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We have collected 7 reviews of the Apple Mac mini. Experts rate Apple Mac mini 8.3/10. Reviewsor.com helps you find reviews, best prices, user reviews of the Apple Mac mini and Apple Barebones.
The new Mac mini with Snow Leopard Server has surely been taking tips from Doctor Who's TARDIS – despite being cut from a single block of aluminium, it must somehow be bigger on the inside – how else could one shoehorn that amount of hardware into such a small form-factor? Like its predecessors, it comes without monitor, keyboard, or indeed mouse. (While it can be set up remotely, it's a good idea to connect it up to a monitor and keyboard for initial setup.) An optical drive is sacrificed for a second 500GB drive for a total of 1TB storage, while the external power brick is notable only by its absence – that's tucked inside too. Its most cunning design element is a twist-off base, which makes upgrading the supplied 4GB memory to 8GB a snap. It's quiet in use, consuming just 11W when idle, and it seems determined not to heat up, however much you thrash it. The 10.6 Server software comes pre-installed, ready for setup.
The Mac Mini has long been the most neglected product in Apple's computer range. Although it's marketed as the cheapest way to own a Mac, it's often considered underpowered considering its cost. As well as being a useful entry-level Mac, its small form factor has won it fans among the Apple faithful as a media centre machine or even a server, prompting Apple to release a dedicated Server Edition. Yet its lack of power compared to the rest of Apple's desktop range has frustrated.The mid-2010 update of the Mac Mini brings some much-needed improvements to Apple's smallest desktop, but it's still lacking in a few key areas. Apple has at last recognised its potential as a media centre, but has failed to fully exploit it, and its price point and choice of processor seem aimed at finding a niche between other Apple products.The new Mac Mini boasts a unibody casing. Using the construction process pioneered by Apple for its MacBook Pro range, the enclosure is carved from a single block of aluminium, making it light but strong. At 19.7cm wide and long it has a slightly bigger footprint than the previous model, but it's substantially thinner and 20 per cent smaller by volume.
With the Apple Mac mini with Snow Leopard Server ($999, list), the sort of flawless design and ease of use we expect from Apple comes to a space that usually offers neither: the server market. Apple's home/SMB server is strong on looks and drop-dead simplicity (for a server, anyhow) and, as you'd expect, less so on tricky functionality such as integration with Windows Active Directory. The resulting machine isn't for heavy-processing workloads, such as a database or e-commerce server with a lot of daily transactions. It's best employed as a Web server and e-mail server or for daily business processes (such as file and printer sharing). If that suits your home or SMB, this elegant little server is a great choice for a small network or workgroup that is all Apple-based or mixed with Windows 7 or XP machines. I'm impressed; I'm also impressed with OS X Leopard Server; I'll evaluate that here, too, since it's the brains of Apple's clever server. There's no question that Apple is offering the Mac mini server as an easy-to-set up alternative to Windows Small Business Server (SBS). With Windows SBS, some Microsoft server skills are required for flawless deployment; Apple, conversely, has made it simple to get a server up and running without need for an IT person or VAR.
Apple's Mac mini was always the compact computer with a few frustrations. Perfectly scaled for doing duty as your HTPC, the absence of a native HDMI port meant hooking the Mac mini up in your living room was never quite as easy as we'd like to expect from Apple. Now, with a slick unibody refresh, more media-friendly specs and a reworked I/O selection, the new Mac mini looks set to take on SFF PCs for the home entertainment crown. Check out the full SlashGear review after the cut. At first glance you could be mistaken for thinking the new Mac mini looks pretty much the same as its predecessor; in fact there are plenty of differences. Rather than the plastic shell of before, Apple have switched to CNC machined aluminum like their unibody MacBook Pro notebooks. It's also lower and wider than the computer it replaces, but by shifting the power supply brick internally the overall footprint is less. Bar the Apple logo on the top and the slot-loading DVD drive up front, the unibody shell is clean and clear; all of the ports are at the back. It's the port selection that marks the new Mac mini's other great departure: Apple has finally dropped the DVI socket and replaced it with an HDMI output (alongside the existing Mini DisplayPort).
