The new Mac mini is almost certainly coming

[cynics]

Mac Mini this WWDC?

Its not impossible but expecting hardware at dev conference is just setting yourself up for failure. Yes its been done but around here you are better off treading lightly with those wacky ideas. The Gestapo will take out behind the toolshed and shoot you in the back of the head if you get optimistic about a Mac release.

They honestly can't win regardless. Even if they did announce new Macs available for order the same day they won't be good enough. The bar has been set so unbelievably high at this point they'll never pull it off. Threads like this will be replaced with "still soldered RAM", "still dual core", doesn't have this or that. Admittedly a lot will be legitimate complaints about baffling omissions.

I'm not sure how unrealistic my expectations are or not. I want to see 30 bit RGB or dare I say it 36 bit and capable of 4k@60hz on HDMI in an HTPC size case i.e. Mini. iMac and Mac Pro got an update in El Cap for 10 bit so the groundwork has been laid already.

Although I prefer to avoid Windows if at all possible even then I don't think there is a small form factor PC available or one I can even build (without leaving the SFF size behind) to get 10+ bit color space. I can't get a straight answer from official sources but I had the opportunity to use a NUC7 on a 10 bit display and in Windows display settings (creators) there was no HDR toggle (which oddly enough needs to be turned off for a wider color space ) and in settings it reported 32 bit RGB (which is 3 x 8 bit channels for red green blue + 8 alpha). I thought Kaby Lake could do 10 bit color (might be wrong) so it could just be drivers need updating.

I don't think its unrealistic for Apple to provide support for high end monitors and TVs when it comes to something like this. If not (and assuming there isn't a legitimate hardware reason i.e. just required dedicated graphics) THAT is what really brings my piss to a boil. How are "productivity machines" designed with content creators and artist in mind NOT support the required color space for many professionals?

I need to calm down. I'm so used to Apple letting me down that I'm mad about their products before they even release them anymore.

(EDIT : Apologies for the long winded tantrum)

 

[Miat]

I heard Apple is changing its name to iPhapple

iFap
[doublepost=1494740556][/doublepost]

I need to calm down. I'm so used to Apple letting me down that I'm mad about their products before they even release them anymore.

 

[SpacemanSpiffed]

They honestly can't win regardless. Even if they did announce new Macs available for order the same day they won't be good enough. The bar has been set so unbelievably high at this point they'll never pull it off. Threads like this will be replaced with "still soldered RAM", "still dual core", doesn't have this or that. Admittedly a lot will be legitimate complaints about baffling omissions.

While true, there is still the complete lack of even TRYING on Apple's part that we fault, especially since we have been seeing notable gains in the SFF space for Windows PCs (Intel NUCs, Zotac, Gigabyte, etc).

I'm not sure how unrealistic my expectations are or not. I want to see 30 bit RGB or dare I say it 36 bit and capable of 4k@60hz on HDMI in an HTPC size case i.e. Mini. iMac and Mac Pro got an update in El Cap for 10 bit so the groundwork has been laid already.

Although I prefer to avoid Windows if at all possible even then I don't think there is a small form factor PC available or one I can even build (without leaving the SFF size behind) to get 10+ bit color space. I can't get a straight answer from official sources but I had the opportunity to use a NUC7 on a 10 bit display and in Windows display settings (creators) there was no HDR toggle (which oddly enough needs to be turned off for a wider color space ) and in settings it reported 32 bit RGB (which is 3 x 8 bit channels for red green blue + 8 alpha). I thought Kaby Lake could do 10 bit color (might be wrong) so it could just be drivers need updating.

Getting HDMI 2.0/2.0b out of any device has been a problem in the PC and consumer electronics spaces - the display panels are there, Monitors and TVs, but most aren't supporting the latest interfaces needed to take full advantage of (except Displayport in the PC space) Ditto for PC video cards. HDMI 2.0x support is (mostly) only found on the very latest generation of chips ( Nvidia 10x0, Kaby Lake, Radeon RX 4xx ), and even then HDR support is an icky mess.

If you had to look at a SFF style PC for 4K + HDR for pro use, I would check out the Zotac Magnus EN1060 or EN1070 models as they have the latest nVidia GeForce GTX 1060/1070 GPUs. There is a GTX 1080 model, but it is larger and needs dual power bricks.

 

[Micky Do]

Rumour has it that new MacBooks are coming as soon as WWDC 2017:

MAC UPDATES
Rumors suggest Apple plans to debut both new MacBook and MacBook Pro models at WWDC, introducing upgraded processors and possibly other minor internal updates. No major design changes are expected.

