Intel Mac mini To Evolve Into Digital Hub?

[wilburpan]

The upgrades sound nice, but wait a minute! A 3.5" hard drive? No, this is not required in my opinion. This would just make the Mac mini a larger system and I don't want that. Its size is perfect how it is.

Actually, if this is designed to be a device designed to integrate with one's home theater system, then it probably will be placed by the average person by all of their other A/V components, which means that you could easily expand the width to the standard 17" that most A/V components are. So an increase in size wouldn't be all that intolerable.

Now if you were intending to still use the new Mac mini as a desktop computer, then small size would be a desirable thing to keep. But then, you probably wouldn't need all of the extra A/V functions predicted by Think Secret.

 

[firebox]

Asteroid anyone !?

i know i've said this in about 3 different post up till now but here goes again!

- A home recording station, Audio/video of all sorts.
- Record video from vaired sources save to DVD/HD/iPod whatever..
- Amateur/Enthusiast Audio Interface, multipe XLR/Jack/Phono inputs. easy to link up with Logic/Garageband (and many others once it takes off...i guess that would be the day it came out!)
- Controlable using existing remote or possibly via the rumored tablet? (really pushing it now ) depending on the fuctionality you require, for actually using in a homestudio, you would obviously use a G5/Powerbook/Mini/Tablet.
- Output Audio over Airport/Optical/Mini jack.....again, multiple outputs.
- Stackable...this was mentioned by someone in a previous post and would really add to the appeal, completly flexable regardless of whether it was in your living room running you house or in the studio recording and processing you music and video...a completely customizable digital hub.

I think you get the jist anyway.... i'm off to change my pants

 

[rtdunham]

No question, I would replace my iPod earlier than intended, and pick up the mini as my media center.

ditto here.
td

 

[Yvan256]

It sure is coming - here's why

I just bought this thing on Ebay, so you can be sure Apple will come up with a replacement in january.

 

[rtdunham]

This will most likely be a new product (Mac midi??)

mac midi: sheer genius.
td

 

[Yvan256]

Actually, if this is designed to be a device designed to integrate with one's home theater system, then it probably will be placed by the average person by all of their other A/V components, which means that you could easily expand the width to the standard 17" that most A/V components are. So an increase in size wouldn't be all that intolerable.

Prediction (if this thing is true): BYOTV.

 

[thunderclap]

Expected to be included in the update, other than the move to Intel processor:

• Front Row 2.0
• "TiVo-Killer" DVR application
• Built-In iPod Dock
• Possible move to 3.5" hard drive

I'm really curious about this "TiVo-Killer" app. I currently use the Comcast DVR (which stinks by the way) and was considering TiVo or ReplayTV. If Apple is coming out with something however I might just hold off and see how it compares.

 

[Passante]

It just hit me but, aren't HDMI cables expensive? I remember seeing them going for over $80, I would assume a HDMI breakout box to RCA or S-Video would be pretty expensive. I honestly can't see HDMI in a Mac mini, I don't know maybe Apple will find an inexpensive way to make it happen

Just purchased a DVI cable for $13, DVI-D to HDMI were not much more from buy.com. Was planning on getting a mini to go with my new LCD TV. Guess I'll wait until January before I buy.

 

[mckvakk]

I hope it gets a FrontRow that supports divx/xvid and has a web interface for controlling..

(i know i sound like a pirate but the good tv shows airs here months/years after the us (except lost where we only are 2 weeks behind), and yes i usually watches the shows when it airs here too )

As for the size, they can make it bigger, but not bigger than my xbox which it will be replacing

 

[efoto]

Assuming those specs are anywhere near accurate (including a large 3.5" drive) then I think this new Mac Mini could be really sweet. I love the idea of these little things in a media setup, but currently they are lacking a bit in a few features I would want to justify hooking it up to my media set.

More HDD space, more syncing/connectivity features, and faster SD

 

[imikem]

What about thinking different?

I'd suggest that the Mac Mini form factor is not the best for a media center box. Being in the middle of a project right now where I am building a custom entertainment center in my basement, I know what would be the best fit for me.

It would be something in the form factor of a DVD player, say a standard 1U (1.75") tall, standard width (about 17.5") to fit in 19" racks (say with mountable rack ears provided), and could be any depth up to about 16". You could fit some pretty keen media hardware in there without worrying much about cooling the thing. It could even function as a replacement for a DVD player itself.

So it would give you TiVo DVR functions, DVD, and be a usable computer to hook up to my big screen TV box. I'd whip out a credit card in a second, and so would some of the IT geeks that work for me.

