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As excited as I am about the mini mac, I'm that much more excited about Xbox2. :)

I know what you're thinking, "Richard, Xbox2 is a gaming console. What does that have to do with computers"?

Take a look at the specs for Xbox2. If we get close to that level of power in a gaming console, it will make one sweet little computer. That's something that the mini mac can't exactly lay claim to.

Don't get me wrong. I think the mac mini is a great concept. It's a tidy little computer that should do exactly what it was intended to do. Web surfing, iTunes vehicle, e-mail. It's just that most of its novelty is in its size. However, it's still constrained to a desk. It's cheap you say? It's better than Windows? I think with the advent of Windows XP, the whole deal about Windows being a poor OS has gone out the *ahem* window. Tired of malware? Microsoft is taking care of that problem with things like, Service Pack 2, and Microsoft's Anti-Spyware Beta1 release.

To be honest, I like the mac mini. I think it'll sell fairly well based on its cute looks and price. I know everyone says, "I don't care about power"! If Apple had taken things just a little bit further; ie, increased baseline to 512 MB RAM and 5400 RPM drive, I'd have no problems with performance. As the mac mini is in its current incarnation - people will want more.
 
FemFolder said:
Wouldn't you agree that by being targeted to pc users, and selling without a monitor, kb, or mouse, that Apple may intend for the "prospective" user base, to be current pc users that may be more knowledgeable than a basic user?
That's an interesting point, and could be true, I guess. I wouldn't have expected a most basic of macs to be targeted at anything other than the most basic of users, but if it where to play out as you have suggested I would have to tip my hat to Apple for using their heads.

It will be interesting to see what develops. I'm still at a bit of a loss to explain where this min mac in principally any different from the low end macs of the past, but perhaps the difference is what I don't see.
 
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It seems to me a lot of people think that someone will buy a mac mini, fall in love with Apple, and buy a G5. I don't see this happening. I think the type of person that buys a mac mini will say to themselves, "This is good enough." Then, in 2 or 3 years buy another mac mini.
 
Perhaps the diffence is only in price?
I've been looking at Macs for about a month, mainly because I'm interested in trying out OS X. They just seemed too expensive to me, because I can build a pc tower for around $300. I looked at some refurbs, but it seems that Macs hold their value pretty well. Even refurbs or used, cost more than I was wanting to pay. I did find some older G3's, but I wanted something that could run OS X 10.3. Otherwise it would be like buying a pc that's running WinME.

After reading the rumors about a new headless Mac, I waited to see what it was all about. I could have bought an eMac for around $800, but the price of the Mini slid right in at a level I was willing to pay to see what a Mac was all about.

I'd say they hit the target with this pc user.
 
Richard said:
It seems to me a lot of people think that someone will buy a mac mini, fall in love with Apple, and buy a G5. I don't see this happening. I think the type of person that buys a mac mini will say to themselves, "This is good enough." Then, in 2 or 3 years buy another mac mini.

Well Richard, I think a little differently.
I'm thinking I'll try the Mini, and if I like it I might move up to an iMac G5, or something similar.
Maybe by then they'll have a more robust Mini being offered. If that's the case, I'll definately consider that too.
For me, part of it hings on when Microsoft will release Longhorn.
It'll be interesting to see what developes at Apple and how MS reacts to it.
 
FemFolder said:
Wouldn't you agree that by being targeted to pc users, and selling without a monitor, kb, or mouse, that Apple may intend for the "prospective" user base, to be current pc users that may be more knowledgeable than a basic user?

I think Apple packaged it this way for people that have the accessories needed, and would like to try out OS X without spending the money on a full blown Mac.

If I find that I like the Mini, then I'll feel much more comfortable spending the money on an iMac G5 or a Power Mac.

The Min lets pc users get a taste of OS X, without breaking the bank.

Thinking about what you said I wonder if Apple considered shipping a KVM switch with the MacMini.
 
Kendan said:
Thinking about what you said I wonder if Apple considered shipping a KVM switch with the MacMini.

I've been reading in several forums, that many pc users plan to use it with a KVM.
Unfortunately my KVM's are all PS2, not USB. :-/
Fortunately, I have a spare monitor, kb and mouse I'm not using for anything else. :)
 
Take a look at the specs for Xbox2. If we get close to that level of power in a gaming console, it will make one sweet little computer. That's something that the mini mac can't exactly lay claim to.

Microsoft probably learned their lessons from the first Xbox and will lock down the Xbox2 so you can't turn it into a normal computer.

I have an Xbox with 2 hds sitting in a colo facility running a nameserver, serving some stuff over ftp, and routing an ipv6 tunnel. I don't expect I'll ever get to put an Xbox2 in next to it.
 
