Apple Mac Mini 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Processor 120 GB HD (MB463LLA) Mac Desktop
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Mac Mini MB463LL/A: a surprisingly nice and powerful computer
Pros
Size, speed, RAM capacity, video performance, expansion ports, quietness, reduction in cables.
Cons
Only that it lacks a FireWire 400 port, but that can be remedied for $15.
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
If you need a computer that can run both Mac and Windows software, with speed, quietness, expandability, and small size, the Mac Mini is a great choice. Very impressive.
I decided recently to replace our 2001 model Power Mac G4 Digital Audio tower computer. It's still a nice computer, but its size, number of cords draping from it, power required to operate it, its 1.5GB RAM limitation, and its increasing inability to keep up with online video feeds made me think it was time to move up.
My first thought was to buy another PowerBook (we have several) or a new MacBook, but then the idea of the Mini occurred to me, with its compact size, power, and ability to use our existing LCD monitor and our keyboard, and all for a very reasonable price. It also offers the plus, with its Intel processor, of being able run both Mac and Windows software.
After looking at different sources online, I settled on buying a new Mini, model MB463LL/A, from the Apple Store online, the first brand-new Mac I've bought since the first one we got in 1990. At a base price of only $599 and free shipping, it didn't cost much more than a used older Mini with less speed and RAM. The base price included 1GB of RAM (out of a capacity of 4GB), a 120GB hard drive, and OS X 10.5 Leopard. I added another 1GB RAM module and iWork software, plus an ADC-DVI adapter that would allow us to connect our Apple Studio Display, to complete my order.
I was surprised to find that the Mini would be shipping from, I suppose, the factory in Shenzhen, China, with two-day shipping! Two days later, a small cubic box arrived, along with a larger, flatter, rectangular box. The bigger box, with the adapter inside, had come from our usual Apple Store source, which is Memphis, Tenn. The little box though was the one from Shenzhen. In typical Apple fashion, the retail boxes for the two items bore the same classy industrial design as the contents did.
It didn't take long to set up the new hardware, though my son and I spent some time brainstorming on how to mount the monitor adapter under the desk where it would be unseen. This little 6"x6"x2" powerhouse is now sitting under our monitor. It's about 1/15 the size of the G4 tower and almost silent in operation. That's a big contrast to the G4, which made a good bit of noise from its fan while in operation.
The 2GHz core 2 duo processor is fast. I had put an OWC 7448 1.7GHz G4 card in the Power Mac tower, which sped it up a lot. I ran XBench on both machines, however, and the Mini not only feels faster, it IS faster by over 2.5 times. Part of this is the dual core processor, but perhaps the biggest factor is the 1066MHz bus speed, compared to the G4's 133MHz. That's eight times as fast. Add to that the NVIDIA Geforce 9400M video card and increased RAM, and you've got a fast little computer that plays internet videos as clearly as a TV set.
For internet, you can hook a modem up to the ethernet port or to a USB port. What I'm using, however, is the built-in Airport 802.11n card, which makes for a fast internet experience without wires. There's not a traditional dial-up modem port, something folks who live out in the country may need. It would be easy to attach a USB dial-up modem, however. Bluetooth is also onboard, so you can use a wireless keyboard if you like.
The front simply has an opening for the Superdrive DVD burner and a a small power light. The one time the Mini gets noisy is when burning a DVD. The usual "squirrel cage" noises come from the burner when in use. The sides are blank, but the back is covered with ports. The G4 had two built-in USB 1.1 ports and two built-in FireWire 400 ports. I had added a USB 2.0/FireWire combo PCI card to the G4 to get the increased speed offered by USB 2. The Mini, however, has five built-in USB 2 ports and one FireWire 800 port, along with two monitor ports (one of them DVI) and an ethernet RJ-45 port. We never seem to have enough USB ports, so I attached a 4-port adapter that I had on hand, which added a net of three additional USB 2 ports, for a total of eight. I need to get a FireWire 400/800 adapter so that I can connect our camcorder, but otherwise the port layout is great.
Apple seems to have, with the air intakes around the perimeter of the bottom, solved the heat problem, because this little computer runs cool. I haven't checked it yet with temperature software, but there's virtually no heat on any surface of the Mini. The Mini is also very energy efficient, and according to Apple it uses 45% less energy than the previous Mini model.
