Apple Set to Launch $500 Mac

[NightWing]

I will say after 6 months or a year they will have a display version of the Flash iPod. That was one mistake that Creative Labs did on their mp3 micro player.

[jpconard]

Assuming one was interested in one of these Macs but not at all familiar, could a MAC user answer any of the following? -

1) What AMD/Intel CPU speed are these G4 comparable to?

2) What would the capture options be for this unit? I assume external USB2 device or digital camcorder with analog pass-thru to the Firewire port. What built in software would be used with capture?

3) What MAC program is comparable to DVDShrink?

4) What printers/keyboards would this support? I have Logitech wireless keyboard/mouse will it work with these MACs, or I have a neat Zippy mini USB keyboard that would look great with these, but would it work?

I am asking for myself although my Shuttle does great (except for loud fan noise). Somebody I know wants to get into capture/DVD burner, but has to purchase capture card/burner and has not caught on to the Windows PC. I am thinking this may be a better option for somebody needing to learn and do capture/DVD burn.

Any answers/comments would be appreciated.

[rumplestiltskin]

The Mac Mini might make a nice "portable" if one has a set of monitor/keyboard/mouse at home and at work. Just toss the unit into your briefcase (smaller and more robust than an iBook) and take it home.

Apple is also marketing the Mini with a KVM option. Exactly how I use my Mac (with a KVM so I can also use my Shuttle). It's a great way of keeping two computers in the space of one.

While the specs do not approach the performance of a 3.2GHz P4 in an 800MHz FSB motherboard, the fact that Apple is bundling all of the iApps with this unit will make it a winner. Ask any Mac user; the iLife suite makes creating and managing your digital media embarrassingly easy.

Again, PC alpha geeks will turn up their noses but, mark my words: This one is a winner.

[NightWing]

With firewire easy to drop extra HD and burnner on it.

There are cheep KVM and KB/mouse avaiable. Did any notist the adapter for a tv?

Is there such a thing as the "Astroide" sound box already?

It make sense on both size and abblities. You do not need the biggest hot rod to go get a carton of milk at the local 7/11. That is proven since it has a modem built in along with a net connector.

Though it was intersting to see Quicken 2005 as one of the programs.

As stated in other net places. Bet you will see external drive boxes shape to fit under over the Mini.

One way to look at this box is its a hightly refined Linux box all setup and ready to go. Wonder if it can boot without a monitor/kbd/mouse and run some software. IE a micro server? Last Mac I played with was a Fat Mac!

[vitualis]

Ask any Mac user; the iLife suite makes creating and managing your digital media embarrassingly easy.

I don't deny this. But look at the specs... 256 MB of RAM on Mac OS X!

And a Radeon 9200 with 32 MB?? No DVD burner?

And don't forget, upgrading this little machine is not as simple as simply getting the screwdrivers out!

You're not going to get much milage out of this baby in the multimedia scene.

Again, PC alpha geeks will turn up their noses but, mark my words: This one is a winner.

It will probably sell well, but that doesn't make it a good machine... Just like the iPOD is far from the "best" HDD based MP3 player from a technical and features point of view.

Regards.

[oceanview]

While I don't mind the MAC and have even enjoyed using them, I don't see this as a runaway hot seller. No argument that there are a number of things that Mac'd do well...have great graphics, are self reliant and easy to use when everything is working well as it usually does.

Mac's biggest problem has always been "overpricing". And Job's and company still haven't figured out why they have less that 7% of the PC market...and this is going back years now.

Mac's biggest problem and and it will always contine to be...is the attitude to consumers and perceived value. Over priced hardware and software will not improve your market share.

For that kind of money I would certainly invest in a top notch PC; Windows may have it's issues; but it's only been getting better and better. And linux is making a bold statement on the OS front as well.

Are you listening and learning MAC? Volume equals market share!

For the diehard Mac fans...enjoy this model...cause I'm sure it will be outdated (obsolete) in...5 months....ok...7 months after it's public release.

Thanks for listening...and FYI...I have nothing personal against Mac's or Mac users.

later....

[energy80s]

Indeed. I believe that the two biggest handicaps for the Apple community are the cost and the "locked-in" nature of the hardware & software. Windows / Linux based PCs are much cheaper to construct and have far more varied software available than the Mac will ever have.

