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Quick Takes: Mac Mini Turning 3.5 Years Old, But Unlike Mac Pro, Apple Remains Silent About Future Updates
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I'm sure Apple will solder the storage if there is ever another Mac Mini. You know Apple.
But Intel makes tiny computers with that are available with replaceable PCIe M.2 sockets and 2.5" HDD support. And dual RAM sockets too! Yippee!
The reason it's so tiny is because it uses an external power supply. So that might bother some people.
It's just sad that Intel has made dozens of these mini PCs... while Apple has done nothing for almost 4 years.
Hahah that might work. I have noooo need or want for a Mac Mini, but it’s very interesting to me that it has been negelected.
Or if you want to install it in your car, or boat, or wall, or want a portrait monitor, or easy travel, or want a 34" display, or want to use it when the screen goes...
the Mac Mini has been great for watching movies on the back seat of my second Rolls Royce
You bring up a good point. If they ever update the Mini, I'm sure it will have two USB-C ports, one of which you have to use to power the thing -- and they'll make the brave decision to leave out the headphone jack.
You don’t think Mac Mini users have a valid complaint? Why not?
My maxed out 2012 still works a charm in combo with the Thunderbolt Display
It’s not been my main computer for a few years, but it’s still highly capable and sees quite a lot of use. A great purchase.
I have a 2012 mini as a home server and a 2014 mini at home also hooked up to a Thunderbolt Display that serves as the main desktop for my wife and I. Both machines have seen continual use almost 24/7 since I got them (2012 as a refurb in August 2014 and the 2014 in November 2014) and haven't had a single problem.
They are also both still very capable, reliable machines and were great purchases. I hope to get more years use out of them and hope Apple does update them eventually.
Has anybody actually SEEN a mini on display in any of the Apple or 3rd party stores, I haven't for over two years now.
The Mac mini could be such a great little machine with very little work. Just think about one with one of those newly release i9 6-core CPUs and 1 TB SSD, 16GB RAM. Perfect desktop machine in particular if it keeps all the ports and adds the new ones.
I don't see any sensible reason why Apple can't maintain all their lines, they are a big enough company to throw a few engineers at every product they have.
I mean my personal theory is the upper echelons of Apple actively dislike the "entry level" products they sell, and that somewhere in their mind they are the "Rolex of computers" only selling premium products. Which is funny when a massive amount of their install base are students, and most of their best selling products are the "entry level" machines.
I'm somewhat hoping that this new push in education will signify some small change in direction and Apple's much maligned entry level products like the Mac Mini and MacBook Air will finally get some love.
I mean my personal theory is the upper echelons of Apple actively dislike the "entry level" products they sell, and that somewhere in their mind they are the "Rolex of computers" only selling premium products. Which is funny when a massive amount of their install base are students, and most of their best selling products are the "entry level" machines.
I'm somewhat hoping that this new push in education will signify some small change in direction and Apple's much maligned entry level products like the Mac Mini and MacBook Air will finally get some love.
I nearly bought a mac mini a couple of years ago, but then I decided not to because even then the hardware was already outdated.
The Mac Mini would otherwise have been a nice little, reasonably priced, device which was suited for my setup/usage as a secondary machine.
I think theyre missing potential sales by not updating it because not everyone needs an imac or a mac pro.
The Mac Mini would otherwise have been a nice little, reasonably priced, device which was suited for my setup/usage as a secondary machine.
I think theyre missing potential sales by not updating it because not everyone needs an imac or a mac pro.
Haven't seen a mini in a walk-in store in ages either, for the last two years I can't remember if I even saw an iMac (unless it's a non-Apple retailer), Apple Stores are all about iPads, iPhones and Macbooks (of all kinds).
That said, the online store does still sells the 3.5 year-old mini at full price and that makes it the worst Mac purchase possible.
Schools in the UK are full of mac mini's . Especially music and creative classes. I have seen classes now using windows laptops and movie maker as macs mini's start to get replaced.
IPad's are not the same for logic pro and Final Cut .
Mac Mini update is well overdue.
IPad's are not the same for logic pro and Final Cut .
Mac Mini update is well overdue.
If Apple makes the new Mac Pro somewhat compact, I could see them selling a stripped-down model of it as a Mac Mini replacement. 4 cores, integrated GPU, cheaper/slower SSD. Which I’d be ok with but I’d rather they continue the old Mini case, if they made a modern version with 4 cores we’d be buying them by the hundreds at work. As it is we’re still using Mac Pros from 2013 while waiting, and anything that we would have bought Minis for we’re instead repurposing older 2010-2012 Mac Pro cheese graters (with SSD replacing the original HD) for. They still work well, they’re just not space-efficient and don’t have any modern ports.
Agree. I can't be the only one who wants a consumer-priced Mac that I can hook up to a screen that I can actually also use with other devices, such as my Xbox and work laptop. I really don't get why Apple don't include A/V inputs on the iMac screens.
So much has changed in the computing landscape that the Mac mini has been relegated to an extremely niche product. I’m not surprised Apple is still selling it (T. Cook has certainly demonstrated his willingness to keep around legacy products), but I am surprised they did commit to keeping it around as an “important product” in the lineup.
Since the mini was introduced in 2005, we’ve seen the market shift from desktop to portable and then portable to mobile. As these products reached economies of scale, the mini no longer serves as the gateway into the Apple ecosystem.
Much like the Mac Pro, the mini has a small, niche user base. In this regard, I think Apple knows new budget customers will generally steer towards their budget portable: the MacBook Air. Given the desktop upgrade cycle is now ~4 years and assuming mini purchases are upgrades, 4 year refreshes make a little bit of sense.
Since the mini was introduced in 2005, we’ve seen the market shift from desktop to portable and then portable to mobile. As these products reached economies of scale, the mini no longer serves as the gateway into the Apple ecosystem.
Much like the Mac Pro, the mini has a small, niche user base. In this regard, I think Apple knows new budget customers will generally steer towards their budget portable: the MacBook Air. Given the desktop upgrade cycle is now ~4 years and assuming mini purchases are upgrades, 4 year refreshes make a little bit of sense.
Why will a company that practises planned obsolescence, to drive sale of new more expensive products, would update low cost Mac Mini, when not updating Mac Mini might be more sales of other expensive Mac models?
This, while keeping one or two models available for low-priority markets at little to no effort (MBA, Mac Pro, and the mini).
All those beautiful ports..
On such compact computer..
That's something new Apple hates.
I'm sure Apple wants to discontinue it,but because of fanbase of this computer and the negative effect it can have they hesitate..
Chances are,even if they update it,it will be a neuteted version with just one USB-C..and with zero upgradeability..same as what they did to Macbooks..
On such compact computer..
That's something new Apple hates.
I'm sure Apple wants to discontinue it,but because of fanbase of this computer and the negative effect it can have they hesitate..
Chances are,even if they update it,it will be a neuteted version with just one USB-C..and with zero upgradeability..same as what they did to Macbooks..