It is also backwards-compatible with mini DisplayPort monitors.Īs usual, the mini doesn't come with a monitor or any input devices. The mini's Thunderbolt port does, of course, support Apple's new Thunderbolt-enabled 27-inch LED display. Apple includes an HDMI-to-DVI adapter in the box, so you can also plug in a regular monitor. The HDMI output makes it easy to connect the mini to most modern televisions. There are a number of different options for plugging displays into the mini.
The mini supports WiFi (802.11 n/a/b/g) and Bluetooth 4.0. The back plate also has mini-audio jack for headphones, an SD card slot, an Ethernet port, an HDMI output, and a two-prong power connector. The availability of Thunderbolt-enabled peripherals is currently limited, but the technology has the potential to fix some of the Mac mini's expandability limitations.įor more conventional external devices, the mini has four USB ports and one Firewire port. The mini's Thunderbolt port can be used today to plug in an external Thunderbolt display and high-speed external storage devices. Thunderbolt also supports daisy-chaining, allowing as many as six devices on a single port. The new model comes with a single Thunderbolt port, located on the back panel, alongside the USB ports.Ī Thunderbolt port supports two bidirectional data channels that transmit data at speeds up to 10Gbps. The new Thunderbolt interconnect technology is spreading across the Mac product line as Apple rolls out hardware updates-and the Mac mini is no exception. The power supply is built in, which means that you won't need a power brick or a big wall wart. It is elevated by a black plastic pedestal that can be spun open to easily access the RAM slot. Weighing in at 2.8 pounds, it is light enough to carry comfortably with one hand. The aluminum unibody exterior and small size make the aptly named mini look exceptionally elegant. The dimensions are unchanged: 7.7" x 7.7" and 1.4" in depth. The external design of the new Mac mini is largely the same as the previous generation. Of course, there will be external Thunderbolt-enabled options for users who want more storage expandability.
All three models can be configured with up to 8GB of RAM.Ī 750GB hard drive spinning at 7200rpm is available as an upgrade option for all three models, but only the two higher-end models can be purchased with a solid-state drive. The baseline model and the server model both have integrated Intel graphics instead of the Radeon, and the server model has a quad-core i7 instead of the dual-core i5. SpecificationsĪpple offers three separate configuration tiers for the Mac mini.
In this review, we will measure the performance and energy footprint of a mid-range Mac mini configuration, then take a close look at its strengths and weaknesses as a Home Theater PC (HTPC). In particular, the inclusion of a Sandy Bridge CPU (instead of the antiquated Core 2 Duo) significantly increases the mini's competitiveness.
The new Mac mini, which was launched alongside the release of Mac OS X Lion in July, improves the formula and buries some of the unfortunate trade-offs that had to be made in previous models. The system's modest energy footprint and impressively compact form factor have always been compelling, but mediocre hardware specs and lack of expandability have detracted from its value. The Mac mini (lowercase, please) has served as the entry-level option in Apple's Mac lineup since its introduction in 2005.