Would I buy a Mac at any price (even £99) errr ... no!

[NightWing]

As one of my Prof's use to say. "You cant compare Apples and Fish heads"! Here is wher the 499 is cheep when compared with a true PC in it size and weight catagory.

The cost to build a 6.5" x 6.5" x 2" size computer would be tough for a PC variant at this time. Those board that would meet this size requirement are costly and even have lower CPU and Bus speed. Add in a Micro case etc that price starts to jump.

You can beat the heck out of the price if you make a standard size PC. About 200 range with down loaded Linux or 300 with XP home or 340 XP Pro { OEM versions }. The real comparason is to dup not function but also size.

For example. Local white box cost to equlevent part & spects but not size is around 289 ( Simptron/256mb ram/40gb hd/etc } + XP Home 82 = 371. And that not counting matching software like quicken 2005 or 20 for a firewire port. It about 3 to 5 mini in size. And will make a bit more noise.

You can scround and get it for less. Use linux. Cheeper parts. Or by a Dell/Gateway/etc. But that not really comparing line for line. Like comparing a portable stereo to a home entainment center. Or two different class of prize fighters.

The item about its Apple OS on Apple's hardware is that it cures some bad problems of imcompatablity that PC have always had since day one. Think about how much Windows has to be flexable handling old/new/junk hardware to run. Some of the mess down inside is cause by this problem. Not saying Mac does not have it own but for a person that work on WinTell boxes I have seen my pile of junk along with writing software and installers for a PC.

Not banging on anyones case but just stating for a real telling of the tape need to comapare Apple's with Apple's so to speak.

PS: Be intersting to see if they put Tiger out of the box on it when Tiger becomes avaiable.

[rumplestiltskin]

iPod - 70% share of the HD-based market and this is at a time when there -are- many other choices...but it's a bad machine because it "is far from the "best" HDD based MP3 player from a technical and features point of view." I guess if you include WMA in your calculations, you're right. Frankly, I prefer non-proprietary formats so I use mp3. (No, I don't own an iPod as I don't have a desire to walk through life unable to hear the world.)

Someone wrote that Macs don't have a large enough choice of software. Hmmm, head over to versiontracker or macupdate and do a search; around 15,000 titles for OSX (plus all the "Classic" software form OS9 that continues to run).

Linux? Sorry; that's still for uber-geeks. When the installation process for the OS and apps becomes "one-click", it will have a mainstream chance. Don't get me wrong; I loved the "RevolutionOS" movie but the people who buy into Linux are even cheaper bastards than Windows users so they only cobble together parts and brag about how well it runs with a '386. Fine but consider the thread of this topic peole.

Will the Mac Mini sell? You bet; big time.

Will it cause geeks to abandon their PCs (Windows or Linux)? No way.

Will it convince owners of older eMachines & Acers & Gateways to buy a Mac? As they're probably the ones sufferering with the spyware and viruses, you bet.

Frankly, the PC geeks should pray that the Mac Mini is a success. Why? Those PC'ers who switch will unplug their "hijacked" PCs and much of the spam- and virus-generating relay(?) machines will be taken offline as a result!

Is the Mac Mini a technological throwback? No way. It's just not the latest technology...but if that's all that's a concern for you, then buy that G5 tower. Every computer company has a "product line"; some units are better and more expensive and some aren't.

As for Tiger: It will run on the Mini and, when it's released in June, the Mini will ship with it.

[flaninacupboard]

My PC plays games, encodes video, surfs the web, plays video, and mucks about with photos (been playing with a dye-sub printer since christmas - good stuff!).

If the mac mini could connect to my windows network (can they?) talk to my digital camera (card readers are available right?) play back whatever movies i have (they have new codecs, right?) and display web pages properly (i'm pretty sure they can do that) and this box kicks out less noise than the powerdrill my tower represents, i'll get one. it'd be lovely in the bedroom for watching the odd movie, reading emails and surfing the web in the morning and late at night. the noise-box can go elsewhere - with the additional advantage i can leave long encodes overnight (sleeping near this thing is a bitch, but i neeeeeeeeeeed the internet in the morning!!)

