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General discussion

Will Mac Mini sales follow the ipod success?

Nov 8, 2005 3:22PM PST

Peter, I posted to the Anchor desk and there was a person, John, that had an interesting view on the ipod sales and the Mac plus the Mac mini.
I think that you will find the post as interesting as I did.
Marketing concept from Apple from the getgo??

Here is John's post:
You are posting a Reply to: Macintosh V/Pc Users
I saw a quick flash about the iPod is increasing Mac sales. They get the iPod and realy like it,,, then realy take a good look at the mac and are buying them.
The mac mini is realy helping out with this. John

Posted by: jcrobso (see profile) - 11/08/2005 10:01 AM

Peter, I told John that I was forwarding you his comments and post.

-Kevin

Discussion is locked

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No.
Nov 8, 2005 8:34PM PST

If you want to see a success, wait for the wave of Intel based Macs. You'll know why if you have develop friends with the 1,000 buck Apple developer box.

Bob

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No, or maybe?
Nov 9, 2005 1:05PM PST

Bob, when is that going to happen?
What do you think the price will be for this dual processor? $1000 out of the box added to a Mac?

What is your thoughts on the Mac Mini? No need for anything different here for processors? The base price is so very inexpensive for a really good computer.
Our company was really looking at the Mac Mini in place of supplying us all with an update to a G4. This still may happen by the end of the year, We would need the $699 high-end Mac Mini for our use.

I have a 733 single processor on my Mac G4 and I do not anticipate that I will need an Intel dual processor. If I were into super computer graphics, like Industrial light and Magic, than that may interest me. Industrial Light probably have their own systems and processors years ahead of what the Apple group or PC users can imagine right now. Any thoughts about Industrial Light & Magic? How they do it? Just amazing to me.

Off Subject: What US made Super Computers cannot be sold out of the United States for security reasons?
I would bet that the Iranian Government would like to get their hands on the Industrial Light and Magic's computer set-up! :

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Just my thoughts.
Nov 9, 2005 7:24PM PST

When? Sooner than you may think. As to duals, again Apple is showing surprising "firing on all cylindars" as to releasing new products. Keep watching.

The Mac Mini is not very interesting to the crowd I run with. I will not bash the Mini, it has its market, just not here.

About Industrial Light. If you watch TV much, every once in awhile they'll show enough for you to piece together that they develop software as well as use off the shelf software.

Cheers,

Bob

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Just my thoughts
Nov 10, 2005 1:01PM PST

Bob, Thanks for the info.
I would love to go on a location trip with on of my friends son, who is thirty years old. He works for a group in western MA that is into computer imaging and works with Dream Works and Industrial Light & Magic.
This person told me five years ago that their group is PC based. Wonder what the group uses now?

-Kevin

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It changes.
Nov 10, 2005 9:13PM PST

They are agnostic as to machines. If XTI came out with great machines and the XOS was it, they'd use it. You find that their is no loyalty there.

Remember SGI? It was once said it was the only machine for video work. Times change. Be flexible. Keep your work out of proprietary formats.

Bob

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Mac Mini
Nov 8, 2005 8:45PM PST

The Mac mini is only a teaser, designed to make it easier (less expensive) to try out the opposition. Kinda gets rid of the "it's too expensive to buy just to try"
I doubt it will ever have the same sales momentum as the iPod because, although it is a decent machine and performs well with OS X, it is a processor behind.
As Bob says, watch for the surge when the Intel driven ones are released. The may even be new models of the mini at that time

P

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Mac Mini
Nov 9, 2005 1:32PM PST

Pete, have not investigated the Mac Mini and the processors. Looked to be a unique computer filling the needs of many that do not need a high-end processor.
Sure is interesting enough to get our company seriously interested in it though.
Here is a thought?If our company wanted to purchase 100 Mac Minis, could they be designed with a different processor, memory and storage to fit our needs? Would Apple do it? The numbers could be higher with the order.
Would the Mac Mini be good enough for a Newspaper Publishing Group? Or just stick with a G4? Why go to a G5? Better?
Heck, I am stuck with a 9600 at work. Anything would be better for me.
Just a thought.
The original info from John was certainly interesting.

