Not impossible. It's also not impossible for them to make it with pink heat radiating fins that blow bubbles. but just as pointless.
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Add a battery to Mini
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Not impossible. It's also not impossible for them to make it with pink heat radiating fins that blow bubbles. but just as pointless.
So, you say Apple is stuck with Intel thinking, but a page of posts ago you claimed you had an Intel Air and Mini and there was heat and fan-noise, etc. I've never heard the fans on my M1 Pro MBP. My old Intel MBP screamed like it was trying to become airborne. Perhaps just using Apple silicon devices will solve your noise issues.
You say you don't want a laptop because a desktop has the more powerful CPUs. Ignoring Apple using laptops class chips in the Mini and iMac, the current options for the mini are the base M, or the M pro. The only option for the iMac is the base M. The MBP laptops have base M, M pro, and M Max. You only get more power than a laptop if you get a Studio, which you've never mentioned.
You say you don't want a laptop because a desktop has the more powerful CPUs. Ignoring Apple using laptops class chips in the Mini and iMac, the current options for the mini are the base M, or the M pro. The only option for the iMac is the base M. The MBP laptops have base M, M pro, and M Max. You only get more power than a laptop if you get a Studio, which you've never mentioned.
Wow, just in the nick of time... /thread
https://www.macrumors.com/2024/06/18/apple-help-me-choose-mac-website/
https://www.macrumors.com/2024/06/18/apple-help-me-choose-mac-website/
Ok the reasons laptops are bad: Even though they now all run the same chips at the same specs as the iMacs and Minis, they still get hot and throttle earlier, and the Pros include a big screen that I don’t need, and an expensive battery to support that screen, they don’t have as many ports as the Mini (using a USB hub used to be a problem for audio interfaces, not sure if still true). I’d have to invest all my $2,500 budget to get the Pro (that I may or may not need who knows), and use the small 16” screen and laptop keyboard, and it wouldn’t even be portable because it’d be hooked up to audio interface and power USB cable and external drives. And I’d be afraid to take it with me anywhere because $2,500 laptop is assholish to take to coffee shop.
I want a $500 humble Air to take to the coffee shop that wouldn't have to run a DAW, because the DAW would be running on a $1000 Mini with the fast M3 Pro with a battery and no screen, hidden in my bag (or if it gets hot in there, take it out and put on the table). When I get home I could plug the still running Mini into a $1000 Studio Display (another product Apple lacks currently that would sell like hotcakes).
See how it adds up to the same amount, but I get three awesome products that I can actually use? Apple makes the same amount of money too (plus they get to sell replacement batteries for an arm and leg apparently).
Yes, no one wants iMacs or Minis, because they have to stay plugged in like it’s 2006. My solution would kill the iMac, because now people would buy the monitor and the CPU separately, and use one USB cable to connect them so it would look even neater than an iMac, and all the peripherals would plug into the Mini not the back of the monitor, which is often facing the public so looks terrible.
Isn’t this question ridiculous?
And where will you use your Mac?
Always in a fixed place, like my desk
Or
Around my home
The reason you're getting so much heat here is you continually describe a situation that suits a laptop, yet you refuse to acknowledge it.
It sounds like what you need is a MacBook Pro that's powerful enough for your studio sessions, and then you need a docking station at home and at the studio that you can plug the MacBook Pro into. You get to the studio, plug the laptop in with one thunderbolt/USB-C cable, get home, plug in the same way. There's nothing stopping you having a charger next to the couch.
You keep coming up with these absurd scenarios where you're the only person on the planet who needs a desktop computer in their pocket with a battery. But you're not providing any sound reasoning.
We're never going to get through to you. You will keep retreating to these ideas that a laptop is amateur so it can't be used in a recording studio, or that a laptop is "assholish" to take to a coffee shop and you need to bring the "humble Air" instead. It's all in your mind - it's never going to resonate with the rest of us.
