8th March event what a total dissapointment

[ejwjohn]

OK,

Well done to those that needed the super powerful Dest top, Apple have listened to you, the Studio is indeed a powerful unit, i suppose they had to as the margins created are lucrative for the share holders.

But I suspect i am one of many that were hoping to see a new option to create a Mini with a few option to increase the proceeding capabilities of the mini with the introduction of the new M1 chips

But no nothing…zilch……

And lets not forget the current mini with M1 is only there because the development teams wanted to expand the base for the App development companies….. it is not there to enhance the possibilities that long term customers of Apple get an opportunity to spend more of our money on Apple products and feel we are getting “Looked After”

After 30 years of being loyal to Apple…. What is the point???

JohnW

 

[now i see it]

Today was not the Mac Mini’s day. The next Mac Mini is almost certainly coming

 

[Spanky Deluxe]

I don't understand what you were hoping or asking for. People were asking for a new high end mac mini, instead they got the Mac Studio, the entry level model of which was, at best, what people were hoping for in a Mac Mini 'high end' that would replace the Intel Mac Mini. There will be no 'high end' Mac Mini anymore. Just like there will be no iMac Pro anymore. The reason Apple has kept around the 'high end' Intel Mac Mini is likely nothing to do with it's 'power' but entirely so that there is an affordable Intel Mac available during the transition. When the transition is complete, i.e. the Mac Pro is released, they'll discontinue the high end Mac Mini. We'll have M2 Mac Mini, M2 iMac, M2 Max->Ultra Mac Studio and M2 Extreme (or whatever) Mac Pro. That'll be it for the desktops although I suspect they'll add a 27" version of the iMac when they switch to M2 with the same panel in as the Studio Display.

 

[watakoola]

OK,

Well done to those that needed the super powerful Dest top, Apple have listened to you, the Studio is indeed a powerful unit, i suppose they had to as the margins created are lucrative for the share holders.

But I suspect i am one of many that were hoping to see a new option to create a Mini with a few option to increase the proceeding capabilities of the mini with the introduction of the new M1 chips

But no nothing…zilch……

And lets not forget the current mini with M1 is only there because the development teams wanted to expand the base for the App development companies….. it is not there to enhance the possibilities that long term customers of Apple get an opportunity to spend more of our money on Apple products and feel we are getting “Looked After”

After 30 years of being loyal to Apple…. What is the point???

JohnW

Aaaw. Sorry you are so disappointed, old chum. Other people are quite pleased...

 

[DiabloArt55]

Aaaw. Sorry you are so disappointed, old chum. Other people are quite pleased...

pleased is not the word !

 

[Jorbanead]

Were you hoping for an M1 Pro mini? That’s really the only thing apple is missing in their desktops now. I’d wager the M1 Pro headless desktop is probably a smal market.

Most people either want the entry-level model (M1 mini), or pros want a high-end desktop (Mac Studio) for their pro apps. An M1 Pro desktop is sort of an awkward sibling that doesn’t really know where they fit. The GPU isn’t quite powerful enough for pro apps, but it’s also overkill for most consumers.

I do feel bad though that this market seemed to get neglected this event.

 

[ian87w]

This event is basically Apple flexing its muscle to show what they can do for the Mac Pro later, and to crap on intel's claim of their 12th gen Alder lake. Definitely not an event for the lay consumers.

 

[StoneJack]

I knew Studio will come, it came, I also expected the price (2000), so I am not dissappointed, all is well, more choices is better (M1 Mini and MBA owner). Happy to see Ultra, interesting chip.

 

[segfaultdotorg]

Agree completely. The Mac mini is over a year old and is completely outdated. Was expecting a new one with an M2 chip. I need a new desktop sooner rather than later but want current hardware. :sad.gif:

 

[ktcifone]

This puts the base “studio” on par with the 16” MacBook Pro for about $1k less. Having the 2018 i7 mini makes this about 50% more computing power I don’t know the Gpu difference but the port options are a plus compared to 2 ports on the current mini.
I paid $2200 for the last desktop in 2018 not sure if worth it to spend $2800 in 2022.

 

[Bug-Creator]

This puts the base “studio” on par with the 16” MacBook Pro for about $1k less

Dunno bout US prices....

14" M1Max 32/512 -> 3209€
16" M1Max 32/512 -> 3439€
Basement-Studio 32/512 -> 2299€

Same reseller that I bought my MacBook from in 2017 has it for 100€ down and includes a "3 year insurance package" for free, so I say thats good value (hence I ordered).

Back to the topic:

I did expect it to start with a binned down M1Pro and 16/512 for 1400-1600€ (in normal Mini case) which would have brought the M1Max-config to atleast 2300€ so thats a ?

