Rumor: Mac Mini To Be Discontinued?

[splen]

Noooo! this is terrible news! I was planning to upgrade my mini when the new ones came out as well I agree that dropping the mac mini would leave a substantial hole in the product line, Apple would have to replace it with something. The next incarnation of the appletv? I suppose it will become clearer after WWDC07.... maybe.
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mac mini coreduo 1.66ghz. 1.25gb 60gb HD
macbook pro 13inch 2.26ghz. 2gb. 250g HD

[g5g5]

[picaman]

If the rumor is true then the mini is history, but that doesn't mean that Apple is abandoning either the product segment (headless Mac) or the price segment (inexpensive Mac).

While the mini itself may not have performed up to Apple's hopes, that doesn't mean they will throw out the baby with the bathwater.

I'm adopting a wait-and-see attitiude.

Enough with the cliches, Jamie.



Jamie
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I'm Jamie, and I approved this message.

[Texark]

If Apple closes the book on the Mac mini, they should do it as well with the iMac. Apple needs to start offering true (that means headless) desktop computers that use true desktop chips. I'm talking about chips like Conroe and Kentsfield. You know, the ones that cost less and run faster. The Mac mini and iMac are essentially just laptops. That being said, I would still buy a Core 2 Duo mini with discrete graphics over the iMac seven days a week. I guess what I'm try to say is Apple needs to "Think Different" about their entire line of consumer desktop computers. This shouldn't take long either since they only have two models. When you come back after getting your shit together give me a Core 2 Duo Mac mini with ATI graphics or better yet something like this:

http://www.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/xpsdt_210?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs

I'll be waiting in the fall.

[Chris..S]

Apple would say they do think different. It sounds like you want them to think the same

[DCGuy]

Why didnt they put the coffee cup ON TOP of it.

LOL

[Chris..S]

You mean it doesn't come with one of those slidey coffee cup holders?

[DCGuy]

[Yvan256]

As far as the "make the AppleTV twice as high and put an optical drive in it" statements goes, most people are talking about the form-factor, not the actual AppleTV motherboard or hardware specs.


I'm guessing the problem with the Mac mini is two-fold:
- you don't get much for the price (expensive laptop parts, weak GPU)
- most people probably don't need that much power (Core Duo)

So Apple could very well come out with two new products:

AppleTV: a firmware/OS update will allow it to run as a real Mac. Most people don't use optical drives aside from music CDs and DVD movies, so the AppleTV would be the real "low-cost internet computer" (web, email, chat, etc) that you connect to your HD TV (meaning you can easily read text, i.e. 480p means 840x480, computers used to run in 640x480), the Apple keyboard already has a 2-port hub (so you connect your mouse into it). Backrow becomes something you can bring up just like frontrow on current Macs. It's the "Mac nano", except it's already out and called AppleTV. Extremely low-cost and still headless. Since it only has 256MB, Apple could limit what software it can run, i.e. only iTunes, Mail, Safari, iCal, etc. No iMovie, iDVD, GarageBand, etc. It's the living room Mac, so it also exists to counter the Xbox360 and PS3 as media centers. A low-cost, 3rd party external USB 2.0 DVD drive connected to a hub would make it a "complete" computer able to rip it's own CDs for iTunes and play DVD movies. Apple could even come out with it's own external combo/superdrive with built-in USB hub, in AppleTV form-factor.

Since there is also rumors of EOL for the 17" iMac, let's think about it for a second. The Mac mini, according to most people, was something Apple would never do (the intel switch too, but anyway). If the Mac mini is gone and the new low-cost Mac is the AppleTV, the price ranges of the 17" iMac becomes free for other models. It could mean new headless Macs. If you take the specs of the high-end 17" iMac and remove the display, keyboard and mouse, that means you can probably lower the cost to below the price of the low-end 17" iMac, probably even near the price of the high-end Mac mini. So it wouldn't be the "mythical Mac Pro mini" with a PCIe (or whatever) slot, but it would mean a real GPU and a 3.5" hard drive, the two biggest shortcomings of the Mac mini according to most people. As for the name, I got no idea. iMac mini, perhaps?

We'll have to wait and see.

[picaman]

Yvan256, methinks there's a real logic to all that. I'd buy your version of Apple TV in a heartbeat.



Jamie
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I'm Jamie, and I approved this message.

[agnustic]

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[Ben Tex]

I think it would be a major (and I mean major) mistake for Apple to get out of the "headless" small form factor game now. The G4 Cube and Mac mini are probably two of my favorite Macs of all-time. Sure the G4 Cube failed (mostly because of price), but the Mac mini has been very well received. I doubt Apple will ever be able succeed in this form factor again if they abandoned it now. I personally feel they should keep the Mac mini in the line and move it up to SR with Leopard. On to the Apple TV for a second. I have one and like it, but I think it might be a huge flop at retail. We got some in at where I work and only sold like 2 so far. People don't even come in and ask for them. I've asked about it in several other stores and the clerks have all said that it isn't selling well. Not a good sign for the Apple TV if you ask me.

[James T Kirk]

As soon as it would be acknowledged by Apple, I would go and find myself a second hand or refurbished Mini, as I definately would not go for a Macbook or iMac. I have a nice screen, keyboard and mouse, 2 harddrives, 1 in Mini style, so I'm waiting since January 07 for a Core2Duo Mini. Even if a new Mac MiDi would be introduced for a higher price I should have to consider what exactly I want and consider the price too....
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___________________Jim©
Now on Hackintosh in G5 case!

[khisayruou]

This is really depressing.

Looks like aopen stepped up with their own santa rosa sff.
http://club.aopen.com.tw/news/News_ShowAnswer.aspx?RecNo=9583

This iphone business needs to stop. So depressed....

[James T Kirk]