Mac Mini To Be Discontinued?

[plinden]

Base - similar in capabilities to today's mini, but somewhat larger to allow for a 3.5" hard drive and an LP PCIe graphics card. Add an eSATA port to the back. Front panel USB ports and 12-in-1 memory card reader (or side panel).

Hub - Exactly the same size/style box, connects to Base with eSata and USB. Has space for 2 user replaceable 3.5" SATA drives - comes with 1 or 2 drives. Has extra USB ports, maybe the card reader is here and not in the base. Has 3 additional eSATA output ports on the back.

Storage - Exactly the same size box (but could be thinner). Holds one or two 3.5" SATA drives. Connects to 2 of the eSATA ports on the hub. (Or, perhaps the Hub supplies power, so the storage connects to the nub through a special cable or docking connector.)

Not quite as good as you're suggesting, but the Newertech Ministack and LaCie Mini drive and hub (only one drive in each of those) are designed to fit in with the Mac Mini and they're not too much more expensive than standard external drives, and add firewire and USB connections. Two of those could be stacked under a Mini.

 

[plinden]

If the new MacBook Pro has magnetic latch like the MacBooks , Santa Rosa I guess , LED displays I guess And that new WESTERN DIGITAL 250GB HDD running @ 5400 rpm

My Pc's all have Raptors running at 10,000 RPM. Fast Intel processors running out of 5400 RPM HDD's is like a Porsche with slicks, why would you??

You have a PC laptop with a 10,000rpm Raptor? Remarkable ...

 

[karterius]

I hope to friggin God Apple Inside is wrong on this one. I have been saving up my money for a mini for the last year waiting for a proper revision. I don't want an imac, because personally I don't like having everything all in one, the mac pro's start at $2000 & I already have a laptop (plus see my imac problem).

I was actually considering getting one for my car too, to integrate with my sound system. They are a great little computer and very robust. Everyone I know that has one is still using theres with no problems!

 

[oscuh]

Not quite as good as you're suggesting, but the Newertech Ministack and LaCie Mini drive and hub (only one drive in each of those) are designed to fit in with the Mac Mini and they're not too much more expensive than standard external drives, and add firewire and USB connections. Two of those could be stacked under a Mini.

My question would be, what's the point? Not trying to be an ass, but I guess I'd rather see a Minitower with the option of a second internal drive, a dedicated graphics card, 4 USB ports and at least 2 Firewire, rather than a stack of mish-mash and all the cabling that would require ...

 

[zero2dash]

As several others have said, hopefully this paves the way to a headless iMac/minitower model.

 

[plinden]

My question would be, what's the point? Not trying to be an ass, but I guess I'd rather see a Minitower with the option of a second internal drive, a dedicated graphics card, 4 USB ports and at least 2 Firewire, rather than a stack of mish-mash and all the cabling that would require ...

If you currently have a Mini you don't have the option of adding a second internal drive. You can mishmash together hubs and external drives or pay a little extra for a combined stackable hub/HDD that fits together quite well.

Yes, I too would prefer a more expandible headless Mac, but Apple doesn't currently provide one, and there's no indication that it will. So we're stuck with choosing between a Mini, iMac or Mac Pro or a laptop and only the Mini or a laptop will fit under my TV, and I'm not going to use a laptop for that.

 

[freddiecable]

agree with people questioning the ending of the mini - but let's hope apple will launch something new - headless low segment mac? but then again - it's quite perfect as it is...except for some weaknesses - graphics and HD-space. (well today you can have 200GB in it...)

 

[Cheffy Dave]

MINI Dead??

Apple's diminuitive Mac Mini's days are numbered according to Appleinsider.



The Mini, which is the last of Apple's computers to use Intel's 32-bit Core Duo processors, has gone 260 days since its last update, more than 100 days over its average update span according to our Buyers Guide.

