Make an Mx Mac Mini in an LC475 form factor please

[Thomas Davie]

I know there’s not the slightest chance in heck and I might be the only person who would want/buy 1; give me lots of ports, don’t limit me to 16 gb ram. Where the floppy drive sits various addons/ins (an 8, 16 or 24 cpu card say).

Just have a fondness for some of the Macs I’ve had and still have. The LC475 I loved/love because I used to run it from inside of a cedar drawer with just cabling > monitor poking through the desk surface. Using the mouse/keyboard required some cable wrapping, but today with bluetooth and various wireless connection methods….well, I’d still use it like this.

And….my MBA M1 just battery shut down b/c I was playing Civ VI for too long.

Tom

 

[velocityg4]

I was just thinking an Apple IIc would be an excellent one. With a built in mechanical keyboard and snap on 24” Apple branded LCD. If you wanted one.

Here's a quick mock up

 

[jazz1]

I was just thing an Apple IIc would be an excellent one. With a built in mechanical keyboard and snap on 24” Apple branded LCD. If you wanted one.

Here's a quick mock up

View attachment 1823780

Looks like it is from Loki's TV show at the Time Variance Authority. I like it!

 

[velocityg4]

Looks like it is from Loki's TV show at the Time Variance Authority. I like it!

Thanks! I'll have to watch that show at some point.

 

[Argon_]

I was just thinking an Apple IIc would be an excellent one. With a built in mechanical keyboard and snap on 24” Apple branded LCD. If you wanted one.

Here's a quick mock up

View attachment 1823780

The M1 MBP's board and cooling would fit neatly under a mechanical keyboard.

I also think that an entry level Mac Mini with old hardware, the size of a piece of toast, would be completely viable. Then just build or print an enclosure for the Mini and keyboard.

 

[Gnattu]

The M1 MBP's board and cooling would fit neatly under a mechanical keyboard.

Why not use M1 MBA's board and ditch the fan altogether?

 

[Argon_]

Why not use M1 MBA's board and ditch the fan altogether?

I suppose you could passively cool it, but why do that when you have ample space for a robust fan and heatsink?

 

[Boyd01]

I was just thinking an Apple IIc would be an excellent one.

Did you ever see the movie 2010? 🤣

But I always liked the Quadra 605/LC475/Performa 475 and had several of them back in the day, that "pizza box" form factor always appealed to me. I believe they all owe their heritage to the Sun SPARCstation 1, a very impressive machine in its day. Back in the mid 1980's I was on the computing center advisory board at SUNY Oswego as we planned an upgrade from our VAX 11/750. We visited the computing center at Cornell University where they had some of the latest Sun hardware which really blew me away. Ultimately, we replaced the huge VAX minicomputer with three Sun boxes that sat on single table in the middle of the big air conditioned room. Of course, today it could all be replaced with a single iPhone, which would be much more powerful and have much more storage.

Anyway, as cool as those pizza boxes were back in the day, they probably don't make sense now. Back then, it was the perfect place to put your big CRT monitor. But I especially liked the LC475 lid that (IIRC) popped off with some heavy velco-like fasteners to give you easy access to everything inside. Would love to see a new mini like that, but that's not gonna happen.

 

[velocityg4]

The M1 MBP's board and cooling would fit neatly under a mechanical keyboard.

I also think that an entry level Mac Mini with old hardware, the size of a piece of toast, would be completely viable. Then just build or print an enclosure for the Mini and keyboard.

It definitely would. Might need to make the keyboard slightly thicker than usual. But it could certainly fit. Even utilizing a heat spreader. To utilize the bottom surface area of the keyboard.

Did you ever see the movie 2010? 🤣

View attachment 1824104

But I always liked the Quadra 605/LC475/Performa 475 and had several of them back in the day, that "pizza box" form factor always appealed to me. I believe they all owe their heritage to the Sun SPARCstation 1, a very impressive machine in its day. Back in the mid 1980's I was on the computing center advisory board at SUNY Oswego as we planned an upgrade from our VAX 11/750. We visited the computing center at Cornell University where they had some of the latest Sun hardware which really blew me away. Ultimately, we replaced the huge VAX minicomputer with three Sun boxes that sat on single table in the middle of the big air conditioned room. Of course, today it could all be replaced with a single iPhone, which would be much more powerful and have much more storage.

