Apple Mac mini M9686LL/A (G4 1.25GHz, 256 MB RAM, 40 GB Hard Drive, DVD/CD-RW Drive)

Rating:
Summary: Great starter computer but....
Review: Enough people have said good things about this computer so let me play the devils advocate and point out some of the problems.

- RAM upgrade is very hard and just because it is not easy to open the case. Apple could have made the case easier to open but then they could not have charged a hefty $325 (although less than the original $425+) to upgrade your RAM. And as others have said 256 MB is just not enough
- Two USB ports are not enough although you can always buy the Apple keyboard and mouse for $29. The keyboard has two ports in it
- No digital audio out. This is the biggest omission in my book
-Teeny speakers
- Slot loading drive which means you cannot play those mini DVD's from DVD camcorders also if a DVD gets mechanically stuck you have to open the machine to get it out which is hard to do
- Case seems flimsy. I am afraid to even put a 15" LCD monitor on top
- I would rather they have made the case bigger and accepted a 3.5 harddrive which are cheaper and easier to come by than the smaller and more expensive 2.5" drives. Plus the hard drive is 4200 RPM only.
- Apple would have been better of giving us built-in wireless instead of a modem (although Airport + Bluetooth is now only $99 extra)

A great computer but keep in mind these things before you buy so you are not disappointed later!

Rating:
Summary: Just right -- for most people.
Review: For all of the things the Mac mini is, there are some that it is not. As the owner of five Macs -- from a iMac G4 to a dual G5 tower -- I'll try to help. This, by the way, is the slower of the two Mac mini model -- although I've tried both and couldn't see much of a performance hit. Part of the reason is that RAM plays a huge role in speeding up OS X, the Mac's operating system, and applications running under it. So, whatever you do, order extra RAM. As much as you can afford. (Apple warns that the Mac mini's RAM is not user installable -- so be careful if you plan on doing it yourself. I've seen videos of the process, and it seemed pretty simple, but you'll need to pry open the case with a spackling knife or similar implement. If you're the slightest bit uneasy about that, take down to an Apple store or certified Apple technician to perform the operation.)

(1) If you need a Mac to surf the Web, send e-mails and IM, write the next great novel or screenplay, organize and fix your photos, encode and hold your music library, and do some semi-serious movie editing, the Mac mini is just your ticket. For these tasks, it's downright snappy -- but, please, bump up the RAM to at least 512 MB. (Remember, the Mac operating system, OS X, thrives on RAM. You'll see a noticeable speed improvement between 512 MB and 1 GB of RAM, for example.) In fact if these are your needs, there is no better personal computer to buy. Period.

(2) If you need a Mac to some serious GarageBand multi-track recording (or recording or editing music under other programs), serious movie-editing with long clips and multiple effects (even under iMovie), or heavy photo manipulation, you probably should look elsewhere. If you want to play serious games on the Mac -- and, yes, you'll be able to do that -- you might also want to look elsewhere. (Doom III, soon to come out for the Mac, requires a G5 processor. The bigger and better games will.) For those who fit these criteria, you should seriously look at the iMac G5, or even a G5 tower. Remember, you can get the iMac G5 for just a little bit more than the Mac mini with a screen, keyboard, and mouse. It's a great computer and a real step up from the Mac mini's G4 processor.

Of course, there are other reasons to want the Mac mini. It's a miracle of engineering -- amazingly small and with so much more functionality than Windows computers costing twice as much ... and taking up five times the space! (Don't just go by price tags. Take a bottom of the line Dell and add up the cost of all the extras that come standard with an Mac mini ... a firewire port (essential for many DV camcorders to off-load video), a CD burner and DVD player (for most PC, you might be able to get one or the other -- as an extra), a full blown graphics card with its own 32 MB of RAM (not one of those "on the motherboard" Intel graphics sets that cannibalizes system RAM and does a lousy job of running even rudimentary games), and best-in-the-business photo and movie editing apps, etc.

And on top of all this, you get the best operating system out there. No viruses. No crashes. No fuss, no muss. OS X is a dream ... built from the ground up on solid UNIX foundations. If you've had Windows PCs, you'll immediately know something's afoot ... an operating system that just ... works. What a wonder! And you don't need to but a single anti-virus program or subscription. Not even a utilities program!

