The tower PC-monitor-keyboard-mouse combo seems to have moved out of homes and into workspaces. While all-in-ones have had better luck, the tower PC has had to undergo a major revamp in order to survive. With the Mac Mini, Apple has done just that. Lopped a couple of feet off in height, reduced the masses of unnecessary ports and gone completely wireless. We thought it apt to review this cool alternative to tabs and netbooks – the new Mac Mini, a desktop PC that has evolved with the times.
Looks
There aren't many immediately apparent differences in the new Mini. The dimensions are a tiny bit different: the original 6X6 inch chassis gives way to a 7.7 square inch one, with 1.4 inch thick walls. So it's wider, but about an inch shorter. Apple wins points hands down in the looks department – the aluminium unibody chassis looks sleek and minimalist.
There's a new Thunderbolt port, which can support fantastic resolutions of 2560x1600 and ultra-high speed file transfers, as well as an HDMI port and DVI output using the HDMI to DVI adapter cable that's included in the package. Apple's newly launched Thunderbolt display would be the perfect companion to the Mac Mini. Other ports include an SDXC card slot, 4 USB 2.0 ports, an Ethernet port, FireWire 800 port and 3.5mm jacks for headphones and a mic.
Perhaps the greatest negative of the Mac Mini is its omission of the optical drive. With the earlier Mini, you could copy a music collection or burn a DVD, but now you'll have to hook up an external optical drive. Instead of getting rid of the optical drive altogether. Apple may be betting on the Cloud being embraced by the masses, and so is probably assuming that optical drives and external storage is history, but it is a bit too early for that kind of shift to happen. Until then many of us will have to depend on the stuff we have stored in some physical medium.
Performance
The Mac Mini comes in two variants, one a 2.3GHz model with 2GB RAM, and the other a 2.5GHz model with 4GB RAM. Featuring the Lion OS and paired with the Magic Mouse, the Mini performed effortlessly for everyday tasks. Working with multiple tabs, running iTunes and word documents – we had no problems here.
Under the Mini is a round plastic piece that can be pried open to reveal the internal memory slots – a handy DIY option if you want to increase RAM. Apple offers an 8GB DDR3 memory upgrade for those who want faster performance.
The hard drive has a storage capacity of 500GB, but you can also opt for a solid state 256GB hard drive instead.
Our verdict
The Mac Mini unfortunately doesn't include a display, keyboard and mouse. The Mini works best with Apple products – at least the wireless keyboard and mouse. You could substitute a different display though – we used a Dell 24-inch HD monitor – but even then the overall cost would put you back quite a lot. The 21-inch iMac we have on long term review costs only about Rs 66,000, which is still cheaper than the Mini and its peripherals put together. With its ultra-compact, minimalist design, the Mini is a neat little performer that would look great in your study or living room, but the lack of an optical drive and average graphics make it a bit of a lukewarm product.
Love - Small form factor
Hate - No optical drive, expensive
Rs 44,900 onwards
