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Does Tim Cook know about the Mac Mini?

A

apfelmann

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jul 23, 2007
396
129
He may have spoken the truth. They may have, "re-did the entire Macintosh line," as it will exist in the near future. I hope not as I am looking to buy a new model if it ever comes to be.
 
apfelmann said:
In this WSJ interview he is quoted:
"We’ve had enormous new products over the last several months .... Basically we re-did the entire Macintosh line."

http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2014/02/07/apple-still-a-growth-company-cook-says-in-journal-interview/

No, Tim, that's not basically the entire Mac line that you re-did, because you forgot an essential part - our beloved MAC MINI!

Come on, Tim, and give the mini the love it deserves!
Click to expand...

Calm Down. Take a Xanax.

Definition of Basically: used to indicate that a statement summarizes the most important aspects, or gives a roughly accurate account, of a more complex situation.

So yes, since 2012 starting with the Retina Macbook Pro and the iMacs, they have basically redone every Mac. The only exception of all the Macs is the Mini. So they have ROUGHLY re-done the entire line with the exception of their least expensive model.

It's also marketing speak. You make a generalized statement that (for the most part) is accurate, so that you don't have to point out where you didn't come thru. What do you want him to say? Yes we re-did almost all of our Macs, but we really failed on innovating the one mac we make very little money on?
 
paulrbeers said:
Calm Down. Take a Xanax.

Definition of Basically: used to indicate that a statement summarizes the most important aspects, or gives a roughly accurate account, of a more complex situation.

So yes, since 2012 starting with the Retina Macbook Pro and the iMacs, they have basically redone every Mac. The only exception of all the Macs is the Mini. So they have ROUGHLY re-done the entire line with the exception of their least expensive model.

It's also marketing speak. You make a generalized statement that (for the most part) is accurate, so that you don't have to point out where you didn't come thru. What do you want him to say? Yes we re-did almost all of our Macs, but we really failed on innovating the one mac we make very little money on?
Click to expand...

Actually, if the mac mini does indeed serve as an "entry" into the Apple ecosystem, then they make MUCH more money from people who buy a mini selling them all kinds of other Apple stuff to a person that without the mini would not be an Apple customer at all. I am sure Apple knows this. They seem to be anything but idiots.

And I am very sure that for every person on this Mini Fan Club forum there are at least 1000 out there that love the mini but do not frequent this forum.

I am a huge fan, recent convert, and waiting almost patiently for the next version. I could care less about an external redesign, as long as they do the inside right. The current external design is as close to absolutely perfect as I have ever seen.
 
Timmy will keep the mini and make it a Mac of the future because it is the entry level Mac. I think it will be utilized in the future as more than a headless PC.
Some people don't want or need laptops such as the MBA. I know I don't and I think Apple is smart enough to see that. A lot of companies jumping into the mini pc market and mostly for HTPC and gaming. Let's see what Apple comes up with.
 
I think people take the choice of words of certain people to serious.
Cook probably wasnt thinking about the mini at that moment.
Apple would be crazy to discontinue the mini.
 
Since we don't know everything Apple is working on, the Mac mini could get a refresh this year, the could have been working on this for months. I think Mr. Cook was summarizing.
 
Cape Dave said:
Actually, if the mac mini does indeed serve as an "entry" into the Apple ecosystem, then they make MUCH more money from people who buy a mini selling them all kinds of other Apple stuff to a person that without the mini would not be an Apple customer at all. I am sure Apple knows this. They seem to be anything but
I am a huge fan, recent convert, and waiting almost patiently for the next version. .
Click to expand...

Quite honestly I'm not even sure you rebuffed my statement to be honest. My point was that his statement was valid and that the Mac they make the least on is the Mini (even if Apple makes 20% on every Mac Mini, they would have to sell 3-4x as many compares to each Retina MacBook Pro right?)

However I am going to rebuff your statement, based on sales volume the Base MacBook Pro is now their entry model into the Apple Ecosystem. MacBooks outsell desktops as a whole by more than 2:1.

Just because you love the Mini and many others do (I have had several) doesn't mean it isn't the least popular Mac. Just look at how little prominence they get at Apple stores.
 
Maybe the new mini is already done but it didn't occur to him that it hadn't been released yet. He's just a human being like you and me.
 
paulrbeers said:
Quite honestly I'm not even sure you rebuffed my statement to be honest. My point was that his statement was valid and that the Mac they make the least on is the Mini (even if Apple makes 20% on every Mac Mini, they would have to sell 3-4x as many compares to each Retina MacBook Pro right?)

However I am going to rebuff your statement, based on sales volume the Base MacBook Pro is now their entry model into the Apple Ecosystem. MacBooks outsell desktops as a whole by more than 2:1.

