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The new Mac mini is almost certainly coming
- Thread starter GabrieleR
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Oh yeah I doubt user-upgradable ram and likely not much beyond Intel Iris graphics (Kaby Lake G would be nice but likely not going to happen), but I'd be shocked if there's not a quad-core option. Certainly within the realm of possibility considering the thermal envelope even if the case is not modified. Will be over $1k of course but I can't seem them sticking with 2 cores across line.
Can't see that spec list going for less than $1799, bear in mind that NUCs cost around that price and don't come with RAM or storage (or 'Apple Tax'). I'm probably more in favour of a quad core 28w CPU with Iris Graphics offering more GPU power.
I noted in a separate thread that Apple have effectively moved the 15" MacBook Pros upmarket by eliminating the old 2015 model which they used to start the range with.
They are now on sale in a 'clearance' section of the refurb store - brand new in the box and NO discounts.
Now, I could see Apple upscaling the entry price of a new Mini and putting certain older models of it in the 'clearance' section now that iPads are increasingly capable for the price. They also have the refurb store to dispense with other versions of the Mini if the time comes.
The Retina MacBook, MBA and non touch bar MacBook Pro haven't been updated yet. That'll partly be down to CPUs:
rMB = Amber Lake CPU coming later this year, how does it stack up against an A12X though?
MBA = Whiskey Lake CPU could be an option later this year but do Apple really want to refresh the MBA?
nTB MBP = no 15w CPU with Iris Graphics announced yet
I haven't seen any leaks of 15w CPUs with Iris Graphics so it's possible that Apple could merge the MBA and nTB MBP as a 14" Retina MacBook (with more ports?) to simplify the range?
Ya just answered your own question....lolWell, as if 4 years of Apple totally neglecting Mac Mini was not enough...what other disappointments loyal Mac Mini users can possibly expect
Interesting times indeed...but what if Apple will actually introduce Mac Mini 2018 with the best specs users can dream of?
It'll be at the price that people have nightmares about.
You can only have 2 out of 3
What do you mean, even at $1,099, like you’re being generous with your pricing? That’s a $2,399 15” MBP.
In a mini, that’s maybe a $1,900 config.
Apple gear is expensive. They wouldn’t be “afraid” to make that available, but they’re going to make their margin. It’s a business, not a charity.
But I don’t see Apple moving away from the 15W/28W CPUs with GT3e graphics. Socketed 32GB DDR is obvious and has been for over a year, you guys just missed it.
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A $2,399 15" MBP has a built-in display, battery, keyboard, trackpad, Touch ID, Touch Bar, FaceTime camera, and 16 GB RAM. The theoretical $1,099 Mac mini desktop doesn't come with any of those things.
Why would I pay the same amount as an iMac for a Mac mini without a display? Charging $1,900 makes absolutely no sense.
No, a $2,599 15” MBP has those parts. That’s why I took off $700 to get to the price of an equivalent mini. You can’t drop the selling price $1,500 just by cutting a few hundred dollars of BOM cost.
$1,900 is still well into iMac territory. An iMac comes with a built-in 5K display, keyboard, mouse, dedicated graphics, and presumably also desktop hex-core Coffee Lake processors when it is refreshed at the same time as the mini.
A Mac mini desktop with a mobile i7, integrated graphics, and no display is not worth anywhere near the same price as even a base-model 5K iMac. $1,099 makes perfect sense when you take that into consideration.
You’re not going to see hexacore Coffee Lake in a $1,900 iMac. And mobile processors are expensive.
I may be priced a little on the high side with my $1,899 mini from a $2,399 MBP, but you’re way low at $1,099.
But I don’t think we’re going to see the mini with 45W processors. I think they’ll be based on the 13” MBP, and priced around $500 less at an equivalent config.
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All the Coffee Lake equivalents to the chips currently in the 4K and 5K iMacs are hex-core. Every quad-core iMac in the lineup now will become hex-core following the refresh.
My first figure of $999 might've been a little low. But $1,099 should be high enough to allow for other costs as well as a decent margin of profit.
Other than the CPU, the mini is much cheaper to make than the MacBook Pro and iMac. No dedicated GPU part cost, for example.
You could be right, time will tell; I’m sure there will be a mini update, despite the overwhelmingly negative sentiment in this thread over the past months.
But I think the mini will keep the 28W CPUs and be based on the 13” MBP. 45W CPU + dGPU makes no sense. So I don’t expect anything but dual (15W only) and quad cores. But 32GB of DDR4 has been apparent for over a year.
Man getting a Mac mini and that new thunderbolt GPU enclosure really seems like a compelling package. I actually prefer it being external since the leaps in GPU technology are outpacing CPUs.
My negative sentiment toward Apple's treatment of the mini is precisely the reason I agree with this statement. Apple could and should release a hex-core Mac mini, I just don't believe they will when the last five years have shown they hardly care at all about the mini.
I never mentioned a dedicated GPU as a possibility. External GPU yes, but obviously as an extra expense.
Me either. From Apple's perspective the Mini's main KPI is that it doesn't cut into sales of their other Macs.
It's a relative thing. If the other Macs (especially desktops) are offering a hex core option, then limiting Minis to quad core should meet that KPI.
So bring on hex core for the rest of the range.
Won't say no to 32GB RAM either.
Then it will be outrageously expensive.Interesting times indeed...but what if Apple will actually introduce Mac Mini 2018 with the best specs users can dream of?
Next Question.
If a Chinese company can do this spec for $999, Apple can do it too.
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/...ation-for-gamers-creators/x/5392720#/comments
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/...ation-for-gamers-creators/x/5392720#/comments