Anyway, as cool as those pizza boxes were back in the day, they probably don't make sense now. Back then, it was the perfect place to put your big CRT monitor. But I especially liked the LC475 lid that (IIRC) popped off with some heavy velco-like fasteners to give you easy access to everything inside. Would love to see a new mini like that, but that's not gonna happen.

That definitely was a good design. Really I like most of the designs from the Apple II through Quadra days. But they started losing track with the PowerPC models.

Not sure if I like the rounded lines of the Quadra 605 more than the sharp lines of LC - LC III.

It's interesting with the SPARCstation. There really was a push to get desktops smaller. Then in the mid 90's it seems like computer makers gave up. Just going for big, cheap and bulky mini towers.

You're right though that traditional desktops generally don't look right with an LCD. I've got a few vintage Macs. Even with an older white LCD. They don't look right. They only look good when I pair them with a nice CRT. Which I only have one. As decent ones from yesteryear are obscenely expensive.

I just saw a picture of the IIc with the original Apple LCD available for it and liked the look. Thinking that computer would look good with a large LCD. If the bezel looked right. One of the few desktops which could pull it off. With its short depth.

Anyways, while I too was wowed by the original iMac. When I look back. I'm more fond of the Apple II through Quadra designs. But that's probably nostalgia more than anything.

 

[dmccloud]

Technically speaking, it wouldn't be difficult to take the guts of an M1 Mini and put them into a 3D-printed case akin to the IIC (or even the IIGS, which was my favorite), or if you really wanted to mess with people, a case that looks like an old-school NES or original PLaystation. I have an NES-style case for my Raspberry Pi, and I've confused so many people with that over the last year or so...

 

[Argon_]

It definitely would. Might need to make the keyboard slightly thicker than usual. But it could certainly fit. Even utilizing a heat spreader. To utilize the bottom surface area of the keyboard.


That definitely was a good design. Really I like most of the designs from the Apple II through Quadra days. But they started losing track with the PowerPC models.

Not sure if I like the rounded lines of the Quadra 605 more than the sharp lines of LC - LC III.

It's interesting with the SPARCstation. There really was a push to get desktops smaller. Then in the mid 90's it seems like computer makers gave up. Just going for big, cheap and bulky mini towers.

You're right though that traditional desktops generally don't look right with an LCD. I've got a few vintage Macs. Even with an older white LCD. They don't look right. They only look good when I pair them with a nice CRT. Which I only have one. As decent ones from yesteryear are obscenely expensive.

I just saw a picture of the IIc with the original Apple LCD available for it and liked the look. Thinking that computer would look good with a large LCD. If the bezel looked right. One of the few desktops which could pull it off. With its short depth.

Anyways, while I too was wowed by the original iMac. When I look back. I'm more fond of the Apple II through Quadra designs. But that's probably nostalgia more than anything.

You could always fake a CRT. Start with a fairly square LCD panel and stick it inside a superfluous box.

 

[dmccloud]

You could always fake a CRT. Start with a fairly square LCD panel and stick it inside a superfluous box.

One of the portable monitors could work in that type of a setup - just get a monitor shell large enough to accomodate the screen and you'd be good to go...

 

[Spindel]

I was just thinking an Apple IIc would be an excellent one. With a built in mechanical keyboard and snap on 24” Apple branded LCD. If you wanted one.

Here's a quick mock up

View attachment 1823780

Please no!

Mechanical keyboards are horrible to type on and make (at least most of them) way to much sound when typing.

 

[Fishrrman]

Heh.
Not. Gonna. Happen.

 

[Thomas Davie]

I’ve got an old 8086 laptop that looks like the computer from ^^ 2010 4 mb ram and an 80 mb hard drive. But yeah, the form factor was, to me, just right.

Yeah I’ll end up w/a Mac Mx mini of the normal variety but they just look plain.

Tom