Apple May Be Working on 8K Display and New High-End Mac Mini

[Nunyabinez]

Though I would never go back to 1080p after having 4k and 5K displays, I can't imagine having the same experience going from 5K to 8K.

I don't want to sound like one of the "I can't really tell the difference between DVD and Blu-ray" people, but unless you make the monitor much bigger, I can't imagine it being a huge improvement.

An if it's about putting more on the screen, the problem is everything gets so tiny I can't see it anyway, regardless of how crisp it is.

 

[Juicy Box]

The "Mac" is back in MacRumors again. It's like Apple reads the forums and counters the disappointment with future plans and rumors. So far so good IMO.

It is nice to see Macs in the news again, and not just bad news.

I mostly enjoy Mac and ATV rumors here, and it seemed like lately all the news has been about iOS, iPhone/iPad, Samsung, and Tim Cook getting involved in politics.

It looks like the Mac is back!

Do you really think Apple with backpedal on the change they made? Unlikely.

If the change was a bad decision, or not want the customers want Apple might backpedal. It looks like they have with the Display business.

 

[LordQ]

Oh boy, not sure if I want the iMac or the Mac Mini

 

[Andres Cantu]

2017 is the new 2012

 

[navaira]

Maybe Phil CAN innovate his ass after all!

I also love Mac rumours on Macrumors. I wonder what caused all this – it would be cool if Tim read this forum and went "oh damn we have more than one product, I forgot", but I don't think this is it. A powerful, angry shareholder?

 

[Juicy Box]

Isn't the concept of a "high-end" Mac Mini missing the point of the device? It was always supposed to the the cheapest way into the Mac ecosystem (remember Steve Jobs saying "BYOKMAM", Bring Your Own Keyboard Mouse And Monitor)?

I think that the 2012 Mac Mini was a pretty decent Mac, and it may have cannibalized some of the iMac sales. Maybe that is why Apple neutered it in 2014, and has ignored it since.

 

[Michaelgtrusa]

8K! I'm all for this monster of a display

 

[redheeler]

Do you really think Apple with backpedal on the change they made? Unlikely.

You're probably right, the next Mac mini will have soldered RAM, and the next Mac Pro will be just a refresh of the cylinder

 

[winston1236]

There's a much better chance of this being canceled entirely than actually be produced.

 

[Keniutek]

Soldered everything, right?
Last, good mac mini, was the 2012 one...

 

[Joe Rossignol]

Once again you are mistaking the facts when you say "Apple confirmed they were getting out of display business." Your only supporting document is a link back to your own article when you quote a tweet from Nilay Patel stating he spoke with some unnamed source, and Patel has had his own problems including warring with Apple over issues. LOL. Now he has egg all over his face. Apple never said this and it never made sense so please stop repeating what can be called "fake news," especially since Apple's recent press confab revealed that they simply have been working on the next gen of displays. Ditto that Apple was getting out of Mac Pro business, many claimed this but also have egg on their face. Notice that the Verge and Patel weren't invited-revealing.

Correct way to report on the facts is "it was rumored by one blogger, but never confirmed by Apple" that Apple was getting out of display business."

Same type of false info has been reported by many that Apple is getting out of router business. Another LOL. They are going all in on wireless in your home and elsewhere.

Nilay's tweet flat out says Apple confirmed to him. So it's either true, or he is lying? Why would he lie?

 

[drinkingtea]

Would your eyes even be able to tell the difference between 4K and 8K?

 

[WatchFromAfar]

I think that the 2012 Mac Mini was a pretty decent Mac, and it may have cannibalized some of the iMac sales. Maybe that is why Apple neutered it in 2014, and has ignored it since.

But making a "high-end" Mac Mini will surely have the same effect again. When it comes to Macs Apple needs an entry level version (Mini) and a standard off-the-shelf consumer version (iMac). There needs to be distinction between product lines, not overlapping in terms of performance where people don't know which is the best bang for buck.

 

[Rigby]

Isn't the concept of a "high-end" Mac Mini missing the point of the device? It was always supposed to the the cheapest way into the Mac ecosystem (remember Steve Jobs saying "BYOKMAM", Bring Your Own Keyboard Mouse And Monitor)?

For me the point of the Mini would be that I'd like a capable stationary MacOS machine, but don't want a display permanently attached to it that I neither want or need nor have the room for (I already have 2 big monitors sitting on my desk). A "high-end" Mini would be perfect.

 

[bkkcanuck8]

I think that the 2012 Mac Mini was a pretty decent Mac, and it may have cannibalized some of the iMac sales. Maybe that is why Apple neutered it in 2014, and has ignored it since.

The 2012 Mac Mini has been appreciating -- because used ones are still in demand rather than the latest generation. Apple has unfortunately worn blinkers with regards to the Mac recently -- and this is the first indication that the cries have finally pierced these blinkers. A Mac Mini has served many purposes in the past (including headless co-location computers; or single purpose servers). Many people like me will not buy all-in-one computers since I use multiple monitors anyways, and after hard drives -- monitors have been the first thing to go. I have a Mac Pro 2008, and the power of the CPU is fine for me. I bought it to hook up an array of monitors. The new 15" Macbook Pros can handle up to 4 4K monitors.... so really for people like me .... I don't need a new Mac Pro -- a Mac Mini with the guts of a 15" macbook pro would be more than sufficient. (I have a 2008 Mac Pro and 3 x 2009 Mac Minis for specific purposes). Will probably add in a new Linux computer this year, but for day-to-day use I would still prefer using a macOS device.