<edit> just noticed that somebody else also suggested growing the box to the same size as other home theatre components. Great minds thinking alike and all that...

 

[dernhelm]

sounds like a cool idea, except i would hate to see the mac min grow larger! a 3.5" drive and a tv tuner would take up a lot of space. and the last time i cracked open the mini there was not much extra space at all!!! i would totally go for it though b/c ive been saving for a mac mini and a tv tuner to make my own mac DVR !!!

I'm not sure that this would even replace the mini line at all. It may be "built on the same chassis" so to speak, but I'm not convinced that Apple would see this as the next evolutionary step in the mini. It may simply be a brand new product. Then again, they did add "Front Row" to the iMac line, so who knows?

 

[MacSlut]

I expect it to boot Mac OS X from 512MB of embedded flash memory for fast cold boot times. Not many consumers are willing to wait 1 minute to watch TV/DVD! Additionally it will go into a deep sleep like my iBook does, and return from sleep in under 2 seconds. I like that.

You obviously don't have a TiVo. Try watching one of them boot up. Heck, the splash screen takes longer to display than my Mac does to boot up.

Like a TiVo, there's really no reason for the device to power down or sleep unless the unit was being moved.

 

[puckhead193]

I wonder if you can take your shows that you record and put them on your ipod..... then tivo has a run with its money.... That thing must come with a massive hard drive to store all the footage plus your normal itunes photos etc...

 

[cr2sh]

Hmm.

Well, we've always been very clear on that. We don't think that televisions and personal computers are going to merge. We think basically you watch television to turn your brain off, and you work on your computer when you want to turn your brain on.

I dunno.

 

[SiliconAddict]

It just hit me but, aren't HDMI cables expensive? I remember seeing them going for over $80, I would assume a HDMI breakout box to RCA or S-Video would be pretty expensive. I honestly can't see HDMI in a Mac mini, I don't know maybe Apple will find an inexpensive way to make it happen

I can. The future is digital content protection to the display. That can only be done through HDMI. $10 says Leopard will sport this tech (Vista is.) and another $10 says Apple hardware will start moving from DVI to HDMI for this very reason. Well that and the fact that one cable carries not only video but audio as well. Less cables seems to be Apple mantra lately. Bring it on though. My TV is HDMI ready. My 24” Widescreen monitor no so much but HDMI is pin to pin compatable with DVI so no worries. For now.

 

[MacSlut]

I have 6 TiVos just beggin' to be eBay'd

I really have doubts about the DVR part. If a Mac did have built-in DVR capabilities surely it would be DRM'd so you could only view it on THAT particular Mac (yes, the new P* chips can regulate this), and not exported, to say...an video iPod. I don't need DVR with my Mac. I've got TiVo. I suspect most people other thant the geekiest of geeks needs DVR in their PC. What people want is an easy way to put video shows on their iPod for less than $1.99 and episode. No way Apple will be complicit in that. So DVR is a yawn. I'd like Front Row 2.0 if it's more advanced, but I'm not going to buy a premium priced mini just for FR.

What do you think Apple would rather sale? High margin $500-$1,000 devices to anyone with a home theater, or $1.99 videos that have razor thin margins?

Oh, but they can do both.

The big problem with TiVo is that they only record in present time. They don't time travel back in time or record the future. iTMS can do this. Specifically, you can today, get a show like Lost that you missed last week (or the week before, etc...) Likewise, iTMS has the ability to allow shows to be sold *prior* to being broadcast.

Keep in mind, TiVo is struggling to offer services that would compete with iTMS.

 

[lopresmb]

this is what everyone has been waiting for, now lets see the "media Center PC" done right.

 

[stuBCN75]

All sounds very nice BUT .....

I would think it would (if true) be a new product .. the Mac Media / Mac Lounge / Home Mac or something.

I think the mac mini is great but it is a computer and should stay as one. I think if Apple did do a media centre Mac then I think it should fit the following critera; ( these are just my thought so please dont bite my balls off ! )

* It could have a similar form factor / styling to the Mac mini.

* You can switch it on and off like a TV / DVD player etc. but not like a computer. I want to watch the TV or film not wait for it too boot up or shut down.

* When you do switch it one you are presented with a Front Row kind of interface. Something which any home user can use but not OS X. Why ? because a media centre box would live in my lounge not my office.

* Should be as easy to use as an iPod.

* You pop in a DVD it plays the DVD.

* You pop in a music CD it plays it. simple.

* Dock your iPod and up pops a iTune kind of app.

* It can record stuff and play it back but it needs to be as easy to use as any DVD recorder. Copy CD's to the iPod and recored shows etc.

