desktop computer series from Apple

Never before had Apple sold a $500 Macintosh. Never before had Apple been poised to grow its market share like it hoped to with the Mac mini. The tiny Mac mini (6.5″ square, 2″ high, 2.9 lb.) has incredibly minimalist design. On the front, there’s just a slot-loading optical drive and a power light. On the rear, almost enough ports to do everything important (two USB ports is kind of skimpy).

The Mac mini shipped in a smaller box than the regular iPod, which was possible because Apple didn’t include a keyboard or mouse. Instead, Apple says you can plug in your favorite USB keyboard and mouse – or buy Apple’s offerings. Mac OS X 10.4 and later include support for remapping the Windows Alt and Option keys to Option and Cmd .

The Mac mini is expandable. Memory can be expanded from 256 MB to 1 GB (but there’s only one memory slot, so if you upgrade, you have to remove what’s installed), and Apple doesn’t recommend that users upgrade RAM (although this will not void your warranty). There’s room inside for Bluetooth and AirPort Extreme (to be installed by Apple or an authorized dealer, not by the user).

Specs (via Low End Mac)

• Announced: January 11th, 2005 (Press Release)
• Discontinued: September 27th, 2005
• Cpu: 1351.97/172.25
• Rom: 1 MB NewWorld ROM, other instructions loaded into RAM.
• Hard Drive: 57.38/60.89
• Pram Battery: 3V CR2032 lithium
• Weight: 2.9 lb./1.3 kg
• Apple Model Number: A1103 (EMC 2026)
• Model Id: PowerMac10,1
• Order: M9686LL/A (1/11/05 – 7/25/05, 1.25, 256 MB) M9686LL/B (7/26/05 – 9/27/05, 1.25, 512 MB) M9687LL/A (1/11/05 – 7/25/05, 1.42, 256 MB) M9687LL/B (7/26/05 – 9/27/05, 1.42, 512 MB, Airport, Bluetooth) M9971LL/B (7/26/05 – 9/27/05, 1.42, 512 MB Airport, Bluetooth, Superdrive)
• Overall: 116.01/144.60
• Memory: 131.46/130.01
• Quartz Graphics: 160.83/179.39
• Opengl Graphics: 111.26/123.11
• Wifi: IEEE 802.11g AirPort Extreme (Wifi 3, 54 Mb/s) (+$79) Optional prior to 2005.07.26 Standard on 1.42 GHz model after 2005.07.26
• Version 2.4.3: 714 (1.25 Mini) / 805 (1.42 Mini) / 918 (1.6 G5)
• Xbench 1.2: (1.24/1/42 GHz, 512 MB RAM)
• L1I: = L1 Instruction Cache,
• L1D: = L1 Data cache
• 1.25 Ghz,: 1 Processor, 1 Core, 1 Thread, 1 CPU,
• 32-Bit: PPC Arch
• 1.42 Ghz,: 1 Processor, 1 Core, 1 Thread, 1 CPU,
• ($499+): 256 MB 333 MHz PC-2700 DDR SDRAM SODIMMs ~2.666 GB/s
• ($499): 40 GB 4200 rpm ATA/100 IDE (ATA-6)
• (+$100): SuperDrive available as a CTO/BTO option
• ($599): 80 GB 4200 rpm ATA/100 IDE (ATA-6)
• ($699): SuperDrive (Write: 4x DVD-R, 2x DVD-RW, 4x DVD+R, 2.4x DVD+RW, 16x CD-R, 8x CD-RW) (Read: 8x DVD, 24x CD)
• (+$79): Optional prior to 2005.07.26
• (+$50): Optional prior to 2005.07.26