When he showed the new macbook pro with the two monitors that were not even Apple monitors, I think that was the death knell of the mini. The Mac Pro? That may be dead and gone. Lord we need a small SFF rectangular box that is somewhat powerful and somewhat upgrade-able.
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The new Mac mini is almost certainly coming
- Thread starter GabrieleR
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When he showed the new macbook pro with the two monitors that were not even Apple monitors, I think that was the death knell of the mini. The Mac Pro? That may be dead and gone. Lord we need a small SFF rectangular box that is somewhat powerful and somewhat upgrade-able.
Considering the entire http://www.apple.com/mac/ page doesn't even mention or show the Mini or Pro, I'd say it's looking rather grim.
I wanted to say "it does in the header" then I scrolled and where it says "Compare Mac models" there's only MBP, MB, Air and iMac indeed 
I don't need or want a Mini, but I have a friend who is perpetually confused by Windows and I keep on waiting for Mini (which is almost certainly not coming...) to be updated so I can tell him "buy one now". He can't afford a MBP and I am not going to tell him to buy a Macbook with one USB-C (he's not someone who would be able to deal with neverending dongles) or Air at €1099.
I don't need or want a Mini, but I have a friend who is perpetually confused by Windows and I keep on waiting for Mini (which is almost certainly not coming...) to be updated so I can tell him "buy one now". He can't afford a MBP and I am not going to tell him to buy a Macbook with one USB-C (he's not someone who would be able to deal with neverending dongles) or Air at €1099.
I only meant the photo on the page, didn't click on the actual Compare page, my bad. In any case it doesn't look like Mini or Pro are their priorities.
I have a feeling since the rMB was released that Apple decided we have enough power already. The thin obsession is kind of justified by the fact that even planned obsolescence isn't going to make macOS any slower on a 2014 Mini than it already is with all the transparencies and blurs. So unless they cripple hardware on purpose (if $production_year<2014 { make_it_slow(); }) it's going to have enough power to run software such as Finder, Safari and Pages. Therefore there's no need to update the Mini or Mac Pro ever. There's no point making them thinner. So what's to update? (I'm a bit sarcastic but only a bit.) If you want a faster one, buy a more expensive model. If you maxed it out and still want it faster, you're weird, go buy a new MBP and touch the Touch Bar.
the mac mini imac and mac pro will be all updated probably at spring event at max date with a new wireless touchbar keyboard
Actually, I think that might be one of the few reasons why they would update it... that's what they are obsessed with. Make it thinner, SSD only, no fan and get rid of all those ugly ports!
Yeah, Apple has definitely gone all in to the "Function follows Form" philosophy at this point.
Did some comparisons, if you bought the late 2014 mini mid level model and added an ssd for $899, take a look at the geekbench scores, it beats out the late 2013 macbook pro and is almost on par with the 2015 macbook pro. now if you bought the top end mini model its beats out the 2015. Pretty cool, the 2014 mini really isnt that bad. I'd like to know if they will discontinue the mini or not so i can buy one. Probably get a good deal on a refurb one with an ssd
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Apple doesn't lower their prices anymore, so there is no point in waiting for a mini price drop (because there won't be one). Even if it's discontinued, they will not lower the price at all. Today's prices are as low as they will ever be. As recently as a few days ago, they were selling a 2012 Macbook Pro for $1,400 Canadian, which is $200 MORE expensive than when it was released in 2012.
The iMac could also be EOL but there would need to be a hardware solution to replace it and possibably some of the pro, semi-pro market.
Although this is a mini thread, even the MacBook Pro crowd is none too pleased with this latest offering.
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Ok, I've gotta ask: why? The entire Mac ecosystem now represents less than a quarter of Apple's gross income, if I read the stats right. If they simply dropped it, they might actually increase profits, as the margins on iPhones are so much greater.
What does that say about the mini? Are they really going to make that a better "value" if it even exists or a top line be even on par with a entry pro without paying top dollar
I sometimes wonder if being a miserly, pessimistic, cynical dilettante, who wants pro performance for a mini price is a prerequisite for being on this forum.
I wanted a computer that was occasionally easily transportable. I did not, and do not want a portable, and have been well pleased with both the Mac Minis I have owned.
My first computer was the 2005 original (0.25 GB of RAM and 20 GB HDD). Getting OS X was an unexpected revelation, which freed me from having to do battle with Windows on the computers at work. My second computer is the early 2009 (1 GB of RAM and 120 GB HDD) that I am still using, now with an extra 4 GB of RAM and two external HDDs, 1 TB for Time machine and 500 GB for extra storage. Both cost me a bit over a month's pay with Office for Mac installed in the 2005, and iWork in the 2009, and I stumped up for upgrades to Snow Leopard and Mountain Lion.
