Mac Mini to Launch at Macworld San Francisco?

MacRumors · Dec 31, 2008, 09:09 AM

TUAW believes that the Mac mini will indeed see an update at Macworld San Francisco next week. Rumors of a Mac mini update have been ongoing with most expectations pointing to Macworld.

TUAW's report is light on details but expects at least two major changes

- The internal optical drive will be an SATA drive that can be swapped out with a second SATA hard drive
- Design will change from the current white plastic to black plastic and aluminum.

We also expect the new Mac minis to be based on the NVIDIA chipsets. This design change should guarantee the use of the NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics card at a minimum. This should improve the graphics capabilities of the mini significantly over the current design.

Earlier this month, Wired also reported that the new Mac mini would be released at Macworld.

Article Link: Mac Mini to Launch at Macworld San Francisco?

Tallest Skil · Dec 31, 2008, 09:10 AM

*snort* Did we need this at this point?

It's been a lock for quite some time...

rhett7660 · Dec 31, 2008, 09:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tallest Skil

*snort* Did we need this at this point?

It's been a lock for quite some time...

Lets remember this is apple.. nothing is ever a lock!?!?!

Undecided · Dec 31, 2008, 09:13 AM

I think this Macworld is going to be huge - with huge announcements of new and innovative products - to show that Apple can dazzle without Jobs.

Tallest Skil · Dec 31, 2008, 09:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rhett7660

Lets remember this is apple.. nothing is ever a lock!?!?!

The only time I would ever say "lock" is if we saw kexts for nonexistent products in OS releases... hey, wait...

bobbleheadbob · Dec 31, 2008, 09:18 AM

I guess this is good news, but not that relevant to me. I'm hoping for something exciting that I'll want (selfish, I know....)!

zombitronic · Dec 31, 2008, 09:19 AM

By this point, if we don't get a new Mini, I'd at least like to see an execution, funeral or burial for the old model.

Since Apple seems to be canceling their appearance at Macworld in favor of setting their own dates for events, does anyone think that if a Mini is announced, that its actual shipping date will be postponed?

andreab35 · Dec 31, 2008, 09:19 AM

Well, although I have no interest in a Mac Mni, I just hope it gets updated for the people who have waited for an update for so long.
I know, I care about people's feelings.

rhett7660 · Dec 31, 2008, 09:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tallest Skil

The only time I would ever say "lock" is if we saw kexts for nonexistent products in OS releases... hey, wait...

Ha.... although I am interested in the black and aluminum look of the product if this is true.

colmaclean · Dec 31, 2008, 09:21 AM

Is black the new white for Apple?

Will the AE and Time Capsule be available in matching hues?

Only a week to wait...

M!M!C · Dec 31, 2008, 09:21 AM

This will be great for offloading some work and using it as a web server!! Hey, this might be the perfect intranet server at work also.

itcheroni · Dec 31, 2008, 09:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MacRumors

- The internal optical drive will be an SATA drive that can be swapped out with a second SATA hard drive

Does this mean that, instead of an optical drive, I can have a total of two 2.5 inch hard drives?

pjarvi · Dec 31, 2008, 09:23 AM

Where's the slew of case pics leaked from China like we got with all the recent macbook/iphone updates?

If it gets the nVidia chipset/GPU, i'm gonna get the Mini this February when I get my profit-sharing check from work.

fhall1 · Dec 31, 2008, 09:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by itcheroni

Does this mean that, instead of an optical drive, I can have a total of two 2.5 inch hard drives?

I would say you've reworded that sentence accurately

Djcyder · Dec 31, 2008, 09:24 AM

Sounds like they are doing away with the white plastic look Hopefully we'll see new remotes and power adapter to match.

Marx55 · Dec 31, 2008, 09:26 AM

Please, at least two ports of Firewire 800. Booting and working from external Firewire drives is a much faster experience for Mac mini.

colmaclean · Dec 31, 2008, 09:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by itcheroni

Does this mean that, instead of an optical drive, I can have a total of two 2.5 inch hard drives?

The optical drive bay should be big enough for a slim 3.5", non?

I'm VERY interested in how this would play out (I'm dubious if it will). If you do install an extra hard drive, would you still have the unused disc slot at the front?

