Mac mini (Intel)

From Mac Guides

The Mac mini was the third Mac to move to an Intel processor (after the 15" MacBook Pro and the iMac). It continued to be aimed at the low-end market for those who only do light computing or need a cheap second computer.

Contents 1 Design 2 Rev. G 3 Rev. F 4 Rev. E 5 Rev. D 5.1 Overview 5.2 Specifications 6 Rev. C 6.1 Overview 6.2 Specifications 7 Rev. B 7.1 Overview 7.2 Specifications 8 Rev. A 8.1 Overview 8.2 Specifications

Design

After suffering from the commercial failure of the Cube, Apple made sure that the Mac mini was targeted at consumers looking for a budget price instead of professionals which were the target market for the Cube.

Note: Rev G, F and E are low end models

Rev. G

Update date: July 20, 2011 Original Price (US): US$599 Est. Current Retail: US$599

For more visit: [[1]]

Rev. F

Update date: June 15, 2010 Original Price (US): US$699 Est. Current Retail: US$500-US$600

For more visit: [[2]]

Rev. E

Update date: October 20, 2009 Original Price (US): US$599 Est. Current Retail: US$500-US$600

For more visit: [[3]]

Rev. D

Overview

After a wait of over a year and a half, the Mac mini was finally updated on March 3, 2009. Like some of the other minis, the new Mac mini shares almost all of its components with the MacBook. The 9400M was a welcome upgrade from the GMA 950 as well as the addition of a FireWire 800 port and the new Mini Displayport.

Specifications

	Low-end	High-end
Price (USD)	$599	$799
Processor	Intel Core 2 Duo at 2 GHz (BTO up to 2.26 GHz)
	1066 MHz system bus, 3 MB shared L2 cache
Memory	1 GB (2x 512 MB) 1066 MHz DDR3 SDRAM	2 GB (2x 1 GB) 1066 MHz DDR3 SDRAM
	Supports up to 4 GB (2x 2 GB)
Storage	120 GB Serial ATA at 5,400rpm	320 GB Serial ATA at 5,400rpm
	BTO options of up to 320 GB at 5,400rpm	NO BTO options
Graphics	NVIDIA GeForce 9400M using 128 MB of RAM if 1 GB installed, or 256 MB if 2 GB or over.
Media	8x Double-layer SuperDrive (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Wireless	Airport Extreme and Bluetooth
Connectivity	10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet, five external USB 2.0 ports, a FireWire 800 port, optical digital and analog audio in/out.
Speaker	Built-in mono speaker

Rev. C

Overview

The Mac Mini was updated after a media event on August 7, 2007. Like the previous update, only modest changes were made. Core 2 Duo processors were added, a change that the MacBook, MacBook Pro and the Intel iMac had made in 2006.

Specifications

	Low-end	High-end
Price (USD)	$599	$799
Processor	Intel Core 2 Duo at 1.83 GHz	Intel Core 2 Duo at 2 GHz
	667 MHz system bus, 2 MB shared L2 cache	667 MHz system bus, 4 MB shared L2 cache
Memory	1 GB (2x 512 MB) 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM (PC2-5300)
	Supports up to 2 GB (2x 1 GB)
Storage	80 GB Serial ATA at 5,400rpm	120 GB Serial ATA at 5,400rpm
	BTO options of up to 160 GB 5,400rpm
Graphics	Intel GMA 950 using 80 MB of system RAM
Media	24x ComboDrive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW)	8x Double-layer SuperDrive (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Wireless	Airport Extreme and Bluetooth
Connectivity	10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet, four external USB 2.0 ports, a FireWire 400 port, optical digital and analog audio in/out.
Speaker	Built-in mono speaker

Rev. B

Overview

Released on September 6, 2006, the only change made was the move to Intel Core Duo processors for both models. Pricing and other specifications remained unchanged.

Specifications

	Low-end	High-end
Price (USD)	$599	$799
Processor	Intel Core Duo at 1.66 GHz	Intel Core Duo at 1.83 GHz
	667 MHz system bus, 2 MB shared L2 cache
Memory	512 MB (2x 256 MB) 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM (PC2-5300)
	Supports up to 2 GB (2x 1 GB)
Storage	60 GB Serial ATA at 5,400rpm	80 GB Serial ATA at 5,400rpm
	BTO options of up to 160 GB 5,400rpm
Graphics	Intel GMA 950 using 80 MB of system RAM
Media	24x ComboDrive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW)	8x Double-layer SuperDrive (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Wireless	Airport Extreme and Bluetooth
Connectivity	10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet, four external USB 2.0 ports, a FireWire 400 port, optical digital and analog audio in/out.
Speaker	Built-in mono speaker

Rev. A

Overview

The Intel based Mac mini was announced on February 28, 2006 [4]. At its release, Apple claimed that in some cases it performed up to 5x better than it's PowerPC predecessor. The processor was also upgradeable meaning that some people could potentially increase its effective lifespan.

While the processor boasted increased performance, an integrated graphics chipset provided by Intel meant that it performed slightly worse in almost all cases in games than the previous Mac mini. The integrated graphics chipset uses 80 MB of system RAM while the PowerPC based Mac mini used an ATI Radeon 9200 with 32 MB of dedicated VRAM.

The Intel based Mac minis sold for $100 and $200 more than the G4 models they replaced, respectively. However, the Intel models include an Apple remote ($29), a larger hard drive on the low-end model, Airport Extreme and Bluetooth as standard.

Specifications

	Low-end	High-end
Price (USD)	$599	$799
Processor	Intel Core Solo at 1.5 GHz	Intel Core Duo at 1.66 GHz
	667 MHz system bus, 2 MB shared L2 cache
Memory	512 MB (2x 256 MB) 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM (PC2-5300)
	Supports up to 2 GB (2x 1 GB)
Storage	60 GB Serial ATA at 5,400rpm	80 GB Serial ATA at 5,400rpm
	BTO options of up to 160 GB 5,400rpm
Graphics	Intel GMA 950 using 80 MB of system RAM
Media	24x ComboDrive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW)	8x Double-layer SuperDrive (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Wireless	Airport Extreme and Bluetooth
Connectivity	10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet, four external USB 2.0 ports, a FireWire 400 port, optical digital and analog audio in/out.
Speaker	Built-in mono speaker