There's also a possibility Apple could refresh the MacBook Air, introducing new processors. It's not yet clear if Apple has decided to update the machine, however.

https://www.macrumors.com/roundup/wwdc/

The new Mac Mini is almost certainly coming….. later.

 

[Crosscreek]

Rumour has it that new MacBooks are coming as soon as WWDC 2017:

MAC UPDATES
Rumors suggest Apple plans to debut both new MacBook and MacBook Pro models at WWDC, introducing upgraded processors and possibly other minor internal updates. No major design changes are expected.

There's also a possibility Apple could refresh the MacBook Air, introducing new processors. It's not yet clear if Apple has decided to update the machine, however.

https://www.macrumors.com/roundup/wwdc/

The new Mac Mini is almost certainly coming….. later.

Positive voices are always good and hopefully your right but............

 

[Partron22]

M.2 slots for plug and play drives along the bottom edge?

 

[Cape Dave]

Rumour has it that new MacBooks are coming as soon as WWDC 2017:

MAC UPDATES
Rumors suggest Apple plans to debut both new MacBook and MacBook Pro models at WWDC, introducing upgraded processors and possibly other minor internal updates. No major design changes are expected.

There's also a possibility Apple could refresh the MacBook Air, introducing new processors. It's not yet clear if Apple has decided to update the machine, however.

https://www.macrumors.com/roundup/wwdc/

The new Mac Mini is almost certainly coming….. later.

As long as you are using "later" to mean "never" you are right!

 

[BeefCake 15]

As long as you are using "later" to mean "never" you are right!

This thread is for the desperately hopeful users, please don't spoil our party

 

[Boyd01]

It will be interesting to see whether they update the MacBook Air (an 11" 17/8gb/512gb MBA has been my primary computer since 2013 and I'm still very happy with it). The story suggests the reason for updating it is its popularity due to the low price.

Now the Mini is their low price desktop computer, but I suspect it doesn't have the popularity of the MBA.

 

[Crosscreek]

Now the Mini is their low price desktop computer, but I suspect it doesn't have the popularity of the MBA.

Hee hee ....yeah ....by a factor of hundreds of thousands.

 

[turbineseaplane]

I really wish they'd update the Mini and officially embrace eGPU also.

 

[Micky Do]

As long as you are using "later" to mean "never" you are right!

Just a question of what comes first; 1,000 days, 10,000 posts, or the new Mac Mini.

Currently standing @ 946 days & 9637 posts. There have been 12 updates to the Mac Mini lineup since January 2005.

 

[EightyTwenty]

I have a feeling that the Mini will be updated shortly.

 

[Sam Luis Obispo]

I have a feeling that the Mini will be updated shortly.

Optimist

 

[turbineseaplane]

Optimist

Supreme optimist!!

I hope he's right!

 

[Cape Dave]

I say, better start working on acceptance. Because it is not looking good at all for the mini.

 

[sublunar]

With a pre-announcement of a new Mac Pro coming down the line in the future, there's next to no chance of a Mini that could compete with that coming before the iMac does, and it certainly wouldn't have specs to challenge anything on either machine either.

More than ever I am thinking the 2017 Mini range will be entirely rostered with Macbook Air 15w CPU with Iris Graphics. Look to the non touch-bar Macbook Pro 13" model for inspiration. The most energy efficient desktop etc etc...

The only positive side I can see is that we'll know by the end of July if there's a Kaby Lake powered 2017 Macbook Pro non-touchbar variant that could become the basis of that next Mini.

And even then Apple could tough it out until 2018 for a simultaneous release with the replacement Mac Pro - just to make sure.

But if they do they could very well be walking into Coffee Lake territory with additional cores on the table within 12 months.

That would make Macs that aren't updated for that very uncompetitive.

 

[EightyTwenty]

That would make Macs that aren't updated for that very uncompetitive.

Give me 8 GB of RAM and a SSD on the base model and I'm more than happy. Don't care at all what CPU is used. Could be 2016 core M3 for all I care.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Give me 8 GB of RAM and a SSD on the base model and I'm more than happy. Don't care at all what CPU is used. Could be 2016 core M3 for all I care.

I do hope they bring back Quad Core options and leave it with a couple things you could swap out (SSD/RAM).

If you have a monitor you already enjoy, an updated Mini + eGPU would make a superb roll your own Mac desktop that can cater to lower-mid tier, gaming and value oriented uses.

