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Mac Mini Dilemma

T

timacn

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 30, 2013
9
0
My son wants a Mac Mini for Christmas. I tried to talk him into an imac, but he prefers the mini.

Is there any REAL chance that the Haswell and Iris modifications will be implemented before the holidays? I've heard that when the new Pro rolls out, changes to the mini might be announced.

Any insights?

I don't want to spend the money for the mini if it is going to be updated any time soon.
 
Only the :apple: Gods know. Get him the mini to open for Christmas and you then have the holiday return policy to replace it if there is a new one. :confused:
 
With only a few weeks before Christmas, I think we're done seeing any updates to Apple's product lines in 2013.
 
timacn said:
I don't want to spend the money for the mini if it is going to be updated any time soon.
Click to expand...

No offence, but why give a crap about the next gen MM?

If your son is anything like I was - he'll crack it open and modify it. He'll have a monitor collection (someday) and learn LOTS and LOTS about computer internals.

The iMac? Give it to a daughter...you can't do anything with it. Especially fix it when the HD goes down...

Christmas tidings!
 
Well, give him a choice:
1. Current-generation Mac Mini under the tree for Christamas, or...
2. A "voucher" (piece of paper) with which to buy the next-generation Mini as soon as it is introduced (I'm guessing late January or early February 2014, or maybe even March).

Offer him those options and tell him that it's his choice, so he should think it over and "choose wisely"...

Good practice for other decisions he will have to make as he goes through life...
 
Lesser Evets said:
Yeah, it's not like a new Mac Pro is coming out before Christmas 2013.
Click to expand...
That's one of Apple's rare exceptions. The Mac Pro isn't a consumer product, and its sales aren't really driven by the holiday season (unlike the iPod product line).

Also Apple had previously quoted availability of the Mac Pro in late 2013, so there would be no surprise if it actually shipped before the end of the year.

The rest of the product line updates should done for this year.
 
Smart son

What's so special about the latest iMac that makes you feel it is right for your son? What are his needs?

With a Mac Mini he gets to set up a system with the peripherals he wants, and can update as needs or desires dictate. Even the Mini itself is only a part of the whole. As such it is not all that difficult or expensive to upgrade or replace, for whatever reason (including feeling that next generation is way more advanced, or simply wanting bragging rights). Beside that, young fellows do often like to meddle a bit.

What's more, it is easily transportable…. the main reason I went for a Mini (I neither needed, nor wanted laptop portability). Unplug a Mini, chuck it in a backpack, and plug it in to whatever peripherals are handy next block, town, country or continent.

I am using a 2009 Mini with the ViewSonic monitor and Sterno speakers I bought with my first Mini in 2005. I have replaced the mouse (unknown brand cheapie) a couple of times, got a new keyboard (small Apple, wired) in 2010, and recently replaced the external HDD for Time Machine. When I return to my own country, probably next year, I'll just be taking the Mini, the keyboard and the backup HDD with me.

The Mini's performance is not far behind the iMac, and probably not significantly so for the day to day needs of most people.
 
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mpantone said:
The Mac Pro isn't a consumer product…
Click to expand...
Now, come on. Seriously.

That is an obvious misnomer.

You probably meant that it isn't a mass-consumer product; a product which caters to a niche based more on necessity rather than novelty. It is a consumer product, being publicly marketed and sold to anyone with the cash in hand or on plastic.
 
Why would you want him to get an imac in the first place?
The mini is cheaper and better, because you can modify it and choose your own externals.

Id always rather get the mac mini.
 
Meister said:
Why would you want him to get an imac in the first place?
The mini is cheaper and better, because you can modify it and choose your own externals.

Id always rather get the mac mini.
Click to expand...

well, its not exactly that you can't modify an iMac... the 27 one is even socketed cpu....

yes its more work, and yet its more dangerous but in terms of upgrade potential the iMac fare better than the mini..

though i'd buy a mini over the iMac myself but that is due to usage needs... :D
 
Lesser Evets said:
Now, come on. Seriously.

That is an obvious misnomer.

You probably meant that it isn't a mass-consumer product; a product which caters to a niche based more on necessity rather than novelty. It is a consumer product, being publicly marketed and sold to anyone with the cash in hand or on plastic.
Click to expand...

