Along with the iWork productivity suite (“Pages”, a word processor with style) and the Shuffle Flash-based iPod, Apple introduced the Mac Mini: a small Mac Cube: 1.25/1.42 GHz G4, combo drive, 40/80 GB drive, fw/usb/ethernet/modem ports. This is the most affordable Mac ever, starting at $499. My Take: Very nice product, but I am dissapointed because it does not have Line-In and Mic connectors! The Mac Mini web pages advertise the product in conjuction to iLife big time but GarageBand feels pretty useless without such connectors! There is always the iMic of course, but hey.
Apple Introduces the Mac Mini
About The Author
Eugenia Loli
Ex-programmer, ex-editor in chief at OSNews.com, now a visual artist/filmmaker.
Follow me on Twitter @EugeniaLoli
“LOL. And how told you that I need your help. I can give you the same screenshot. I will not make a comment without researching. So jigga please, chilax.”
Well, if you can’t price the same items to get the same price when I can do it, what did you expect me to say?
http://img127.exs.cx/img127/1742/hpshopping1to.jpg
with 256MB you can load and run Mac OS X.
If you want more consider 512MB as a minimum.
Just add 79€ to your shopingcard.
Well, discounting the Apple Haters who simply don’t get a computer isn’t the sum of the parts, I am happy to see people so enthusiastic about the Mac mini.
I think it is an amazing machine, and played with one at MWSF.
A few observations:
1. For what 85% of the what the world does with their computer, it is fast.
2. It is whisper quiet.
3. It is beautiful
4. It is a great deal. Yes, you can create a 1K+ configuration if you want, but honestly no one is going to buy that configuration. You’d buy an iMac at that point. But it is a ton of computer for a great price.
I think Apple is going to sell a ton of these.
I spoke to an Apple sales rep about the discrepencies in prices between the US and Australia back when the 17″ Powerbook was released. The difference in price then was close to $AU1200(!!) so I asked him to explain why. His response was… “We price our goods more on what the market can sustain than anything else. International pricing is irrelevant”.
So in a nutshell, don’t bother doing the calculations from the US prices because all Apple international stores follow the same philosophy. If they can screw a few extra euro’s, yen or dollars outta ya…they will.
..which is why I still use Linux on an AMD64 box
It amazes when people like to compare apples to oranges when assessing the price, they leave out the software:
For 499 bucks, you get a great pc, PLUS:
-The best, safest OS on the market
-Ilife, the best digital hub on the market
-Quicken 2005
-etc, etc, etc.
There’s EASILY a few hundred dollars worth of industry leading software included for free.
And to paraphrase the MasterCard campaign:
No Viruses…
No Spyware…
A company which doesn’t treat it’s customers like thieves…no “authorizing” your OS and having it call home sporadically…
And an OS and apps which make technology fun and exciting again….
Priceless
At such a price I won’t demand upgradeability at all. It’s fine that you can change the ram and add wireless support.
Apart from that, no I wouldn’t change the GFX chip. By the time it becomes imperative to do so then, I’d rather change the machine itself. Do you realise a high end GFX card is more expensive thatn the mac mini itself?
All that you call “shitty” was top of the line some time ago. With time you can now get it for a much lower price. And it’s still a pretty decent machine for most people (those who don’t care much about their performance at folding…)
I most of the time tend to be a “meat and potatos”buyer.Yet i personally think this mini decreases the barrier for people who want to experiment with MacOsX.It’s for the potential clients to choose wether they can buy this new Apple with a clear concious mind.I think it isn’t meant to be an substitute for anything but more an addition.
You can upgrade the hard and optical drives with external drives. Yes, they are external but it’s better than nothing. I am 98% getting one of these within the next few months, I’ll let others be the guinea pigs and see if any major issues come to light straight away.
The question is, what are you *not* doing with your 1.25GHz G4? Basically, the only thing I can think of that they’d be good for is web-browsing, word-processing, e-mail, and maybe web-development. As soon as you start doing heavier work, gaming, development, etc, you start needing more. My PC is a 2GHz P4, and I can barely wait to upgrade. Everything runs too slowly. g++ run slowly, simulations at work run slowly, HL-2 runs slowly, Doom III doesn’t run at all, engineering apps like CATIA churn as soon as the detail is cranked up, and it takes a full 15 minutes for lame to encode a single CD!
—
YOU SHOULD OF BOUGHT A POWER MAC!
Seriously this Anti Mac thing is getting a little old, Power mac too expensive, iMac too white, eMac too CRT, iBook too heavy, Power Book too old, blah blah blah… If you don’t like the Mac mini don’t buy it, no one really cares. Having to filter through 60% ramblings from the Linux faithful trying to prove to themselves that Linux kicks ass compared to everything else is really getting boring!
Is that in his words “only good for word processing, word processing, e-mail and web-development” sounds like it’s useless.
Man that’s rather what real life is about. That’s exacly what most non-geek (aka normal, aka the majority of) people do. My mother certainly doesn’t run simulations at work. And when she does at home I certainly don’t want to know 🙂
*bah* 😉
I want one of these its perfect for what i want to do the “ONLY” thing that is bothering me is why didnt they put in the GF5200-go 64mb ??? instead of the radeon
The problem with Apple products is that I want them but I don’t need them…..
