“I do think the Mac mini was simply meant to be a product to get people in the door, particularly those who felt they couldn’t afford a Mac. Consider the way auto dealers operate. They will advertise an uber-cheap model for an exceptionally low price to entice you to check them out,” Gene Steinberg writes for The Mac Night Owl.
“Now I realize some of you own a Mac mini, and you’re quite ready to dispute my contention that Apple doesn’t really care if they sell any or not, that it’s just a promotional gimmick, particularly for the converted PC user who is accustomed to cheap hardware. Indeed, with a full complement of memory, the mini is quite a decent computer. It’s a worthy product for offices, schools and they even serve duty as Web servers,” Steinberg writes.
“Of course, a highly-anticipated requiem for the Mac mini might very well arrive at Macworld Expo 2009. Perhaps Apple VP Philip Schiller — replacing Steve Jobs for the keynote — will proudly unveil a totally redesigned mini, perhaps with a slimmer case more reminiscent of Time Machine or the Apple TV,” Steinberg writes.
“A revitalized Mac mini, perhaps for an entry-level price of $499, might be just the ticket to keep Apple’s sales moving in the right direction,” Steinberg writes. “A bait and switch scheme? Maybe at one time, but things have changed, and I trust Apple will do the right thing for this long-neglected product.”
Full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Devlin” for the heads up.]
Well, big “duh” – you think?
How about a mini at $599 with the capabilities of the the Macbook (Al), and one for $999 with the capabilities of the MB Pro (and as easily upgradable)?
I’m glad he pointed out how well they act as a web server. If a business wants to save thousands, they can stick with a Mac mini and Leopard and be set.
In other words, you want a Mac Pro for $1000. Don’t hold your breath.
Yeah, I think this falls under the “belabouring the obvious” header.
my first mac was a mini. and I haven’t regreted buying it – in fact, i gave it to my sister when I upgraded to a powerbook and it will be passed on to another sister when I upgrade again. (take one down pass it around) 😀
The first time I was intrigued by Apple since 1979 was when the Mini came out. I couldn’t resist it. I drooled over it. But as always, I analyzed it to see if it was a good deal. I discovered that a 20″ iMac got me more computer for my money, especially since the screen of my spare monitor got broken in the meantime.
The Mini was my gateway drug, sort of. I never bought one. Now I own my second iMac and my second MacBook Pro.
And the Dell? In the corner gathering cobwebs.
Like this question even deserves a response. It’s intended to provide a half-baked solution that you will be enticed to purchase, then in about 6 months go, “I need to get the Macbook or MacPro”.
Apple needs to evaluate the Mac Mini, Time Capsule, Airport Extreme, and Apple TV, and start blending them into a real Apple Media Hub. It could be built like a laptop and have ability to upgrade memory and hard drive, but would not have a screen. It would automatically establish a network hub for storage of media, media streaming, iTunes collections, Movies, Movie rentals, etc for all devices on the network.
What we have now is all transitional technology. Cool as it may, it’s all rather disjointed and evolutionary. Some things can stream over from computer to computer, other things can’t.
Bait and switch has become a common term used for “getting people in the door.” is it true that Apple wants to get people interested in a Mac because of the Mini? Probably. Although I really don’t think they need it. The Apple stores are always full.
But I digress. Baiting and switching is actually illegal. To bait and switch you need to intentionally advertise a price or a product you never intend to sell or honor. So if Apple advertised Macs at $599 and then when you went to purchase one they told you that they told you that they don’t actually make that Mac but would you like to purchase this nice iMac for $1199 then that is a bait and switch. Or, if they advertised iMacs for $699 and then stated that they don’t actually sell them at that price, that is a bait and switch.
Companies will always have loss leaders or very low price products to get you in the door. Not having items in stock or misprints in ads happen as well and those are not considered bait and swith.
Yeah … Apple has been doing a lot of that sort of thing since Jobs returned. iMovie, GarageBand, the Mac mini … all designed to do most of what the casual user needs to do while giving the more serious user an introduction. The mini is slightly different in that it can be degraded quite usefully when the user upgrades to something more powerful. To a file server, web server, print server, mail server, … etc. No longer your “desktop Mac”, still in everyday use. As a “primary desktop computer” it loses to an iMac. By the time you figure that out it’s likely too late – you’re sold.
A Mac…..A Time Machine…. an Apple TV….
A Mac…..A Time Machine…. an Apple TV….
A Mac…..A Time Machine…. an Apple TV….
DO YOU SEE WHERE I”M GOING WITH THIS???
Nah, I’m joking… just give us snow leopard already
Apple doesn’t really care if they sell any or not, that it’s just a promotional gimmick
Are we talking about the Mac mini or the Apple TV? Why is Apple letting both languish?!?!
Apple, you’d better either get serious about the mini and TV, or kill them altogether. Remember back in the iCEO days, when many of the things that got Steved were because “nobody could figure out why they existed”?
It’s time to reapply that same litmus to Apple’s product line.
Who is this moron?
What’s with all the Mac Mini bashing? Yes, it needs an update, but this little gem is no scam. I replaced my Dual G5 Tower with a mini and I’ve never been happier. Yes, it’s weak on the video card department (compared to the Radeon 9800 in my G5), and a refresh that gave it the same Nvidia graphics as the MacBook would be appropriate, but in ever other way, the Mini is faster and more capable than my G5 and more than meets my needs.