With a new aluminum unibody chassis and a host of new components, the Apple Mac mini ($699 list) is the best little Mac on the market - maybe even the best mini PC. Improvements include better 3D graphics, a new SD card slot, greater energy efficiency, and an HDMI port that HTPC (home theater PC) fans have been clamoring for. The Mac mini is finally the mainstream, compact PC you've been searching for. It defines its category, and as such, it earns our highest recommendations and our Editors' Choice. The Apple Mac mini has been a design favorite since its introduction in 2005. However, while the components have improved and evolved from PowerPC G4 to Intel Core 2 Duo, the box has looked pretty much the same for the past 5 years. Not anymore. The new mini measures 1.4 by 7.7 by 7.7 inches (HWD) compared to the old 2 by 6.5 by 6.5 inches. Four of the six surfaces are now all aluminum, including the top and three of the four sides. The mini's back panel, which includes all its ports, is mainly black matte plastic. The system has the same shape as the old Mac mini, but its aluminum casing looks much cooler. The back connectors include four USB 2.0 ports, Gigabit Ethernet, audio in and out, and Mini DisplayPort.
We didn't love the higher-end model from Apple's most recent round of Mac Mini updates, but we're a bit more positive about this $599 version. A reasonably capable desktop, the entry-level Mac Mini will provide suitable day-to-day performance, wrapped in a familiar, still-attractive plastic and aluminum case. That combination makes this Mac Mini a sound jack-of-all trades computer, which we can recommend to anyone in need of such a system who's not dependent on Windows. Comparatively weak features for its price and a lack of HDMI hold the Mac Mini back from a higher rating. Apple has stuck with the same exterior design for the Mac Mini since the system first debuted in 2005. We have no qualms with Apple retaining a design that works, but we continue to find it surprising that in the ensuing five years, no Windows PC vendor has come close to matching the Mac Mini's compact industrial class. The only thing that has changed on the Mac Mini's exterior between iterations is the array of ports on the back. As with the $799 baseline model, the $599 Mac Mini gets you five USB 2.0 ports, a FireWire 800 jack, mini-DVI and mini-DisplayPort outputs, an Ethernet port, and headphone and audio jacks.
The Mac mini is a complete Apple computer, housed in a 16x5 cm case. It has all the necessary components for the proper functioning of a computer, including wi-fi to connect up to your network. Apple’s hook for this new version of the product is simple: Faster. Greener. Still just as small. The first and main advantage of the Mac mini is the lack of space it takes up. It is very compact and as well as being nice to look at. It adopts the aluminium Apple lines with curves and the always excellent finish. Importantly, it functions at almost zero noise levels. This is almost a problem as you don’t know whether it is on or off and have to bend down to hold your ear against it to check. It has the following connectivity: 5 USBs, 1 FireWire 800, 2 mini optical jacks, 1 RJ45, 1 mini DVI and 1 mini DisplayPort. If you want to plug in a non-Apple screen, you'll have to use the adaptors (1mini DVI to DVI supplied with the machine) sold by the manufacturer for 20 euros a piece. Something to remember: once you have plugged in your peripherals, your video adaptors and whatever other cables you’re using, the machine doesn’t look anywhere near as good. It may even tipple over if you place it on the edge of the table with the weight of the DVI and VGA connectors.
