Mac mini (unibody) unboxing and hands-on

Well you've seen the press photos, but now you can focus on something a little more personal. Yep, we've got the new Mac mini over at Engadget HQ all primed and ready for a full review, but first we thought we'd give you a little taste of what the box actually looks like. We'll admit, while we like the unibody construction of other Apple products, there's something especially serious about this design that speaks to us. We've been expecting the company would move the mini line to the machined aluminum housing, and it's a welcome change for sure. The new iteration also does away with that bulky power supply (it's now built in), and surprisingly allows easy access to the memory via a crazy new twist off rubber base. Like we said, we'll see if this thing is really worth the extra $100 in our review, but for now, feast your eyes on the images below.

Mac mini (unibody) unboxing and hands-on

[jedi Posted Jun 15th 2010 5:43PM]

@kotters

...except you don't have to "bump up the specs".

That's the point. PC alternatives don't have to have anything extra that doesn't directly address the intended use case. The system doesn't have to have anything that you aren't going to use driving the price up.

In the end you're pretty much left with "well it's prettier".

Next to your run of the mill consumer electronics gear, a mini PC is not the Medusa that Mac fans like to claim.

[Cold Dead Fingers Posted Jun 16th 2010 2:55AM]

@jedi All those other mini computers are cheap knock offs and you know it. What is the Mac Mini about? Go on the page and look. It's the smallest Mac Mini ever produced, something Apple constantly excels at. It's the most powerful mini PC of it's kind, not surprising. IT'S THE MOST EFFICIENT DESKTOP COMPUTER ON THE PLANET. That's the most important part that EVERY knock off neglects. You know, looks are looks, but sometimes it's the materials that not only make the look, but, are key points to computers (THE ABILITY TO BE RECYCLED). I bet not even the top end mini PCs can score well in this area.

[threedeuce5 Posted Jun 17th 2010 10:27PM]

@arkweld
Wait a minute! That's common sense! You can't use common sense with Apple haters...they see that little fruit and get their panties all kinds of twisted. What I find humorous is that these people will spend hours bashing Apple's prices, but will end up spending nearly triple trying to find a product that merely mimics it. HIlarious!

[HTCEV0 Posted Jun 15th 2010 3:20PM]

can we back off from the low depth of field shots and just get one in focus shot of the back?

[designer989 Posted Jun 15th 2010 3:29PM]

That is soooo hot!

[Ducman69 Posted Jun 15th 2010 4:13PM]

@designer989 I agree, it does appear to have insufficient cooling. Just don't put anything flammable on top.

[iPaul Posted Jun 15th 2010 3:49PM]

err 2GB RAM is pathetic. 320GB HDD is Pathetic. The fact that this finally got "HDMI-OUT" is Pathetic. $1000 for 4GB option err expensive piece of kit for what you get. Stick with the iPad:):)

[Shooter McGavin Posted Jun 15th 2010 4:32PM]

Booooooorrrrrrrring

[atc9000 Posted Jun 15th 2010 4:56PM]

I only payed £175 more than the £650 @ £825 and got the following
Acer ( new mobo fitted by me to intel chip it) pc end of model range from comet
Core 2 duo E4700 clocked to 3.2ghz
640gb sata
DVD rewriter
3gb ddr2 clocked to 1000mhz
Geforce GTX 260 maxcore 55
22" samsung Sync master 2233 nvidia 3d ready tft
nvidia 3d vision glasses 9 ( yes i look a knob with them on too )
Windows 7

All parts brand new
And yes Its no Apple but ffs look at the price

[Marklitt Posted Jun 15th 2010 6:24PM]

I was thinking of buying a mac mini a year ago. I thought I'd wait for a spec increase... They've put the price up massively! And the spec barely increased.. I didn't want a redesign. I wanted a better spec for the same price in the old box. They've priced me out again

[fast Posted Jun 15th 2010 6:52PM]

nicer than the old ones.

[okcoolthnx Posted Jun 15th 2010 7:45PM]

I think the real question here is, will it blend?

[Casey2010 Posted Jun 15th 2010 9:03PM]

I'm ready to see somebody take it apart.

[dasefx Posted Jun 16th 2010 4:13AM]

Does anyone knows if the hdmi carries hi-def audio too in this mac or i'll have to use the optical output?

[Kikarok Posted Jun 16th 2010 1:11PM]

There are two reasons to get this form factor:
1) You have no desk/room space (AKA: your computer is in a closet), in which case you might as well grab an all-in-one.
2) You want to use it as an HTPC, in which case there are better, less expensive options.