05 PM	#6
miketcool macrumors 6502a Join Date: Jun 2003	Mmmmm First fuel cells now toasty minis. Hell may have frozen over with the transition to Intel, but it doesn't feel that way in the Apple of tomorrow.

Mar 5, 2006, 04:06 PM	#7
mgargan1 macrumors 65816 Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Reston, VA	http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...ubCategory=343

Mar 5, 2006, 04:09 PM	#8
yoda13 macrumors 65816 Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Texas	Wow, that is fairly pricey... Now I know why the minis cost so much these days. __________________ For over a thousand generations, the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic. Before the dark times, before the Empire.

Mar 5, 2006, 04:10 PM	#9
ScottB macrumors regular Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Britain	Wow, that's cool. They've got to be talented to get a new processor in that thing, and I guess it opens a whole lot of upgrade possibilities in the future. Oh, and I guess that things very hot.

Mar 5, 2006, 04:14 PM	#10
NEENAHBOY macrumors 6502 Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Chicago, IL	Hmm, NewEgg must've added them since I last checked a couple weeks ago.

Mar 5, 2006, 04:16 PM	#12
zap2 macrumors 601 Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: NJ	so can you also upgrade other 478 intel chips? __________________ "We can't all be heroes because somebody has to sit on the curb and clap as they go by." Will Rogers

Mar 5, 2006, 04:16 PM	#13
capran macrumors member Join Date: Nov 2003	It's very cool that we finally have a relatively low priced upgradeable Mac. (I guess it would be too much to ask for an upgradeable GPU as well...) But it does suck that Intel's chips cost more than PPC chips. Is that just Intel's price premium, or is there something in the design/manufacturing process that's inherently more expensive? Or is it just that the PPC G(n) series were designed to be low cost? I bought my 1.25 GHz Mini last year, upgraded RAM and OC'd it to 1.58, and have been wishing for a faster one for a while, but now that it's here, money is tight for me and they increased the price! Plus I'm a bit sour on the integrated graphics/shared memory deal. Well, here's to (the thin sliver of) hoping the next desktop tower Mac will be both upgradeable and afffordable!

Mar 5, 2006, 04:16 PM	#14
macorama macrumors regular Join Date: Apr 2005	cool, but... Very cool, but by the time you've bought a mini, and then gone and bought another CPU, you've suddenly spent an awful lot on a Mini. Add a display and you might as well have bought an iMac... __________________ WWDC Intel Powermacs

Mar 5, 2006, 04:17 PM	#15
Voidness macrumors 6502a Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Null	Only if Apple would use this in thier Macs (Atleast the iMac and Mac Mini): http://www.gen-x-pc.com/note_AU259IA_MXM.htm That would rock! (For those of you too lazy to click on the link, it's about a PCI Express graphics card that's designed for notebooks, and is designed to be easily upgradeble) __________________ void...

Mar 5, 2006, 04:17 PM	#16
leftbanke7 macrumors 6502a Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: West Valley City, Utah	I agree, a sweet upgrade but why would anybody want to sully it by installing XP? __________________ "I'm apathetic and I don't care."

Mar 5, 2006, 04:23 PM	#19
MacSA macrumors 68000 Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: UK	This guy must have spent a $1000 doillars on a mini to run XP LOL

Mar 5, 2006, 04:32 PM	#24
Spanky Deluxe macrumors Demi-God Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: London, UK	This is fantastic news!! It'll mean that by the time the Yonah chips are old news we'll be able to purchase decent priced upgrades - we won't be locked down by the overinflated prices by Powerlogix and the like. Now I wonder if Merom will work in these minis - that would be seriously cool!! __________________ "No, I'm from Iowa, I only work in outer space."

Mar 5, 2006, 04:34 PM	#25
nagromme macrumors 601 Join Date: May 2002 Location: Blinking blue dot	Cool. Upgrades may not make $$$ sense TODAY, but maybe the Core Duo will hang around as a low-end chip even after Merom is out--and it may offer higher Ghz for less money then. That could make it a tempting upgrade in a year or two. __________________ nagromme Would you like a treatment?

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