I wonder if it was killing Apple TV sales?,BTW, what IS the purpose of the Apple TV? I just don't get it

 

[Cheffy Dave]

Duh

You have a PC laptop with a 10,000rpm Raptor? Remarkable ...

Brain gas, I stand corrected, you'll be 59 some day

 

[SiliconAddict]

Retarded. If Apple does this they willl loose a crap load of customers. Hell I'm thinking of getting a Mac Mini for my mom. iMac? Heck no. I don't have that kind of money to blow. I'll get a $500 Dimension instead if this happens. Again this better be a discontinuation of the model. Not the line.

 

[PCMacUser]

My Pc's all have Raptors running at 10,000 RPM. Fast Intel processors running out of 5400 RPM HDD's is like a Porsche with slicks, why would you??

Your analogy needs a little bit of work. Slicks are fast. So I think you might have it the wrong way around!

But anyway, yes, the Raptor is a kick arse drive. But it generates a lot more noise and a lot more heat than the 5400 and 7200rpm drives. Not to mention its very high price. Also, the Mac Mini uses laptop hard drives rather than desktop hard drives so the Raptor is not available on this platform anyway unless you put it into an external enclosure. Which would then be noisy.

The other thing to point out is that the new Intel architecture is designed to not only give better performance but also to give lower power consumption. So there are other, non-performance related reasons, for having these CPUs in this type of computer.

 

[GanleyBurger]

Why, Apple, why???

.

Why can't Apple make a Mac Mini for around $1499 with a 2.33 C2D processor and a couple of gigs of ram in a mini tower that would look kind of like the external drive below, about half the size of a Mac Pro tower?

That way, with about $3,500, I could get a Mac on the level of a high-end Imac and hook it up to a 30" monitor.

I am a musician, but I'm not running 100 tracks of ProTools, or doing hardcore video editing. I want GarageBand, a few software instruments, and that big screen for composing.

Why not, Apple, Why???

 

[volvoben]

I personally doubt the mini or 17" imac will disappear in the next 6 months or even a year, but then again I'm thinking of it from the consumer/apple fan point of view. The business viewpoint is always totally different, they just want profit now and profit in the future, that's capitalism.

If somehow the 17" imac and mini were both discontinued it would leave a nice spot for this pipe dream:

-the new mini (or just 'mac'); looks like a taller/larger APE
-processors range from the about-to-be-released celeron 400 series (single core conroes) to c2d conroes.
-4gb ram max
-integrated or discrete graphics up to 7800 or something
-3.5" HDD from 160-750
-cheapest single core celeron 1.6-2.0ghz integrated graphics 160gb model is $450

I'll leave off expansion slots or other niceties which apple would never include.

That will never ever happen though, apple really doesn't seem to like the lower end of the market, particularly for desktops. I'd think they could still make a decent profit margin on one of these though, a cheap mini-atx 775 mobo could be under $75 retail, and the 1.6ghz celeron 420 will be $39...case, PS, Airport, BT, keyboard and mouse (yes, include them dammit), minus the great pricing apple could negotiate, seems like they could build it for ~$300...but what do i know, i'm no business man.

as a final note, i'd miss having the mini in the lineup to suggest to people (I've never had nor wanted one), but the 17" imac should really stay there...they're the most attractive option for a lot of people who ask me for advice. I say keep the 17" with int. graphics, start at 1gb ram and drop it to $850. the upper models should really go to desktop components for god's sake, so perhaps the 17" could even be upgraded similarly to cheaper and faster conroe based mobos and chips? dare i even suggest a celeron based 17" imac for $650!?!? nah, it'll never happen, there'll never be another single core mac, which is great for performance and futureproofing, but it's hard to explain to my girlfriend's single mother who still has her 400mhz imac running os9, makes ~$30k/yr and still has her youngest in college.

 

[kalisphoenix]

I've almost never seen a Mac Mini by itself - every one that I've seen is a mess of cables connecting the mini to a couple of external drives and usb hubs and card readers and ...

Elegant - not!

