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The new Mac mini is almost certainly coming
- Thread starter GabrieleR
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I’m sure it could be shrunk down too, but that’s not the point.
In reviews of the newest M1 Mac mini, in the tech and mainstream press, reviewers are not complaining about the design. In fact some state that keeping the current design is a positive thing. In these very forums people are not complaining about the design (other than for functional aspects like user-replaceable components). And if a potential customer looks at a Mac mini in an Apple Store I think it’s extremely unlikely that they would say it’s kinda ugly or outdated or needs modernising.
So no, I don’t think it’s subjective. I think it can clearly be evidenced that the mini doesn’t require a redesign in the same way that other Macs do/did.
Your post is hilarious.
You earlier stated my belief the Mac mini is getting a redesign is not a known fact. Basically, it's just an opinion. Fair enough. I can't claim it to be fact, but I can say I believe there are very strong signs it is going to happen, which is why I'm waiting to purchase. And a lot of people would agree with me, even in this very thread. Not everyone of course, but I'd hazard to guess it's the majority of the posters in this thread that share this opinion.
The hilarious part is then you hypocritically try to declare that your own opinion to be fact. What's even more odd is you're now trying to suggest that internet reviewers etc. determine Apple's aesthetic designs.
You’re talking about what they could do. None of that presents what would pass as a business case.
The external design is almost 12 years old. Visibly only the ports have noticeably changed (especially the removal of the DVD drive in 2011). It is much older than any other Mac. There are more complaints than about user-replaceable components, such as wifi issues. It is has gone through multiple major internal revisions, and the needs of Apple Silicon are very different, hence the largely empty case of the M1. A new design could be more optimised for the current internals.
The mini looked svelte compared to almost everything when it came out. That is far from the case now. A few posts ago I mentioned having a mini briefly. It looked bulky compared to everything else on my desk. Apple are no longer the design leaders they used to be, but a 12 year old computer design is surely too old for the current Apple.
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Apple doesn’t redesign something because tech YouTubers and macrumors members want a redesign. Apple redesigns something because they want to make a statement, they want to build a better product, they want to do something new for marketing reasons - there’s a plethora of reasons why Apple would either redesign the mini or keep it the same.
On a personal note, I have heard a few people say “oh I thought the mini was smaller for some reason” when they see my Mac mini. These would be average consumers and not tech YouTubers or macrumors members that said this.
Business case: new design sparks more interest, which is easier to market, which leads to more sales, so the mini stays relevant. Also they have the opportunity to fix issues present in the current design that makes a better product. Both of those are solid business reasons to want to update.
Er, the iPhone 12 box is smaller because it doesn’t contain a charger. Not because Apple thought it would be good to make the box smaller.
I think there is zero chance that Apple would redesign the Mac mini so that it has a smaller footprint in a rack. I don’t see how someone would or could build a business case around doing that.
That would indeed be a disaster for the Mini
Loads of large users out there have them racked
Also, why does the Mini even need to get smaller?
(It doesn’t)
We've already discussed this. Physically smaller device means less wasted materials and lower shipping costs.
Is it absolutely necessary? No. Would it be a factor that Apple would consider when making their decisions? Absolutely.
Exactly. It's strange that some people are trying to argue that the current Mac mini housing is the perfect size for the M1 Max and that somehow going any smaller would be a disaster. There simply is no evidence of this. In fact, the evidence available (14" MacBook Pro) argues against this.
It's even stranger that some are trying to suggest that since the Mac mini design works for a lot of people, Apple will just sit on its assets, not needing to ever change this already twelve year-old design.
It’s all opinion - I’m just stating what I think we can infer from the available facts and data. It is a fact that the press complain about the design of the iMac 27. It is a fact that they don’t complain about the design of the Mac mini. And I believe we can learn something from that about what Apple is likely to do.
I absolutely believe that public and press reaction to Apple’s product designs influences their prioritisation and product plans. You may find that odd, but I find it a completely normal and expected way of how product organisations think and work. You decide what to work on based on priorities.
