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New 2016 Mac mini specs?

I think it will be much the same with a faster cpu and return of the quad core.
However I think ram will stay soldered in.
I hope we get a redesigned case.
I am thinking something 1/4 to 1/5 the size of a Mac Pro and circular! I know I know I am a dreamer.
 
I really wish they would go back to being upgradable. I just did my 09 because I didn't want to buy the new model. I was going to get a new one instead, but decided against it. Maybe they'll use a SSD standard this time around.
 
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Jessica08 said:
I really wish they would go back to being upgradable. I just did my 09 because I didn't want to buy the new model. I was going to get a new one instead, but decided against it. Maybe they'll use a SSD standard this time around.
Click to expand...

By upgradeable, I guess you are referring to RAM…… Get used to the idea that it is not likely to happen for the Mac Mini, among others. The days of exponentially increasing amounts of RAM to run the OS or basic apps have probably passed. Get the RAM you need, or anticipate needing for what you do, and apps you use.

SSD may (or may not) come as standard for the top end model, and may come as an option across the range, but it is likely to be a few more generations before it becomes the standard for all computers. For storage of large amounts of data, HDD remains more cost effective by a wide margin, and is likely to remain so for some time.

All in all, the next Mac Mini is more likely to be an evolution rather than a revolution.
 
Micky Do said:
By upgradeable, I guess you are referring to RAM…… Get used to the idea that it is not likely to happen for the Mac Mini, among others. The days of exponentially increasing amounts of RAM to run the OS or basic apps have probably passed. Get the RAM you need, or anticipate needing for what you do, and apps you use.

SSD may (or may not) come as standard for the top end model, and may come as an option across the range, but it is likely to be a few more generations before it becomes the standard for all computers. For storage of large amounts of data, HDD remains more cost effective by a wide margin, and is likely to remain so for some time.

All in all, the next Mac Mini is more likely to be an evolution rather than a revolution.
Click to expand...

A question to the enlightened, if I may: How fast would a ram-disk on an SSD be?
 
What do I want:

Something faster and quad core. The equivalent of the 15" Pro rather than the 13" given that the desktop shouldn't be so restrained by size and power as they are today. Something that will be an upgrade to my 2012 mini would be a start!

USB-C would also be good.

What we'll get:
Current version with minor update to skylake.



What we'll
 
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OLDCODGER said:
A question to the enlightened, if I may: How fast would a ram-disk on an SSD be?
Click to expand...

Er, the concept of a "ram-disk" is to cache data from the drive system into RAM and treat it as if it were on a disk. In this manner, you could speed up software that depended on accessing the drive system without actually modifying that software to take advantage of extra memory. There is much less need to do this nowadays; modern software is generally better able to take advantage of available memory (although, sometimes it seems like programs want too much), and modern operating systems (like OSX) use any free memory for caching data from the drives anyway, so we're always running with something sort of like a ram-disk being used. So yeah, "ram-disks" as such really aren't used any more...
 
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jpietrzak8 said:
Er, the concept of a "ram-disk" is to cache data from the drive system into RAM and treat it as if it were on a disk. In this manner, you could speed up software that depended on accessing the drive system without actually modifying that software to take advantage of extra memory. There is much less need to do this nowadays; modern software is generally better able to take advantage of available memory (although, sometimes it seems like programs want too much), and modern operating systems (like OSX) use any free memory for caching data from the drives anyway, so we're always running with something sort of like a ram-disk being used. So yeah, "ram-disks" as such really aren't used any more...
Click to expand...

Thank you for your reply. Was hoping it might help to keep cost of new mini down, given the rip-off Apple RAM - which can't be upgraded.
 
jpietrzak8 said:
Yeah, sadly, Apple seems to be interested in selling products that will more quickly go obsolete. :( Not much we can do about that...
Click to expand...
If you buy something that goes obsolete quickly for your uses, then you bought the wrong computer. The Mac mini can still pack a butt load of RAM.
 
T'hain Esh Kelch said:
If you buy something that goes obsolete quickly for your uses, then you bought the wrong computer.
Click to expand...

Hmm, not sure about that. As I've mentioned in another post, my mother purchased a 2009 Mac Mini with 2GB of RAM way back in 2009, and has been using it for mostly web browsing, e-mail, and photos, tasks which it performed perfectly for her. That is, perfectly until earlier this year, when it suddenly started choking on those same apps. It turns out that she had upgraded the machine to OSX 10.10, and it no longer had enough room to run both the OS and her apps at the same time. Upgrading the RAM to 4GB solved that issue. If her machine was not upgradable, it would probably have needed to be replaced (or, I guess, downgrade the OS and try to avoid any future updates...).