Definitely. I was complaining to my wife the other day about this. I have a USB hub connected to my Airport Extreme Base Station (Wireless-n) (btw: annoying that I have to say all that just to eliminate ambiguity) with three hard drives and a printer. I have an XBox 360 controller and my iPod shuffle dock attached to the Mac mini that the AEBS(n) sits on. Then there are the ethernet cables, the Mac mini's optical audio out to my speakers and DVI out to the TV. Someday I'm going to get more hard drives, so that's more stuff hooked to either the mini or the AEBS.



And power cords for all the above. Jesus.

Apple's ideas are pretty unrealistic. The modern PC is a hub for other devices -- printer, camera, iPod, USB flash drives, external hard drives, joysticks... the list goes on.

 

[Digital Skunk]

I thought it was quite appropo ...

Dang it man! Another new word.

I think the G4 Cube was limited in ways that the iMac never has been -- maybe not from a technology standpoint, but more from a marketability one. Would you have ever called the iMac underpowered / overpriced? The iMac's specs have rarely, if ever, compared with the Power / Pro tower, but neither has the price tag. The Cube, on the other hand, was fitted with a low-end professional chip and given a low-end professional price. You were paying for the novelty / convenience of the small size, and at the time, I doubt consumers were really convinced that a G4 was needed or worth the extra cost. I think "novelty" is the key word here -- it was never designed to catch on with the masses. If the Cube had a G3 and a lower price tag, it might have taken off more like the iMac did -- but we'll never know.

On the other hand, I'm not surprised by the number of posts by people who were "waiting for the next mini update". For whatever reason, Apple chose not to keep the mini's specs competitive with its initial cousin, the iBook / MacBook. The price was much more reasonable than the Cube, but the technology couldn't stand up to similarly-priced PCs. The Mac experience may be worth the premium, but it seems that in this case, people still don't want to buy dated technology even at a low price point. I would compare the Mac Mini more to the Performa line -- an attempt to pass off yesterday's technology at discount prices. The current-spec mini may work adequately for Tiger, but for Leopard? The next cat?

I know what you're probably thinking... people buying in that price range may not be that tech-savvy to know that the technology is dated. I'm pretty sure that salespeople are going to let them in on it, pushing the more up-to-date specs of the iMac or MacBook. The intention may be to get the customer to buy a higher-priced product, but if in the end the consumer really wants a desktop sans monitor (yes, that's not a given), such a pitch just makes the mini look bad, the Pro look like overkill, and Apple's line look out of touch with that particular flavor of consumer.

You are correct on many points. The novelty word fits the Mini as well as the Cube. Except that with the G4 the mini wasn't that underpowered. Now it is just outdated and obselete. And if Apple puts the same processor and graphics in it as the iMac 17", it will still be a bit of a "why not get a 17" iMac" thing.

And almost everyone that buys a consumer mac is either buying it for looks are really doesn't care about the tech specs. Not an insult... just my opinion. I LOVE the 24" iMac and I would love to get one if my girlfriend would let me, and if I didn't need/want a MacPro... I might get one as a server or something... I don't know I just want one.

Then there is my mom who just wanted a new computer that wasn't a PC, so she considered the MacMini for price, but wanted the whole shibang so got the 17" iMac. Not that everyone is non-tech savy... just that the ones that are usual don't like the iMac for reasons of non-expandability.

 

[zap2]

I'd be upset...I bough an Mac Mini and ACD, this would end up making me get an iMac to replace my Mac mini...but then the ACD would be unused.

Maybe I'd get a laptop...I don't really know. I do know Apple would need a low cost Mac to fill the gap...either a price drop for the iMac, or a new "eMac" like machine

 

[epochblue]

At the risk of being labeled a blog-spammer (no ads or anything on my blog; it's just for fun), I just wrote a blog post regarding what I'd like to see come out of the death of the Mac mini...if anyone cares to read it.