 

[Juicy Box]

But making a "high-end" Mac Mini will surely have the same effect again. When it comes to Macs Apple needs an entry level version (Mini) and a standard off-the-shelf consumer version (iMac). There needs to be distinction between product lines, not overlapping in terms of performance where people don't know which is the best bang for buck.

I am not disagreeing with you, but if Apple can make a Mac Mini with the same or better profit margin, they probably wouldn't care if it cannibalized the iMac.

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

If 27" at 5k is the perfect resolution for macOS, what's the size for an 8k. (I don't math)

That's easy. Whatever size Apple chooses to roll out will be the perfect size.
[doublepost=1491504660][/doublepost]

Would your eyes even be able to tell the difference between 4K and 8K?

If Apple rolls out an 8K monitor, absolutely yes. If this is just a rumor, the 5K iMac screen is all the 99% should want or need and that 8K Dell is a gimmicky & useless abomination.

 

[navaira]

Nilay's tweet flat out says Apple confirmed to him. So it's either true, or he is lying? Why would he lie?

Judging by that latest interview Apple might have finally realised they need to have more than one product to rely on. It would be awesome if they finally woke up, smelled the coffee (and blood) and decided to get Windows down to BlackBerry OS status where it belongs.

 

[bkkcanuck8]

That's easy. Whatever size Apple chooses to roll out will be the perfect size.
[doublepost=1491504660][/doublepost]

If Apple rolls out an 8K monitor, absolutely yes. If this is just a rumor, the 5K iMac screen is all the 99% should want or need and that 8K Dell is a gimmicky & useless abomination.

For me the sweet spot would be 32". I was using a 40" one (at 1.5 to 2 arm lengths distance) but after problems with my neck I actually noticed that because it was so large I could feel the strain because it was not ergonomically good (constantly having to adjust head down to look at bottom of screen).

 

[Juicy Box]

The 2012 Mac Mini has been appreciating -- because used ones are still in demand rather than the latest generation.

I have noticed this. It is a pretty decent machine.

I have a Mac Pro 2008, and the power of the CPU is fine for me

I have a 2006 Mac Pro 1,1. It is still used daily by my children. They use it to do homework, play videos, and play games, and it still runs great. It can even play WoW at a decent frame rate.

I have upgraded it over the years, but considering it is 11 years old, I am amazed at how much use my family has, and still is, getting out of it.

 

[bkkcanuck8]

Would your eyes even be able to tell the difference between 4K and 8K?

For watching videos - no, for professional video content or architectural applications.... yes.

 

[Joe Rossignol]

Judging by that latest interview Apple might have finally realised they need to have more than one product to rely on. It would be awesome if they finally woke up, smelled the coffee (and blood) and decided to get Windows down to BlackBerry OS status where it belongs.

This is almost certainly what happened. Apple is pivoting here. Nilay just confirmed to me that it was an Apple executive that confirmed their previous intentions to exit the standalone display business. That's obviously not the case anymore. The pro community has been very vocal about their concerns, and I'm sure the shielding issues with the LG UltraFine 5K display don't help either. Apple can do better here.

(cc @truthertech)

 

[wizard]

Give the next Mac mini upgradable RAM, a quad-core option for under $1K, SSD or Fusion drive as standard, USB-C/Thunderbolt 3, Kaby Lake processors, and I will probably buy one.

Doesn't seem like it, given the specs on the Dell linked above:

Why just quad core? The top end should be running six cores at the minimum. Frankly a Ryzen processor would be a better deal. As for upgrading id prefer multipke slots for SSD's.

 

[mainer4101]

Did you miss the big news that they're working on a new Mac Pro that will be released next year? They also stated the mac mini will be continued.

Yes, and that makes sense given this announcement. But by continue to upgrade, I meant more than once every 5 years. Just in the last two years we've see 4K, 5K, and now 8K display development. At that rate, their upgrades will have to keep up. I don't think the display world is going to just level off, and if Apple has decided to keep up and get back in the game then they will have to respond to the market accordingly. Personally, I think it's good to see they are revamping this whole piece of the pie. But I think they are going to need to be more attentive to how they upgrade these lines rather than just doing a one-up release next year and then nothing for another 5 years.

 

[truthertech]

Nilay's tweet flat out says Apple confirmed to him. So it's either true, or he is lying? Why would he lie?

It's not binary at all. The least likely explanation is that he was simply lying, but that is a possibility. On the other hand, it is very likely that he could have, and most probably did, just spoke to someone who wasn't really in the know at Apple, or was just guessing or maybe had his own agenda and was using Patel, or Patel misinterpreted what was said, etc. It's very unlikely that Apple proper would have decided to put out major change by waiting for recently Apple hostile blogger to call and use that as only channel.

It's similar to Marc Gurman's reporting, some of it is spot on, some wrong as he relies on his source having right access, correctly understanding plans, etc. Happens all the time, and it's clear now that Apple has been working and struggling through next gen MacPro and display. That's why they put out for sale the LG monitor that didn't even come close to their standard for design, etc., as they continue to work on things like 8K display, modularity, etc.


That's why it should not be repeated as a fact that Apple decided to get out of the display business. That would have only be appropriate if Patel had identified a source at Apple that officially confirmed it, otherwise, it should again be, something along the line "One blogger said an unidentified source, etc., was getting . . . but it was never confirmed by Apple or other sources. It now appears that this source was wrong. . . "