Rating:
Summary: Great General Purpose machine
Review: I'm a long time Windows user who was bitten by the bug when this low priced Mac was announced.

After purchasing and using one for a week, I have to say this is a great little general purpose machine for web browsing, e-mail, general office productivity and light photo (even ligheter video) editing.

A couple words of warning:

If you don't have a USB keyboard, buy one. PS/2 to USB adapters are not entirely reliable.

Spend the money to upgrade to 512MB of RAM. 256MB is OK for light use, or just web/e-mail, but multitasking will bog it down quickly.

Rating:
Summary: Mac Mini Experience
Review: I'm very pleased with my basic Mac Mini 1.25mhz/40GB. I got the last and only Mini from Fry's a week or so ago as a replacement for a slowly dying HP PC. My original plan was to simply put the Mac in with the existing display and trackball but using an Apple keyboard since my PC keyboard is PS/2. The trackball (Logitech) worked perfectly from the get-go, but I ended up getting a new flat panel display. I stumbled (also at Fry's) onto the 17" Sharp LL172A-W, which matches the Mini and keyboard, and has an outstanding picture, and a three-year warranty. It also sold for $350 with a $100 mail-in rebate!! Sorry Amazon, I couldn't wait...

After hitting many Mac-related websites, I decided that more memory was in order. If you buy a Mini, get the 512MB option if possible. It's only about $75 and is well worth it. I sent away to Crucial.com for a 512MB module ($78 + tax, free shipping) and received it today, three days later! After watching several videos that are floating around the net on how to open the Mini case, I took my paint scraper in hand and popped it open this afternoon. No problem, though if I were to do it again, I would use two paint scrapers, one on either side, and pry simultaneously.
Anyway, I've now got 512MB and netsurfing seems to be faster, though that may be my imagination. I'm going to put the old 256MB module into another PC.

Years ago, I started with a Mac II - after many Macs, I shifted to WIN95/98/XP because of work. Now I'm happily going back to a Mac. If you're doing the PC-to-Mac shift, I'd recommend getting a good Mac OS 10.3 Panther book. The documentation that comes with the Mini is MINImal. Amazon has some good choices, especially, the "Teach Yourself Visually" series.

Bottom line: the Mac Mini is mini, it's quiet, it's capable, and fun.

Rating:
Summary: Mac mini's features
Review: I'm very tempted to buy this machine except for the fact that I don't like the design let alone the slot drive which I hate the most. It's easy for toddlers to slip foreign objects inside without your notice and these foreign objects like spare change or bobby pins are near impossible to retrieve unless you're a techie.

The price and the features make it an interesting query but it would be nice if something as delicate looking as this came with a toddler proof casing and then I'd consider buying it.

Rating:
Summary: Mac Mini -- a great way to delve into the world of OS X
Review: It's a great entry-level method for getting into Apple's OS X. I'm a die-hard PC user, and made the switch to OS X last summer (well, not really a complete conversion -- I still own a PC for games and tracking finances). I won't write a long-winded review, but I will say that OS X is a pleasure to use and things just WORK. But keep in mind that OS X just feels slower than XP. It's hard to quantify this, but you'll know what I mean. Also, I mentioned I keep a PC for finances. I still have not found a piece of software on the Mac to keep track of finances as well as Microsoft Money. I hope someone will get around to writing an app for OS X that'll do a good job with this. Until then, I keep the PC. But back to the point. The Mac Mini is a great purchase for someone looking to add a touch of Mac to their computer arsenal, or as a main computer for most general tasks. In fact, I will be making the purchase for my computer illiterate mom (sorry mom!) who understands Mac more than PC -- no joke, she just GETS it with a Mac. Finally, and as many articles have already pointed out, it is a MUST to upgrade the RAM to at least 512MB (so consider this as another $50-$100 spent on your investment).

For more info on the world of Mac Mini, check out www.macminichat.com

Rating:
Summary: It works and it is quiet
Review: Our son had been nagging us to look at the new Mac mini information for weeks. We finally did so and decided to see if we could find in the area to purchase on the release date.