Nice mini PC. Did I miss something or where is the remote and the TV card ?
Nice, very nice $499 is cheap for Apple. Hell, the MacMini is a good-looking box, as far as performance, I’ll find out in a month when I get one.
Good job Apple. ^.^
I won’t buy a mac until that one is out unless they give me a voucher for a free upgrade. It’s going to be £100 here at least. Anyone feels the same ?
If we buy a MacMini now, will we have to pay ~$100 to upgrade to OSX 10.4 when it comes out in a few months?
If the computer is $500, a ~$100 price to upgrade the OS merely a few months later is a bit too much to ask.
I just pull the $100 price out of thin air, does anyone know what the actual upgrade price would be?
People considering the XBox-Linux should think about the whole 64 MB, and poor 3D performance of the XBox’s under Linux.
Of course you could get a modded XBox with 128MN or 256MB but for what price, that would be a hacked machine with all their problems, also the reported bad DVD player the XBox holds. Anyway, the XBox soution it’s A BIG PAIN IN THE ASS.
I think this Mac is cute, but not so cheap, start counting $ (or €) for the rest of the stuff you need for getting it to work …
>If we buy a MacMini now, will we have to pay ~$100 to upgrade to OSX 10.4 when it comes out in a few months?
Of course not, you DON’T have to buy anything you don’t want too. Apple can’t force you to part with your cash. If you are asking if you buy a Mac mini now will you get OS X 10.4 for free the answer is NO. Apple only allow for a free upgrade on OSes once they’ve set the date for release, and considering OS X 10.4 could be up to 6 months away is it really worth waiting? That’s a question only you can answer for yourself.
>I just pull the $100 price out of thin air, does anyone know what the actual upgrade price would be?
Mac OS X 10.3 is priced at USD$129 on http://apple.com/ I’d expect 10.4 to be the same price. It’s up to you to ask yourself is it worth the money? 10.3 is a great OS you could be happy with that, like I said above no one is forcing you to move to 10.4 when it’s released.
> I won’t buy a mac until that one is out unless they give me a voucher for a free upgrade. It’s going to be £100 here at least. Anyone feels the same ?
Then wait until 10.4 is given an official release date, if you can wait that long all the better for you.
G4 will work just fine for home users. This is not a Quake3 box. Whenever you talk about Mac stuff it almost always sound like you speak from inexperience.
Then you don’t start about Quake3, because Quake3 runs fine on any P3 with a Radeon 9200 (Windows, Linux) or an NVidia as old as a TNT2. The engine is in fact so out of date that its gonna be GPLed; because its commercially useless for ID. In short, Quake3 is at best some kind of benchmark from 2001 or so. Not usable in 2005.
Macs in general, as well as this Mac, are just not very well for games and thats not their purpose either. Its a similar situation as with Linux. Besides that, this card together with the low-end processor isn’t very useful for 3D work either… but that’s not its purpose.
How about any VIA processor for ITX systems.
The VIA C3 supports hardware encryption. Very nifty feature in some situations although probably an off compare here.
How powerful is that processor. is it as sluggish as a Celeron or more like a P4 ?
A G4 is about the same as a P3 at the same clock speed, or somewhat slower than a Pentium-M at the same clock speed. It’s mainly dragged down by its atrociously slow bus (which I suspect is one of the main reasons they run OS X so poorly).
err….
Lets put this back into perspective.
I maintain a G5 & four G4 systems + two AMD rigs at work. The 1.25GHz G4 system running 10.3 /w 512 ram is used in a busy production environment. It is always concurrently running Quark 6, Photoshop 7, Illustrator 10, Extensis Suitcase with many fonts active and may have other small apps open (depending on the operator) during the production day. It performs *very* well at the 1.25 mark. This is obviously due to the PPC and OSX architecture, and the fact that these systems are optimized to take advantage of the relevant Apple technologies. Multitasking is a fantastic experience on OSX.
That said.. these little bombs are gonna be huge… Im getting one for my wife
after thinking about this mini mac, and the rest of the hardware you will have to buy to make it a complete system, i rather not buy this, it is not really that good of a deal, i am sure lots will sell though…
i will stick to x86 PCs running Linux…
Nice try… your Linux box has no keyboard/mouse/monitor? The idea of the Mac mini is for people with this hardware already. As if you ever had any intention of coming on here to do anything other than troll.
Yeah, I do alot of tape recording (usually speech) or FM listening with portable devices since my old stereo receiver died. My devices don’t use USB, and in fact, some USB devices depend on a line input (D-link FM radio). The ability to use a headphone/mic input jack for headsets is nice to have also. It isn’t a big problem for the mini-mac if the USB can be ultimately used to interface mini-jack portables. I would however test the internal audio signal path quality with those external devices before buying.
MiniMac looks cool (as usual). So what?
People work on hardware, not on just cool looking case.
And as many pepople mentioned before me, the default hardware specs are a not perfect.
– 256Mb memory is simply not enough for gaming.
– 80Gb HD is too small to store even a small video collection (do not forget about music collection)
– Video IN is absent – I want to watch TV on it! but can’t.
So, I’m waiting for something more useful from apple.