[vitualis]

I guess if you include WMA in your calculations, you're right. Frankly, I prefer non-proprietary formats so I use mp3. (No, I don't own an iPod as I don't have a desire to walk through life unable to hear the world.)

Well, not quite. The iPOD plays MP3s and for a HDD MP3 player, that's all that counts in my books.

Rather I'm talking about audio quality/fidelity/noise, battery life and common features like audio recording, FM radio, etc. The iPOD compares poorly but it looks very nice and it has a great user interface.

Someone wrote that Macs don't have a large enough choice of software. Hmmm, head over to versiontracker or macupdate and do a search; around 15,000 titles for OSX (plus all the "Classic" software form OS9 that continues to run).

How about, large enough choice of software that your ordinary PC user wants? For example, MS Office is a workhorse in the Windows world. Office exists on the Mac but it is a poor shadow in comparison.

Adobe software (e.g., Photoshop) now work better on PCs (i.e., optimised first) compared to Macs.

Games...

etc.

Linux? Sorry; that's still for uber-geeks. When the installation process for the OS and apps becomes "one-click", it will have a mainstream chance. Don't get me wrong; I loved the "RevolutionOS" movie but the people who buy into Linux are even cheaper bastards than Windows users so they only cobble together parts and brag about how well it runs with a '386. Fine but consider the thread of this topic peole.

No, the question is what you want to do with this machine. It is a stripped down low-end machine. It's equivalent performance is way below a P4 2.0 GHz or AthlonXP 2000+. It has a video card that is was the default POS on budget systems from 1-2 years ago. It has inadequate amounts of RAM. It has a small HDD. It does not have a DVD burner.

Quite frankly, this is NOT a multimedia machine. Now, if all you are interested in is to do some web surfing, email and some word processing, this is probably a great machine as it is small, quiet, etc. It, however, is NOT cheap.

Will it convince owners of older eMachines & Acers & Gateways to buy a Mac? As they're probably the ones sufferering with the spyware and viruses, you bet.

That has yet to be seen. Most of these old cheapies probably came with Microsoft Works and most people probably do some word processing and spreadsheets.

Data migration between Windows and Macs is not a smooth process.

Is the Mac Mini a technological throwback? No way. It's just not the latest technology...but if that's all that's a concern for you, then buy that G5 tower. Every computer company has a "product line"; some units are better and more expensive and some aren't.

If HP released a P4 Willamette @ 2 GHz, with 256 MB of RAM, no DVD burner, no screen, no keyboard or mouse, in the same form factor, with all the HP multimedia software, Windows XP SP2 at $US 500 would it be a technological throwback? You bet.

As for Tiger: It will run on the Mini and, when it's released in June, the Mini will ship with it.

Even my Pentium MMX server runs Windows XP. The question is if it will run it WELL.

Regards.

[Harryford]

You are buying inferior hardware. Have you looked at the specs?

Can any PC user here honestly say that they would pay good money for a new Pentium III or P4 Willamette PC? Because that is about the hardware performance you are getting.

If you want a clean fresh cheap computer, then buy an AMD AthlonXP or Semptron based PC and install a new version of Linux. If you want to use a Mac, then fork out the money and get a good unit.

Regards.

you are mistaken the G4 arcitecture is superior to i386, a 3.0 ghz with ht p4 is gonna be faster but still the mac will seem faster because of the OS

[rumplestiltskin]

If the mac mini could connect to my windows network (can they?) talk to my digital camera (card readers are available right?) play back whatever movies i have (they have new codecs, right?) and display web pages properly (i'm pretty sure they can do that) and this box kicks out less noise than the powerdrill my tower represents, i'll get one. it'd be lovely in the bedroom for watching the odd movie, reading emails and surfing the web in the morning and late at night. the noise-box can go elsewhere - with the additional advantage i can leave long encodes overnight (sleeping near this thing is a bitch, but i neeeeeeeeeeed the internet in the morning!!)

re: Mac connecting to PC network: Yes, Samba is built in to the OS.

re: digital camera: Macs have USB2, so does your PC. Most digicams are recognized by the Mac and iPhoto will launch (if you wish) and then you click "Import". Worst case - if your digicam isn't recognized by the Mac, use a $10 card reader and you're in business.

re: Web page display: Safari, FireFox, Mozilla, take your choice. One website I know does -not- work with the Mac is vistaprint.com because they use some proprietary M$ webpage junk so you'll need a real PC (or VirtualPC on your Mac) to order your business cards from them.