-Kevin

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History tells me Apple won't play
Nov 9, 2005 3:29PM PST

Sorry Kevin, I really doubt that Apple will make custom Mini's, no matter how many you buy.
About 6 years ago I was working with Vari*lite (the company that invented robotic lighting for concerts). They had designed a new lighting control desk based on the G-3 and OS-9, called the ''Virtuoso''. It was basicaly the guts from a G-3 tower tucked under a front panel of buttons, knobs, touch screens, and faders. It was a huge leap forward then, and is still my favorite desk today.

Back to my point. In the first year, Vari*lite probably built a couple hundred of them, and then introduced the Virtuoso DX (a smaller cheaper version for rental stock). Even after buying hundreds of towers the first year, Vari*lite could not talk Apple into selling them just the components they needed, or or even into selling them the components disassembled.

Because of this, every Virtuoso and DX started it's life as a blue and white tower, complete with mouse pad, case, power cord, and a book on using your new computer. Hundreds of hours were spent stripping brand new macs down to component parts, so they could be reassembled in the desks.
The way I heard it, Vari*lite wasn't even asking for a price break. They just wanted to save the cost in labor, and build their product faster.
At the same time, Apple would have saved the cost of assembly, and the cost of all the bits Vari*lite didn't need.
They wouldn't budge an inch.

On a totally unrelated note;
Vari*lite's newest product, a media server, is PC based, and uses dual 3.2 Xenon processors.


Lampie

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History?
Nov 10, 2005 1:42PM PST

Lampie, I doubt it also with Apple. Kind of just dreaming of what if?
Vari*lite sounds interesting to work with. I did not know the lighting was computer based or run. Thanks for the info.
Where do you think Apple will go next?
If Apple had a computer with dual or triple processors that would run on a split partition with the hard drive;
Run Mac and Windows XP, would you be interested?
Interesting to say the least.

I guess the Apple ipod caught the world by surprise.
Two million dollars in imusic per day still amazes me.

What is Lampie the clown up to lately?
Thanks Lampie,

-Kevin

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Mac Mini
Nov 10, 2005 1:11PM PST

Peter, That's what I thought also about having an Intel processor in the Mac Mini. The original post I sent you mentioned going beyond the Mac Mini (from John's post.)

Here's something to remember about: One meg of ram cost $4!
How tines have changed.

-Kevin

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Mac Mini
Nov 14, 2005 4:41PM PST

Peter, Our company is going to the route of supplying all of us with a Mac mini in place of a G4 or a G5 due to overall cost. Told you this before as to what I thought would happen.

Off subject: My new IT person was a master with the clean install with OSX4-Tiger! That is how I am posting to you.
Really is interesting to know that this young man graduated with a creative writing degree.
Who would have guessed that? Very smart and educated.
He also installed a second drive to take care of my OS9.2 Apps in place of partioning the original hard drive.
Now I have 30MB for OSX and 5MB for OS9.2.
I'm happy.

-Kevin

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Good News
Nov 14, 2005 8:43PM PST

Hopefully you mean GigaBytes and not MegaBytes as posted.
Still, the largest drive is a little small for the work you do. You might want to consider a larger, 120GB and above, drive. Seagate are making some very good, and inexpensive, 7200rpm drives with a 5 year warranty.

Glad to hear all went well with the Format and install.

I have a feeling that you will be disappointed with the mini as a work machine. For some it will be a step up but for others it may not have the legs necessary for the job in hand. Just a thought

P

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Mac mini
Nov 16, 2005 1:56PM PST

Pete, thanks for your help. I did mean GIGS on my last post. Sorry. Late at night.
Cost reasons for our company to supply new G5s or a Mac mini. Probably close to one hundred new Mac minies. And close to 300 OSX4. Others that have G4s will not receive them. I work with a slow 9600 presently and would welcome anything better, no matter what.
How good is the processor speed in the Mac mini?
I did check out some facts concerning the Mac mini. 6"x6"x2-1/2", two USB-2 ports and one Firewire port. Interesting. Small little ******!
Would we also have to have new monitors and scanners to use with the Mac mini? My present monitor is really lousy. The HP monitor is fair but old. Leaves hot-spots on the half-tone scans near the edges.
I really should study up on the Mac mini.

What are the pros and cons now that it has been out for a while? Not a world beater, but OK?
When it comes to processing speeds and using Adobe Photoshop on the Mac mini, what are your thoughts?