Their marketing boffins have probably established that there is a very large chunk of current home PC users that just use their PC as an internet terminal, typewriter, picture storage and jukebox and that have an oldish PC that’s starts to feel sluggish and virus/malware corrupted.
That’s who they are targetting IMHO
Anyone who does more (gamers/developpers) is not their core target…..
And that’s also a nice basic office machine. Very much like small form factor HP machines I have used in the past.
Take a look at this one
http://www.silverstonetek.com/products-lc04.htm
It’s a PC, it’s upgradeable and customizable.
It’s is possible to build more useful and powerful PC based on this one, then MiniMac and for lower price.
Wow ….. Eugenia, do you know the record?
Yes. It’s almost 500 messages. About 489 or so. This story won’t make it.
Yeah, and it’s about 11 times bigger than the Mac Mini. Not to mention, it’s quite ugly… I’ll get myself a Mac Mini when I get the money.
> So, I’m waiting for something more useful from apple.
So buy a PowerMac and stop acting like the mini is a PM G5 in disguise. If the mini isn’t useful for you, buy something else. The mini is not for everyone.
On another note: I know a lot of techies that are drooling on the mini. They’re all buying the “super-size” model and adding some extra memory. This machine is a nice allrounder.
“I don’t think the Radeon 9200 could even compete with a PS2, let alone a Gamecube or an XBox, not to mention the processor isn’t that great either (only a G4).
Put together a PC on newegg.com with much better specs for $475.14 including shipping costs.
Still very overpriced for what you get.”
Um OK? So include the cost of software which I am assuimg you are using pirated copies, find a price for the “oh wow” factor when people look at it compared to your loud azz po dunk self built pc and then tell me your pc is cheaper? people who build pcs are under the impression that they are saving money, yeah at first but then try to convince Joe average to learn how to build a pc. This is not aimed at computer experts, it is aimed a novices as a way to get them used to Mac OS X so that later they will only be used to Mac and then they will spend the money on a more expensive G5
http://www.gizmodo.com/gadgets/images/AppleHaters.gif
“And u guys forget the biggest flaw of alls this macs – THEY ARE NOT UPGRADEABLE. So i cannot start with entry level mac and upgrade it to something decent after some time. I cannot buy shitty cdrom and high end cpu + board. I dont have option , i dont have freedom of choice. The freedom on mac is just overpriced.”
Are your clueless? This is not aimed at people who upgrade their computers how many people actually upgrade their PCs? That is why Microsoft is thinking of selling Windows only with new pcs because most people only get a new OS with a new computer. If you want total freedom stick with your crappy home built pc that sounds like a 747 when it is on, or better yet take some business classes so you understand what business model Apple is going with when they introduced this Mac, it is about winning over converts not making initial profit.
I don’t really care about adding $100 just for a few mhz difference.. I want the %499 model for a nice, small file server. Or, hey, since VirtualPC doesn’t really benefit from dual CPU action, this could be my second “PC”
In the time I’ve had my dual PowerMac 2 PCs have went down and the survivors need a fresh install every few months. My Mac has never needed a “fresh install” of OSX nor has the hardware puked. Mac quality at cheeseMachine prices? Let’s hope it’s true!
“Take a look at this one
http://www.silverstonetek.com/products-lc04.htm
It’s a PC, it’s upgradeable and customizable.
It’s is possible to build more useful and powerful PC based on this one, then MiniMac and for lower price. ”
Did you even price that thing out? It is almost 300 dollars JUST FOR THE CASE?? Ok now you have 200 dollars left to get a video card, CPU, CDRW-DVD combo, Motherboard, Operating System, Software and warranty. Yeah that CASE you just listed if it were to be built into a PC would cost close to 800 dollars legally, not with all the pirated software I know you use.
will my windows keyboard connect? my windows mouse connect? my printer? my digicam, my tv tuner?
with apple keyboard+mouse how much will price go up?
I’m getting on, hands down!
Hmmm…that should’ve been “one” instead of “on”, but both applies….
90 days of complimentary support and one-year warranty is the worst backing any manufacturer could give their product.
just use the USB port for that.
My new Mac mini blog:
http://macmini.blogspot.com/
Come check it out.
is this the most comments ever for osnews?
This is going to be my next home computer. The old G3 300MHz still runs 10.3 fine but after 6 years I really feel like something new. As all the software I have (Scheme interpreter, Python, XCode, iApps, and Photoshop) runs OK on my G3, the G4 processor isn’t going to be a problem. Neither is it’s lack of expandability as I’ve only done two things to my G3 (more RAM and a new hard drive). At that price I can’t really say no.
In my opinion Apple has the viable only alternative to the windows world. Linux is not quite there yet. I have used a lot of Linux distros, even paid for a few commercial ones. It just does not work out of the box. You need some minor tweaking here and there to get it to work perfectly. This tweaking is a simple process for the technologically savvy, but for most of the users out there it is a headache. I would say Linux needs at least another year to mature.
At the moment Apple is the only hassle free alternative, which just works out of the box. As a long term Linux user, I love the freedom Linux gives me, but I got my parents an iMac (even though Apples warranty sucks and the price bordered on extortion). My parents definitely wont be able to use Linux, except I travel home and set it up for them (installing software/ quality of available software is yet another story).
Now Mac mini makes the Apple alternative more affordable. As for me I will stick with Linux.
