Apple Classifies 2011 Mac Mini as Obsolete

[iLilana]

RAN upgrade to 8 GB? I'm pretty sure it works with 16 GB of RAM.

yes it does but they never advertised it. same as the 2010 13 inch MacBook pro.

 

[darksithpro]

According to Apple if your computer is over 5 years old, It's really sad, it really is.

 

[boast]

The Mac Mini only 2 generations behind the current generation ?! Planned obsolescence!

 

[jdillings]

This must mean a new Mac Mini is almost certainly coming

 

[MrGuder]

This is terrible news, something that can be upgraded inside should not be obsolete so quickly, what's next the 2012 Mac mini?

 

[EdwardC]

I have a late 2012 i5 2.5 with 16 gigs of ram 5200RPM platter and it is still in use everyday as my back up computer streaming Apple Music and running CAD applications on. The best money I ever spent on any computer since '92.

 

[Strozzascotte]

I still love my Mini 2011. It still works well as a compact home server (with linux OS BTW).

 

[gsmornot]

Well, I still enjoy my 2011 each day. SSD and 16GB or RAM, still have the original HDD installed as a storage drive. It struggles with fullscreen 4K playback but otherwise does a fine job. It comes down to your use of the product.

 

[jonnysods]

Mine's crawling nowadays... good for storing media but not too much beyond that.

Put an ssd in it and give it a fresh install. Did that on my 2010 27" iMac and she's flying

 

[pat500000]

Pretty soon, there won't be any minis to label as obsolete if there aren't new mini being announced.

 

[rhett7660]

It's probably for the best. Apple can't even get their software to run well on current hardware so...

Must be new around these parts. There has always been issues with their OS.

 

[sirozha]

So confused ... we have one of these and it got High Sierra - it works just fine - does this mean it won't get the next version of Mac OS next year?

Yes, that's what it means.

 

[recoil80]

The 2017 mini should also be on that list.

I knew I'd have found a similar comment on the first page so I waited to write the same thing.
Spot on!

 

[Lesser Evets]

Replaced my 2011 Mini last month with an iMac, new.

The old Mini was scraping along and really horrible. Next year the 2012 probably becomes obsolete.
My 2012 Mini still works pretty well and doesn't have any problems with speed or graphics.

 

[HiVolt]

Wow. I'm drooling looking at all of those ports. That's amazing.

No doubt if Apple redesigns the Mini, it will be much smaller, and will no doubt be neutered of all the "legacy" ports, and it will only have USB-C. The current form factor of the mini was originally designed with an optical drive and 2.5" hard drive. Next mini will most likely be a thicker version of the Apple TV, and possibly even more neutered with the Core-M processors, at least at the lower end of the spectrum.

 

[B4U]

And it is still better than the one that they are currently selling, right?
What a shame!

 

[emiaj]

Yes, that's what it means.

This is not true. "Obsolete" means that the product was last sold >5 years ago, and they don't provide repair service of this model anymore. There's a lot of products marked as obsolete but still get new versions of macOS:

macOS High Sierra system requirements:

• iMac: late 2009 or newer.
• MacBook/MacBook (Retina): late 2009 or newer.
• MacBook Pro: mid-2010 or newer.
• MacBook Air: late 2010 or newer.
• Mac Mini: mid-2010 or newer.
• Mac Pro: mid-2010 or newer.
• iMac Pro: 2017.

Actually, all of the models before 2011 are obsolete right now, but the 2009 Macs are still getting system update.

 

[SeminalSage]

I have been waiting for Apple to update the MacMini so I can buy two for my kids. I feel that these are the best options for my needs. Hopefully soon.

Me too. My daughter plays on a 2012 mini. My son on a custom PC we built for fun. Neither are perfect for what we want a computer for.

IF, and that's a big IF, the mini is upgraded with TB3 and the current promise of eGPUs being out of beta status by Spring, I'll buy three that day.

 

[topmounter]

My 'Late 2012' Mini w/ the i7 is still performing nicely. It's sad to think that it will be classified as 'obsolete' within the year. Hopefully Apple has something more in store for the Mini's next quadrennial update than the obligatory CPU bump and diminished serviceability.

 

[AustinIllini]

RIP

 

[BootsWalking]

Steve Jobs died in mid-2011

 

[mabhatter]

I’m sure all Macs will see some upgrades next year given that they are pretty tied up this year with the X.

Because Apple still only has ONE team that designs things and writes OS code... obviously no one else can barely patch a bug lately.

People keep saying they’re overextended but I don’t see it. They haven’t updated the Mac Mini or Mac Pro in many years. They shut down the AirPort team. They only update iPods every three years. They make three laptops, three desktops, a watch, and some phones. Stop listening to “we have great things coming”! A company is only as good as what they ship this Quarter. And all the things they shipped in the last three months are broken. iOS, macOS, & iphones all have major issues that are inappropriately severe.

 

[ignatius345]

Mine's crawling nowadays... good for storing media but not too much beyond that.

I revived my 2011 Mini with an SSD, worked wonders. I've since moved up to a 5K iMac, but my wife uses that 2011 constantly and it's just fine under High Sierra. i/o is slow as hell with that USB 2.0, but it's only connected to a Time Machine drive so it's not really an issue.

And at my previous job, 2 years ago, I was running two big 1600x1200 monitors off a 2012 Mini, doing Photoshop, Illustrator while running whatever else (Office and whatnot), and it was still very usable.

 

[dragoon2745]

The current Mac Mini is 4 generations behind, not 5.
Broadwell - 1 generation behind
Skylake - 2 generations behind
Kaby Lake - 3 generations behind
Coffee Lake - 4 generations behind

 

[kazmac]

If Apple makes a Mac Mini on par with the 2012, I will finally move away from iMacs. I may not like Apple’s brass and other things lately, but the Mini is the Mac that would probably keep me around (especially if I can continue to use the iMac as a display.)

It is disappointing to see the repairable machines becoming obsolete.