We use the computer in the living room and wanted something quiet that we could use while watching TV. We could work with images while following our favorite shows! We (Husband and Self) have been doing ditigal photography since 1996 and have a huge photo library. We have been considering I-photo for some time as a management program but we didn't wanted to invest the cash to switch platforms.

We took our LCD monitor with us to the store and plugged it in, turned on the little computer and presto an Apple appeared. You could not hear a single noise! No fans, no power supply, just quiet. We looked over IPhoto (again) and got out our plastic! We purchased additional memory and a keyboard. We had an USB mouse and our own monitor.

So far,we have opened most programs. It came with ILife 5.0 which we installed. What we have been using is I-Photo. We had some problems with I-Photo at first. It is date sensitive and our older pictures (which are not dated) ended up under 2005 instead of in older pictures. A big complaint is the inability to either rename or add additional libraries (Libraries are the primary hierachy storage area and defaults to five dated files). We are going to use the rolls feature to keep our photos in the order we want. We did that by dating each roll as to where we wanted it to appear rather than the date of the actual pictures. Today we spent most of the day redating photos within the I-Photo program. Now our thousands of pictures are available over the years to make a quicktime movie with such little effort and the movies are fantastic! We are truly impressed with IPhoto and we look forward to learning more about it and the other ILife programs.

Rating:
Summary: It's not about the price, it's the size, style and silence
Review: The Mac mini is not just about the price. Or the hardware comparisons to similarly priced Windows computers. Or Apple's uniquely easy to use multimedia software.

Like Apple's iPod, the Mac mini redefines home computers with its diminutive size, stylish exterior and comparatively silent operation. There is no comparable product available from competitors, especially when looking at the complete package of hardware and software in such a small box.

I am a long time advanced Windows user. I've bought and built a wide variety of Windows machines up through a recent Windows XP Media Center Edition 2004 home-built. The Mac mini is my first Apple. Why?

Apple's OS X (the operating system that competes with Microsoft's Windows XP) is far safer from viruses, worms, spyware and malware of all types than Windows. Windows XP is admittedly more stable than prior versions of Windows, but almost all of the gains have been lost to the assault of malware and constant need for new hardware and software defenses. When you buy a machine based on Windows XP you become a system adminsitrator whether you like it or not. I don't mind, since I like to play, but for most people it's getting out of hand. But better security is still a rationalization because this is equally true of previous and other Apple products and I didn't bite till now.

Truth be known, it is the size, style and silence that were the tipping points and not price or frustration with Microsoft security flaws.

When I buy Windows machines, I don't buy or build $500 or even $1,000 machines. It's considerably more than that. So price, or price alone, wasn't the tipping point.

One constant with Windows machines? The noise of fans to cool the hot Intel and AMD processors. As the processor speeds go up, the whine just keeps getting worse, even on Windows laptops. It's getting irritating. My last home-built specifically focused on low-noise and it is still loud compared to the Mac mini. (There are silent Windows PCs but not anywhere near the same price class or size.)

The size and silence of the Mac mini make it appropriate for places I wouldn't put a normal PC, like a bedroom or a living room, but my first Apple is going in my office.

The next one probably goes to my retired Father so I don't have to be his Windows system administrator any more. He can focus on e-mail and web browing historic aircraft and tractor sites without fear of malware infections. I don't have to worry about him being knocked off-line for days until I can get away to make a two-hundred mile round trip. Our daily e-mails are how we keep in contact, so computer problems with Windows are a major hassle.

It's not that I don't want more in the Mac mini line eventually. I want some add-on boxes (with the same, stackable form factor) for a full-size hard drive, audio-video inputs and TV tuner. Expansion will be outside of the box -- literally.

