Mac mini Overview Updated August 28, 2017
Launched in 2005 as the first sub-$500 Mac — a key in attracting “switchers” from Windows PCs — the Mac mini ($499 and up from the Apple Store) was most recently redesigned in 2011. Made from aluminum with a black plastic bottom and back, the mini is internally akin to a MacBook Air or low-end MacBook Pro without a screen. The base $499 model has an Air-like 1.4GHz Core i5 processor with a 500GB hard drive and 4GB of RAM, while the $699 step up roughly doubles the CPU speed, hard drive space, and RAM. Measuring 7.7″ by 7.7″ by 1.4″ tall, it has four USB 3 ports, an Ethernet port, HDMI port, and twin Thunderbolt 2 ports, plus a SDXC card reader.
You supply the monitor, keyboard, and mouse/trackpad yourself, but it’s built to work with any of your existing peripherals. Many people use Mac minis in their home entertainment centers, which is possible thanks to the HDMI port for HDTV connectivty. The Mac mini was last updated in October 2014 with faster processors and new storage options. Around the Christmas holiday, Apple restored a 2TB storage option found on the previous generation of the computer. A completely new look could debut in the next couple of years, though Apple historically has left the Mac mini to age a bit, as it doesn’t want to distract attention from its higher-end computers.
Mac mini Stories August 28
AAPL: 161.47
Transcend, which has long offered Mac owners the chance to upgrade their SSDs to higher-capacity ones, has announced a new range of drives that support PCIe Gen 3.0. These cards, which use the latest 3D NAND flash chips, offer read/write speeds of up to 950MB/s.
The new JetDrive 820 drives are available in capacities of up to 960GB, and are compatible with a wide range of Macs …
Mac mini Stories April 6
AAPL: 143.66
Earlier this week Apple promised that new iMacs with pro configurations will be available by the end of the year ahead of its modular Mac Pro debut. While Apple didn’t share exactly what we might see in these new iMacs, one source believes it may have an idea about what to expect including other new hardware.
Mac mini Stories April 4
AAPL: 144.77
Apple slightly updated the Mac Pro today and promised a radical new modular design coming next year alongside a pro Apple display. Within the news shared through Daring Fireball were also mentions of a new pro iMac coming later this year and a vague reference to possibly new Mac mini hardware.
Mac mini Stories March 6, 2016
AAPL: 103.01
Update: Version 2.92 of Transmission has now been released. This claims to actively remove the ‘KeyRanger’ malware files from the infected Mac.
OS X users have today been hit with the first known case of Mac ‘ransomware’ malware, found in the Transmission BitTorrent client released last week. Infected versions of the app include ‘KeyRanger’ malware that will maliciously encrypt the user’s hard drive after three days of being installed. The malware then asks for payment to allow the user to decrypt the disk and access their data — the ‘ransom’.
Mac mini Stories January 22, 2016
AAPL: 101.42
Mac users can now try out new Microsoft Office features early with ‘Office Insider’ program
Microsoft opened up a beta test program for Windows users last November, letting Microsoft Office fanatics get early access to upcoming new features. Microsoft is now rolling out the program to the Mac, so OS X users can (optionally) join the beta program too. For the first round of the beta program, Microsoft will be adding inking and realtime typing / collaboration to PowerPoint. Expect these features in the ‘coming weeks’. More details available here.
Mac mini Stories January 20, 2016
AAPL: 96.79
Siri percolated throughout all of Apple’s platforms in 2015. It started with iPhone in 2011, iPad in 2012, debuted on Apple Watch in early 2015 and Apple TV with the new model a few months ago. It’s quickly becoming a premier feature on these platforms, with live-as-you-speak transcription and radically new features like ‘Remind me about this’ contextual tasks when inside apps. Except for one platform of course. Mac OS X has been ignored and left abandoned with regards to true voice searching and Siri. It’s 2016, and I want Apple to bring Siri to the Mac.
