I've had my 2014 Mac Mini for a month now. Use it daily driving two big monitors. Functioning better than my mid-2011 iMac used to, and it was fine. Very impressed. Loving the flexibility with peripherals. I used to think of Minis as entry level, but this thing is very functional. Hope they keep developing them.
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The new Mac mini is almost certainly coming
- Thread starter GabrieleR
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which model did you get? If what your saying is the case then i should really feel it coming from an 2009 iMac
There are such things in existence, and in plans:
- http://www.pcworld.com/article/2979...ses-stackable-blocks-to-build-a-computer.html
- http://www.kitguru.net/desktop-pc/matthew-wilson/hp-launches-modular-pc-with-stackable-components/
- http://venturebeat.com/2016/02/13/microsoft-patents-a-modular-pc-with-stackable-components/
I wish Apple would sell this as a Mac Mini. I'd pay them $2,000 for it; no questions asked.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856173138
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856173138
I wish Apple would sell this as a Mac Mini. I'd pay them $2,000 for it; no questions asked.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856173138
Maybe it could be a Zothackintosh.
I just want a Mac mini that's not over 2 years old 
Late 2014 Mini
2.8GHz Dual-Core Intel Core i5 turbo boost to 3.3
8GB RAM (refurb, 16 not available in a refurb that day)
1TB Fusion Drive (128 PCI SSD + spinner, larger SSD would have been nice but this drive is very adequate for me). Performance certainly at least as good as the 2011 iMac, which had a spinner hard drive (I killed it trying to upgrade to SSD). Fast wake from sleep and logs in with my Apple Watch. Amazing considering the difference in size. The USB 3 ports are much faster accessing the external hard drives. I use MS Office apps a lot, various other apps, some light graphics, multiple apps open, no heavy coding/design/video editing. Very satisfied. I expected it to be a dog, but it is ample snappy for my work.
I wish Apple would sell this as a Mac Mini. I'd pay them $2,000 for it; no questions asked.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856173138
Wow, I really like that. How did I miss this, I look at everything! Looks like a very slick machine.
these things sell pretty quick, half of them gone in less than a day
if that doesnt tell apple to update it idk what will
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interesting is the geekbench higher vs your 2011 imac? I wouldn't be using any of those programs, but i do use thinkorswim and its slow as all get out on my 2009 imac. at the moment im running a friends macbook pro hooked up to 3 monitors until i can get a new computer, would like a maxed out updated mini
Do you realise that what you are saying is heresy; it could get you burned at the stake!
The average dilettante worships the 2012 i7 quad core Mac Mini, and despises anything less. The 2014 is seen as particularly despicable as quad core is no longer available. The inner tech is no longer indulged with the option to install up to 16 GB RAM, but it can be ordered with up to 16 GB RAM installed. With better connectivity and slightly improved performance over equivalent 2012 models, the 2014 has proved to be more than adequate for the average Joe or Jill who actually has one.
Would I get a 2014 Mac Mini? I neither need nor desire a new computer at present. However, if the only computer I have, an early 2009 Mini, broke down I would weigh the pros and cons of repair or replacement, as I did with my 2005 original over 7 years ago. Used for work, it would have to be good to go within a couple or three days. Based on the experience of 2014 Mini owners, who have posted in these forums, I would certainly not be averse to buying one.
Hopefully I'll get another year or two out of the early 2009, which is still running the original HDD, by which time the new Mac Mini will almost certainly have come……
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So, why not just get one?
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Well, of course. But man, you do realize that he's had to pay a price for what he purchased -- both in direct financial costs and in flexibility. In terms of cost: that particular model was up on the refurb site this afternoon (and already gone now); but if I recall correctly, it was somewhere in the $800 to $900 region. That's roughly the same price you'd have to pay for a new (non-refurbished) Intel Skull Canyon.The Haswell low-power i5 CPU is fine, but it's already three years old at this point, and was not top-of-the-line even in its day. The Intel Iris GPU was pretty much state of the art for integrated graphics three years ago, but really isn't competitive today. That 8 GB of RAM will do fine for most applications, at least for now. And the fusion drive was a superb idea for its time, back when SSDs were incredibly expensive.
