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The new Mac mini is almost certainly coming
- Thread starter GabrieleR
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Why would thermal constraints be an issue for 45W CPU with dGPU? If they can keep under the thermal limits in a 15" MBP then why not a Mac Mini which arguably has more space to move air? Heck, its been 4 years since even a spec bump, let alone, a complete redesign. Why not Just design a chassis they can slide any of the 13/15 inch MBP boards into and call it a day. They could easily sell them for $1000-$1400 less than their laptop counterparts. I'm not holding my breath for the 6-core CPUs, but I think Apple is missing the boat if they don't.
2011 does not take Mojave and is high Sierra at best. And according to an apple article I found December 04 2017 2011 mini is obsolete so no more repairs and what have you. So88 is fir. Even on ebay I have dealt with all kind of bad people who complain its not what they received or paid for. If it breaks or stops working any time soon you will complain to me and I will say but it was working at the time of the purchase. And it will be a big fight. So 88 is fair. Apple wanted only 35 dollars. So 88 is not bad.
Totally hear you. Sold something on eBay a few months ago. The buyer emails me out of the blue claiming that parts were missing. Claims he did not open the package for two months, yet he left feedback a week after receiving it saying looks good, etc. I sent him pictures of the item with the parts in the picture that he claimed were missing. So I agree less headaches for sure.
I hit "Like" on this because I can believe this is close to what Apple will actually do, and not because I think it would be a particularly good update.
A couple of very good points made by @tedson :
Apple's desire to limit the number of motherboard redesigns, and already having substantial amounts of circuit engineering work done;
and,
No hex cores due to their need for a dGPU that Apple will refuse to build in to a Mini, for fear of cannibalizing (much more profitable) MBP sales.
What I'd love to see is a top end model that has the 2.2 hex core from the base 15" MBP with something like the IRis Plus 655 or better. Assuming the price wasn't absurd I'd likely buy one on release.
I don't understand this sentiment, as Apple has put dGPUs in the Mini in the past. Didn't affect laptop sales then, shouldn't now. People buy laptops for portability. Someone needing to work on the go, isn't going to buy a Mac Mini over a comparably spec'd MBP just because it is cheaper. I sell laptops to people all day long who could get more performance for the dollar out of an iMac, but they dont want to be confined to a desk.
I think the profitable sales are in the iMac where the Mini is concerned rather than an MBP.
All-in-ones are easy for computer beginners to use - just plug in and go - you'd be surprised at how people can be flummoxed by monitor cables.
Apple probably needed to move the Mini upmarket into a more professional echelon for a higher average selling price and given that seems to be happening in the laptops already thanks to the (gimmicky) touch bar and the iMac thanks to the iMac Pro why shouldn't the Mini get a higher 'Pro' SKU as well?
Are you saying they don’t want to make the Mac Mini too good as they make less profit on the Mini than the iMac? If so, i agree, and think it’s a shame. All I want is a desktop Mac with a 6 core high end CPU and mid-high end GPU with no screen. Before you say the Mac Pro, that has workstation parts which are irrelevant for a consumer like myself.
That's what I was saying. I wouldn't say 2013 Mac pro is an option now, the GPUs are prone to failure and are overhauled by a single decent AMD 580 whether it's internally fitted on the iMac or connected via eGPU.
The fact that Intel are introducing quad cores across the board with their mobile i5 CPUs makes the potential Mac Mini a powerhouse if Apple choose to update now. With this in mind perhaps they are pushing it upmarket to catch precisely the professionals on a certain budget that have been moaning on for years about the state of the 2013 Mac Pro and who remember being able to buy a tower-based PowerMac for half the price of the classic Mac Pro of the day.
If Apple could produce a loaded $2k headless Mac with proper desktop power it might well be a winner but Apple haven't seen fit to offer such a thing since before the Intel days.
Chorus please ... "If Apple could produce a loaded $2k headless Mac with proper desktop power it would be a winner"
... and please NO SPINNER ...
It boggles the imagination and complicates connectivity that you would leave us with a dongle
... so please provision high bandwidth ports, legacy ports and no wall wart as a bundle.
Don't screw us with solder and then lock stuff down with glue - help Apple products remain good as new!
Chorus please ... "If Apple could produce a loaded $2k headless Mac with proper desktop power it would be a winner"
Come on Apple you're not a beginner - heritage - lineage - pedigree and tops in class ...
oh gee - maybe you can make the Mini in all glass
Wow us with innovation - blind us with motivation but please support a strong desktop foundation.
I'm certain the Mini would thrive - it's just a matter of eliminating the jive
Headless, affordable, accessible, upgradeable and certainly powerful - prove once again Apple is masterful.
Chorus please ... "If Apple could produce a loaded $2k headless Mac with proper desktop power it would be a winner"
We believe in you - believe in us - an eGPU is a must!
If a trillion dollar company can't make a decent upgrade that supports the MacOS foundation it's a bust.
Profit and Loss is not a gamble when you support those who lust.
I will gladly dig in my pocket to support the company I trust!
Chorus please ... "If Apple could produce a loaded $2k headless Mac with proper desktop power it would be a winner"
... and please NO SPINNER ...
Thank you @sublunar ...
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I have said FOR YEARS that the reason there was no new Mini after 2014 is because Apple didn’t want to cannibalize the 4K iMac.
