Mac mini get 4/5 on PCMag

I think the hard drive is less of an issue than the unmentioned Video Memory. At least the disk drive can be upgraded, or complimented with an external drive. Ah well.
 
Harddrive can be upgraded, yes, but only to 100 GB right now, since it's 2.5" drives (notebook type). And not only are these smaller and slower than 'real' 3.5" drives, they're also more expensive. Which will lead to people using external drives. Which'll probably lead to those Mac mini form factor FW-drive enclosures you can stack under or above the Mac mini. At least I hope so... Apple could make lots of money selling empty FW cases. ;)

The graphics card is certainly good enough for such a cheap Mac, I think. Sure, it won't be _the_ gamer's Mac. But then again: Sony's PlayStation 2 is the gamer's Mac rather than any Mac, I think. And for what it's intended, the Mac mini does well, I think.

However: As I want to integrate mine into my home theatre system, I guess I'll have to use external FW drives. Not the ideal solution, space-wise and style-wise. An internal 500 GB drive would be nice. Maybe we _will_ some day see a slightly larger 'mini' that adds that and some kind of TV/radio tuner?
 
fryke said:
Maybe we _will_ some day see a slightly larger 'mini' that adds that and some kind of TV/radio tuner?
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TV tuner would be cool, Vid Capture would be excellent. HDTV capture would be heaven on earth, but you'll need at least a WD Raptor to pull it off.

Seems when I finally gt one of these Mini Mac's I'll have to decide what I want to do with it.
 
Imagine how much these extras would add to the size and cost of the mini. It might be cool to have them, but at what price? At what point is it the mini no more?
 
Arden said:
Imagine how much these extras would add to the size and cost of the mini. It might be cool to have them, but at what price? At what point is it the mini no more?
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That's true for any computer, not just the mini. If it's a desktop unit, which the mini is, it's less of an issue than a laptop. For instance, on my PB17, I often hook up my external HDs, my Soundsticks, the printer, my external keyboard, my Trackman, my GarageBand keyboard, my iPod(s), my iSight and my camera. That's not even mentioning the power supply nor the external monitor I want.
 
XBox or PS2 or GameCube, whatever: I just meant that for gamers that are Mac users, a console might be the better way, coz the games are there...

TV tuner cards can be very small indeed. And I _did_ say they'd maybe have to expand the case for that. But it'd still be one sleek desktop. Wouldn't have to be much higher. Just a bit wider perhaps (to put a 'real' harddrive next to the optical and use the gained space for the TV/graphics hardware)... Whether they'd still call it a mini doesn't really matter to me. I'm talking features here. :)
 
Randman said:
That's not even mentioning the power supply nor the external monitor I want.
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Good point, poor grammar. Correct: That's not even mentioning [either] the power supply or the external monitor...

Also acceptable: That's to mention neither the power supply nor even the external monitor...

Nor is used in conjunction with neither: Neither wind nor rain, etc. ;)

Back on topic, should Apple ever really create a fully integrated media center along the lines of the mini, they might do well to break it down into a modular, stackable system. (Right now Apple advises against stacking anything on top of the mini.) There would be less trouble this way were any single component to require replacement, and it would also make it easier to add peripherals in a variety of configurations. The system's foot print would remain small and the appearance would still be quite sleek.

CNET just posted this little article about the coming rage for mini systems.
 
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