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New Mac Mini Announced! [MERGED]

I think this is a great new design and I hope it will be a big winner for Apple.

My only disappointment is that, for $699, it has only 2GB of ram. I think the price increase should have included a bump up to 4GB.
 
Think I'll go for a Dell with Ubuntu too as my media center. Too bad! I would have liked to stay with Apple but the price is unacceptable.
 
kalsta said:
  • No front ports. (I know, ports at the front would be ugly, but a USB port at the front would make it a lot tidier to sync all those iGadgets.
Click to expand...

Image33 said:
Why is the SD card input on the back?
Click to expand...

What I do is I put my mac mini sideways so the cabling stick out on the left side and the disc sticks out on the right (instead of front and back). yes it looks uglier but the ports are easier to access.
 
Nebrie said:
Power Supply BUILT IN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FINALLY!
Click to expand...

That's often a bad thing with Apple products though. A prime example is the Time Capsule which craps out in about 18 months and it's always because of the extra heat generated by the internal power supply.
 
Got my Mini 7 months ago , it has 2.53 GHz Core 2 Duo + 4GB memory +320GB HD . Ok its got the slightly worse 9400M but this thing plays 1080p movies just fine.
The price increase for the new mini is strange because now you get a slower cpu less memory for 50 euro's more. :confused:
 
Hey,

Just noticed the new upgrade. Looks and seems very nice.

Not sure if this happened a long time ago but the Apple TV has disappeared from the store completely!!
 
DontMacTheGyver said:
Same here in Germany. They raised ALL prices and new MacMini is 809 Euro!!! WTF. Not a option any more... For that money you get an much better spec'd Notebook...

To make it clear:
700 USD = 570 Euro

809 Euro = 990 USD
Click to expand...

Same in Italy
799€ :S
 
iZac said:
Sexy!

Good access panel, (I remember having to buy a spatula to open up my old G4 mini) and an internal power brick! HDMI is a welcome addition too.

The size and capability shift this into the market of "what the Apple TV should be" letting the Apple TV become this cloud based dongle we're all hearing so much about. If the PS3 in my house wasnt such a good media streamer, I would definatley be buying one to put under my TV!
Click to expand...

LOL sorry I had to laugh at the bolded text! PS3 such a good streamer?? HELL NO!! I've tried everything on it and I can only get divx supported files to play and mkvs nothing bigger than 4GB. I love the PS3 for gaming but I hate it as a video streamer, its absolutely useless.

Now a mac mini + Plex Player + installing the hulu player on the plex player + apple remote = HTPC HEAVEN!
 
Such a shame the price point moved up.

Would have really liked to have access the the hdds for the server model.

Besides those a nice upgrade
 
I'm just happy that Apple isn't abandoning a Mac product. The new Mac Mini looks very nice to me. It's more easily upgradeable. It's essentially the entry level 13" MacBook Pro without the screen.
 
kalsta said:
I have to agree with other comments. A good upgrade, but a little disappointing in a few areas.

Positives:
  • Of course it looks beautiful — it's Apple.
  • Built-in power supply is a big plus when you're trying to reduce clutter. (You never saw that power brick pictured in any of the old promo shots!)
  • HDMI is nice too. (I use an adapter cable currently with my home theatre setup.)

Negatives:
  • The price. (Personally, I would have accepted a larger box with a cheaper price tag.)
  • Still no Blue-ray. (Apple just has to understand that people still buy movies on disk. Withholding Blue-ray isn't going to switch us all to buying movies from the iTunes store.)
  • No front ports. (I know, ports at the front would be ugly, but a USB port at the front would make it a lot tidier to sync all those iGadgets. On our HT Mac mini, we have an iPod cable that just lives on this machine, so we're not forever fumbling around at the back of the machine, accidentally pulling out cables, etc.)
Click to expand...
To add to that list and comment on some of the items.