Also, the ability to upgrade RAM gives a machine flexibility to be used in different roles as time goes by, where machines with soldered RAM might need to be thrown away and replaced with something new...
 
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jpietrzak8 said:
Hmm, not sure about that. As I've mentioned in another post, my mother purchased a 2009 Mac Mini with 2GB of RAM way back in 2009, and has been using it for mostly web browsing, e-mail, and photos, tasks which it performed perfectly for her. That is, perfectly until earlier this year, when it suddenly started choking on those same apps. It turns out that she had upgraded the machine to OSX 10.10, and it no longer had enough room to run both the OS and her apps at the same time. Upgrading the RAM to 4GB solved that issue. If her machine was not upgradable, it would probably have needed to be replaced (or, I guess, downgrade the OS and try to avoid any future updates...).

Also, the ability to upgrade RAM gives a machine flexibility to be used in different roles as time goes by, where machines with soldered RAM might need to be thrown away and replaced with something new...
Click to expand...

And that is basically all I do with mine. I would have hated to spend $700 or $800 whatever they are now for the bigger RAM and hard drive if I couldn't upgrade mine. I upgraded mine this weekend for $130, and it should last me many more years.
 
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Micky Do said:
By upgradeable, I guess you are referring to RAM…… Get used to the idea that it is not likely to happen for the Mac Mini, among others. The days of exponentially increasing amounts of RAM to run the OS or basic apps have probably passed. Get the RAM you need, or anticipate needing for what you do, and apps you use.

SSD may (or may not) come as standard for the top end model, and may come as an option across the range, but it is likely to be a few more generations before it becomes the standard for all computers. For storage of large amounts of data, HDD remains more cost effective by a wide margin, and is likely to remain so for some time.

All in all, the next Mac Mini is more likely to be an evolution rather than a revolution.
Click to expand...

I disagree with this way of thinking. Just because I can anticipate what I need, doesn't mean I have the ability to afford the item at the time of purchase. Or take a different example, my mini 2009 was a gift for my dad at the time of the purchase. He gave it back to me after couple of months and went back to using his Windows machine. Not able to return the machine, I started to use it and have increasingly becoming more dependent on it over my graduate school days. Which resulted in hard drive upgrade as well as RAM upgrade. That was something that one can't anticipate at the time of purchase.

Also, the fact that you can't upgrade the machine make it more difficult to convince a buyer should you ever want to sell the machine. If you had a 2012 machine with 4GB of RAM, you can sell it for more giving that fact that the buyer can still upgrade it to 16GB, if you have a 2014 with 4GB of RAM you are stuck with it.

Then again this is just all talk, its really up to what Apple is going dish out and what one is willing to swallow. Buy it if you are okay it or you have the money to burn, or go else where I suppose.
 
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aajeevlin said:
I disagree with this way of thinking. Just because I can anticipate what I need, doesn't mean I have the ability to afford the item at the time of purchase. Or take a different example, my mini 2009 was a gift for my dad at the time of the purchase. He gave it back to me after couple of months and went back to using his Windows machine. Not able to return the machine, I started to use it and have increasingly becoming more dependent on it over my graduate school days. Which resulted in hard drive upgrade as well as RAM upgrade. That was something that one can't anticipate at the time of purchase.

Also, the fact that you can't upgrade the machine make it more difficult to convince a buyer should you ever want to sell the machine. If you had a 2012 machine with 4GB of RAM, you can sell it for more giving that fact that the buyer can still upgrade it to 16GB, if you have a 2014 with 4GB of RAM you are stuck with it.

Then again this is just all talk, its really up to what Apple is going dish out and what one is willing to swallow. Buy it if you are okay it or you have the money to burn, or go else where I suppose.
Click to expand...

Agree, having gone through a brief mad period between 99-2007 when I bought an iMac dv then chopped it for a digi audio G4, then a Powerbook 12 inch, then a mac mini 1.83ghz core duo, I finally reigned in my gadget lust and bought a maxed out i7 2.6ghz with 16gb of ram from crucial in Mar 13. So happy I did as I feel I am covered for at least 5-7 years for what I do, with the potential to replace my fusion disk and go all ssd at some point in the future. To me that's a huge amount saved and I feel this machine is the best value mac i've ever had. Stripping back the Mac Mini feels redactive but I fully understand the reasons why they've done it, just strikes me as ironic given the greenwash we get about Apple's manufacturing. Give the machines longer lives and then you really are benefiting the environment.
 