Add that running the "small" chip a case designed for the Ultra means that thermal throttling or loud fans should never be an issue ?

I'm sure Apple's performance claims were somewhat selective but even if it was just on the same level as 12th gen i7 with a 3070 such a system is closing in to 2000€ BEFORE you try to hunt down a 32GB kit of DDR5 (which will still be slower).

So all in all ?????????

Didn't care bout the iPhone or the display, giving the iPadAir a bigger chip of the them gen seems odd...

 

[ZipZilla]

I just want a Mini with more than 16GB of RAM. I have a 10-year-old Mini with 16GB of RAM

 

[DaveP]

Agree completely. The Mac mini is over a year old and is completely outdated. Was expecting a new one with an M2 chip. I need a new desktop sooner rather than later but want current hardware. :sad.gif:

If by outdated you simply mean that it wasn't released yesterday, then sure, it's outdated. However, if one cares more about price and performance rather than simply looking at the calendar, then no, it's not outdated as it is still a relatively powerful and inexpensive computer.

The Mac Studio's single threaded CPU performance is only slightly better than the Mac mini. And reasonable speculation is that an M2 will have a maybe 10% performance increase. 10% is difficult to notice in most typical use cases.

I'm confused by your last statement. The Mac mini M1 is current hardware. Perhaps you mean not that you want current hardware, but that you want speculative, future hardware.

 

[DaveP]

I just want a Mini with more than 16GB of RAM. I have a 10-year-old Mini with 16GB of RAM

Yes, I think this is perhaps the biggest limitation to the M1 Mac mini. For many tasks the CPU and GPU is more than enough, but the RAM limit can become an issue.

 

[coolerkid]

Mac Studio looks great, but overkill and over budget for a lot of us. I want a replacement for my aging 27" iMac, but Apple has yet to deliver. I didn't buy the original Mac mini because I assumed a new 27" iMac was coming soon. If they're not going to make a new 27" iMac, which is how it sounds, then I plan to buy a Mac mini and pair it with a non-Apple monitor, but now the Mini is outdated so I'm back to waiting.

 

[DTG32]

I just want a Mini with more than 16GB of RAM. I have a 10-year-old Mini with 16GB of RAM

I think you're underestimating the quality of the SoC M1.

I was hoping for a top-end M1 Pro/Max Mac Mini yesterday and was quite excited by the Mac Studio so today I went out and bought an off-the-shelf M1 Mac Mini 8GB to see how it goes and whether I need to justify the £2k price tag.
The verdict?
IT FLIES!

I'm coming from a Late 2018 MacBook Air, which, I thought was no real slouch, however, it is officially retired.

Go get one. Try it.

 

[pmiles]

Mac Studio looks great, but overkill and over budget for a lot of us. I want a replacement for my aging 27" iMac, but Apple has yet to deliver. I didn't buy the original Mac mini because I assumed a new 27" iMac was coming soon. If they're not going to make a new 27" iMac, which is how it sounds, then I plan to buy a Mac mini and pair it with a non-Apple monitor, but now the Mini is outdated so I'm back to waiting.

How is the current mini outdated? Everything is outdated the moment it is manufactured. Something will always be better down the road. Since Apple is happy to appease those who have to have something better, you will forever be in this cycle until you decide what you actually need versus what you want.

A 27" iMac is not out of the question... a larger display may come down the road. What will not be coming is another iMac Pro... that was basically the case when it was originally announced. A stop gap between the older Mac Pros and the new Mac Pro which has been in a holding pattern for quite some time.

Will there be a mini with more ports and RAM? Undoubtedly. Today? No. Down the road yes. When it comes, it will be outdated because you will still be wanting more of something. Given that we are essentially buying un-upgradeable boxes regardless of which model Mac we choose, it will always be lacking something that only a newer model will address... temporarily.

Great for Apple... they get you to replace your computer as often as you do your cell phone. Which is what they want you to do and exactly why they deliver products the way in which they do.

 

[philosopherdog]

it seems the consensus is that this was a great event. but how can they please every single consumer? it is high time they payed attention to pro users. they have really neglected pros for too long. the mini is junk for pros and the imac forces you to buy the display which makes it limiting for a lot of users esp if you already have a bunch of displays. i think pro machines should not be all in ones. it's too limiting.

 

[philosopherdog]

I think you're underestimating the quality of the SoC M1.

I was hoping for a top-end M1 Pro/Max Mac Mini yesterday and was quite excited by the Mac Studio so today I went out and bought an off-the-shelf M1 Mac Mini 8GB to see how it goes and whether I need to justify the £2k price tag.
The verdict?
IT FLIES!