* Maybe it has a DDTV decoder built in. ( i think it would be better to simply use what input source the owner can provide ). And yes it should cope with HDTV too.

* Maybe it can talk to other macs on a network to share photos and music etc.

* It can be controlled by a remote NOT a keyboard or mouse.

Anyway, just my thoughts. I think the main point i am trying to make is that it would live in the lounge and should behave as such. If i want to watch a film or listen to music i just want to switch it on and click play. Nothing more. If i want to use a computer then i will use one. But the lounge is a place for entertainment not IT. Basicly if my mum cant use it, it does not belong sitting next to my TV.

As far as specs go, i dont really care what is inside the box. I dont care what is inside my DVD player. Do you ?

 

[SiliconAddict]

Any device put out by Apple that is Intel based won't boot every time you turn it on. When you hit the power button it will put the system in a low power suspend mode that is so close to being actually turned off you won't even know it. Think sleep mode on laptops. Apple isn’t going to reinvent the wheel when a perfectly viable option is staring them right in the face. That and with a deep sleep mode the system is still technically on so it can turn itself back on to record a show, do some housekeeping, (If you NEVER turn the system off it will have to.) etc.

 

[stuBCN75]

Any device put out by Apple that is Intel based won't boot every time you turn it on. When you hit the power button it will put the system in a low power suspend mode that is so close to being actually turned off you won't even know it. Think sleep mode on laptops. Apple isn’t going to reinvent the wheel when a perfectly viable option is staring them right in the face. That and with a deep sleep mode the system is still technically on so it can turn itself back on to record a show, do some housekeeping, (If you NEVER turn the system off it will have to.) etc.

Sure. I understand what you are saying. I thought the same, sleep mode will probably fine. I am not suggesting Apple reinvent anything in fact the oposite.
Im just thinking that if it does live in your lounge it needs to as accessible as your TV or DVD player. I often switch my TV and DVD player OFF over night to save power. I just think it needs to behave more like a TV than a computer. Thats all.

 

[Hattig]

You obviously don't have a TiVo. Try watching one of them boot up. Heck, the splash screen takes longer to display than my Mac does to boot up.

Like a TiVo, there's really no reason for the device to power down or sleep unless the unit was being moved.

Sad really. All those devices and TVs in standby mode. Hundreds of millions of households around the globe wasting 'standby Watts', what's that, ~2GW of power down the drain? Just to save people the hassle of pressing a power button twice a day.

Anyway, just gotta check on all these computers I leave running all the time. Brb. Oh, wait, I left some lights on too!

 

[aegisdesign]

Sure. I understand what you are saying. I thought the same, sleep mode will probably fine. I am not suggesting Apple reinvent anything in fact the oposite.
Im just thinking that if it does live in your lounge it needs to as accessible as your TV or DVD player. I often switch my TV and DVD player OFF over night to save power. I just think it needs to behave more like a TV than a computer. Thats all.

The voice of reason. Switching your TV off over night, not just into standby saves a tonne of electricity and to be all tree-hugger on you for a moment, CO2 and other resources. It'll also save you up to £60 a year in electricity bills.

 

[BlizzardBomb]

Sounds great. Seems to me as the rebirth of the Cube. I only ask for a few things to place orders:

1) Quiet Mac. If possible, fanless.
2) Large & fast 7.200 rpm hard disk. Large 500GB HD a great bonus.
3) At least TWO independent (no hub-like) FireWire Ports. FireWire 800 a bonus.
4) Audio in/out for microphone, headphones and Apple Pro Speakers.
5) Last but not least, triple booting as Mac, Linux and Windows. Virtual switching between OSes (without hardware rebooting) a great bonus.

So how would you plan on cooling the HD with a fanless computer? It would be even worse than iMacs! And by putting FW 800 and a 500GB 7200rpm HD you are breaking into the Power Macs market. This is just a low/ medium performance machine for people on a budget so all we need is a decent graphics card (hint hint Radeon X300), a nice low power Intel chip to keep it cool and maybe up to 250GBs would do.

 

[Le Big Mac]

this is what everyone has been waiting for, now lets see the "media Center PC" done right.

If this rumor is even 75% right, wow!!!

edited: As I read more about the "Tivo-killer" aspects, I'm starting to wonder whether this is a vaporware rumor, designed to force Tivo back to the table. Tivo obviously wanted too much for the company. And then when Apple told them to step off, they antagonized them with the video iPod transfers, for PCs only.

That said, I still think Apple will bring something to market this way--it makes too much sense given their current marketing approach.