Apple must have really hit a WOW nerve. Just look at the number comments in one day. Many of the comments indicate that there are many visitors to OSNews.com who are not all that computer savvy. USB and Firewire offer ways to expand a computer system. If there is not enough storage then buy a 200+GB external Firewire hard drive, etc.
It sounds like many thought that they could get a G5 box with multiple expansions slots and all of the extra goodies desired for ALL uses of a computer for $500. Unfortunately that is a dreamworld. Yes, I would love to buy an Alien game machine like their top of the line for $500. Wouldn’t that be nice.
Congratulations to Apple. It will be most interesting to see how the new hardwares will affect the market place for Apple.
I wouldn`t say that unless the thread gets locked
Quote:
And u guys forget the biggest flaw of alls this macs – THEY ARE NOT UPGRADEABLE
No you mean the iMac mini lacks some upgrade options, i.e. is mostly on expanded via external devices, or upgrading the memory or internal hard drive.
But, just because the budget $499 mac has this problem, doesn’t mean the tower G5’s don’t exist.
I bought my G5 1.6 PowerMac from e-bay for less than a thousand dollars and I have so far upgraded it with 2gb of memory, a 9600XT Radeon 8x agp video card, a 146gb 10k rpm scsi drive, scsi host adapter, and even a new keyboard and mouse, for that matter.
How can you say Mac’s are not upgradeable? Don’t you really just mean that some mac’s have less expansion opportunities than other macs.
now, as for not being able to just buy a mac motherboard…THAT IS A GOOD POINT. Why apple doesn’t want to sell some products that people want…I will never understand. Are you listening Jobs? You aren’t going to cannabilize your Mac market, if you sell a motherboard to the geek crowd. Give us want we want, dang it!
But, in the context of the Mac Mini, where a new product has come along that people did want…apple is heading in the right direction.
ordered one yesterday, cant wait.
Apple has really answered my prayers.
I am a PC user, but I have always been fascinated by OS X. Finally, there’s an affordable way to try it.
I’ve been saying for years that I wanted to try Apple hardware out but thought it was too expensive. As of yesterday, that changed. I ordered my Mac Mini just as the Apple Store was being brought to a crawl. $578.76 out the door including sales tax, 512MB of ram, and the educational discount
Can’t wait for this to arrive.
Well I just called a Mac shop thats 4 towns over and the
reason why I wouldnt wanna buy one its 629 for the lower end one, add taxes 15.025% so thus thats 723 bucks, now I’d need a usb keyboard and mouse i’d actually purchase them, but the keyboard would have to have usb connectors on it I’d add another 100 bucks canadian to that 823 now.
hmm price is going up closer to a value laptop. if I where to get the higher end one with which i’d probably need for my multitaskingness, i’d brake the 1k$$ barrier.
Like i said seems great, very lite, portable to any home in you’re hands won’t burn you’re nuts off like what a laptop does.
In the long run it’s this province tax that would add a nice some to the total figure.
A great inventive way to attract the value end of the market. Comes with all the software you need so you’d have to shell it out.
Ah well guess will save me money when the new form factor BTX finnaly rolls out.
@ Malbojia
If the price was $ 500 CAD for the lower end one, you’d still be complaining about being near the price of a value laptop. 100 bucks canadian for a USB keyboard and USB mouse? Everybody I know has a USB mouse. And USB keyboards cost like $ 15 CAD. You could get a PS/2 to USB connector ($ 10 CAD) if you really like your current keyboard.
Crisse d’épais. Tu as quel age, 7 ans ?
“90 days of complimentary support and one-year warranty is the worst backing any manufacturer could give their product.”
The El Cheapo Dell’s for the same price are the same way, you can purchase an extended warranty like a Dell for 149 dollars.
I can’t wait to get one of these machines. I hardly can believe that they can make a machine this small, but hey look at the Cube. My dad a long times winteller is buying one too.
Nice little machine to play around with,i can’t hardly wait untill they have arrived in my local resellers store 🙂
I’m eager to know how it handles MacOsX.I’m sure i will buy one.Tough mini cooper.
I’d like this if there was an option to upgrade to a G5 cpu. That’s the killer for me. Sorry Apple, you just didn’t quite get it right.
Finally a nice prized mac.
While some never stop complaining.I realy like this little thingy.
Unfortunately they don’t include the USB hub.Anyway a goos initiative.
I bought an el cheapo laptop from HP; 2 year warranty + I have received support for well over a year till date.
I still get a good response from Dell customer support for my 4 year old desktop. Duh?
“The El Cheapo Dell’s for the same price are the same way, you can purchase an extended warranty like a Dell for 149 dollars.”
I forgot to add in my post above, I did not pay for any extended warranty or support from HP or Dell.
First let me say that it looks like a wonderful machine.
I do find Apple’s description of the Radeon 9200 card quite amusing however,
The Radeon processor offers dazzling 2D, 3D and video performance, a feature you’ll really appreciate when editing footage in iMovie or while playing Unreal Tournament 2004.