The Mac Mini is a very nice compact computer. I have definitely been favorably impressed. My initial impression when the Mini first came out was that it seemed like a computer without a market: no monitor, no keyboard, no mouse. I just had to be in a position to need that bare-bones offering, however. Now that I'm using it, I can say this is a powerhouse in a small package, that is up to the challenges of most users.
My first thought was to buy another PowerBook (we have several) or a new MacBook, but then the idea of the Mini occurred to me, with its compact size, power, and ability to use our existing LCD monitor and our keyboard, and all for a very reasonable price. It also offers the plus, with its Intel processor, of being able run both Mac and Windows software.
After looking at different sources online, I settled on buying a new Mini, model MB463LL/A, from the Apple Store online, the first brand-new Mac I've bought since the first one we got in 1990. At a base price of only $599 and free shipping, it didn't cost much more than a used older Mini with less speed and RAM. The base price included 1GB of RAM (out of a capacity of 4GB), a 120GB hard drive, and OS X 10.5 Leopard. I added another 1GB RAM module and iWork software, plus an ADC-DVI adapter that would allow us to connect our Apple Studio Display, to complete my order.
I was surprised to find that the Mini would be shipping from, I suppose, the factory in Shenzhen, China, with two-day shipping! Two days later, a small cubic box arrived, along with a larger, flatter, rectangular box. The bigger box, with the adapter inside, had come from our usual Apple Store source, which is Memphis, Tenn. The little box though was the one from Shenzhen. In typical Apple fashion, the retail boxes for the two items bore the same classy industrial design as the contents did.
It didn't take long to set up the new hardware, though my son and I spent some time brainstorming on how to mount the monitor adapter under the desk where it would be unseen. This little 6"x6"x2" powerhouse is now sitting under our monitor. It's about 1/15 the size of the G4 tower and almost silent in operation. That's a big contrast to the G4, which made a good bit of noise from its fan while in operation.
The 2GHz core 2 duo processor is fast. I had put an OWC 7448 1.7GHz G4 card in the Power Mac tower, which sped it up a lot. I ran XBench on both machines, however, and the Mini not only feels faster, it IS faster by over 2.5 times. Part of this is the dual core processor, but perhaps the biggest factor is the 1066MHz bus speed, compared to the G4's 133MHz. That's eight times as fast. Add to that the NVIDIA Geforce 9400M video card and increased RAM, and you've got a fast little computer that plays internet videos as clearly as a TV set.
For internet, you can hook a modem up to the ethernet port or to a USB port. What I'm using, however, is the built-in Airport 802.11n card, which makes for a fast internet experience without wires. There's not a traditional dial-up modem port, something folks who live out in the country may need. It would be easy to attach a USB dial-up modem, however. Bluetooth is also onboard, so you can use a wireless keyboard if you like.
The front simply has an opening for the Superdrive DVD burner and a a small power light. The one time the Mini gets noisy is when burning a DVD. The usual "squirrel cage" noises come from the burner when in use. The sides are blank, but the back is covered with ports. The G4 had two built-in USB 1.1 ports and two built-in FireWire 400 ports. I had added a USB 2.0/FireWire combo PCI card to the G4 to get the increased speed offered by USB 2. The Mini, however, has five built-in USB 2 ports and one FireWire 800 port, along with two monitor ports (one of them DVI) and an ethernet RJ-45 port. We never seem to have enough USB ports, so I attached a 4-port adapter that I had on hand, which added a net of three additional USB 2 ports, for a total of eight. I need to get a FireWire 400/800 adapter so that I can connect our camcorder, but otherwise the port layout is great.
Apple seems to have, with the air intakes around the perimeter of the bottom, solved the heat problem, because this little computer runs cool. I haven't checked it yet with temperature software, but there's virtually no heat on any surface of the Mini. The Mini is also very energy efficient, and according to Apple it uses 45% less energy than the previous Mini model.
The Mac Mini is a very nice compact computer. I have definitely been favorably impressed. My initial impression when the Mini first came out was that it seemed like a computer without a market: no monitor, no keyboard, no mouse. I just had to be in a position to need that bare-bones offering, however. Now that I'm using it, I can say this is a powerhouse in a small package, that is up to the challenges of most users.
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