XWRed: check out Humanclock.org Besides a cool project, the guy has turned an old Nitendo gamo=ing console into his web server.

Mini Mac: to be or not to be ...
Add a KVM switch to your OC PC rig and a M-Mac and what do you get: A great network system! Use the the mac to administer all of your files and docs, there is no better OS than Apple Mac for this. Use the PC for the important things, like work and fragging people!
 
Honestly I was in the same boat you were in about 6 months ago. Unfortunately I wasn't open minded enough to really look at the ibooks, and powerbooks. Now I kind of regret not trying something new, instead of going with a Dell 600m(1.8ghz dothat, 1gb ram).

Since your not trying to break speed records with a laptop, I think its worth the investment especially if you see someone using OSX who really knows what they are doing. Its a very nice interface for a very stable OS. The other thing is getting linux to run decently on a laptop. I've had nothing but problems getting Fedora Core 2 running decently without lockups at shutdown, I can't get the integrated wireless to work, etc.

As for apples marketing strategy they know exactly what they are doing and they try to sell to a niche market. They are really don't seem like they are trying to take over world(a' la Bill Gates style) they are happy selling to the enthuasiasts(sp?) who buy their product. The iMAC is just a product to bring income, thats like claiming all intel does is sell celeron processors. Although they might not have the clock speed that everyone keeps bringing up(for no truly good reason as its like comparing amd to intel clock speeds), these machines run what they need to run very effieciently and I'd rather have a 2-3 year old Mac, than a 2-3 year old desktop.

Michael
 
hkgonra said:
You are a llittle off on your pricing. Several times in the past few months Dell has been giving you a P4 2.8 and a 17in. LCD for that $499 price point.
Here is an example of what I was talking about.
How can the Mini Mac compete with this ?

Dimension 3000 P4 2.8 GHz, 256MB DDR, 40GB HD, 48x CD-RW Drive, 17 in LCD $483

Dell Business has a Dimension 3000 P4 2.8 GHz, 256MB DDR, 40GB HD, 48x CD-RW Drive, 17 in E173FP Flat Panel Display for $483 after $100 Rebate with Free Shipping.

Click Here for the DEAL
Click on E-Value Code under Shopping Alternatives
Enter E-Value Code "66766-s50103t"
Select Intel Pentium 4 Processor (2.80GHz, 533 FSB) [add $84]
Final price $583 - $100 rebate = $483 Shipped
 
theMonster said:
Dells make great paperweights, Macs make great computers.

You mean Dell makes laptops I might buy, Mac makes oh look at the pretty OSX does it come with a barbie doll to?

I really don't know if this will even be a decent showcase for OSX considering everything I heard OSX only starts to be usefull with atleast 512mbs of ram.
 
speed bump said:
You mean Dell makes laptops I might buy, Mac makes oh look at the pretty OSX does it come with a barbie doll to?

I really don't know if this will even be a decent showcase for OSX considering everything I heard OSX only starts to be usefull with atleast 512mbs of ram.

Yeah. You can program that barbie doll using vi or emacs accessed from bash or tcsh and compile it with gcc. Not too shabby.

I have an ibook G3 800MHz that I picked up used last year just to play with OS X. It only had 128 which wasn't nearly enough. Talk about slow. Tossed in a 256MB stick from another old laptop for a grand total of 384 and it's running a lot better. The 256 may actually do the job but they would definitely benefit from more memory. 512 is what I would want. The drives are a bit slow too.

I would rather buy one barebones and add the rest as I see fit but it's Apple and that's not going to happen. OS X is a nice environment to work in though. It's comfortable and simple for when you don't want to bother with anything and it has a unix command line at its disposable for when you need to get dirty. I would say it's the best unix type of environment that I have worked in and it's enough to make up for some of Apple's hardware issues.

That said I am considering getting one of these to see what can be done with it. Some of the ideas being tossed about are interesting and initial demand seems to be high enough already to provide a decent peripherals market. At the very least I figure I can velcro it to the side of the desk and enjoy its silence while this vacuum cleaner box goes to the basement where it can act as a file/print/whatever server running gentoo.
 
Graphicism said:
The apple web site suckers you in and I must say it's awesome, advertising at it's best, I have been a sucker for it before. As I say, once a mac owner, never a mac owner again!


I respect your choice, but I dont share it. It just seems too limiting. I would like to have a another Mac right now, I just can't afford it yet. (the old one died) But I would also like to keep my Windows XP, and have a seperate unix box as well.

There are advantages and dis-advantages to all these, different tools for different jobs.

These things are like screwdrivers to me. If I had a phillips-head driver break on me, I would never say "I will never touch a phillips again!"

As for the Mini-Mac it sound like a good way to get into OS X for relatively cheap. Add a KVM switch and I am cooking in two kitchens, way cool!
 
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