AMD 1.5 GHz Sempron Vs G4 1.25 = mac mini wins
Don’t kid yourself. Many benchmarks (including ones on Mac sites), have shown that the G4 is as fast as DDR-based P3’s clock-for-clock. The Sempron is a *lot* faster than a P3 clock-for-clock, has quite a large cache (128KB L1 + 256KB L2, compared to the G4’s 64KB L1 + 512KB L2), and can actually use DDR-RAM properly. There is really no contest, unless you happen to be using a dataset exactly between 256KB and 512KB, can use AltiVec, but aren’t memory-bandwidth limited.
You know, I’ll admit it’s a cute little thing. So what?
For the same money you can get a micro-ATX system that will kick this thing’s ass into oblivion performancewise. The micro-ATX will also be small. And more extensible. And it will also run Unix (Linux, or for the “my grandma needs to install it” croud, SuSE and alikes). Granted, the Mini is slightly smaller and lighter (if you don’t count the power supply, duh), and thus “portable” if you don’t need a keyboard/mouse/monitor. Ops. That’s called a “laptop”. Last time I checked they were still available at decent prices.
But, predictably, the Apple crowd is now screaming “All behold! A REVOLUTION from Apple! This will change computing!”
Get a clue.
You’re so unbelievable off the mark it’s not funny. When did I say that the Mac Mini isn’t a good machine? I’ve gone out of my way to repeatedly say othewise! My point is simply that if you think this eliminates comments about Apple’s pricing, as many people alluded to, you’re wrong. The comments about Apple’s pricing don’t come from people who appreciate iLife or a cool aluminium finish. They come from people who think of the computer as just CPU and memory. As something that can deliver a certain number of FLOPS (or FPS) with a certain size dataset. To those people, the Mac Mini isn’t anything new — it’s yet another Mac with a relatively slow processor, anemic bus, and lot’s of value-added stuff they couldn’t care less about. It doesn’t mean that other people can’t find value in the machine, it means that *they* don’t, and for them, the value Macs deliver are not worth the price.
I’m eager to know how it handles MacOsX
Trust me, Minicooper, it’ll handle MacOS X just fine. Don’t you worry none. It’s going to work plenty better than Eddy’s granny’s [bless her heart, Eddy – seriously] installation of SUSE which may, or may not, turn out to be something less than the perfect system for a novice user and not quite perfectly configured.
Eddy, sugar, sweetheart, you show me where I can buy any other machine out there, in that form factor, at that price point, equipped with THAT system and THOSE applications [or their nearest equivalent and at that price point, no l00t haxoring], where I have to do 0 [zero, as in: nada, niente, rien de knots, nul, nikske, zip] extra configuration to make it work, intended for use by the novice user.
And I swear to god almighty: I’ll buy one.
Man that’s rather what real life is about. That’s exacly what most non-geek (aka normal, aka the majority of) people do.
Eh? Musicians aren’t “normal people”? Engineers aren’t “normal people”? Scientists aren’t “normal people”? Gamers aren’t “normal people”? I think you underestimate the sheer number of people who need a lot of power from their machine. Heck, even your mom might like to do some home-movie editing, use some speech-recognition software, or rip CDs in iTunes at faster than 3x realtime…
Would buying some cheap RAM and upgrading it myself invalidate Apple’s warranty? $425 for an upgrade to 1Gb is pretty OTT compared with 3rd party RAM.
It doesn’t mean that other people can’t find value in the machine, it means that *they* don’t, and for them, the value Macs deliver are not worth the price.
Which isn’t the problem. The problem is *they* invade every Mac discussion in order to preach their point of view as the only rational one, spoiling everybody’s fun just for the sake of doing so. It’s not that *they* don’t understand why Mac users buy Mac – *they* don’t want to understand. See “Eddy”‘s post as a shining example for that attitude.
…without the keyboard/monitor attached? Cute as it is, I really don’t use desktop machines anymore. But with an additional USB ethernet adapter, I could see using this as a DHCP server/router. If it boots up without having to hang a keyboard on it (a real pain with some of the older Suns), it’s small enough to be an unobtrusive home network server.
I think you underestimate the sheer number of people who need a lot of power from their machine. Heck, even your mom might like to do some home-movie editing, use some speech-recognition software, or rip CDs in iTunes at faster than 3x realtime.
My mom is happy if the computer doesn’t explode because she pressed the wrong key (and that is almost a direct quote).
And no – musicians, engineers, scientists and especially gamers are not normal people as far as their computing needs are concerned. The Mac mini is not for them.
small and sexy yes, but cheap? hell no. This is clearly proof that apple is and always will be expensive. It starts at a low 499 but by the time you’ve added some (inexpendable) extra’s like a keyboard, more ram, dvd-writer and Apple Care, you end up with a machine that costs well over 1500.
Apple may boast about dvi being standard, but a 1 grand budget pc also has this standard + 256mb pci-x which is a lot beter than a pathetic 32mb apg 4x, my cheap 5 year old machine has that too.
But hey, if that thing had a G5 on board I might consider it 🙂
Dear Anonymous. Quite a strange guy you are who reads and posts to OSNews and yet can’t do anything on your computer. It has to run from the start!!!! You know, I can’t offer a computer for that price with the same form factor (because I’m not aware of a PC that small), but if you’re willing to go for a micro atx cube factor I can get you a system with similar specs with SuSE on it for $500 and I’ll be pocketing more than $100 all the way to the bank.