The CPU in the 2014 Mini was the last Intel CPU not capable of 4K @ 60hz. Any update to the Mini would have allowed for a much cheaper 4K Apple setup compared to the 4K iMac.
Wouldn't that depend on the price point? If you put a lot of power in the Mini that made it rival a MBP *and* it was priced closer to the MBP's pricing as a result, even if there *was* cannibalism (which I doubt, most people know whether they want a laptop or a desktop) it wouldn't shift purchases to a much lower profit margin.
I think this would only be a concern if Apple made a decision to price the Mini at a much lower profit margin than the MBP.
I agree with the comment above, a Mac mini which is a peer to the MacBook Pro and priced around the seem feels like I could be a good move.
It would be expensive compared to the NUC and others, but I think there is a market willing to pay the premium. If the Mac mini could be a little quicker for each price point of have more port or storage that might be enough to make it competitive.
It would be expensive compared to the NUC and others, but I think there is a market willing to pay the premium. If the Mac mini could be a little quicker for each price point of have more port or storage that might be enough to make it competitive.
lol at $2k, it’ll be SSD. Same for $999 or even $899. And TB3 is a given.
But if you want a $499-699 mini, it’s going to be HDD/Fusion. $799 would be a toss up, could be a possible 128GB price point there. If the rumor is accurate that prices will be higher due to storage and CPU upgrades, it seems the mini will start at around $899.
It’s what I’ve been saying for months but some just couldn’t deal with it yet: the alternative to the current $899 8/256 SSD mini isn’t a $499 8/256—regardless of the underlying component prices.
But watch the definition of “loaded” (and “proper” desktop power, for that matter). For $2K I’d expect 16GB/1TB SSD or 32GB/512 with a 28W quad-core. 32GB/4TB would be over $5k.
And if there happens to be a 64GB RAM option (only if 45W hexacore CPUs) you're going to be over $6k for a 64GB/4TB config, no doubt.
But in any case, the new mini won’t be a rival to anyone who needs the power of an iMac Pro or Mac Pro. It’s a headless MBP, $600-800 less at any given config. That’s my take anyway.
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Apple can certainly bump the specs on the Mini quite a bit, if they also do the same for rest of the desktop range.
It's a relative thing. The Mini can only encroach upon other Apple models if they are not competitive.
There is no reason Apple cannot take a big coordinated step forward across the desktop range, and jump to the front of the pack. Indeed, my view is that it is the only serious option they have. Modest incremental steps, especially just here and there, is not going to cut it at this stage. They have to make a clear statement to the market that they are serious about the whole desktop range, and in it for the long haul.
The Intel chipsets are now available to do it. The only big desktop issue for Apple is redesigning the Mac Pro, and they can always just return to the much loved cheese-grater form, which did the job perfectly well.
It's a relative thing. The Mini can only encroach upon other Apple models if they are not competitive.
There is no reason Apple cannot take a big coordinated step forward across the desktop range, and jump to the front of the pack. Indeed, my view is that it is the only serious option they have. Modest incremental steps, especially just here and there, is not going to cut it at this stage. They have to make a clear statement to the market that they are serious about the whole desktop range, and in it for the long haul.
The Intel chipsets are now available to do it. The only big desktop issue for Apple is redesigning the Mac Pro, and they can always just return to the much loved cheese-grater form, which did the job perfectly well.
There’s nothing for the mini to encroach on. Obviously not MBP because it’s not a notebook. Not iMac, mostly because it won’t have 150W of desktop CPU/GPU performance, and partly since it’s not an all-in-one with a huge, gorgeous display. And not Mac Pro because it won’t have 8-18(24?) Xeon cores (*2?), 256 GB of ECC memory or a couple hundred Watts (again, *2?) of PCIe x8/x16 workstation GPU compute.
Whatever Apple brings in a mini update—quad 28W and/or 45W hexa-core (or even 35/65W S-series)—it’ll be priced consistent with Apple’s typical margins and it won’t encroach (negatively, in the cannibalization sense) on any other product line. And Apple won’t really care which you choose; they’ll make their margin, whether a sub-$1,000 mini or a $20+k Mac Pro.
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reading through this thread I still find it laughable that a spinner drive would even be considered when SSDs could be had for $20. yet knowing the apple under tim cook, I can totally see it happening. gotta wring every last penny out of the consumers after all.
This is like a bad relationship ... you know it was good at one time - you know it could be good again but after that last episode you need "something" that says this person is serious and not just jerking you around. They've done this "thing" to you in the past and now you want some kind of assurance that they will seriously commit and not do "it" (gimping and abandoning you) again.
So I ask you ... if Apple raises the price banding across the desktops so that a 20K MacPro fits the lineage we will essentially be rewarding Apple with no indication they will commit to supporting the new Mini lineup or our conventional wisdom. While I believe I would jump at a new Mini I would also continue planning as before in the absence of the announcement. Where we're at feels desperate and not very smart - will you feel comfortable spending more in this environment and what's your logic?
So I ask you ... if Apple raises the price banding across the desktops so that a 20K MacPro fits the lineage we will essentially be rewarding Apple with no indication they will commit to supporting the new Mini lineup or our conventional wisdom. While I believe I would jump at a new Mini I would also continue planning as before in the absence of the announcement. Where we're at feels desperate and not very smart - will you feel comfortable spending more in this environment and what's your logic?
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