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ok, before this thread drifts further into the realms of fantasy, let me just add this one thing which will (hopefully) end it along with the suffering of a variety of people who are going from mildly amused to horrified 
Anker sell a range of heavy duty batteries - they call them Power Stations - I have linked the UK page initially but the US version appears to be called Power House. simply plug a Mac mini power adapter in.
The smallest Power Station is 256Wh which I believe is 2.5x the size of the battery inside a 16" MBP. It's capable of delivering up to 200w of power to one device (two on the US one by the looks of the pic). You could probably then cart a portable USB-C display around with your full size keyboard and mouse if you wished to work on something and then move the kit around from one room to another.
In all seriousness, a UPS is what I'd be looking at in a similar situation - might need a trolley to move a good one from room to room though
With a portable external power source you don't have to rely on Apple making the right Mac just for you, no worries about replacing a potentially expensive battery. Just buy another Power Station/House if you think it's failing in the future.
And let's be serious, Apple *could* do a variety of things to fulfil your 'battery' in a Mac mini idea - if such a project was handed to an intern. Making the total package even smaller and lighter than the current battery-less Mini is now isn't going to be one of them.
Anker sell a range of heavy duty batteries - they call them Power Stations - I have linked the UK page initially but the US version appears to be called Power House. simply plug a Mac mini power adapter in.
The smallest Power Station is 256Wh which I believe is 2.5x the size of the battery inside a 16" MBP. It's capable of delivering up to 200w of power to one device (two on the US one by the looks of the pic). You could probably then cart a portable USB-C display around with your full size keyboard and mouse if you wished to work on something and then move the kit around from one room to another.
In all seriousness, a UPS is what I'd be looking at in a similar situation - might need a trolley to move a good one from room to room though
With a portable external power source you don't have to rely on Apple making the right Mac just for you, no worries about replacing a potentially expensive battery. Just buy another Power Station/House if you think it's failing in the future.
And let's be serious, Apple *could* do a variety of things to fulfil your 'battery' in a Mac mini idea - if such a project was handed to an intern. Making the total package even smaller and lighter than the current battery-less Mini is now isn't going to be one of them.
iPad Pro M2 Pro weight: .98 pounds
MacMini M2 Pro weight: 2.8 pounds
Guess which one has a built in battery? Guess which one has a 11” screen? And yet somehow the Mini weighs three times more? Oh that’s because it has a built in power supply (and maybe they include the weight of the power cable, since it can’t run without it).
So the Mini I want would be even lighter than the iPad because it wouldn’t have a screen. (MacOS doesn’t weigh more than iOS).
I will concede that you seem to be somewhat of an expert on ridiculousness, but no. It's a valid question, with another potential answer that you left off.
Inadvertent. There were also Out and About and On Long Journeys. I guess some have better battery life than others?
I actually know music producers that prefer using their own pre-M1 MacBook Pro machines in the studio rather than the M1 Mac Mini’s that are already sitting in the studio. Anyone who thinks a MBP is “amateurish” needs to re-examine their thought processes.
No, it used to be true, but my point has always been that now use the exact same chips and yet still use the power cord and don’t have a battery.
Yeah even the faster Intel Airs were faster than the M1, that was the consensus opinion, and it wasn’t until M2 or M3 that they matched or surpassed the Intels in the Pros.
You missed a key point... the Mac mini and the iMac CAN'T be configured with the same M Max chip as the higher-end MacBook Pro. The laptop actually offers 2 more powerful chips than the iMac, and one more powerful chip than the Mini. You'd need a Mac Studio to match or exceed the laptop. If your argument is that the laptop doesn't have the power, you should be looking at a Studio Max or Studio Ultra. The heatsink required in these to avoid throttling is quite hefty. According the Apple's specs:
M2 Mini 2.6 lbs
M2 Pro Mini: 2.82 lbs
M2 Max Studio: 5.9 lbs
M2 Ultra Studio: 7.9 lbs
If you're really concerned the laptop doesn't have the necessary oomph, you should be looking at that Ultra. Of course that Ultra will suck down the watts, so you'll need a bigger heavier battery to go along with it. You're likely looking at at least 10 lbs... plus the Air you want to bring along as a portable screen, adding 2.7 lbs for 13", 3.3 for 15". So now you're lugging around 13 lbs of extremely awkward and highly valuable equipment... Just get a beefy MBP.
