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Let's check the Q&A!

Q: "Hey, Apple! My name's Billy Murkermire, and I just got some fancy new RAM. How do I check and see if I installed it properly?"

A: "That's easy, Billy! Once you install the RAM, press the big power button and see what happens. Did it boot up all the way, doing things like it's always done after you turn it on? CONGRATULATIONS! Your RAM is installed properly!"

Unless Billy snapped a connector on the board, or installed it backwards and when it wouldn't go in he forced it in breaking the board.
 
Do you break open your TV when it needs to get a new power supply or some other serviceable part? How about your refrigerator, other appliances.

Yes. Interestingly, the last 3 TVs I've taken apart failed because of cold solder joints on the power supply assembly for the backlight, and from 3 different companies, so go figure. Refrigerator compressors are so easy to replace and such a common task, it's practically routine maintenance. Do you throw out your microwave when the lightbulb burns out?:rolleyes:

When my espresso maker failed, it really wasn't that hard to replace the thermal fuse, thought I did have to take *gasp* off the cover and ended up buying a crimping tool for the new fuse.

I'm a firm believer of the saying that if you can't open it, you don't own it.
 
LOL at all the folks complaining about an entry level machine. How dare apple not make a pc I can buy cheap and tinker with to turn into a mini Mac Pro!!!!

Stop being cheap and go buy the nMP or riMAC. Those are actually made for pros like you.

For Pete's sake, they already give you the software for free!!!

The Pro won't fit under my TV.
 
I don't get your point. If somebody wants to upgrade their 2014 Mac Mini they can't, it's very simple. Apple are just locking people into upgrading more quickly when their Mac Mini won't run the latest software made by Apple because not enough RAM. My 2011 MAc Mini was barely able to run Logic Pro X until I added RAM. It was very easy to do. Apple don't like people doing things different, let's be clear about this. It's the Apple way or the highway.

Pages is another example of this. Dumb it down, who wants two page view anyway?

At $500, I would rather sell my old computer and get a brand new one instead of adding more RAM to it. These are not the best processors or graphics in the world. Getting a new computer not only gets you more ram, but a better processor and graphics card.

On a $4,000+ Mac Pro, it is much more convenient to spend $200 on new RAM instead of getting another $4,000+ Mac Pro. Since a 3.5 Hex core Xeon is a lot more future proof than a dual core. And dual Fire Pros are more future proof than Intel graphics
 
It seems like Apple is going the way of the bargain basement PC manufacturers of the 90s. Gluing things, soldering things, and generally making it so that the machine is not upgradeable.

I understand doing that with phones and razor-thin laptops, but not with desktop-class hardware. That's particularly sad considering that the form factor of the Mini has not changed since the last version so there is seemingly no reason related to the hardware to solder the RAM all of a sudden.
 
Unlike some Apple defenders, I don't have hundreds of dollars to spend on 1TB SSD =)

At the time of my upgrade, 128SSD for system OS was a logical/practical choice.

wouldn't a regular 7200 RPM SATA hdd be more appropriate since you're probably just using that drive for storage? or is there a noticeable increase using a hybrid
 
How do you calculate the cost of the original RAM?
You can't. It doesn't matter either, because you can't buy the machine with zero RAM. Your additional cost to upgrade is whatever you pay for the new RAM.
Then of course you can try to sell the old RAM...what does used RAM go for these days??? :p

Granted, 2x2 doesn't sell at all, 2x4 brand-new-taken-from-an-apple-product sells for $60(fast)-$100(slow) in my part of the world :D Plus, you could use original chips in another computer if you have a need for it.

The 2012 2.5GHz mini that you reckon shouldn't be compared to the 1.4GHz mini actually shares same processor (i5-3210M) as the original 2012 13" retina MacBook Pro, and the 13" 2012 classic MacBook Pro (the one that's still being sold by Apple)

that puts it barely 10 percent ahead of the 1.4GHz i5-4260u in the new baseline min/basic imac/and MBAs when running both cores (and a dead heat for single core performance)

if those 1.4GHz 2014 machines are net-tops then those three 2.5GHz 3210M models (2012 i5 mac mini included) are hardly far behind.

Good point. Still, isn't 10 percent performance loss after 2 years a downgrade? The upgrade trend for 2013-2014 MBA and MBP was "more for less", with the same $100 price cut for a better performing model. Although of course $100 is a higher percentage for the mini.
 
Check for problems? well AppleCare reps or Apple Store techs doubtfully come here for documentation purposes, but its definitely known Apple corporate visits here and reads through things,,,documented or not.

They don't read through crap and think sites like this are a joke from all the sentiment I've always heard from those at Apple. Those that have any say in new features or resolving issues don't waste their time looking to sites like this when their own support requests take much more residence over such things.