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OLDCODGER said:
A question to the enlightened, if I may: How fast would a ram-disk on an SSD be?
Click to expand...

jpietrzak8 said:
...and modern operating systems (like OSX) use any free memory for caching data from the drives anyway, so we're always running with something sort of like a ram-disk being used. So yeah, "ram-disks" as such really aren't used any more...
Click to expand...

OLDCODGER said:
Thank you for your reply. Was hoping it might help to keep cost of new mini down, given the rip-off Apple RAM - which can't be upgraded.
Click to expand...

T'hain Esh Kelch said:
If you buy something that goes obsolete quickly for your uses, then you bought the wrong computer. The Mac mini can still pack a butt load of RAM.
Click to expand...

Perhaps T'hain Esh Kelch has a point there after all. Be careful with your purchasing choices.

Often when posters request help configuring their 2014 minis, we warn them to grab the SSD or Fusion drive immediately to avoid the performance penalty presented by the 5400 rpm HDD. Although the wisdom of a 16GB RAM choice might be debatable, an upgrade to at least 8GB would probably be a more prudent investment for the long term. Maybe users like OLDCODGER should first go hard for memory since it cannot be upgraded. Live with the spinning HDD for a while and then pop for the SSD to supercharge things at a later date.

After all, how shocked should we be when a computer purchased with a minimum configuration fails to age as gracefully as a better specced stablemate? :( On the other hand, Wyatt82 is right to be confident that an 16GB i7 2012 is a great value with room (like a properly specced 2014) for even more upgrades. :D
 
Celerondon said:
Perhaps T'hain Esh Kelch has a point there after all. Be careful with your purchasing choices.

Often when posters request help configuring their 2014 minis, we warn them to grab the SSD or Fusion drive immediately to avoid the performance penalty presented by the 5400 rpm HDD. Although the wisdom of a 16GB RAM choice might be debatable, an upgrade to at least 8GB would probably be a more prudent investment for the long term. Maybe users like OLDCODGER should first go hard for memory since it cannot be upgraded. Live with the spinning HDD for a while and then pop for the SSD to supercharge things at a later date.

After all, how shocked should we be when a computer purchased with a minimum configuration fails to age as gracefully as a better specced stablemate? :( On the other hand, Wyatt82 is right to be confident that an 16GB i7 2012 is a great value with room (like a properly specced 2014) for even more upgrades. :D
Click to expand...

Actually, the spinner, in my case, is not the problem, ram/price is. To upgrade from my early 2009 Mini, to a new maxed out Mini, would cost way more than buying a min-spec Mini, then upgrading it myself.

Australian prices are atrocious and, when one gets to my age, value for money means more than just going for the latest bling on the block. One is likely to look at the product and its price, and decide that the price does not match its value, and decline to upgrade.
 
OLDCODGER said:
Actually, the spinner, in my case, is not the problem, ram/price is. To upgrade from my early 2009 Mini, to a new maxed out Mini, would cost way more than buying a min-spec Mini, then upgrading it myself.

Australian prices are atrocious and, when one gets to my age, value for money means more than just going for the latest bling on the block. One is likely to look at the product and its price, and decide that the price does not match its value, and decline to upgrade.
Click to expand...

Right, I agree that is a good way to approach this issue regardless of age. This is the case for many folks. The soldered memory on the new minis is an obstacle but it is not insurmountable. 16GB of RAM from Apple is exorbitant anywhere but if even the $90 USD for 8GB translates into too much money in AUD the 2012 mini is an excellent alternative with fine upgrade potential. The 2012 machine can run any OS X version and despite the lack of PCIe, Thunderbolt 2, and AC WiFi this machine is still quite a powerhouse. Do you have good sources for used 2012s OLDCODGER? :apple:
 
Celerondon said:
Right, I agree that is a good way to approach this issue regardless of age. This is the case for many folks. The soldered memory on the new minis is an obstacle but it is not insurmountable. 16GB of RAM from Apple is exorbitant anywhere but if even the $90 USD for 8GB translates into too much money in AUD the 2012 mini is an excellent alternative with fine upgrade potential. The 2012 machine can run any OS X version and despite the lack of PCIe, Thunderbolt 2, and AC WiFi this machine is still quite a powerhouse. Do you have good sources for used 2012s OLDCODGER? :apple:
Click to expand...

As rare as hen's teeth, unfortunately. Our market is too small to support a decent level of refurbs.

I am still kicking myself for not buying one at the time - my 2009 was still the ant's pants back then.
 
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