Just because you love the Mini and many others do (I have had several) doesn't mean it isn't the least popular Mac. Just look at how little prominence they get at Apple stores.
Click to expand...

$1300 is not entry level for most people. That's some serious cash.
 
Crosscreek said:
$1300 is not entry level for most people. That's some serious cash.
Click to expand...

Actually the base MacBook Pro starts at $1100 and the reason Apple even still has the base 13" MacBook Pro is because it sells so well. If it wasn't such an entry point for new people into the Apple Ecosystem, Apple would have dropped it with the rest of the Classic MacBook Pros.

Again, the entire industry is shifting to mobile (laptops replacing desktops).

Whether you like it or not, the Mini isn't seething Apple really cares about especially since (again) they sell 2 laptops to every one desktop and my guess is they probably sell at least 2 iMacs to every one Mini (based on the prominence of iMacs in Apple and Best Buy stores).
 
paulrbeers said:
Actually the base MacBook Pro starts at $1100 and the reason Apple even still has the base 13" MacBook Pro is because it sells so well. If it wasn't such an entry point for new people into the Apple Ecosystem, Apple would have dropped it with the rest of the Classic MacBook Pros.

Again, the entire industry is shifting to mobile (laptops replacing desktops).

Whether you like it or not, the Mini isn't seething Apple really cares about especially since (again) they sell 2 laptops to every one desktop and my guess is they probably sell at least 2 iMacs to every one Mini (based on the prominence of iMacs in Apple and Best Buy stores).
Click to expand...

The non retina starts at 1199 and you won't see that one in the next refresh.
The entire industry is not shifting to all mobile. Their are plenty of desktops to have and plenty of mini desktops coming out. I was one of those that bought a new rMBP and was not impressed with it at all. I sent it back and got a mini which works just as well if not better. I don't want a 13" screen to look at all day and I don't want a clam shell hot laptop running a monitor and I don't want something I can't get into to fix. They sell those 21 inch iMacs to people that aren't aware that the ram is not upgradeable and it's glued together but it looks pretty.
1199-1299 is to much for entry level.
 
hmmm

I truly find it funny how apple knows professionals want a detached screen (cf mac pro) but simply don't get around to launch that cute little mini.
 
What's this "entry level" nonsense that people speak of?

Crosscreek said:
Timmy will keep the mini and make it a Mac of the future because it is the entry level Mac. I think it will be utilized in the future as more than a headless PC.
Some people don't want or need laptops such as the MBA. I know I don't and I think Apple is smart enough to see that. A lot of companies jumping into the mini pc market and mostly for HTPC and gaming. Let's see what Apple comes up with.
Click to expand...

Far from being entry level, the Mac Mini is all the computer I need, and that would be true of many others.

As to the "Apple ecosystem" that others prattle on about - My Mini and an Apple keyboard are the only Apple products I own. I have no need of a smartarse phone, or any other fantasy gadget, and am probably far from alone in that.
 
Micky Do said:
Far from being entry level, the Mac Mini is all the computer I need, and that would be true of many others.

As to the "Apple ecosystem" that others prattle on about - My Mini and an Apple keyboard are the only Apple products I own. I have no need of a smartarse phone, or any other fantasy gadget, and am probably far from alone in that.
Click to expand...

I refer to it in the context it is entry level in price. I agree it is far from entry level in function and upgradeability.
 
My point was not really about which is the REAL entry level computer, but that by having the mini, they get a customer that they may not ever have gotten.

And like me, even if they only by a keyboard and a mouse, they are setting foot in a Apple store whereas before they may not have. They may also buy the iPad and iPhone :)

Just my way of saying that the mini has a HUGE place in Apples lineup, mark my words.

And if they do get discontinued or the like, I am going to buy as many as I can new in the box for investment to sell to the people that love them, like me, and yes at a profit :)

Because for what I do, and I am a very typical web designer, they are more than enough for my needs.
 
Crosscreek said:
The non retina starts at 1199 and you won't see that one in the next refresh.
The entire industry is not shifting to all mobile. Their are plenty of desktops to have and plenty of mini desktops coming out. I was one of those that bought a new rMBP and was not impressed with it at all. I sent it back and got a mini which works just as well if not better. I don't want a 13" screen to look at all day and I don't want a clam shell hot laptop running a monitor and I don't want something I can't get into to fix. They sell those 21 inch iMacs to people that aren't aware that the ram is not upgradeable and it's glued together but it looks pretty.
1199-1299 is to much for entry level.
Click to expand...

The problem here is that this might be true for YOU, but as a population as a whole, this IS what they want. Whether you like it or not, most do not want desktops anymore. Many who buy Macs want to sit in Starbucks and sip their $5 latte's with all the other Mac owners who are there simply to show off their Mac Laptops.....