I recall Compaq's "portable" and also Toshiba's that looked much like the one in the photo. It had an amber screen. They predated 2000.
This thread probably needs to die. The OP is either unwilling or unable to engage with the substance of our many responses to their argument. At a certain point why bother talking to a brick wall.
I’ll play along a little more...
No???
On the iPad Pro note and OS variants, namely the concept of macOS on iPad hardware… On a certain level they aren’t bad ideas, they just aren’t practical. There is a reason err many reasons why we have separate/specialized products/tools. A couple reasons being a do-it-all device is sometimes impossible (i.e., one process/method will conflict with another) or its subpar (i.e., performs all of the required tasks but with notable compromises).
An aside...
I’m not opposed to this — again, again, and again, already mentioned -- concept:
forums.macrumors.com
forums.macrumors.com
No???
Offloading workloads to more powerful systems is a useful and far, far from new idea. However, similar to your other examples, you’re missing some key aspects. In this scenario, having an Apple TV sized Mac mini — which would really just be Apple TV hardware with a different OS variant — or a current form factor Mac mini stuffed into a backpack would greatly diminish thermal performance. Ultimately, there would be no processing performance gain versus what an iPad Pro can do. Furthermore, from what I recall earlier (but don’t feel like sifting through to quote specifically), at least one person noted how remote processing has its own downsides, such as the latency created by the connection, even high bandwidth/speed Wi-Fi can exhibit lag.
On the iPad Pro note and OS variants, namely the concept of macOS on iPad hardware… On a certain level they aren’t bad ideas, they just aren’t practical. There is a reason err many reasons why we have separate/specialized products/tools. A couple reasons being a do-it-all device is sometimes impossible (i.e., one process/method will conflict with another) or its subpar (i.e., performs all of the required tasks but with notable compromises).
Exactly.. Compromise. There always needs to be a compromise, it’s just in what way is best. On that note, this is why myself and others appreciate Apple’s continued focus on efficiency. Furthermore, to repeat another already mentioned argument, there are those of us who feel the longstanding Mac mini design is plenty small but now with Apple Silicon, the extra thermal capacity equates to silence even under the most demanding and lengthy workloads. We’re been given golden silence, which is fitting for your stated use (audio recording/editing).
An aside...
I’m not opposed to this — again, again, and again, already mentioned -- concept:
Any chance of a Mac mini being usb-c powered as an option?
Since the Mac mini maxes out with a M2 Pro chip, and that’s well within the power footprint of a 96W output from the Apple studio display, I was wondering if we could ever see a Mac mini that could run entirely off of the Thunderbolt/usb-c connection instead of needing a separate power cord. I...
forums.macrumors.com
Can the M1 Mac Mini be solely powered by a USB-C cable via the Apple Studio Display?
Just wondering if the m1 Mac mini can be powered solely by the Apple studio display so I can have a cleaner desk setup of just the studio display, m1 Mac mini and keyboard and track pad. ie not needing a power cable going from the Mac mini to the wall outlet.
forums.macrumors.com
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I was an early adopter of the Apple ][ in 1978, got an Apple //e at work later and we even got an Apple ///. My father got an Apple //c (with the CRT monitor) and I thought it was pretty cool.
The 2010 movie came out in 1984 (it was pretty awful) and they were trying to depict a future lifestyle where you could use a computer at the beach, so this was long before 2000! I never saw an Apple LCD screen or battery - were they even actual, shipping products? My post was just an attempt at "humor".
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Yet another example of you being dead wrong. There was never a faster intel MacBook Air over the M1. Never. And even the lowly M1 was a good alternative to a MBP with an i9 because of i9 throttling issues.
Regardless, that was then. Now we have the M3 which you acknowledge is better. And much quieter even if a device has a fan.
