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You are here: MacNN Forums > News > Tech News > 'One more thing' from Apple: Mac mini refresh

'One more thing' from Apple: Mac mini refresh
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NewsPoster
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Oct 16, 2014, 02:27 PM
 
Alongside a new iMac, Apple has refreshed the Mac mini. The new Mac mini brings Intel fourth-generation "Haswell" processors to the diminutive computer, which retains the same form factor. Also added are a pair of Thunderbolt 2 ports, replacing the single original Thunderbolt port in the 2012 model. More importantly, the base price for a new entry-level Mac mini model that will have performance specs similar to the entry-level MacBook Air, has dropped by $100 to a new floor of $499.

Graphics on the Mac Mini are now Intel Iris (for the mid-tier and high-end models) or HD Graphics 5000 (for the entry-level model). The base model is a dual-core i5 processor running at 1.4GHz, with peak speeds hitting 2.7GHz. A 500GB hard drive is included in the $499 configuration. Up to a 3.0GHz i7 processor (with peak speeds of 3.5Ghz) can be purchased as a "build to order" configuration. Four USB 3.0 ports are included, alongside the pair of Thunderbolt 2 ports.

Memory on the entry-level model is 4GB, with 8GB in the midrange and high-end model. Prices range from $499 for the entry level, up to $1000 for a 2.8GHz i7 with Fusion drive. "Build to order" configuration pricing will vary.
( Last edited by NewsPoster; Oct 17, 2014 at 04:50 AM. )
     
DiabloConQueso
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Oct 16, 2014, 03:24 PM
 
No more Mac mini Server option on the store. I always wondered why, beyond support for dual-drives, that was ever a completely separate option.
     
Mike Wuerthele
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Oct 16, 2014, 03:56 PM
 
The current form factor mini HAS dual-drive support as-is with the addition of a little cable stub. The bracket is there, the ports are there, just the cable connecting the drive to the motherboard isn't.
     
DiabloConQueso
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Oct 16, 2014, 04:04 PM
 
Yes, I should have said "without requiring CTO or aftermarket upgrades." The difference being that you could order a Mac mini with dual-drives, now you can't... but the dual-drive capability still exists in the machines.
     
DiabloConQueso
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Oct 16, 2014, 04:12 PM
 
Also of note is that the base-level Mac mini is underpowered compared to the previous base-level Mac mini, which explains the $100 price drop. The base-level $499 Mac mini now uses the same mobile-variant, slow-clocked (1.4GHz), low-power i5 chip found in the MacBook Air and lowest-level 21.5" iMac.

There is no $599 Mac Mini anymore. The next jump is $699. It looks like Apple took the entry-level Mac mini, swapped in the slow-clocked, mobile, low-power i5 processor, dropped the price $100, and got rid of the $599 Mac mini altogether.
     
Thomasbeau
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Oct 16, 2014, 04:17 PM
 
I use all Mac mini servers at my office. The lack of the pre-configured server model with the i7 processor is very disappointing.
     
Mike Wuerthele
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Oct 16, 2014, 04:20 PM
 
Originally Posted by DiabloConQueso View Post
Also of note is that the base-level Mac mini is underpowered compared to the previous base-level Mac mini, which explains the $100 price drop. The base-level $499 Mac mini now uses the same mobile-variant, slow-clocked (1.4GHz), low-power i5 chip found in the MacBook Air and lowest-level 21.5" iMac.

There is no $599 Mac Mini anymore. The next jump is $699. It looks like Apple took the entry-level Mac mini, swapped in the slow-clocked, mobile, low-power i5 processor, dropped the price $100, and got rid of the $599 Mac mini altogether.
It is, in essence, the MacBook Air, minus the SSD. I have grave concerns over the real-world speed of this machine.
     
DiabloConQueso
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Oct 16, 2014, 04:27 PM
 
Another change I just noticed: there's no longer any kind of option for a quad-core processor in any of the CTO configurations.

If I remember correctly, you could CTO a quad-core i7 in the previous Mac minis, and the server option was a quad-core i7 by default.
     
bdmarsh
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Oct 16, 2014, 05:00 PM
 
hmm... would be interesting to see some speed tests of the old quad i7 vs the new dual i7. I suspect for some things the older quad would still win.
     
coffeetime
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Oct 17, 2014, 07:32 AM
 
Disappointed that it still can't take 32GB of RAM.
     
hayesk
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Oct 17, 2014, 12:45 PM
 
Do people really need a quad-core i7 for a home or small office server? Yeah, that option is gone, for reasons I can't fathom, but I doubt it was really that necessary in a small server setting.
     
chucker
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Oct 19, 2014, 09:23 AM
 
At least one good thing about having such an underpowered machine in their line-up, is that future versions of os x should be able to run on this calibre of machine for some time,
     
   
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