An earlier post pointed to a "video out" port. The video port is DVI and the mini ships with a DVI to VGA adapter (as do all Macs with a DVI port). There is a $20 DVI-to-Composite video adapter that will permit you to connect to your TV; the headphone jack can be connected for the audio and you're good to go. There's a QuickTime MPEG2 decoder that you may purchase but VLC will play mpeg2 files without it.

As for mpeg encoding (of the -1 and -2 variety), look for mpeg2works at macupdate.com. It's cheap shareware and works great. The author is very responsive to his customers and implements improvements often.

If one wants to use the Mac mini as a PVR, there's only the El Gato products that work well at this point (eyeTV and eyeHome). That's about $550 for both; yes, pretty expensive.

However, and this is part of another thread, I use the Hauppauge PVR250 and MediaMVP with my Shuttle (SFF) as a PVR. I was really hoping for that "iHome" box hoax that was circulating around the Internet in the day before the intro of the mini. Usually I end up buying stuff right before "everything changes" *sigh*

Ciao!

[Nilfennasion]

virtualis is right - this machine is drastically underspecified for the price. I could easily build a PC box that runs faster for the same, maybe less. Compactness might be an issue, but then, if you're really interested in something you can transport, a laptop is far more suited. You can't turn on this mac mini and start working on it while sitting on a bus or in the middle of a park, if I understand what I am reading correctly. That means it has to perform adequately on the desktop, and I cannot imagine a machine with these specs performing that well.

[rumplestiltskin]

Well, this says it all.

[canadateck]

[rumplestiltskin]

ROTFLOL! Who will take it further?

[NightWing]

The real funny thing about this was the goofs that Bill did while Jobs went smooth on their keynote speeches.

I asume the 2nd picture the little thing is kicking the cd out.

[Garibaldi]

This is great! Apple has proven itself again as being incredibly innovative and ahead of the game (IMO of course).

[bazooka]

I would not buy one for any amount of money.

[Garibaldi]

I would not buy one for any amount of money.

just hate macs?

[bazooka]

I would not buy one for any amount of money.

just hate macs?

I really don't hate them.

I just have no use for them.

I am not into graphic designing and I am not in cinematography.

They are obscure and parts for them are overpriced.

[adam]

ROTFLOL! Who will take it further?

Just kidding.

[bazooka]

Apple also puts wayyyy tooo muchhhhh emphasis on style.

I am not into looks with computers.

I prefer functionality.

[bazooka]

ROTFLOL! Who will take it further?

Just kidding.

Adam,

That is the funniest thing I have seen in a while.



Thank you.

I needed a laugh.

[canadateck]

Joking.

[bazooka]

Joking.

[hhhhbk]

i went on my first ever mac over xmas while in florida

i was wandering through a shopping mall with the family and was becoming bored
out of the corner of my eye i spotted a phenomenally nice picture on a flatscreen monitor and was drawn toward it
http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/72501/wo/5c6X3d8CSFdM2....6.1.3.0.0.1.0
it turned out it was an apple shop
i forced myself to enter
to my suprise all the macs(almost wrote pcs then!!) were actually online and i got to play on the internet for free id been paying $5+ for 30mins in internet cafes so was v.pleased
i was impressed by the monitor and the speed although as i only played on the net cant really determine if it was any good at encoding
it claimed it was 4X faster than a p4 then in the small print it said something like at editing a 2gb image

the price suprised me it was only $1500 for one with 17 inch screen
although on second thoughts in the us you could get a very nice p4 for that easily

would be v.interested in mac dvdripping stats and encode times

is there much software out for macs do people make their own like they do for windows or is it only apple software
may be tempted at $500 for tower

[spiderman2k1]

I real hate what the did about upgrading the ram. Come if you can upgrade a Laptop with ram then you should be able to upgrade this new MAC.

[Conquest10]

I am not into graphic designing

That's 80s talk. I still don't see how a Mac is supposed to be better for design other than the stupid line about the machine looking nicer than a PC.