No he is right. A Mac Pro is a Workstation and thus geared towards Professionals and/or Prosumers. Their biggest clients are corporations/studios. They aren't aimed at consumers. However like all workstations Apple has no problem selling one to a consumer, but they certainly aren't the target market...
 
timacn said:
My son wants a Mac Mini for Christmas. I tried to talk him into an imac, but he prefers the mini.
Click to expand...

If buying a standard configuration just wait until Dec 24th to buy it. Apple has a 1.5-2 week window for reasonable returns if they pop-up with anything extremely early in January.

Is there any REAL chance that the Haswell and Iris modifications will be implemented before the holidays? I've heard that when the new Pro rolls out, changes to the mini might be announced.
Click to expand...

There are few reasons for Apple to couple the Mini to Mac Pro. They aren't particularly sharing many parts. The Mac Pro is launching in mid December primarily because it is about 1.5 years late. Sliding into 2014 would be even more ridiculously late than it already is. As much as folks are yelping about the Mini not having an update the Mac Pro updates over last 3 years make the Mini look highly active.

You can wait until the Mac Pro ships (likely before Christmas) and see what happens. Unless dealing with a long shipping logistics, there should still be time. It isn't like there is going to be some last minute stampede to buy Mini's if they are not updated. Stores that normally stock them will have them.


I don't want to spend the money for the mini if it is going to be updated any time soon.
Click to expand...

The Mini normally followed closely along with the MBP (not the retina flavors). Apple has put that product into a coma. The Mini was probably caught collateral damage on that. If Apple is decoupling the Mini that means major design changes (and hence a substantive delay ... since major design changes move at sloth pace at Apple ). If Apple is going to pull the MBP out of a coma then it may be as late as Spring that happens to catch Intel updates (and Mini also probably needs to get to better prices on Iris graphics ). It would be quite surprising at this point if it came any time soon. Especially if 'soon' is bounded by being inside of 2013. (Intel isn't going to actual volume production on TB v2 chips until 2014. )
 
I have a 2012 Mini that I bought a little over a year ago. Even if the new Mini is released tomorrow the 2012 Mini will still serve me well for years should I decide to keep it.

Buy your son what he wants and get it now so it will be under the tree on Christmas Day. When it comes time to upgrade the Mini the resale value will probably be so high that it will largely offset the purchase price of a new Mini. Macs resold within three years retain a significant amount of their value.

(Written by a Very Happy Mac Mini Owner 59 Years Young)
 
Just a thought here, but if you were willing to buy an iMac, it sounds like cost isn't a huge factor here. I would probably rather have an i7 with a Fusion drive than a Haswell with a conventional drive.

That said, we're not sure what is going to come with the new Mini and it's likely to be more than the Haswell chip. The opposite school of thought to loading the Mini up would be to buy the base model and just plan to upgrade.
 
Stay with the Mac Mini, i personally like the Mni better then the iMac because you can upgrade the hard drive and RAM easily. Beware that the Mini doesn't have build-in mic and camera, so you will need to buy your own separately. And beware that there is a video bug in the late 2012 i7 Mac mini (not a big issue but nonetheless it's annoying because I expect Apple's products to be perfect.)

You might want to explain this to your son, so you can tell him to wait for the next Mac mini release, hopefully Apple will fix it.
 
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Lesser Evets said:
Now, come on. Seriously.

That is an obvious misnomer.

You probably meant that it isn't a mass-consumer product; a product which caters to a niche based more on necessity rather than novelty. It is a consumer product, being publicly marketed and sold to anyone with the cash in hand or on plastic.
Click to expand...

No, he is correct. The Mac Pro is targeted at professionals.
 
QWERTYMac7 said:
The iMac? Give it to a daughter...you can't do anything with it.
Click to expand...

I hope you don't have any daughters - thats perhaps one of the most offensive things I've ever read on macrumors.com

I work for a large technology firm based in silicon valley with tens of thousands of employees and guess what? We have a LOT of excellent female engineers. But you know what the sad part is? Most received their education overseas. I don't get this attitude in the US that women can't compete in STEM fields so no need to expose them.
 
Zero chance of a mini refresh before Christmas.

If he wants a Mini get him a mini, it is his present not yours ;)

The mini has a few things in it's favour, its a flexible platform - I use mine as a desktop PC with monitor, it's regularly used as a media computer connected to a TV. It's easy to move around when travelling.
 
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