I'm coming from a Late 2018 MacBook Air, which, I thought was no real slouch, however, it is officially retired.

Go get one. Try it.

the mac mini form is probably too limiting for the termals to build a pro level mini. anyhow we now know that the mini will be a consumer product and if you want a pro machine you'll have to look at Studio or the new pros. i suspect the mini will be to the studio as the macbook pro is to the air.

 

[Spankey]

The Mac Mini now sits at an odd place between the 24" iMac and Mac Studio if keeping solely to Apple products.

With the Studio Display and higher end Mini spec'ed to around $1200 (RAM, Storage, SSD) and the $1600 display you are at 3k already.

A similarly spec'ed iMac (16GB RAM, 1TB SSD) will run you $2,149. Lose two USB A ports on the Mini for USB C on the iMAC.

The question seems to be, can you work with a 24" monitor or save the money, get the 27" Studio Display with much more powerful Mac Studio for $1k more ($4k)?

 

[segfaultdotorg]

I'm confused by your last statement. The Mac mini M1 is current hardware. Perhaps you mean not that you want current hardware, but that you want speculative, future hardware.

Anything with a plain M1 is outdated and not the current version now that the M1 Pro, M1 Max, and M1 Ultra have been released.

 

[rcappo]

I was impressed by the M1 Ultra. I would like to see it in action processing some 4K or 8K video to see how fast it is.

I wish the display also came in an 8K option though, even if it would be a bit larger. That is where I was disappointed. Maybe in the future they will upgrade that one.

I just wonder how many people actually push their computers to the max with all of the computing power these new computers have? There are times when I need a fast computer, but I wonder if focusing on reducing the price and size will be more important than getting more processing power will be?

 

[giffut]

I am not complaining - the Studio Mac is great, albeit I can´t afford it. I could have used it for a 4k project recently, though. My mac mini m1 chucked hugely with SSD caching, but I had many 4k streams to render.

And where is the native docking station for external storage, that actually works 100%. They probably can´t do it anyways, as their USB/thunderbolt implementations are so flakey recently.

The iPad Air and iPhone SE are very dissapointing - it´s a mere CPU bump, other than that they pushed the prices huge on those upgrades. The SE is no longer a good deal by any means. Their margin must be beyond 60% now on that thing. I believe they can produce those chips very cheap, too.

The studio display is - very strange. It´s much too expensive for what it offers and the three different models (passive stand, active stand, VESA mount), which aren´t interchangeable, is basically planned obsolescence on a huge scale - like the monitor you need to throw away with iMacs, after they got rid of target display mode.

And display sharing would be the killer application for the apple ecosystem - they have it, but on a massive tranquillizer. Like - any iPad M1 utilizing a 5k screen. iPhones remote accessing macs - you get the idea. It´s a mess right now.

I miss the push for functional excellence and I am not keen on perfect compromises and profits the current leadership follows with :-/

Nevertheless I am glad I can afford some macs like my mac mini and macbook air m1. They are the perfect computers for the moment - for me at least.

I am crying for a surface clone based on an iPad m1 with a laptop docking station

 

[DaveP]

Anything with a plain M1 is outdated and not the current version now that the M1 Pro, M1 Max, and M1 Ultra have been released.

By that logic the M1 Pro and M1 Max are also outdated as they were released before the M1 Ultra. Apparently the MBP with an M1 Max is outdated as a better M1 Ultra was released at a later date.

The M1 is the current, base level version of Apple Silicon. There is literally no better entry level Apple Silicon chip available for the entry level Mac mini. M1 compared to M1 Ultra is not an apples to apples comparison. If you want a mac Mini with an M1 Max or Ultra, it's called Mac Studio.

 

[DaveP]

...

The iPad Air and iPhone SE are very dissapointing - it´s a mere CPU bump, other than that they pushed the prices huge on those upgrades. The SE is no longer a good deal by any means. Their margin must be beyond 60% now on that thing. I believe they can produce those chips very cheap, too.

...

The iPhone SE 2 was $399 so the increase is $30 or 7.5%. Not sure your scale, but that in no way seems to be a "huge" price increase. Electronics don't always follow typical inflation levels, but in the US, inflation since April 2020 is more than 7.5%. 5G chips in particular are more expensive, so I would tend to guess the price was increased to keep the margin relatively similar.

And of course it's a spec bump (CPU, camera, 5G, etc.), though not just CPU bump. It's Apple's entry level phone. Is anyone expecting new, previously unreleased features on the budget phone?

Whether or not it's a good deal or not is opinion. But it is difficult to make the case that the iPhone SE 2 was a good deal, but the SE 3 is not a "good deal by any means".