In short, that 2014 Mini was a decent machine for its time. But, due to Apple's design decisions, that machine will remain stuck with those parts forever. No CPU upgrade; no GPU upgrade; soldered-down RAM; nearly impossible to touch drives. And so far as I know, the price today is the same as it was back in 2014.
You yourself have noted that you are running a 2009 machine that you've upgraded to 5 GB of RAM. The default configuration for that machine, with only 2 GB of RAM, would be unable to run the latest version of OS X, nor many modern resource-demanding applications. But your Mini was designed in such a way to make such an upgrade possible (although I admit the enclosure was not designed for easy access
).If someone with a 2014 Mini should find, for whatever reason, that they need a machine with greater resources, they have only one recourse: they have to pitch out their current machine and buy a new one. It is this extremely wasteful design decision -- a decision Apple has explicitly made for purposes of forcing users to upgrade more frequently, as there is no other performance- or economic-related reason to do so -- that has caused so much heartburn in this community.
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I would if I wanted a Windows only machine. It's tempting even as is.
But I want a Mac. Hence my point that I would be willing to pay Apple $800 more for the same hardware to enjoy their software, ecosystem, and support on it.
Yup I am acutely aware of my heresy. And I am annoyed that, when I needed to replace my lovely quad core 12 GB RAM iMac that I killed attempting to replace the five year old spinner with a new SSD to keep on trucking with it, all I could afford was that refurb "old" 2014 Mini with irreplaceable RAM. But my point is that it is surprisingly very capable of handling my home and professional work. My years of doing things like hackintosh are over. I was back up and working in 3 days after ordering the Mini, with no noticeable difference in functionality. I really like Mac OS. So I hope Apple carries on with an affordable Mini.
I have not looked into geekbench comparisons. My observations are about my user experience at the desk, where I want to concentrate on work not the medium, and using that method this 2014 Mini is just fine. For now, with current software.
How on earth did you kill it? Yes, you need to be careful when working on the iMac, it's an upgrade I have done myself. However, I can't imagine what you must have done in order to kill it. I took the more difficult route of keeping the original spinner, keeping the optical drive but adding an SSD.
[doublepost=1478346590][/doublepost]I notice that Apple has now managed to upset a large section of it's MacBook Pro users with the latest iteration of that particular model. In their quest for making their products ever thinner and non- upgradeable one wonders if Apple haven't gone too far. I question the direction TC has/is taking Apple.
http://www.theverge.com/2016/11/4/13524272/apple-cutting-usb-c-adaptor-prices-macbook-pro
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I wish I knew. I have been into our computers for many years, many times with no problems. I followed all the instructions but it was black screen when I fired it up. Expensive consultations later with an authorized dealer and I gave up. It is sitting in my shop now, an interesting curio.
Try re building it? It's might end up being a connecter that is not quite making contact!
Send it to me
I guess the chances of seeing another quad core mini are slim?
I feel Apple talks a lot about video editing to sell a product line that doesn't offer a quad core option (more cores for encoding). I would like to replace my iMac but want an ultra wide 34" display, quad core mini would be exactly what I need.
I feel Apple talks a lot about video editing to sell a product line that doesn't offer a quad core option (more cores for encoding). I would like to replace my iMac but want an ultra wide 34" display, quad core mini would be exactly what I need.
You're right I was selfishly basing my buying requirements off my needs, not Apples.
Don't forget the new MBP! https://www.macrumors.com/2016/11/02/phil-schiller-new-macbook-pro-interview/
"We took a bold risk, and of course with every step forward there is also some change to deal with."
Your point is probably lost on geeks who look at the specs of the 2014 Mac Mini and other lower order Macs with contempt. They are way below their own perceived or imagined needs, or simply desires. Truth is that, as you have discovered, for many, something more modest is more than adequate.
Your point is not lost on those who have 2014 Mac Minis, or other computers with less than maxed out specs.