The only good thing about Apple is that it makes PC manufacturers realize that they don’t need to do much to do one better. AFAIK apple started the trendy computer cases business, and now we have nicer PC cases at our disposal. Who knows, maybe somebody will start doing exactly what I mentioned above for $500.
For the record, I have some sympathy for OSX. What I can’t stand is Apple requiring me to buy their stupid hardware in order to use it. The Mini is just another example.
Eh? Musicians aren’t “normal people”? Engineers aren’t “normal people”? Scientists aren’t “normal people”? Gamers aren’t “normal people”? I think you underestimate the sheer number of people who need a lot of power from their machine. Heck, even your mom might like to do some home-movie editing, use some speech-recognition software, or rip CDs in iTunes at faster than 3x realtime…
I edit video in iMovie on a 600mhz iBook and it works fine for me. I also record my own music in GarageBand on a 450mhz Cube.
So what’s your point?
A few months ago, I started reading OSNews and found out that Apple threads tend to be warlike; Linux Vs. OSX Vs. Windows Vs. Intel Vs. PPC Vs. AMD Vs. Vs. Vs., etc.
That is all right, since the freedom to say whatever you wish is a right we all have (or should). But come on, this is just a very nice box, intended for YOU to:
a) Replace your parent’s old box and introduce them to a world weather it’s more expensive or not, will be easier, simpler, cuter, and will “just work” for them, when they want to import their photos, send emails, read newspapers, even do much more (because it CAN be done).
b) Be your box because you’re a student with a low budget and share a room with 2 or more mates, and there’s either a router or a box acting as a firewall/nat/router, and you have a CRT or LCD monitor (perhaps a key/mouse too) and you have, thanks to the last birthday present a Digital Still Camera or Video Camera hanging around. Perhaps you’ve got a scanner too.
c) Perhaps, none of the above fits, and you’re just a hobbist or profesional with the desire to test OSX and try something different, or have an iPod in any form and would like to see if the “just works” is true and etc.
If, on the other hand, you’re a scientist, profesional, etc. who really demands computer power, you should be looking elsewere.
Finally, there are places in this unbalanced world, where 1000 u$s are really much more than 1/3 of the monthly salary of a decent BS in computer science working for company XX in the States or even Europe or <put any economically decent and stable country here>.
For that only reason, those who have been buying stuff for their either old Macs (G3 or even worse) or i386 hardware, might have a chance to perform a switch (at a high expense, because 500 dollars are not ´just 1/6 of their wages´, but perhaps they have to save for 5 months for that, yes those countries exist in case you didn’t notice). This is a chance for them and for the average North American/European human being to try an Apple product without having to sacrifice Lovely LG LCD Screen or their SAMSUNG CRT.
Give this a rest. Linux may be wonderful, but it’s NOT Mac OS X and it won’t be for some time. You can’t simply compare it. No one cares if it works fine for you. OS X works fine for ´most´ of the users out of the box. Linux hardly does.
Windows XP Does that too, but those trying an Apple product are trying to escape from that, for one reason or another.
Let it be.
that 600mhz iBook is a G3 by the way.
“And again, 2.9 pounds, I need to open one and see how they did it.”
That’s already been explained. It’s a laptop. It’s hardly difficult to take a laptop’s innards and change the shape of the case a little. Why are you finding it so amazing?
Oh, and my 450mhz Cube that I record into GarageBand “get this” doesn’t have line in or mic in ports either.
Oh the Humanity!
I always want a Mac, but, in Chile, there is so expensive that I think that never could be possible for me.
a $500 mac is the answer for people like me, in a south american country that don’t have money to paid for a decent G5
and,thinking about it, how many people that write here and say that is a crap REALLY want to buy a Mac?? if youd don’t like it, dont buy it, it’s not for your.
PS: sorry for my english, but i speak spanish.
Mac mini will, for sure, hurt AmigaOne sales. Who will pay 500 USD for a G3 motherboard when you have a complete computer for the same price?
Hey Amiga, I want to run AmigaOS 4.0 on it!!!
I think I understand why Mac users buy Macs. I won’t get in there. Let them buy Macs. But I don’t think your comprehension skills are that great, because that is not what my post is about.
My post is about the incredible exaggerated noise Mac users have to make about anything coming from Cupertino. This new Mini thing, I’ll admit, is sexy and cute. But you know what, so were Micro-ATX PCs when they came out, and there was nowhere near the same amount of hype as there is for this thing. For one, IT AIN’T CHEAP! This may be “affordable”, but the point is that if you don’t stay in the Mac black hole, you’d get a LOT more for your money. If you grandma wants a computer, she can ask her grandson to set one up for her. That’s normally what they do anyway.
I wouldn’t mind “Hey, this thing is cute and sexy and I may/will get one” comments, but the whole “Apple is holier than thou” thing is completely retarded. It clouds the judgement… I wonder if Mac users are always on caffeine overdose or the PC users are always on Valium. That would explain the difference between PC and Mac threads.
>For the record, I have some sympathy for OSX. What I can’t stand is Apple requiring me to buy their stupid hardware in order to use it. The Mini is just another example.
The 24 million registered users of Mac OS X all say “Awwwww, thanks for the sympathy!”
Mini is sexy like all Apple does but the price is not good for a basic computer who doesn’t let the user make upgrades easy.