A reply on the general lack of expandability points made by some other reviewers:
The Mac mini is in many ways more like a laptop computer without a screen. It is built using a laptop hard drive (smaller form factor, slower disk rotation speed and slower data read/write times); a laptop slot load optical drive (thinner mechanism compared to a drawer loading CD/DVD drive); and a lower power processor (less heat and noise). Like a laptop expansion is generally external to the case through USB or Firewire ports. Most non-Apple laptops do not offer the faster and video-centric Firewire. The Apple Mac mini does. The 256 of standard RAM is low for power users, but 512 is a sweet spot of performance versus cost and again is parallel to the typical laptop. Upgrading RAM is not that difficult. Certainly easier than many full-size Windows systems I've seen where opening the case is only the first layer of disassembly. With the Mac mini the full-size single RAM slot is easily accessible once the case is open. Given the growing market share of laptops versus tower desktops, the vast majority of the market will not find these tradeoffs of power and internal expandability for size and silence unacceptable. The Mac mini offers you the ability to have a computer smaller than a laptop using the monitor or display of your choice. This is a great solution as the average monitor lasts longer than the average computer. Invest in a premium quality large monitor, 19" or more and pair it with a Mac mini. Your overall computing experience will beat any laptop (you'll have a bigger screen) and it will take up less space than any desktop tower. If the size appeals to you, ignore the worries about internal expansion. The expansion is primarily through the external ports.

I am a power user and the Mac mini does what I spend 95% of my computer time doing and does it better than anything else. It is stylishly compact and silent. The price is nice and will matter to many people. I'm going to guess that style, silence and overall functionality will matter to more.

Apple finally got some of my business and I expect more going forward.

Rating:
Summary: WOW, Can Apple be any greater ?
Review: They have absolutely done it again. Never has it been such a great time to be a mac-fan. Time to get that viruspested-noworking PC out from under the desk and straight to the trashbin. Yes, the mini is here !

Rating:
Summary: Great introduction to the Mac world, and great price!
Review: This is a perfect machine for the average home computer user who wants to get stuff done without worrying about spyware and viruses. It's cute, it's quiet, it's simple to learn, and it *works*.

I have the upgraded 1.25 GHz model -- 512 megs of RAM. I highly recommend the 512 megs of RAM -- 256 megs is acceptable for light use (like Internet surfing), but once you start multi-tasking in earnest, you will wish you had more RAM. The amount of hard drive you choose is up to you -- many people will find 40 GB more than ample. If you want to have the 80 GB hard drive, you can order a custom-made Mac Mini through Apple, or simply order the 1.42 GHz Mini, which includes an 80 GB drive.

I have been using an older G4 tower for a few years now, and this Mini is a breath of fresh air. The video card is better, the processor speed is fantastic (compared to what I am used to) and everything either feels amazingly fast or at the very least, "snappy." The only downside is the slow hard drive. The only slowdown I've noticed with the hard drive so far is when I am working on very large (over 100 MB) Photoshop files. There is a definite speed lag when the file sizes get really large.

I am using this Mini for desktop publishing, web design, and graphics (Photoshop). No, it's probably not the best Mac for such tasks, but I've been using an old G4 for a while now, and probably still would be using it if it weren't for this Mini. I'd like to get a spiffy G5 tower later on, but until then, this Mini sure is a big improvement over an aging G4 with 16 MB video card and 500 MHz CPU!

For first-time Mac users, this is an ideal machine. Mac OS 10 is elegant and so *fun* to use. Hooking up printers, digital cameras and other peripherals is quick and hassle-free. And the best of all -- don't worry about spyware or viruses! Oh, sure, "never say never" -- I'm not going to say that Macs will never fall prey to viruses, but the Unix-based OS makes it more difficult, and seriously -- if the virus-makers could do it easily, you *know* that they would have by now. I don't believe the only thing that is stopping them is the small percentage of Macs out there. Someone out there would have had nothing better to do than to try to develop a Mac virus by *now*, don't you think?

The Mini takes up little space on my desk, is whisper-quiet, simple, and elegant. And it works. If you are a long-time Mac user who can't afford a top-of-the-line G5, but want something a little snappier than your several-years-old Mac, then this might be the Mac for you (just be aware that the hard drive is slower at times).

If you are a Windows user who wants to dip your toe into the Mac world, here's your prime chance. Also, you will be able to experiment with the iLife suite (iMove, iPhoto, iDVD, Garageband). I don't have much experience with some of these apps, but I am pretty familiar with Garageband, and if you have 512 MBs or 1 GB of RAM in this Mini, it will serve you well for Garageband use. Not as zippy as a G5, but speaking as someone who did a lot of work in Garageband in a four-year-old G4 tower, I can say with authority that the Mini is *fine*. If you can't afford a top-of-the-line Mac but want to find out what Garageband (or any of the other iLife apps) are about, the Mini is a great way to find out and have a great time!