Minis us a whole lot less juice than G5s, and they are also far more easily upgraded than any laptop, despite myths to the contrary. I bought a cheap used Intel Core Solo mini, popped it open, put in a 7200 RPM 160 GB hard drive, a DVD burner, maxed out the RAM and replaced the CPU with 2ghz core 2 duo, then placed it atop a matching Lacie firewire mini stack — resulting in a better-than-stock mini, all for under $700 (ah, the joys of eBay).
I think he needs to learn what requiem means. Because he used it completely wrong.
Mac mini
and Mac
The mini will be $499
The Mac will have two full size hard drive bays, and 2x pcix-16 slots for sli
The mac is Apple’s attempt at the gaming market, and is long awaited considering they currently use NO standard desktop chipset or cpu in their lineup – its ALL mobile or server class.
I for one cant wait for a standard mac.. finally I’ll be able to have one platform for my games, and my apps, it will cost a little more than I want to spend but its still over $1000 less than the mac pro I CANT afford
Isn’t the Mac Mini already smaller that Time Capsule?
Bait and switch…? Maybe, if Apple ever did the “bait” part. Apple never really advertised the Mac mini, and certainly never mentioned the price of an any Mac in ads.
So no, I think the Mac mini is exactly what it’s supposed to be. A way for Windows users to get a relatively low price (and cool looking) Mac and keep using their existing display, keyboard, and mouse to cut down on the transition costs.
Apple does not have any problem getting potential customers into an Apple Store. Once they are in the store, they will choose the Mac mini if price is the big consideration. As is usually the case, Apple makes selecting the right Mac obvious by purposefully limiting choice.
Gil,
I replaced my Dual G5 Tower with a mini and I’ve never been happier.
Fair enough and no argument on that.
However, the mini doesn’t compete with your G5 tower. It competes with the HPs and Dells and rest of the crap in the PC store aisles. And compared to those, right now it’s barely competitive (as far as hardware bragging rights go).
Apple, at least give the mini some updates to keep it current.
I was able to bundle one of my old Mac Minis that I paid $700 for I added a $30 usb keyboard and mouse and 19″ monitor (Westinghouse) floor sample from Best Buy for $84. I gave as a birthday present to a friend . The mini was top of the line at the time with a superdrive. I threw in my old Epson 1270 printer for her to print big bold photographs if she wanted to for still less than $900.
The mini is so serviceable the only US auto maker that’s not really asking for a bail out from the government uses a host of them on their production line to keep things flowing smoothly cut costs and improve efficiency (Ford). Corporate could learn a lot from the likes of Ford. Other big companies have used them as back end servers for order processing.
I use my current Mini hooked up to my 40″ LCD with Elgato Eye TV as a spare DVR and to watch episodes of shows that I either forgot to record or missed during the week from Hulu or Veoh or Discoverychannel.com .
I have a Mac mini.
I use it as a media server-elgato hybrid for hdtv, iTunes for music and video, internet for other stuff all connected to my 22″ hi-def monitor(shares time with my ps3).
While I would really like a 24″ iMac-my mini has never let me down and does what I need it to do.
I love my old mini. I bought it refurbished a year after they were out. Immediately replaced the internal drive to 7200, installed a full gig memory an put in a superdrive. Added two external drives, turbo h264 from elgato and love my little machine. She replaced a 400mhz G3 dv special edition bubble iMac, which is still an active bedroom music and video jukebox. Sure, if you offered me a new machine, I wouldn’t turn it down… but for now, as this machine still serves it purpose, I am satisfied.
I cannot imagine turning up my nose at the current mini… It may not have been refreshed since august ’08, but those wishing it were should realize, this isn’t neglect for the low end, it shows a wider window of support from apple. I see the window for my machine closing, don’t be in such a rush for Apple to close it for these entry level machines as well.
The Mini is a killer little machine….I have seen people shove them in the glove compartment and add a small touch screen in their cars…I have one at home hooked up to a 23″ monitior that switches back and forth with a Dell laptop…it is great.
Gene, Gene, Gene.
It can only be a bait and switch scheme if Apple heavily advertises the Mac mini and then tries to up sell the customers on features or steer the customers over to the iMacs.
Well, Apple does not advertise the Mac mini at all.
A Mac mini really cannot be upgraded by several hundreds like a cheap Dell.
There is no hard sell at any Apple Store.
To say Apple is engaging the Mac mini in a bait and switch scheme is absolutely ludicrous.
There are now 4 minis in our family. I bought the first one, then re-sold it to my f-i-l when I upgraded to the Intel version. Then when I upgraded to the latest version I re-sold the first intel one to my s-i-l. Then I gave one to my niece for graduation. I originally used my minis to drive my 52″ DLP, but when we sold the house and moved into an RV the mini was promoted to my main desktop machine (with a 23″ ADC display) and I bought an Apple TV to drive the 32″ flat screen in the front of the rig. In addition, both my wife and I have Macbook Pros. Hers being a hand-me-down of my original MBP. Yep, we are an all-Apple family! 8^)