Speaking of.. you put down the Apple Silicon MBA's as thermal throttling (which you really have no clue if they would in your case, most likely not and even then only a little), yet you don't seem to understand a small, battery powered mini would have the same thermal constraints. You ask why is the mini so heavy? a lot of that is heat sink and fan.
so what do you want, small but potentially throttling with a battery or larger and you plug it in?
pick one.
I’ve seen the Apple LCD screen for the Apple IIc in person. The math department in the university I attended freshman year had a bit of a computer museum in the halls of the building. They had a 128k Macintosh (though it’s one with the badge, so it’s from after the 512k Mac came out), and one of the items was the Apple IIc LCD screen. So it seems to have been a shipping product, but just so prohibitively expensive (and of somewhat limited utility) that it didn’t really sell. (No 80 column support, AFAIK, only 2-4 lines of text, monochrome. Probably wouldn’t be terribly useful for anything other than running your own AppleSoft BASIC programs or word processing, maybe pre-curses teletype emulation, but that would need a phone line.) As for an Apple IIc battery, I’ve never heard of one from Apple, but I could see a third party example existing.I was an early adopter of the Apple ][ in 1978, got an Apple //e at work later and we even got an Apple ///. My father got an Apple //c (with the CRT monitor) and I thought it was pretty cool.
The 2010 movie came out in 1984 (it was pretty awful) and they were trying to depict a future lifestyle where you could use a computer at the beach, so this was long before 2000! I never saw an Apple LCD screen or battery - were they even actual, shipping products? My post was just an attempt at "humor".
None of these products share cases, batteries, or motherboard forms...
The battery pack and LCD were actual released Apple products. They were overpriced (typical for Apple products) but provided dismal performance and no one bought them. I remember examining them for use with a portable weather station, ended using TRS-80 Model 100 portable instead and translating my BASIC program between different flavors of BASIC.
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Haha... we had a TRS-80 Model II at work - the big all-in-one with an 8" floppy disk! Was actually a pretty impressive machine in its day. For some reason, they thought it was a good idea to put a huge "reset" switch on the front panel right below the power switch - recipe for disaster! I remember my assistant was working on a spreadsheet and a friend stopped by to talk. Trying to be helpful, she said "your screen is really dusty, let me wipe it off" and accidentally hit the reset switch. Of course, he hadn't saved his work for awhile and totally freaked out! 🤣
That computer was a hand-me-down from the business office. They had been using it with an accounting package (called Great Plains, IIRC) but replaced it with the Apple /// which ran the same software but much better, since it had a hard disk.
That computer was a hand-me-down from the business office. They had been using it with an accounting package (called Great Plains, IIRC) but replaced it with the Apple /// which ran the same software but much better, since it had a hard disk.
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Wow, that does sound like paradise on Earth.
Yes, Apple should definitely insert into a desktop computer a consumable battery that will wear out and need to be replaced, adding bulk and expense and an environmental toll. If it will help one or two people achieve the dream of cleaning part of their desk in a free and easy and relaxed manner, all well worth the cost.
agree with the direction of travel of Apple Silicon, more power efficient means quieter computing and a much more civilised experience compared to previous high performance intel scenarios I have used - and that’s something that the OP surely must also agree with for audio use.
Let’s not forget that we have had the end of compromised laptops with cases that are too thin for decent keyboards, overheating when certain intel and graphics extras were added.
We have pulled away from the precipice of form over function and have very usable laptops using processors that are carried over to desktop lines which don’t have to spin up the quiet fans as often as under intel.
A 2012 mini is the most modern mini I own and I’d love to test drive an M4 mini but it’s fairly obvious to me that my M1 MacBooks are superb for what they are - the portability element is outstanding with the insane battery life and screen brightness. They are the logical choice, no need to strap an Apple TV onto the back of an iPad - to paraphrase another infamous thread I saw recently.
if budget is an issue then third party retailers sell older Apple silicon macs brand new still, although for pro audio I assume custom ram configurations may be required.