I am 100% almost certain
I was rooting for you Dave
I can't see see a one port desktop. I sure the heck hope not.
That's a lot of overkill for a media server isn't it ? What kind of power draw does it have ? What about the intergrates graphics ?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
New Intel NUC and Next Mac Mini
- Thread starter Val-kyrie
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I was rooting for you Dave
I can't see see a one port desktop. I sure the heck hope not.
That's a lot of overkill for a media server isn't it ? What kind of power draw does it have ? What about the intergrates graphics ?
New 4mm thin innovative design requires some sacrifice. One USB-C port for external display, storage, hi-fi Apple earbuds, and power. You may use only one at a time. Good luck!
I own a late-2012 2.6ghz i7 Mini. Possibly the best Mac I've ever had.
(I came up the ladder with SE, SE.30, IIci, PowerMac 6100, UMAX c600 and s900, PowerMac 9600, Mac g4 MDD, 2006 white Intel iMac).
But if Apple again tries to "shrink" the size of the Mini, reducing the number of ports, I think I'll pass on the future Mini product line. Nearly every port on the back of my late-2012 is in use. I need a -desktop computer-, not a cutesy, tiny desktop accessory!
I've been reading up on the Skull Canyon NUC, and it looks like Intel did everything right with this one, insofar as "the internals" and ports are concerned.
Of course, it can't run the Mac OS without some hackintoshin', which I've never tried.
(Although I've been experimenting with various releases of Linux lately, just to see what it's like).
My opinion only, but...
... Apple should work with Intel and release a slightly-customized version of the Skull Canyon.
Perhaps a "white case", with a customized Apple on the top.
Ports and internals look to be pretty good just as they are.
And of course, a customized version of OS X to run on it.
I couldn't care less that style-wise, it doesn't look "Apple-enough".
But Apple won't do this.
We'll probably get a "new Mini" that is roughly 50-60% of what the Skull Canyon already is.
(sigh)
I hope to be proven wrong.
(I came up the ladder with SE, SE.30, IIci, PowerMac 6100, UMAX c600 and s900, PowerMac 9600, Mac g4 MDD, 2006 white Intel iMac).
But if Apple again tries to "shrink" the size of the Mini, reducing the number of ports, I think I'll pass on the future Mini product line. Nearly every port on the back of my late-2012 is in use. I need a -desktop computer-, not a cutesy, tiny desktop accessory!
I've been reading up on the Skull Canyon NUC, and it looks like Intel did everything right with this one, insofar as "the internals" and ports are concerned.
Of course, it can't run the Mac OS without some hackintoshin', which I've never tried.
(Although I've been experimenting with various releases of Linux lately, just to see what it's like).
My opinion only, but...
... Apple should work with Intel and release a slightly-customized version of the Skull Canyon.
Perhaps a "white case", with a customized Apple on the top.
Ports and internals look to be pretty good just as they are.
And of course, a customized version of OS X to run on it.
I couldn't care less that style-wise, it doesn't look "Apple-enough".
But Apple won't do this.
We'll probably get a "new Mini" that is roughly 50-60% of what the Skull Canyon already is.
(sigh)
I hope to be proven wrong.
I hope the skull canyon NUC is released in the uk?
I'll be straight on it.
There'll have to be a damn good update to the mini or I'm afraid Apple my time with you is done.
I'm only a casual user so not reliant on OS X programs etc
I'll be straight on it.
There'll have to be a damn good update to the mini or I'm afraid Apple my time with you is done.
I'm only a casual user so not reliant on OS X programs etc
Anandtech did a write up about it:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/10152/intels-skull-canyon-nuc-is-official
http://www.anandtech.com/show/10152/intels-skull-canyon-nuc-is-official
Thankfully, they have included a plain top to swap out. It really is hideous with the skull.
Honestly, does the look matter that much? Swap on the plain black lid, stick it on a shelf or mount it somewhere and enjoy the thing. Sure, the Mini looks great but all else equal that NUC wins out every time. Its so small I doubt its even that noticeable, the footprint is quite a bit smaller than the Mini.
Looks are personal. That skull thing is just horrible. It is obviously only to attract attention as they included a plain cover. If it is cool, quiet and fast, (and has good connections, which it does) then that trumps looks every time for me. But thank God they included the plain cover.
I think Intel did this in order to keep the processor cool since it has the dram IGPU chip built in.
Also it has dual m.2 SSD slots. Can't really shove all that into a normal NUC box. They also supply BIOS settings and drivers from their site so you don't have to search all over the internet for drivers as you would have to do if you built a PC from scratch.
As far as expense goes, the price will very from retail. I've seen new NUCs discounted as much as 50% around the holidays along with the components you would need to install in it.
You can actually build a mini ITX from scratch with an I5 quad core and GTX 970 for around $1000 or less that could run OS X, Windows or Linux but that involves some labor, time and tinkering.
