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Firewire might be totally unsupported on the new Mac mini

In the US a Firewire adapter is only $30 (so probably not that much more elsewhere). I few weeks ago I was planning an "upgrade" to an iMac 27 (2011 model) so that I would still have Firewire; but it makes more sense to get a more modern computer and just fit the adapter. When those of us still using Firewire finally switch away, the computers with an adapter will be a few years newer than 2011 iMacs and 2012 Mac Minis.

But I'm still getting a 2012 Mac Mini for a server because a slower quad core i7 will be better for my use than a newer and faster dual core i7.

The Thunderbolt to Firewire adapter is not listed as an accessory:

http://store.apple.com/us/buy-mac/mac-mini

It is possible that Thunderbolt 2 to Firewire might be unsupported by Apple on this particular machine.
 
No HDMI 2.0?

Bummer, 4k HDMI listed only at 30fps... no HDMI 2.0 then... wonder if the chip fw would be upgradeable...
 
That $499 looked great until I saw 1.4...oh well, some people who only care about the price will be happy. I'll probably buy a mid-tier one for the closet if I can pop an SSD and HD in it still, and that'll be my iTunes server computer. Dual core 2.6 will be more than adequate for that. If not, I'll buy a previous gen model on the cheap and do some upgrades. Disappointing that you can't do quad-core this time through.

I really wonder if some of these Mac updates aren't a little underwhelming largely because Intel dropped the ball this year. Perhaps what was supposed to come this year won't get dropped until next year and many of these products are just stopgaps at this point.
 
I really think I'm going to pick up a MD388 mac min with a quad core ivy instead of this new one. I really wanted the wireless AC but since it's going to be a plex machine it's got to be able to transcode stuff on the fly. That quad core was integral. I was really hoping for a haswell quad for better performance but I can settle for just a ivy quad over a haswell dual.
 
Wanted to update from my 2009 MBP:
2,56 Ghz Dual Core
8 GB RAM
SDD self-installed.

What I can buy now is a joke:

Mac Mini 2,6 Ghz Dual Core
8 GB RAM
SDD self-installed as it has the same form factor and an SATA-Slot than the previous mini

What I now need to know:
1. Is the mac mini here really hardcore faster. From the spec I don't think

2. Is the HDD still exchangable with a SATA SSD by us? (+200$)

3. Is the RAM upgradable by users to 16GB? 2x4GB or 1x8 per default?
So I have to buy 2x8 GB installed?

4. Will there be a quad core later, next year?

Is the :apple:TV faster than this machine :p

Ok I will get USB3 and Thunderbolt 2 at the end.

A Core2Duo at 2.5 isn't the same as an i5 at 2.5, there's a good 100% increase in performance at near the same clock speed.
The memory speed is also just as drastic of a change.

So this isn't comparing Apples to Apples here.
 

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Wanted to update from my 2009 MBP:
2,56 Ghz Dual Core
8 GB RAM
SDD self-installed.

What I can buy now is a joke:

Mac Mini 2,6 Ghz Dual Core
8 GB RAM
SDD self-installed as it has the same form factor and an SATA-Slot than the previous mini

What I now need to know:
1. Is the mac mini here really hardcore faster. From the spec I don't think

2. Is the HDD still exchangable with a SATA SSD by us? (+200$)

3. Is the RAM upgradable by users to 16GB? 2x4GB or 1x8 per default?
So I have to buy 2x8 GB installed?

4. Will there be a quad core later, next year?

Is the :apple:TV faster than this machine :p

Ok I will get USB3 and Thunderbolt 2 at the end.

You do realize that a 2009 core2duo quad core is considerably slower than an i5 Haswell Core i right?
 
The new Mini will be fine at playing HD video?

Is there a way to get the Mini to replace a media player such as my WDTV Live, using a remote? Or remote app?
 
I really think I'm going to pick up a MD388 mac min with a quad core ivy instead of this new one. I really wanted the wireless AC but since it's going to be a plex machine it's got to be able to transcode stuff on the fly. That quad core was integral. I was really hoping for a haswell quad for better performance but I can settle for just a ivy quad over a haswell dual.

IMHO I'd hardwire any machine that will be being used as a media device.
802.11AC or not, a hardwired computer/AppleTV responds much more quickly.
 
I wonder if you can upgrade the wireless module of the 2012 mac mini to wireless AC just like the 2014 mac mini. Then you'd basically have the best of both worlds!
 
Phrase "Officially dead to me" with regards to the cheapest Apple computer on the market IMHO = Officially overdramatic.:rolleyes:

Where are those promises you speak of, especially promises concerning Mac Mini?

The Mac Pro is a little pricey, I have monitors and don't want to buy a 21.5" iMac with the long-in-the-tooth-Apple-favorite nVidia 750M, the Mini is underpowered (CPU not horrific but the Iris 5100 is weak), not sure about the Retina iMac (i.e. scaling is 2.6 so how will that look for older apps), and I bet the 7x more pixels will make the good dGPU in the Retina seem less than stellar as it has to push so many pixels

There were no promises regarding Mac Mini, but Apple's hyperbole (i.e. "best product pipeline in 25 years") led a few to think they actually had something impressive to reveal. Sure, the iWatch and iMac Retina are good, but hardly earth-shattering and nothing else is really good (i.e. less cores in Minis, old iPod Touch rereleased, marginally faster MacBook Pro, new low-end iMac (for .edu most likely) but still weak, etc.). Yosemite seems good minus a few GUI annoyances, mostly transparency which is tacky and gets in the way of actually doing stuff but it's a step in the right direction regarding devices all working together in a more synergistic manner, iOS 8 seems ok but buggy.

I got burned by Apple when i bought my 2006 MacPro that had few options for GPU upgrades (I do have flashed 5770 in it) and the 32-bit EFI is ridiculous in a "64-bit pro computer" as is on the box, but I'm tired of all the rhetoric...I want to stick with Apple but they have to make something a little more compelling spec-wise. Here's what I can build for $1534.

Oh well, I'll see what happens with the MacPro update and pull the trigger then...
 
no quad core option
no user-upgradable ram
low-end model ridiculously crippled

i'll bet anything the internal changes to allow for the PCIe Flash storage also means you cant put two drives inside of it anymore

another mac line ruined.

no thanks

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yeah, you're right. he actually gave apple too much credit by assuming they'd put an SSD in the low-end machine. 1.4ghz and a 5400rpm drive? what is this, 2005?

No idea, I don't buy Mac Minis.
 
Apple finally updates Mac Mini, but drops the quad-core option?

I'm sorry everybody who was waiting. That has to burn. There goes the Mac Mini server option for many people. They've been installing gigabit fiber in my area and I was thinking about getting one to run a server when that happens. I'll probably just build a linux box now.
 
Lowest cost Mac mini exactly what I was looking for

As for me, the lowest cost Mac mini is exactly what I was looking for. Thanks Tim Cook!
 
Storage

I can't believe that 1TB is the largest storage capacity :(

I was looking to upgrade my 2.5Ghz i5, 4GB, 500GB Mac Mini to something with 2TB of storage!

Might have to look at a NAS device, can anyone recommend one that will work with iTunes?

Thanks in advance, so disappointed :mad:
 
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