Doesn't sound like a design Apple would go for...

OllyW · Dec 31, 2008, 09:27 AM

From the linked article....

Quote:

The second detail is that the new Mac mini won't be made of white plastic like the current model seen above; instead, it will follow Apple's new design meme by using black plastic and aluminum.

I'm not too confident with the accuracy of this article when they think the current Mac mini is made of plastic when it is actually made out of aluminium with a plastic lid.

dr_lha · Dec 31, 2008, 09:28 AM

Looks like I'm retiring my old Core Solo mini to the media center and moving up to new power in the new year!

Lone Deranger · Dec 31, 2008, 09:29 AM

Great to hear more confirmation on a possible Mac Mini update.
With Snow Leopard going 64 bit all the way I'd love to buy a few minis, stuff them with 8+ GB of Ram and use them as render nodes for XSI/Maya mentalray/Fry Render tasks.
None of this 3-4GB limit crap in this era of 64 bit please Apple.

disdat · Dec 31, 2008, 09:32 AM

Ooh does this mean that it might be easy to update the mini yourself without resorting to special tools to open it up? I would definitely buy one if I could update the ram and hd myself without fear of damaging the case!!!!

DaBrain · Dec 31, 2008, 09:33 AM

My Only concern at this point is the I/O. Mainly IM hoping this does not include the proprietary DVI port of which it appears Apple does not make the adapter available ( read this yesterday on a referral link).

All other things aside IM in on one or two of these babies!

rhett7660 · Dec 31, 2008, 09:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lone Deranger

Great to hear more confirmation on a possible Mac Mini update.
With Snow Leopard going 64 bit all the way I'd love to buy a few minis, stuff them with 8+ GB of Ram and use them as render nodes for XSI/Maya mentalray/Fry Render tasks.
None of this 3-4GB limit crap in this era of 64 bit please Apple.

If I could upgrade the ram over the current 3.5gig, the Mac Mini would be very inticing.

The Samurai · Dec 31, 2008, 09:34 AM

yay, about time this happened!

On a different note, why can I not 'vote' positive on this story?

Phil A. · Dec 31, 2008, 09:40 AM

I hope they do release an updated Mini - I could offload our Kerio Mailserver onto it from my Mac Pro

Dec 31, 2008, 09:09 AM	#1
MacRumors macrumors bot Join Date: Apr 2001	Mac Mini to Launch at Macworld San Francisco? TUAW believes that the Mac mini will indeed see an update at Macworld San Francisco next week. Rumors of a Mac mini update have been ongoing with most expectations pointing to Macworld. TUAW's report is light on details but expects at least two major changes - The internal optical drive will be an SATA drive that can be swapped out with a second SATA hard drive - Design will change from the current white plastic to black plastic and aluminum. We also expect the new Mac minis to be based on the NVIDIA chipsets. This design change should guarantee the use of the NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics card at a minimum. This should improve the graphics capabilities of the mini significantly over the current design. Earlier this month, Wired also reported that the new Mac mini would be released at Macworld. Article Link: Mac Mini to Launch at Macworld San Francisco?

Dec 31, 2008, 09:18 AM	#6
bobbleheadbob macrumors 6502a Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Massachusetts	I guess this is good news, but not that relevant to me. I'm hoping for something exciting that I'll want (selfish, I know....)! __________________ It's a dog's life!

Dec 31, 2008, 09:19 AM	#8
andreab35 macrumors 6502a Join Date: May 2008 Location: USA	Well, although I have no interest in a Mac Mni, I just hope it gets updated for the people who have waited for an update for so long. I know, I care about people's feelings. __________________ 16GB iPhone 3Gs Black MBA Rev. B: 1.6GHz 120HD My Blog In the process

Dec 31, 2008, 09:21 AM	#11
M!M!C macrumors newbie Join Date: Dec 2008	My Mac Mini Server This will be great for offloading some work and using it as a web server!! Hey, this might be the perfect intranet server at work also.