Proof that they read through the forums for issues? Don't cite the web traffic reports showing IP addresses from Apple come here that MacRumors has claimed in some of their past articles. That can be traffic from anyone browsing at the store as can it be anyone at the company from someone in the HR department to the guy that cleans the toilets and people visiting and using the guest wifi. The traffic could be from pre-fetching that Safari and other browsers do where they begin to load things from links on a page visited. Additionally the reports that MacRumor has made claim they visit the site which could be anywhere. That doesn't mean the forums specifically. On top of that, there has been no time on page referenced so you can't say that they didn't simply load the page, see what the headlines are and leave vs actually taking the time to read anything. Something other than those thin reports is needed to indicate they actually read the support issues here.
 
The CPU and circuit board on it delivering slower speed, combined with the new soldered ram give high reason for Mac Mini consumers to boycott.

Avoid purchasing this model.

I just bought an imac instead, sucks cause it has soldered ram too. wish we had better options

Congratulations, you acted exactly as Apple intended.

As Mac users, we do have a choice. Buy used. That Mac Pro in my sig was not a new purchase, and the total cost was just under $2K. You could build the same now for much less, still a bit more than a Mini but you would have a better machine (albeit you would spend more on electricity).

Or by a used iMac. Lots of good options out there.

As for Cook, it seems that he brought the Compaq mentality with him to Apple. Sigh.
 
So much fail in your post I don't even know where to begin.

Unable to quote, mods have a problem with the post. How is this a fail?
Its the truth. You were homeless? Ever work in the city?

Ever see a mother tell her 13 year old to get pregnant because they need more cash? I have
 
I last met a person who upgraded his computer four years ago. Upgradability on computers, removable battery on phones & memory cards on tablets are interesting perhaps to less than 1% of the market.

Some people really need to stop trying to conserve technology products for ages and get a new device when the time comes, just like the rest of us. In 2014 tech products are designed to be easy to manufacture & be thrown away when their time comes. Deal with it :cool:

Wow what a waste.

----------

LOL at all the folks complaining about an entry level machine. How dare apple not make a pc I can buy cheap and tinker with to turn into a mini Mac Pro!!!!

Stop being cheap and go buy the nMP or riMAC. Those are actually made for pros like you.

For Pete's sake, they already give you the software for free!!!

Changing ram..... is NOT a pro feature. Are you people insane?
 
So much fail in your post I don't even know where to begin.

Unable to quote, mods have a problem with the post. How is this a fail?
Its the truth. You were homeless? Ever work in the city?

Ever see a mother tell her 13 year old to get pregnant because they need more cash? I have

I guess we can keep this out of PRSI so long as no one brings up guns or Obama.

...oh crap.
 
Sorry, my sarcasm slipped through, I think... I was enjoying your humor.

(Columbus perhaps re-discovered America, but certainly wasn't the first. There's evidence of others before him, including Leif Erikson from across the Atlantic and likely the Chinese from across the Pacific. More obviously, Columbus found people already there when he landed...)

I missed that. My sarcasm detector was down for servicing this morning.

Not to grind this point totally into the dust, but you could reasonably write that two explorers made discoveries of the same place only if they were made independently of each other, as in your example. Even then, calling more than one person the discoverer of the same thing begs for an explanation. Writing should be about conveying ideas with clarity, and clarity demands careful word selection.

I know a lot of people find comments on grammar and word usage to be a total bore. But then, at lot of the arguments on these pages are about niggling technical details that I find to be a total bore. So maybe we're even.
 
I was right with you, until the last paragraph. Then I re-read and didn't know where you were being sarcastic and where not. I think Yosemite's look and feel is a bad move by Apple. It's awful design is neither ergonomic nor attractive. But I'm 'locked in' to the Apple ecosystem, I hate Windows 8 and Android does not appeal.

Sarcasm all the way. I have Yosemite on a spare drive in my old Mac Pro. It is nothing really new, which is probably why it is free. I dislike it. The peak of OSX for me was Leopard/Snow Leopard, nice finder icons, etc, functionality increasing in the programs. Then all of sudden Peter Griffin starts working at Apple, and it just gets dumber and dumber every iteration. I still use Windows XP for CAD work, and Win7 for games. I can see that my next machine will be a home built one for games and CAD. At the moment my CAD system has a few issues with WIN7, but they will be resolved soon.

One would think that after 2 years, they could come up with something innovative like they did in the MacPro. For a company with Billions in the bank, all they can come up with is a ******** machine than the 2012 one? same case? really? WTF you been doing Jony boy?

I don't believe the idea that they couldn't do two different motherboards in that case, as design time is a one off cost and at the volumes they make them in, it is going to be pennies more. (I'm a Electronics design consultant, I know) The real reason the 2014 Mac Mini is worse than the 2012 version is I believe, that it was cutting into Mac Pro and IMac sales.

I think it shows the contempt that they have developed for their loyal customers. They seem to forget that some of us are not on Stellar salaries like Tim and Jony, and choose our computers with a bit more care. But in THEIR world of disposable tech? Who cares eh, just buy a new one!

A good example is the Iwatch thingy. Spend £700+ on a watch/computer that will in two years be practically worthless? and by wearing one on your wrist, will be the ultimate contraceptive device or spend £700+ on a Cartier or reconditioned Rolex, etc The former device makes a statement, and so does the old tech too. But I digress.
 