Many people have it on their desk, so it would take up less space which is Apples MO. You could also fit more in a rack too, so places like Mac Stadium could purchase more mini’s per square foot.
For those that have racks using the old design and wouldn’t want to change, I’m sure within a month a 3rd party will come out with a simple conversion case to fit in the current footprint.
The press are not consumers though. And Apple doesn’t not change a design just because the press aren’t talking about it. But if the mini were much smaller, I can guarantee you the press would be talking about how Apple is able to provide the power of a 16” MacBook Pro in a super compact design. After all the name literally is Mac “mini” so the point of the product is that you can fit the performance of a massive tower into a tiny little desktop.
Look at iMac for example. Nobody was saying it was too thick. But apple made it thinner. Does it need to be that thin? No. But Apple does it because the whole idea is minimalism.
Some people have this belief that the current enclosure... designed 12 years ago... is somehow perfectly sized for the M1 Max. This concern has no basis in fact.
The other concern is Apple might take the power supply out and make it into an external brick. I can understand this concern, but that doesn't mean a smaller enclosure can't still house an internal power supply. It just depends on what Apple prioritizes.
As for the racks, if it's significantly smaller, this improves density for rack mounting. However, I suspect Apple will largely ignore the rack mounters when making their design decisions.
when I showed my mother the m1 Mac mini the first thing she said was its not very mini. That's coming from someone who has never seen a mini pc before too. I do hope they change the design.
Then just call it a "Mac" (and drop the Mini -- which is a highly subjective descriptor)
Making it even smaller has few benefits...but will make for potential thermal issues down the line and limiting port possibilities (depending upon how small)...overall just "limiting options" (especially later on)
Meh. If Apple Silicon ceases to be power efficient in 5 years or whatever, they can just increase the size then.
However, I'm sure Apple will build a certain level of cushion into its new design.
This is what I thought was the concern. The current design can still shrink in size, while still retaining the same exact thermals. There is only one fan, and the fan does not need the full size of the mini case to fit inside.
So my assumption is that they can make the mini smaller, while also not compromising on ports and thermals.
I'm enjoying this debate about whether there will be a redesign of the Mini. It reminds me of the heated arguments in this thread during the 1475 days between the 2014 and 2018 Mac mini releases. In one camp were the "the new Mac mini is almost certainly coming" people; in the other, the "trust me, the Mini is dead, Apple has killed it, you will never see anther Mac mini." Within the former camp there was also a lot of speculation that the Mini would be redesigned, with a fair number of interesting renders, and plenty of skeptics.
I guess we may find out soon about redesign or not. I am happy with my Space Grey 2018, and don't really need an upgrade yet. I would be fine with the same design, if the bluetooth issues are solved and it comes in Space Grey, or with a new one if when I see it I like it. But there doesn't seem to be much doubt that the new Mac mini is almost certainly coming.
I guess we may find out soon about redesign or not. I am happy with my Space Grey 2018, and don't really need an upgrade yet. I would be fine with the same design, if the bluetooth issues are solved and it comes in Space Grey, or with a new one if when I see it I like it. But there doesn't seem to be much doubt that the new Mac mini is almost certainly coming.
I just think if your reducing the Mac mini smaller and smaller you start looking at the lower end Mac laptops as more useful to drive a external display. The Mac Mini actually needs to grow in size and become something akin to headless iMac for consumers that want to use their own displays.
Even though those "rack mounters" are Apple's largest customer(s) for the mini. I would have to disagree with your statement. I definitely believe Apple keeps those customers in mind regarding the mini's design.
I don’t follow this logic at all? This makes no sense to me. How would an M1 Air be more useful for someone that wants an M1 Max chip and 64GB of ram?
The press hardly ever talk about the Mac mini at all. I suspect it will remain that way until there is a redesign.
I don't either -- but I don't want them to make it the size of an Apple TV and then port constrain it, etc
A desktop computer doesn't need to get even smaller than the already small footprint