Or you can just buy a Mac Mini if you don't need any real power at a premium price and be happy.
You can actually build a mini ITX from scratch with an I5 quad core and GTX 970 for around $1000 or less that could run OS X, Windows or Linux but that involves some labor, time and tinkering.
Or you can just buy a Mac Mini if you don't need any real power at a premium price and be happy.
This is where it is at…….
Geeks who like to tinker with hardware and software, and are seeking maximum bang for buck, are likely to be frustrated by offerings from Apple.
For folks who just want to do stuff on a computer, stumping up the cash for an appropriately specced Mac (Mini or otherwise), and OS X is likely to bring satisfaction.
Last edited:
I'd like to agree with this, but I must raise an objection. I've personally purchased Mac Minis for myself (and introduced friends and relatives to them) for precisely this purpose: if you just want to get work done, OS X is powerful and friendly, and Apple's hardware is extremely reliable. The problem I've faced is that OS X has continued to demand more and more resources as it has evolved, such that a Mac that worked perfectly five years ago may no longer have what it needs to run today's version of the OS; particularly, in terms of RAM. I have been upgrading the amount of RAM in my own Minis and in others in order to keep up.
But, of course, Apple has seen fit not just to make upgrading RAM harder in their latest machines, but to make it impossible. If OS X continues to increase its resource demands at the rate it has in the past, I must predict that some machines (at least those stuck with 4GB) will be rendered obsolete long before the hardware reaches end-of-life.
An xMac would be a wonderful thing for folks who like to tinker, but I can understand that Apple may not be interested in that market. But in locking down every last aspect of their devices, I have to say that Apple goes too far in the other direction -- they are moving towards a world of completely disposable hardware, machines that have built-in obsolescence. Apple is weakening their brand by crippling their own devices in this manner.
Last edited:
I agree.
for plug and play and shiny-ness apple are well ahead. Enough to make most people not worry about the fact the hardware is old to begin with.
Windows 10 is catching up though, it has shown me very little issues on my surface 3 with 2GB ram and also on my mums and grandparents computers.
My biggest issue is becoming can I justify the cost of a non upgradeable apple pc that I have to max out the specs of just to make sure it lasts a few years? and sadly the answer is no! if they magically released a decently priced upgradeable mini I would be all over it, but lets be honest it won't ever happen.
As I have said previously I like Apple and OSX but not enough to pay for the Apple tax and feel like I am being mugged off anymore.
Amen brother, I upgraded to 8GB on my 2011 mini and the difference in performance on El Capitan was huge. OS X has become quite bloated since the 10.6 days, which is fine, we all want more features in our OS. But being cheapskates on RAM and limited the ability to upgrade is not cool.
As of today 4GB does not cut it for OS X unless you have a fast SSD to swap too. Fast-forward a couple of releases and are we looking at 8GB being inadequate too? I buy things to last and given that my Mini will take 16GB, I'm not giving up that kit until it falls apart.
I would still have my iPhone 3G if not for the obsolesence caused by the new iOS loads. Apple will find a way to make your perfectly good hardware unusable. Locking down the hardware so you can't upgrade to keep up with the software seems to be part of the plan.
I'm sure your comment makes more sense than it seems. I was describing a device I liked and bought.
I have an old Macbook (2007, Santa Rosa) that will run the latest versions of Linux and Windows 10 but Apple stopped supporting it at 10.7 because they couldn't be arsed writing 64bit graphics drivers for Intel GMA chips in 10.8.
My 2011 Mac mini also has all the hardware needed to support Handoff/Continuity and Metal but Apple put an line in the sand at 2012 models.
I'm waiting for them to invent a reason why the 2011 won't take version 10.x that code for "Dear customer, it's great that you value longevity and a lower environmental impact but really, for the best experience it really is time that you upgrade your computer so you can take advantage of the magical new features we've added to OS X."
Substitute magical new features for bloat and the best experience for the good of our shareholders and it would at least be the honest answer.
Too true, Apple's fully committed to the fickle consumer electronics market. They will continue to sell intentionally hobbled devices and will continue to arbitrarily obsolete perfect good devices to cajole and seduce their customers into buying their next device, buying their next device, buying their next device...
Substandard amounts of soldered RAM, substandard Intel and AMD GPUs, 5400 RPM drives and the worst performing file system of any modern operating system. Apple ain't dumb, these are the bottlenecks that users are most likely to notice but the vast majority of Apple's clientèle barely knows what RAM is let alone HFS+.
If the mid model is 8GB with whatever disk, that's OK - I can deal with the whatever the disk. I'm slowly getting resigned to the likelihood that an upgrade to 16GB will be $200 in future models. If the mid-model is 4GB with a fusion drive, then it's likely that getting to 16GB is going to cost $300 like it does now for the base model. I'd rather deal with a HDD than a $300 16GB RAM upgrade. That $100 is better spent on some sort of after-market drive option than on the memory upgrade to get from 4GB to 8GB.