Apple would be smarter if makes a PowerPC-based micro-ATX (or another standard size) motherboard similar to Intel motherboards, with 4 or more USB2, firewire, ethernet, AGP video adapter onboard. People would buy a G3 or G4 CPU (they could make also a G5 mainboard), standard kingston/Corsair/etc RAM, use PC cases and buy cheap LG DVD/CD recorders on the market.
Sorry to say but while Apple don’t follow what I say above Macs will remain a tech-toy for some geeks of USA while they remain not popular in the entire world.
“My post is about the incredible exaggerated noise Mac users have to make about anything coming from Cupertino”
First off, this thread about the mac mini has been discussed here for a while.
A lot of posters have in every mac thread bemoaned the lac of a headless imac.
Here it is.
And apparently not as cheap, or powerfull or expandable, or… as some would like.
To shift the focus to “incredible exaggerated noise Mac users” is a bit lame, imho.
Well that nice and good for you, but if you want to do more heavy-duty recording (multiple tracks, 96KHz @ 24-bits, audio effects, etc), you’ll need something more powerful than a 600MHz G3.
In any case, my point is that, contrary to what the poster whom I replied to said, not juts “geeks” need a lot of power in their computers. A lot of “normal” people who do “normal” things at their “normal” jobs also need power from their computers.
“Mini is sexy like all Apple does but the price is not good for a basic computer who doesn’t let the user make upgrades easy.”
It’s not for upgrading, completely agree. It’s not marketed as an upgradable machine. It’s simply not. It’s an entry level all-in-one Mac.
“Apple would be smarter if makes a PowerPC-based micro-ATX (or another standard size) motherboard similar to Intel motherboards…”
No. Apple would be stupid to simply make motherboards. They make computers, not parts. This is dumb.
“Sorry to say but while Apple don’t follow what I say above Macs will remain a tech-toy for some geeks of USA while they remain not popular in the entire world.”
Listen up Apple… you better do as this guy says, or your doomed.
Honest question… did you read the last 380 messages? I find most of the messages are OVERWHELMINGLY positive and state that they can’t wait to buy one.
Great move Apple!
Are you serious? Have you read all the comments in this thread? Where else you would find such adoration for a nice but not revolutionary product? What if this were a PC with XP on it? Sorry, lame it is not (and shifted it was not from my original posting).
Apple, you’re just in the middle of the way in the proper direction. Even you have two of the three dimensions right: 6.5 depth x 6.5 width. Allow this sweety to grow to 6.5 height and you’ll have room for:
– G5 1.xx – 2.XX Ghz
– Two-Three ram simms
– 128-256 VRAM (plus nVidia)
– 160 HD serial ATA
– SuperDrive
See… it’s REALLY EASY; add more ports (now you’ve room)and a gig frontside bus (remember it’s PowerMac mini). Of course you’r allowed to also double the price tag: 999$.
All in all, while waiting for PowerMac mini, i’ll buy one Mac mini… FOR SURE.
As has been pointed out, this is basically a laptop in a differently shaped case. Apple can’t get the G5 into laptop-size configurations because it’s just too hot, so no way they could make this system with a G5. Kinda like trying to get a 3.8GHz P4 into a mini-ITX box…:)
<it>>For the record, I have some sympathy for OSX. What I can’t stand is Apple requiring me to buy their stupid hardware in order to use it. The Mini is just another example.
The 24 million registered users of Mac OS X all say “Awwwww, thanks for the sympathy!”</it>
Your point being?
Well that nice and good for you, but if you want to do more heavy-duty recording (multiple tracks, 96KHz @ 24-bits, audio effects, etc), you’ll need something more powerful than a 600MHz G3.
In any case, my point is that, contrary to what the poster whom I replied to said, not juts “geeks” need a lot of power in their computers. A lot of “normal” people who do “normal” things at their “normal” jobs also need power from their computers.
That’s why I use a 450mhz G4 for the audio work <READING COMPREHENSION>
If, on the other hand, you’re a scientist, profesional, etc. who really demands computer power, you should be looking elsewere.
Nobody in their right mind thinks that you’ll use a Mac Mini for serious computing. The debate about computing power arose when somebody asked “what do you do with 3GHz???”, and is somewhat unrelated to the Mac Mini. However, I think there is a second piece to your statement. If you’re somebody demanding a lot of computer power, you also demand it at a rock-bottom price. Basically, you translate each machine into a ratio: gigaflops per dollar. You buy the machines that have the highest ratio, and niceties like Firewire 800 or a flashy case don’t enter into the equation.
At the beginning of this thread, people said:
All you “I’d get a Mac if it was cheaper people” better go out and get one of these now… it’s awesome!
You can kiss linux good-bye now…
The only reason I got involved in this thread is to point out to those people that the Mac Mini changes nothing in this regard. Most people who put off buying a Mac because it was too expensive still won’t buy one, because the Mac Mini is still expensive, for what you get. Furthermore, the Mac Mini means little to nothing for the Linux market. The people using Linux on $200 WalMart PCs won’t buy one, the Mac Mini is 2.5x the price. The people using Linux for science or engineering or multimedia won’t buy one, because they’re not fast enough. The people using Linux as a server won’t buy one, well, because this isn’t a server. The people using Linux as a corporate desktop probably won’t buy one, because the eMacs and iMacs are well within their “sweet-spot” price range, yet they still aren’t buying them.