Dec 31, 2008, 09:23 AM	#13
pjarvi macrumors Demi-God Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Round Lake, IL	Where's the slew of case pics leaked from China like we got with all the recent macbook/iphone updates? If it gets the nVidia chipset/GPU, i'm gonna get the Mini this February when I get my profit-sharing check from work. __________________ "Are those violins I hear in the background? Yes. Yes they are. This is deep stuff that requires strings." Mark Wilson - Jun 8 2009 - WWDC'09

Dec 31, 2008, 09:10 AM	#2
Tallest Skil Banned Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: 1 Geostationary Tower Plaza	snort Did we need this at this point? It's been a lock for quite some time...

Dec 31, 2008, 09:13 AM	#4
Undecided macrumors regular Join Date: Mar 2005	I think this Macworld is going to be huge - with huge announcements of new and innovative products - to show that Apple can dazzle without Jobs.

Dec 31, 2008, 09:19 AM	#7
zombitronic macrumors 6502a Join Date: Feb 2007	By this point, if we don't get a new Mini, I'd at least like to see an execution, funeral or burial for the old model. Since Apple seems to be canceling their appearance at Macworld in favor of setting their own dates for events, does anyone think that if a Mini is announced, that its actual shipping date will be postponed?

Dec 31, 2008, 09:21 AM	#10
colmaclean macrumors 6502a Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Scotland	Is black the new white for Apple? Will the AE and Time Capsule be available in matching hues? Only a week to wait...

Dec 31, 2008, 09:24 AM	#15
Djcyder macrumors newbie Join Date: Oct 2008	Sounds like they are doing away with the white plastic look Hopefully we'll see new remotes and power adapter to match. __________________ 17" MBP Classic (the one with firewire and replaceable battery)

Dec 31, 2008, 09:26 AM	#16
Marx55 macrumors 6502a Join Date: Jan 2005	Please, at least two ports of Firewire 800. Booting and working from external Firewire drives is a much faster experience for Mac mini.

Dec 31, 2008, 09:28 AM	#19
dr_lha macrumors 68000 Join Date: Oct 2003	Looks like I'm retiring my old Core Solo mini to the media center and moving up to new power in the new year! __________________ Me: 1Ghz 12" PB and Mac mini Intel Core Solo 1.5Ghz, The Wife: 1.86Ghz CD MacBook, Me@Work: 2.66Ghz Mac Pro and a 2.33Ghz C2D 15" Mac Book Pro

Dec 31, 2008, 09:29 AM	#20
Lone Deranger macrumors 6502 Join Date: Apr 2006	Great to hear more confirmation on a possible Mac Mini update. With Snow Leopard going 64 bit all the way I'd love to buy a few minis, stuff them with 8+ GB of Ram and use them as render nodes for XSI/Maya mentalray/Fry Render tasks. None of this 3-4GB limit crap in this era of 64 bit please Apple.

Dec 31, 2008, 09:32 AM	#21
disdat macrumors regular Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: New England USA	Ooh does this mean that it might be easy to update the mini yourself without resorting to special tools to open it up? I would definitely buy one if I could update the ram and hd myself without fear of damaging the case!!!! __________________ debbie T MacBook Pro (2.2ghz\|4gb) & PowerBook (G4) Canon XTi \| 100mm f/2.8 \| 300mm f/4L IS \| 50mm f/1.8 \| 17-50mm f/2.8 SOS \| My Flickr

Dec 31, 2008, 09:33 AM	#22
DaBrain macrumors 6502a Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: ERIE, PA	My Only concern at this point is the I/O. Mainly IM hoping this does not include the proprietary DVI port of which it appears Apple does not make the adapter available ( read this yesterday on a referral link). All other things aside IM in on one or two of these babies! __________________ iMAC 20 " CORE DUO-Black MacBook 2.2 Ghz-Ipod Touch

Dec 31, 2008, 09:34 AM	#24
The Samurai macrumors Demi-God Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Glasgow	yay, about time this happened! On a different note, why can I not 'vote' positive on this story? __________________ My YouTube Page - Reviews & Unboxings Twitta

Dec 31, 2008, 09:40 AM	#25
Phil A. macrumors Demi-God Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Telford, UK	I hope they do release an updated Mini - I could offload our Kerio Mailserver onto it from my Mac Pro __________________ MacBook Pro 2.93Ghz, 4GB \| 24" LED ACD \| iPhone 3GS 32GB Black \| ATV 160GB

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