Positives:
  • Comes with HDMI-to-DVI adapter (this is now uncommon for Apple)
  • Easier access to RAM
  • No IR port (It may be old tech but it's still universal and useful)
  • Milled from block of aluminium which hopefully means that's part of the WiFi/BT antenna but also means they have really perfected their CNC, which has historically been too costly for CE.
  • 85W max internal power adapter (this equals the max power of the MBP and what the 24" LED Cinema Display can push to. IOW, it means that a simple adapter from the standard power plug to MagSafe means that you will be able to get rid of another cable if you use both)

Negatives:
  • I agree that it's pricey but I have a feeling the engineering and design will increase the net profit over the previous version. So, sucks for us, but not for them, though I have no interest in a mini-desktop machine as it is.
  • Blu-ray is a negative in and of itself even though it's great for a home theater. I'm sure someone will say that there are Blu-ray players for under $100. Great, but I doubt anyone can find a 9.5mm ultra-slim slot-loading BRD for under $600. It's not just about iTS, it's about the lack of available drives for the products Apple sells. One can argue they don't have to go so thin, but that's telling Apple to change it's core nature, which is a foolish argument against any company.
  • Lack of front ports is expected even though it does suck. You can always get a cheap USB and/or card reader and have that snake to the front so you can't fiddling with the back.
  • No info on an updated FrontRow or the inclusion of BackRow to make this a true HTPC. I'm sure this release means that there will be a new TV with no local storage running iOS, and it will be unbelievably tiny, but keeping this hobbled after you add HDMI seems silly to me.
  • No Mac OS X Server install on SD card or USB stick since it doesn't have an internal or included ODD.
 
And now iMacs!!

Ok.. so this gives me the hopes a iMac update will be coming with HDMI also, dunno about the power supply, doubt it, but I hoping we will see iMacs soon.
 
ssdar said:
Got my Mini 7 months ago , it has 2.53 GHz Core 2 Duo + 4GB memory +320GB HD . Ok its got the slightly worse 9400M but this thing plays 1080p movies just fine.
The price increase for the new mini is strange because now you get a slower cpu less memory for 50 euro's more. :confused:
Click to expand...

I had the mac mini with the nvidia 9400m and now a macbook pro with the 320m and its not a slightly better integrated card, its a HUGE upgrade. Trust me now my 9 spaces doesnt stutter anymore and plex player can play 12gb + bluray mkv files buttery smooth with no trouble whatsoever.

Pretty much the nvidia 320m performed on par with the 17" i7 2.66ghz macbook pro with the 330m that I just sold off in (overall usage in OSX) I'm sure games under windows will tell big difference though.

99% of the time I forget that the 320m is an integrated card, it really feels like a dedicated gpu.

Basically to compare, the 9400m scores a 1800 at most in 3dmar06 while the 320m scores 4600. Thats a huge difference lol. I've seen people overclock it to 5400 though, not to shabby when the nvidia 330m a dedicated gpu scores 6800.
 
It is very sexy.
It is nice to see :apple: have not abandoned the Mini.
It is a shame to see it so massively overpriced, especially given it is :apple: 's supposed "entry level" system.
It is still possible to build a higher spec perfectly decent headless Hackintosh for around half the price.
 
Piggie said:
Amazing that no one has mentioned the USB ports.
And yet they have fitted USB2 ports when everyone else is just starting to move over to USB3 with is massive speed increase.
Click to expand...

Apple won't include USB3 in models like the Mini until Intel support USB3 in standard chipsets, rumoured to be happening somewhere around Q2 2011. Mac Pro might get it earlier, if Apple sees demand for it in the Pro market.

Precedents: Firewire 400, Firewire 800, USB2 and Gigabit Ethernet were introduced in PowerMac models first.

Piggie said:
Crap graphics chip, well, yes, that's normal or course :(
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Same architecture as the latest MacBook and 13" MacBook Pro, so same graphics. They can't include a better chip without dedicated graphics (and its own memory), and that probably wouldn't fit, would have heat problems, add more cost, and isn't the target market.
 
StellarSoul said:
Apple have lost my attention until they include blu ray drives in their machines.
Click to expand...

Totally agree.

However, my patience is starting to wear thin as I've got my dad's old Rev-A White Mac Core Duo, and it's really slow, laboured and failing (Airport is bust). And I need a decent machine for Aperture and pix of my new daughter!

And then they go and screw the UK customer base by adding £150 to the price. So, when does $100 = £150???

If they wanna use the "you guys have VAT added, blah, blah, blah"
£150 = £127.66 + VAT @ 17.5%

£127.66 DOES NOT = $100.

According to XE.com, $100 = £67.97

Steve et al, you're thieving gypsies! :mad::mad::mad:
 
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