So many of you just don’t get what the mini is supposed to be:
1) It’s basically for Windows people who want to use OS X and iLife.
2) The idea is that you don’t need to get all the other stuff. The idea is that you already have a DVI/VGA display, USB keyboard and mouse. I know many PC keyboards and mice still use PS/2, but, I have to admit, I don’t know why. Anyway, that’s the idea. You can carry it around in your hand – it’s portable, you can hook it up t your PC stuff at work and then take it home and hook it up to your PC stuff there.
3) It’s not supposed to be powerful or expanadable – that’s why you can do #2.
4) Not many ports, but, for these purposes you’re just supposed to have enough so your can plug your printer, your digital camera, camcorder, iPod, etc.
You just maybe upgrade the RAM to 512 MB (which is shameful on Apple’s part), maybe get AirPort if your set up is wireless and forget about everything else.
Quit evaluating this computer by standards and uses it is not intended to achieve or do. Evealuate for what it is intended for.
You simply can’t compare the Mac Mini to ANY X86 ITX based solution…
1. Processors. Apples and Oranges. No Mini ITX solution has a processor one can truly compare to a G4 1.25/1.42. At least, NOT an equivalent one.
2. OS. Sorry, MacOS X has a MUCH more stable, user-friendly, smooth and fast OS than Microsoft can hope to ever release. I use Windows XP every day. I’m using it now. I like it. I also *LOVE* MacOS X. I can switch to it and work without missing a beat…
You simply can’t compare some low-end X86 box running Windows AND ESPECIALLY the currently available flavors of Linux that are available. None of the Linuxes are ANYWHERE NEAR as polished and fast as MacOS X. And Windows is WAY too ridden with virii and spyware…
3. Price. Comparing the specs of a system that sells 10x the volume of a Mac with a Mac is silly. If Macs sold 10x more in volume, you would be getting a G5 for this price.
4. Ridiculous prices people are making up. You CAN make up a price for the Mac Mini that goes sky high, self-fullfilling a prophecy that it isn’t cheap…
But, someone CAN run one of these out of the box, with a $29.95 Apple Keyboard, and generic $12.00 mouse, and an under $100.00 Tubed Monitor, and go.
256mb MAY NOT be preferred. But I’ve run my G4 350 with 256mb for a year, and used MacOS X 10.2.8 up to 10.3.7 without a problem. It was NOT slow.
Also, nailing Apple for the Video Chip in this thing is ridiculous. MOST PEOPLE don’t need the latest and greatest chip. They don’t need sheer processing power of a video chip to overcome poor programming on the application and driver side.
Apple is constantly tuning and optimizing MacOS X and it’s drivers. It’s why MacOS gets FASTER with each release, and ALWAYS HAS. Whereas Windows gets slower and more hungry.
I recently fixed an 180mhz Presario (with the MediaGX Chip), 64mb of RAM and under Windows 98, it felt LOTS faster than my P4 3.2 with 1024mb of RAM.
Pure processing speed, and the newness of the video chip DO NOT have a lot to do with the feel of the system.
A MacOS X system just has a superior feel to a Windows system. ON PURPOSE. Apple does that ON PURPOSE.
Basically, the Mini iMac is what it is. It’s a wonderfully cool little box.
If it doesn’t have what you want, instead of ragging on it… Buy what you want instead.
There are lots of other Macs you can buy, or X86 PC’s…
I will be buying at least one of these puppies, and perhaps more…
But, the rhetoric in this thread has been getting ridiculous, and the Trolls are just pulling organic refuse out of lower orifices and thinking they are making good points…
Like it or not.
Nobody is forcing you to buy it…
a 64bit Unix workstation that’s the size of a sandwich for$499?
Good Luck on that.
Hey Lars! We may be lost twins! My mother is just like that. There’s absolutely no chance she’ll do video … ever. Unless of course she gets a mac and can do it so easily with iMovie 🙂 But she won’t complain if it takes some time. You know her PC is a P3 at 500 mhz and the only thing she never complains about is indeed speed. It’s more to do with spyware, and not knowing where her digital photos go. I guess a mini with iPhoto would be of great help.
PS: on my iBook the ripping speed from the cd is around 12x (AAC, 128kb, the default). I guess the speed will be similar on the mini.
The 1.42GHz G4, which the Mac Mini can apparently support, dissipates 20W. IBM says that the 90nm G5s dissipate 25W at 2GHz, so at 1.6GHz, they should easily fit inside the Mac Mini. No, the reason the Mac Mini has a G4 isn’t heat dissipation, it’s cost. Apple doesn’t want to hurt sales of G5 iMacs by offering a G5 entry-level Mac.
all of you people cant be fucking serious about wanting a g5 upgrade on this. if you are concerned about the speed difference then you dont know shit about the processors anyway. its a $500 machine. it would not be a $500 machine if it were a g5. you want a cheap g5, buy an imac. Also you people complaining about gigabit ethernet are stupid as well. I hate to tell you but all your onboard gigEthernet chips DO NOT RUN AT 1G! Unless you have a pci express board or similar with a true 1g ethernet pci express carad you will not run at 1G.
-OI
Pwnd