While the above might be true for YOU, as a whole the bulk of Apple's Mac revenue is from laptops.

Here's some numbers from 2009 already showing that Mac Laptops were outselling Mac Desktops 2:1! I can't find more recent numbers but the industry as a whole is going further and further from desktops....
http://gigaom.com/2010/01/25/decline-of-the-desktop-mac/

So understand, Entry Level Macbooks (whether the 1000 Macbook Air, or the Base 1200 Macbook Pro) ARE what bring people into the Mac Ecosystem. The Mini may have been that Model back in 2005-2006, but it isn't anymore.

Again as someone who has owned (and still owns a 2012), I love my Mini's, but I am not blind as to the fact that Laptops reign over desktops and the Mini being the cheapest (therefore least profitable by unit) is NOT their biggest concern nor is it from a financial analyst's concern either.
 
paulrbeers said:
The problem here is that this might be true for YOU, but as a population as a whole, this IS what they want. Whether you like it or not, most do not want desktops anymore. Many who buy Macs want to sit in Starbucks and sip their $5 latte's with all the other Mac owners who are there simply to show off their Mac Laptops.....
Click to expand...

I've never understood this statement. Why would any adult desire to wast their time sitting in a coffee shop, just to "show off their computer?" That is lunacy. Some people think that if you don't do photography or videography, then buying a mac is merely for status. That's not true at all. Some people just like products that WORK. I can't count how many PC's (windows based) that I've owned over the years (several of which I built myself) from the x86's to current windows 8 machines. and NONE of them run like my macs. My macs WORK. I turn them on, they boot up super fast, they aren't loaded with malware, trojans, and failing hardware. They WORK. And to me, that's worth the price of admission. Period. So if someone sitting in Starbucks next to me thinks I'm there only for status, then that is their problem. And, quite frankly, they are wasting WAY too much of their own time trying to analyze my reason for owning a Mac. Again, i own them because they work. No other windows box I've ever bought/built/owned has been even nearly as close to reliable. :)
 
CH12671 said:
I've never understood this statement. Why would any adult desire to wast their time sitting in a coffee shop, just to "show off their computer?" That is lunacy. Some people think that if you don't do photography or videography, then buying a mac is merely for status. That's not true at all. Some people just like products that WORK. I. :)
Click to expand...

That might be true for you but I know a few Mac "users" who bought them because "it's cool to own a Mac" and have no idea how to use them!

As I have been saying thru out this thread: there is a huge difference between those on these forums and the population as a whole!

People need to stop looking at my comments as if they solely pointed at them. There are many "real" Apple users but there are also a lot of those who use it simply because it's "cool". Heck my daughter's old daycare provider bought a Base MacBook Pro 2 years ago and still doesn't know how to do anything but surf the net and use Pages (which she hates). When I told her that there was Microsoft Word for Mac, she looked at me like I was crazy and mentioned she wouldn't know how to install it anyway....
 
paulrbeers said:
The problem here is that this might be true for YOU, but as a population as a whole, this IS what they want. Whether you like it or not, most do not want desktops anymore. Many who buy Macs want to sit in Starbucks and sip their $5 latte's with all the other Mac owners who are there simply to show off their Mac Laptops.....

While the above might be true for YOU, as a whole the bulk of Apple's Mac revenue is from laptops.

Here's some numbers from 2009 already showing that Mac Laptops were outselling Mac Desktops 2:1! I can't find more recent numbers but the industry as a whole is going further and further from desktops....
http://gigaom.com/2010/01/25/decline-of-the-desktop-mac/

So understand, Entry Level Macbooks (whether the 1000 Macbook Air, or the Base 1200 Macbook Pro) ARE what bring people into the Mac Ecosystem. The Mini may have been that Model back in 2005-2006, but it isn't anymore.

Again as someone who has owned (and still owns a 2012), I love my Mini's, but I am not blind as to the fact that Laptops reign over desktops and the Mini being the cheapest (therefore least profitable by unit) is NOT their biggest concern nor is it from a financial analyst's concern either.
Click to expand...

What brings people to the Apple eco system are iPhones and iPads. Thats the hook. Laptops also require Apple Care if you have any sense. I agree that Minis are not the main reason people switch to Macs but it is the cheapest entry point.
Businesses really like them and so do server farms for their efficiency. You are not going to convince Windows users that have $500 computers to buy a $1300 laptop and Apple Care for entrance into the Apple ecosystem.
 
Meister said:
I think people take the choice of words of certain people to serious.
Cook probably wasnt thinking about the mini at that moment.
Apple would be crazy to discontinue the mini.
Click to expand...

isnt that kinda the point though? its "forgotten" in this quote and it seems to be "forgotten" in updates.

as a mini fan (first mac bought after returning from windows) i hope he misspoke and something positive will happen soon.
 
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