If not, no big deal.

http://bisrael.tumblr.com/post/2389545

 

[Digital Skunk]

.

Why can't Apple make a Mac Mini for around $1499 with a 2.33 C2D processor and a couple of gigs of ram in a mini tower that would look kind of like the external drive below, about half the size of a Mac Pro tower?

That way, with about $3,500, I could get a Mac on the level of a high-end Imac and hook it up to a 30" monitor.

I am a musician, but I'm not running 100 tracks of ProTools, or doing hardcore video editing. I want GarageBand, a few software instruments, and that big screen for composing.

Why not, Apple, Why???

Honestly... the 24" iMac may suit you well but I understand your reasons for wanting the mini-tower. The only thing I would love to see in the next 24" iMac revision is 2 PCIx expansion slots.... maybe just one, with the card taking the other built-in non removable one. And dual HDD slots...

Nevermind... I am dreaming again.

 

[PCMacUser]

For my needs (HTPC), the Mini would be perfect if it had a CPU refresh and discrete graphics card.

The article in AppleInsider really made the Mini sound like it was a disaster of design, features and marketing - which most of us here know to be untrue. So I'm not sure how much weight I can place on their claims of its demise.

 

[MacSA]

Can't be much profit on a Mini, Apple makes more on osX.

Those Combo Drives probably cost Apple 50p, and Intel must be giving away those Core Duo chips by now.

I had a feeling that Apple might discontinue the Mini, which would be a shame as it's the only Mac within my price range - so no Mini, no switching for me.

 

[neutrino23]

I'll join the chorus lamenting the tone of this rumor. I've been looking forward to the next refresh of the mini to use around the house as a combination server, home automation, Tivo for Radio as well EyeTV machine. An iMac doesn't really suit this need.

 

[kresh]

I remember when I purchased my Mini at CompUSA. They had been out a few months and I had been debating on getting one. I stopped by the CompUSA store intending just to look at it one more time. CompUSA has the dedicated Apple section and the Apple Rep was not there so I spoke with a CompUSA employee.

He immediately started in about the Mini being made of laptop parts, that they were hot and had a lower reliability than true desktop parts. He tried for twenty minutes to disuade me from the Mini, not so much to a WinBox, but anything other than the Mini. I left the store without the Mini, got to my car and sat there thinking for a few minutes. I basically decided that I was speaking to a MS fanboy/Apple hater.

I went back into the store and purchased the base Mini for $499.99.

To make an ending to the book I've written here, my Mini is one of the finest Apple products I have ever purchased. I desoldered two jumpers, over-clocking the G4 from 1.25GHz to 1.5GHz, upgraded to 1 GB of ram, and when the Panasonic slot load 8X DVD writers came out I added one.

I don't have a clutter of cables, My mini sits on top of an OWC/NewerTech external drive that I use as boot.

If Apple discontinues the Mini, then I will camp out on the Apple's refurb page waiting for an Intel version to sit on top of my OWC hub, but I have absolutely no need, nor desire for a Mac Pro or an AIO (from any manufacturer)!

The Mac Mini is Dead, Long live the Mac Mini!

 

[bigwig]

Not surprising.

They aren't/haven't ever sold well and by the time you get one that has decent specs, you may as well get the $999 iMac.

Since the Mini is headless and the iMac isn't, in many applications the iMac isn't a suitable replacement for the Mini.

 

[zioxide]

Wow I hope this isn't true.

Like a lot of people here, I've been waiting for the Core 2 Duo update so I can use a Mac Mini hooked up to my home theater. I want to be able record HDTV using an EyeTV and also listen to music and stuff on my LCD TV.

Hopefully they don't discontinue it, but if they do I'll probably try to buy a used Core Solo (I might do this anyways) and put a C2D in it myself.

 

[MacSA]

The fact that half the people posting here who own Mini's seem to be using them as nothing more than "media servers" might illustrate why Apple might want to discontinue it - it competes directly with the Apple TV.