I could now buy a mid tier 2014 Mac Mini for about the same money (my pay has increased less than 10% since 2005), and would not have to stump up for iWork or OS upgrades, thus overall it would cost me less. However, by the time I do need a new computer (in a year or two or more), a new generation (or two) of Mac Mini will almost certainly have arrived.
No news is good news. If Apple decide to kill the Mac Mini the news will be announced, just as they did announce the demise of the 11" MacBook Air. However, Apple are well known for not giving away much in advance about upcoming products. I see no reason for them to cull the Mac Mini from the line-up. It continues to fill a niche.
Why release a new computer before the biggest selling season, when tills are ringing up sales of trinkets and baubles to fill Xmas stockings? Or as annual new models as is traditional in the US car market (but not really elsewhere). Folks I know buy a new computer to do stuff, not as a present, or to show off how avant-garde they are. Buying decisions are made at any time of year. Apple has released new Mac Minis at various times of year, as and when design and production are sorted and ready.
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i want to see a new mac mini, even though i wouldn't buy one right away. Maybe in a couple years when I can justify the cost or my current laptop becomes obsolete.
I'm running a 2013 MBA and its meeting all my needs currently. But I have a future vision of having a Mac Mini with dual monitors and having a secondary portable laptop / chromebook
I'm running a 2013 MBA and its meeting all my needs currently. But I have a future vision of having a Mac Mini with dual monitors and having a secondary portable laptop / chromebook
No news is good news and tills are ringing up trinkets are two good points. The crap they sell here in this country at holiday time is amazing and disgusting (mostly disgusting) at the same time.
I'm still waiting to buy and after the Apple event last week I have put my wallet back in my pocket despite having a GBP£2,000 budget for a new Mac.
The huge price increases just make no sense, while I can see historically first gen machines always cost a lot of money and then Apple drop the prices in subsequent iterations the Touch Bar seems more of a gimmick than an essential. I have an eight year old Macbook Unibody and while it has 1TB SSD and 8GB RAM I'm going to wait one more release until buying something to replace my current Mac.
If the Mini isn't EOL and I think it probably won't be quite yet then we can all see that the Mini is going to have at least a minor redesign with only USB-C ports. How many? Maybe four is my guess, one for power, one for monitor and then two for peripherals or other hubs. Like the MBP Apple will say you can charge it from any port but of course the Mini needs to powered all the time just to operate.
I wonder if we'll see Kaby Lake or if the Mini will be stuck with Skylake. It would be embarrassing but oh so Apple to put Skylake into the Mac Mini in April 2017 when those processors are over a year old already.
I would guess Apple might release a Touch Bar keyboard and it is going to be expensive! How much? Who knows maybe $400 or so.
The huge price increases just make no sense, while I can see historically first gen machines always cost a lot of money and then Apple drop the prices in subsequent iterations the Touch Bar seems more of a gimmick than an essential. I have an eight year old Macbook Unibody and while it has 1TB SSD and 8GB RAM I'm going to wait one more release until buying something to replace my current Mac.
If the Mini isn't EOL and I think it probably won't be quite yet then we can all see that the Mini is going to have at least a minor redesign with only USB-C ports. How many? Maybe four is my guess, one for power, one for monitor and then two for peripherals or other hubs. Like the MBP Apple will say you can charge it from any port but of course the Mini needs to powered all the time just to operate.
I wonder if we'll see Kaby Lake or if the Mini will be stuck with Skylake. It would be embarrassing but oh so Apple to put Skylake into the Mac Mini in April 2017 when those processors are over a year old already.
I would guess Apple might release a Touch Bar keyboard and it is going to be expensive! How much? Who knows maybe $400 or so.
Ultimately, I think Apple sees a future where we do not manipulate or directly access the "file system" - an ecosystem where your portal (laptop, iPhone, iMac) merely access a cloud to acquire the data - eventually off-loading processing and computation to a larger Host (which should be in your home but instead will reside in the portal/cloud). Our machines will do less of their own thinking and rely more heavily on embedded technology all to support enhanced mobility and seamless access.
Sort of the Mainframe construct all over again but personalized and highly controlled on a global scale. When the "mothership" takes off our data will go with it!
Sort of the Mainframe construct all over again but personalized and highly controlled on a global scale. When the "mothership" takes off our data will go with it!
The old MacBook Pro with CD drive hung around for years with no update, and now it is just gone. Did they "announce" that?
Given that new MacBook Pros were announced it kinda goes without saying, I'd have thought.
I know this is a Mini thread but I will never forget the day iOS7 hit, my girl updated I did not when I went to Facetime her I was met with the notion that Facetime was now broken when in fact Apple prevented me from communicating by making sure there would be no backwards compatibility.
This broke my bond with Apple and runs counter to the type of control I respect - thus the rest is expected of Apple at this point!
This broke my bond with Apple and runs counter to the type of control I respect - thus the rest is expected of Apple at this point!