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Intel's Mac Mini Look-Alike

nagromme said:
Yep 😀 But I think he meant we won't talk about how Apple copied Xerox. And I didn't talk about that, I talked about how Apple didn't 😉
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Not to mention they licensed it fair and square (Xerox even got some stock) and hired people who were working on the PARC, which Xerox didn't seem to want to do anything with. Plus, PARC does not equal Mac OS. They were already building a working GUI, but the PARC stuff added to what was already there.

And we ALSO shouldn't be talking about how AOpen copied the Mac Mini, because they just didn't. They copied Apple's style, but it's more iPod-like than Mac Mini-like.
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True, but it is called the XC CUBE. 😉 Kinda funny that. Not that there weren't boxes like that before the Cube, just thought I'd point that out. And those Dell SX things ain't great. We have them at work. But I guess they're better than the HP/Compaq slimlines they replaced.

Terminal Services and Cytrix still suck.
 
Abstract said:
Well the goal is to build smaller PCs, so is anyone really copying anyone else? Its not like companies weren't heading in this direction in terms of size.
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Right, and the predominance of CD and DVD media dictates something that will resemble a CD player.
Its just that Apple has the nicest little computer, that's all. The size was always going to get smaller eventually, whether Apple was around nor not.
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Yep. Jobs admitted as much about a year ago at D:.

The more consumer products evolve, the more and more they look like software in boxes.

That's going to become more and more true over time, both for general purpose computers and purpose-built gadgets. It will get to the point that a whole computer is so cheap that no one cares about upgrading parts and "what does it run?" becomes the only serious question.
 
Re iProbot: I used to really like the A1200 form factor, not to mention AGA... Even better (size-wise) the A600: http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?st=1&c=64

But I've got you beat, I STILL have this PC-in-keyboard:
commodore_c64.jpg


And before that I had a (borrowed) VIC 20 😱
 
On a positive note, if they are copying it, it means that it has met with enough success to be worth copying.

Not that they will be good copies anyway.
 
Bonte said:
Somehow 40.000 a month doesn't seem like a big halo effect to me, its about 12% of total mac sales.
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That's 40,000 (or whatever) to START with, but the halo effect only grows (and applies to all Mac models). AND a sizable chunk of that is people who wouldn't have bought ANY Mac before. Low-end shoppers, and PC folks afraid to try a Mac unless the cost outlay is low. That's good ground to gain. Last but not least, the Mac Mini has brought great mindshare, and let to interest in Apple. And thus, it has drawn shoppers to Macs, even if they ended up with an iMac or something higher in the end!
 
nagromme said:
Re iProbot: I used to really like the A1200 form factor, not to mention AGA... Even better (size-wise) the A600:

But I've got you beat, I STILL have this PC-in-keyboard:
commodore_c64.jpg


And before that I had a (borrowed) VIC 20 😱
Click to expand...

🙂 Yep, I had them all too.....I actually played the 'famous' game Cannon Fodder a couple of days ago again. So much fun
😀
 
brap said:
Which 'they'? If you're referring to the Intel prototype, sure... but Shuttles? Industry standard PCI, and AGP/PCI-e slots, 5.25" and 3.5" drive bays, along with socketed processors put them in a different league. Indeed, a different target market... the Mini (and non-Intel clone hardware) won't exactly play Half Life 2.
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I was typing in regards to the Intel prototype, the subject of this thread. I then went into sharing info on the older Dell small footprint optiplex.
 
Will apple do naything to stop this?

Some days ago there was a report (on the German IT Site http://www.heise.de)
that apple takes legal action agains PLUS (a German food discounter chain) because they sell an mp3 Player which is a very close clone of iPod Mini.

This news startet one of the usual discussions in the forums - "apple too expensive bla". The "cheap copy" whithout iPods battery life, quality and good software is 179€ , but it is possible to ger the "original" for the same price or not much more, typically 189€.

Of course apple does have problems wirh clones ans poor clones, like any company that makes great and well recognized products. But I wonder if they will just sit and do nothing if cloning gets too obvious...

Christian
 
Bonte said:
Somehow 40.000 a month doesn't seem like a big halo effect to me, its about 12% of total mac sales.
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It's doing fine as an upsell decoy, and in shutting up critics who claimed that Apple was doomed -- DOOMED -- because they didn't sell one 😀
 
nagromme said:
Re iProbot: I used to really like the A1200 form factor, not to mention AGA... Even better (size-wise) the A600: http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?st=1&c=64

But I've got you beat, I STILL have this PC-in-keyboard:
commodore_c64.jpg


And before that I had a (borrowed) VIC 20 😱
Click to expand...

ah..... those were the days

sinclair_zx80_1.jpg


of course we even used to fight over my ZX81 is better then your ZX80. (which of course it was.... and dont get me onto the Spectrum verses the plus)

so this bickering is not new...

(notice iam not comapring Sinclair with commodore with aimga, i do have some pride left)
 
philosophy rant

nagromme said:
Yep 😀 But I think he meant we won't talk about how Apple copied Xerox. And I didn't talk about that, I talked about how Apple didn't 😉

And we ALSO shouldn't be talking about how AOpen copied the Mac Mini, because they just didn't. They copied Apple's style, but it's more iPod-like than Mac Mini-like.
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annoying philosophy rant warning!

the simple fact of the matter is that everything is indeed connected to everything. windows is naturally based on the Mac interface, based on Xerox, based on works by others, based on the works of others based on..... had Plato never mentioned the world of forms where would be today? and where did he get it from?

also, we over look the effects of cumulative tiny factors. who can say, perhaps a certain billboard, passed by a certain worker at Xerox, everyday on the way to work, is as much responsible as anything.

what we should be glad of, is that Apple seems to know how to hire, nurture and encourage the kinds of people that are capable of taking the good things they experience and crafting them into good products. and even if the other companies can not do the same, when they do chose to "copy" someone else, even if poorly, hopefully enough of the positive rubs off on their design to slightly improve the total "positive" in world.

...but i do wish they did a better job, cause some of those PCs are freaking ugly!
 
This machine is a bit of a slap in the face from intel to apple... if apple really is considering the x86 switch, why rip off their machine? How does that help their cpu sales?
 
cr2sh said:
This machine is a bit of a slap in the face from intel to apple... if apple really is considering the x86 switch, why rip off their machine? How does that help their cpu sales?
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intel is not building it.
 
Not sure it's been poster (don't feel like reading 5 pages of "omg that looks like crap" or "what a bunch of copy-cats").

Here's something to really make you go "omg this looks like crap": Mini AOpen Paradox.

What's with the stupid, huge, ugly button in the front? What's with the holes on the top?

It might be the same size as a Mac mini, but frankly, they should come up with their own design. We couldn't compare it directly to a Mac mini.
 
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