| Retailer | Information | Prices | |
|---|---|---|---|
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OPEN BOX - LIKE NEW Apple Mac Mini MC815LL/A Desktop PC - Intel Core i5 2.3 GHz Processor - 2 GB | $513.97 | See it |
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Apple (mc815ll/a) Mac Mini Dual-core Intel Core I5 2.3ghz, 2gb Ram, 500gb Har... | $568.95 | See it |
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Apple Mac Mini MC815LL/A Desktop (NEWEST VERSION) | $568.95 | See it |
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Apple Computer Apple Mac Mini 2.3GHz Intel Core i5/2GB(2x1)/500GB HD/Intel HD Graphics 3000/Lion 10.7 MC815LL/A | $568.95 | See it |
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Apple Mac Mini MC815LL/A Desktop (NEWEST VERSION) | $579.88 | See it |
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Apple MC815LL/A Mac mini | $579.88 | See it |
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OPEN BOX - LIKE NEW Apple Mac Mini MC270LL/A Desktop PC - Intel Dual-Core Core 2 Duo 2.4 GHz | $588.49 | See it |
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Apple Mac mini 2.3GHz Intel Core i5 2GB memory 500GB hard drive | $599 | See it |
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Mac Mini Dci5/2.3 2gb/500 | $599 | See it |
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Apple Mac Mini 2.3/2X1G/500/AP/BT | $599 | See it |
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Apple (z0m8-23ghz4gb500) Mac Mini Dual-core Intel Core I5 2.3ghz, 4gb Ram, 50... | $694 | See it |
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Apple Computer Apple Mac Mini 2.3GHz Intel Core i5/4GB(2x2)/500GB/Intel HD Graphics 3000/Lion 10.7 Z0M8-2000011363 | $699 | See it |
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Apple Mac Mini Desktop - Mc270ll/a (june, 2010) | $735.95 | See it |
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Apple Computer Apple BTO Mac Mini 2.3GHz Intel Core i5/2GB(2x1)/750GB/Intel HD Graphics 3000/Lion 10.7 Z0M8-2000011366 | $749 | See it |
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Apple Computer Apple Mac Mini 2.5GHz Intel Core i5/4GB(2x2)/500GB HD/AMD Radeon HD 6630M/Lion 10.7 MC816LL/A | $759.99 | See it |
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Apple Mac Mini MC816LL/A Desktop (NEWEST VERSION) | $762.95 | See it |
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Apple Mc816ll/a I5/2.5ghz/4gb Mac Mini Desktop Computer | $769.88 | See it |
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Apple Mac Mini MC816LL/A Desktop (NEWEST VERSION) | $769.88 | See it |
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Apple MC816LL/A Mac mini | $769.88 | See it |
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Apple Mc816ll/a Apple Mac Mini Mc816ll/a Desktop Co | $771.23 | See it |
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Apple Mac Mini 2.5/2X2G/500/AP/BT | $799 | See it |
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Apple Mac mini 2.5GHz Intel Core i5 4GB memory 500GB hard drive | $799 | See it |
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Apple Computer Apple BTO Mac Mini 2.3GHz Intel Core i5/4GB(2x2)/750GB/Intel HD Graphics 3000/Lion 10.7 Z0M8-2000011367 | $849 | See it |
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Apple Computer Apple BTO Mac Mini 2.3GHz Intel Core i5/8GB(2x4)/500GB/Intel HD Graphics 3000/Lion 10.7 Z0M8-2000011364 | $899 | See it |
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Apple Mac Mini Core I5 2.5ghz, 8gb Ram, Amd Radeon, Mc816ll/a A1347 Macmini 2011 | $939.99 | See it |
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Apple Mac mini MB138LL/A (1.83 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 1 GB RAM, 80 GB Hard Drive, Combo Drive) | $949.99 | See it |
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Apple MAC MINI 2.66 2X2G 1TB NO ODD AP BT | $999 | See it |
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Apple Computer Apple BTO Mac Mini 2.3GHz Intel Core i5/8GB(2x4)/750GB/Intel HD Graphics 3000/Lion 10.7 Z0M8-2000011370 | $1049 | See it |
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Apple TD6726A4 Mac mini | $1149 | See it |
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Apple Mac Mini Mc816ll/a 2.5ghz Core I5 8gb 160gb Ssd Amd Radeon 6630m Gpu | $1179 | See it |
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Apple (z0mh-20ghz8gb2750) Mac Mini Quad-core Intel Core I7 2.0ghz, 8gb Ram, 2... | $1294 | See it |
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Apple Mac Mini Z0m9 2.7ghz Core I7 2620m 8gb Radeon Hd6630m 256gb Ssd Sata3 | $1499 | See it |