 

[DevNull0]

Even if they did announce new Macs available for order the same day they won't be good enough. The bar has been set so unbelievably high at this point they'll never pull it off.

I don't think "at least give me something as powerful as you did in 2012" is really that high a bar. Granted I don't think Apple can handle that bar anyway.
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Give me 8 GB of RAM and a SSD on the base model and I'm more than happy. Don't care at all what CPU is used. Could be 2016 core M3 for all I care.

Then why don't you buy a 2014 base model with 8 gig and put in an SSD?

 

[EightyTwenty]

I don't think "at least give me something as powerful as you did in 2012" is really that high a bar. Granted I don't think Apple can handle that bar anyway.
[doublepost=1495337995][/doublepost]

Then why don't you buy a 2014 base model with 8 gig and put in an SSD?

I could ask you why you are waiting for a new mini when you can just buy a mac pro? Price, obviously.

I'm not paying over $800 Canadian, buying special tools and then spending an hour tearing the entire machine apart to install a SSD.

8 GB of RAM and SSD should be standard on the entry-level model. It's 2017.

 

[sublunar]

I do hope they bring back Quad Core options and leave it with a couple things you could swap out (SSD/RAM).

If you have a monitor you already enjoy, an updated Mini + eGPU would make a superb roll your own Mac desktop that can cater to lower-mid tier, gaming and value oriented uses.

Quad Core options and removable RAM/SSD sounds very much like the future domain of a Mac Pro - the only question is will Apple make it cheap enough that people from this forum would be interested an entry level modular Mac Pro?

The dividing factor for Apple will probably be the GPU. If an entry-level Mac Pro 2013 just came with integrated graphics and no GPUs and was balanced for that as an option - and priced accordingly - then a lot of musicians and programmers might just have bought it.

As it is, moving manufacture back out to China to reduce costs and creating enough SKUs to keep more people happy should be an aim.

If Apple still think the modular Mac Pro must come with a (proprietary) GPU option across the board (keeping the price relatively high) they could consider repositioning the Mini to appeal to be hobbyist but 'hobbling' it with the 15w CPU with Iris Graphics 640+ across the board so power users wouldn't snap it up as a viable compute option. Of course that means no quad core but with any luck there should be an entry level modular Mac Pro far more powerful than the 2012 quad.

They could then consider making a Mini accessible for user installed RAM and SSD knowing that people who edit video etc. can't really complain about stuff happening relatively slowly. Of course, they don't have to do that, especially if they choose not to change the existing form factor.

For example, with Kaby Lake could Apple choose to install an Optane caching drive on their desktops to reduce the price instead of an out and out PCIe SSD in some SKUs? If they retain spinning hard drives for sheer storage capacity a 16Gb or 32Gb Optane cache on the motherboard could turbo boost the 'Fusion Drive' option. We'd have to see what sort of functionality is suggested in the next OS X at WWDC but reliability could be an issue with a Rev A product and Anandtech's review suggests the idle power consumption makes it a non-starter on laptops. Remember current 1Tb Fusion drives use 24Gb of SSD so could Apple be looking to save 2 PCIe lanes by using PCIe 2x for Optane rather than 4x for a traditional SSD?

My opinion on eGPU is that it's resoundingly bad value for money at the cheap end of the market. Any external bay is going double the price of adding a graphics card and be noisy. And be hobbled with a PCIe 3.0 4x interface which admittedly offers 90% of the full 16x bandwidth.

Far cheaper would be to offer an integrated cooling solution that keeps an internal GPU quiet but we know it's early days for external GPUs at the moment.

 

[Partron22]

repositioning the Mini to appeal to be hobbyist

Not likely unless they start supplying decent and easily programmable IO drivers again. Apple does NOT want me hooking my Mac up to the X-ray fluorescence spectrometer in my basement.

 

[fokmik]

i think they keep the update for mac mini for fall to release it along side with imacs. i wonder what kaby lake cpu are can be put on the mini? i think usb-c/tb3 is a given so it will have support for eGPU

 

[turbineseaplane]

Quad Core options and removable RAM/SSD sounds very much like the future domain of a Mac Pro

Maybe - I guess it all depends where they go with the MacPro and if they keep it mainly in the high core count number crunching domain or bring it down market and where they go with the form factor, etc.

I'd be just fine with the 2013 MP casing being the new "mini" even though its way bigger than current Mini's. Love that look and cooling solution, etc.

I basically just want some great headless Mac options again.