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Here comes the "Pro's" complaining how stupid it is that Apple soldered the RAM so the .01% of people who open up and upgrade their components can't.

How dare this $500 box not be comparable to a $2,500 Mac Pro!

What kind of high horse are you on? Apple has ALWAYS in the PAST made their RAM user replacable. Then they made the unibody macbooks which shot replacing ram to hell. Even my iMac supports user replaceable ram.

Have you ever heard of "engineered obsolescence"?? Apple solderd ram onto their logic boards so that in 5 years when you install the newest osx, your system can't handle it with the ram it has which makes you think your system is slow which makes you think you need to "upgrade" to a new computer and buy another one.
 
Sarcasm all the way. I have Yosemite on a spare drive in my old Mac Pro. It is nothing really new, which is probably why it is free. I dislike it. The peak of OSX for me was Leopard/Snow Leopard, nice finder icons, etc, functionality increasing in the programs. Then all of sudden Peter Griffin starts working at Apple, and it just gets dumber and dumber every iteration. I still use Windows XP for CAD work, and Win7 for games. I can see that my next machine will be a home built one for games and CAD. At the moment my CAD system has a few issues with WIN7, but they will be resolved soon.

One would think that after 2 years, they could come up with something innovative like they did in the MacPro. For a company with Billions in the bank, all they can come up with is a ******** machine than the 2012 one? same case? really? WTF you been doing Jony boy?

I don't believe the idea that they couldn't do two different motherboards in that case, as design time is a one off cost and at the volumes they make them in, it is going to be pennies more. (I'm a Electronics design consultant, I know) The real reason the 2014 Mac Mini is worse than the 2012 version is I believe, that it was cutting into Mac Pro and IMac sales.

I think it shows the contempt that they have developed for their loyal customers. They seem to forget that some of us are not on Stellar salaries like Time and Jony, and choose our computers with a bit more care. But in THIER world of disposable tech? Who cares eh, just buy a new one!

A good example is the Iwatch thingy. Spend £700+ on a watch/computer that will in two years be practically worthless? and by wearing one on your wrist, will be the ultimate contraceptive device or spend £700+ on a Cartier or reconditioned Rolex, etc The former device makes a statement, and so does the old tech too. But I digress.

Oh, but you see, the ROLEX will still be worth a lot of money 20 years from now whereas an apple watch will not be worth a crap 3 years from now. Watches are designed to last for a LOOOOONG time. But this apple watch won't even be supported 3 years from its release date.
 
This post deleted by author...

...because I put it in the wrong place.
 
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Congratulations, you acted exactly as Apple intended.

As Mac users, we do have a choice. Buy used. That Mac Pro in my sig was not a new purchase, and the total cost was just under $2K. You could build the same now for much less, still a bit more than a Mini but you would have a better machine (albeit you would spend more on electricity).

Or by a used iMac. Lots of good options out there.

As for Cook, it seems that he brought the Compaq mentality with him to Apple. Sigh.

Agree with most of this post, but the last bit is way off base. Steve Jobs has advocated for closed up non-user accessible computers since the original Apple I. Wozniak won out until the original Mac, which was completely non-user upgradeable, and required an authorised Apple tech. to make any repairs.

Soooooooo...let's stop romanticising the past, please?
 
The issue that may arise in doing that, that Apple does time and again, is artificial obscelesence through software.

I guess they're doing this because their business model is focused on profit through hardware sales and that's hard for me to come to terms with because I can still install Windows 10 on a 15 year old machine and it will still have all features, just slower.

There's a definite sword of damocles hanging above your head these days if you opt for Apple kit. That said I like 10.9 and the kit I've currently got can handle 10.10 (even if I'd rather not).

They decide to pension off my 4.1/5.1 pro tomorrow then the worst that can happen is I'm relying on 10.9 security updates for the next couple of years (with a 3rd year squeezed out by finally going to 10.10)

MS is always going to be way more likely bend over backwards to please when it comes to supporting older kit. Don't matter how old the machine if the license money they get is still fresh :)

Having said that if there's one thing I like about windows its the ability to run an older version on most newer kit.. my existing box gives up the ghost in 2016? then it'll likely be the Trashcan 2 or Trashcan3 for me

Wont mind having to buy one, just the OSX 10.12 'still wet behind the ears' they insist I take with it that'll stick in my throat lol
 
One could argue that changing DIMMs in the 2011/12 Mac Mini is easier than changing the batteries on your TV remote. On the TV remote you can screw up the polarity, with the DIMMs they only go in one way and there is no way to screw it up. I suppose you could break the DIMM if you are a monkey.
 
Here comes the "Pro's" complaining how stupid it is that Apple soldered the RAM so the .01% of people who open up and upgrade their components can't.

How dare this $500 box not be comparable to a $2,500 Mac Pro!

Yes, we should thank Apple for taking away functionality and choice. Horray for Apple!
 
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