-Kevin

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Mac mini
Nov 18, 2005 11:28AM PST

Either the Mac-mini or the iMac would be fine for general purpose office computing. My personal perference would be for the iMac; the all-in-one form factor is more business friendly. Most companies lease their computers and monitors an all-in-one machine is easier to inventory, account for, and return. Separate monitors have a way of moving around.

The original Mac-mini?s performance was hampered by the slow hard drive (4200rpm) and the small amount of RAM the machines shipped with. The latest versions of the mini ship with faster drive (5400rpm) and double the RAM which should provide more than adequate performance.

One point to note, which may not be important in an office setting, is the mini runs OSX4 in a degraded graphics mode due to the lack of dedicated video memory and the slower graphics chip used so you won't see all the eye candy.

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Graphics
Nov 18, 2005 10:42PM PST

that is a function of the graphics card and not the lack of video memory.
The mini has a graphics card, as does my G4 tower, but it is not capable of showing all the eye candy, ripple effect, as the card itself is not capable of the Core Graphics required to produce it.
It's not running in a degraded mode, it just does not display, in the same way as it does not display on a multitude of other Macs.

P

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I bought a Powerbook
Nov 16, 2005 3:35PM PST

ipod definitely made me want to tryout Mac system, so i picked a Powebook

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Powerbook
Nov 17, 2005 3:40PM PST

Jayboy, Thanks for your comment and post.
Just out of curiosity, what does a decent powerbook cost and what will you be using it for?
Do you store any music files on the powerbook.
Good way to load the ipod with the newest music.
How often do you download from Apple itune for 99

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Mac Mini and sales
Nov 17, 2005 9:16PM PST

What I'm already observing is what always happens with Apple products. They release something innovative, and PC clone makers follow with a vengeance.

At the time of its release, the Mac Mini was the smallest desktop system money could buy with the feature-set it included (Radeon 3D video on-board, etc.). Windows PCs had the "Micro ITX" type motherboards out earlier, but nobody was able to put one into a complete package quite as small as the Mac Mini, or sell it retail on nearly as wide a scale so the "general public" could easily get one.

Now, you're seeing a number of ultra-small PCs popping up, trying to copy the Mini's "keep it small" philosophy.

The Mac Mini is a success, but is Apple going to "take the world by storm" with it? Nah. It's not going to be another iPod, where everbody you know seems to own one. The bulk of its sales have already happened, most likely. I know a number of people who were "on the fence" about Apple, watching them from a distance. They loved the OS X operating system and kept thinking about buying a Mac, but they were pretty "died in the wool" Windows PC users. The Mini gave a number of them an excuse to finally buy a Mac, without a huge financing committment. Of those people I personally know, several still treat their Mini as their "spare computer", mainly using the iLife apps like iPhoto and iTunes or taking advantage of its portability so they can ferry it back and forth to and from work. Others already resold or traded it off for something else. Sometimes a more powerful Mac, and other times, more Windows PC upgrades. Depends on how useful they found it.

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mini sales
Nov 17, 2005 10:09PM PST

Although the mini will never compete with any of the more powerful PCs and Macs; it can bring people who want affordable desktop system without breaking the bank. I wish the mini had come out a few years earlier. I have already purchased one for each of my kids. I love having control over where they surf and IM. I now looking at buying as a mp3 jukebox and replace my three 200 disk cd players. The mini can be recognized one of the first good appliances for the home.

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macs
Nov 17, 2005 11:43PM PST

i read about a dell pc that costs around $399 which comes with a 17" LCD which runs great with osx on it and actually performs better than the fastest G5 on the market. i dont know much about it, but i do know people are running osx on pcs now because i saw a guy with it running on a dell laptop at a coffee shop. i think apple should concentrate on marketing their operating system more than their hardware, because their hardware is outdated and costs way too much. especially since they are going to intel cpus, which im pretty sure is what started this whole osx running on pc hardware in the first place. anyway, i think that mac minis are cool, but i built a pc out of a mini itx motherboard and a nintendo a couple years ago, and accomplished the same result. for about two thirds the cost....over a year before they did.

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And that Dell
Nov 18, 2005 12:36AM PST

will stop working shortly.

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Why?
Nov 18, 2005 12:43AM PST

I have one that we use as CCTV recorder. It runs only that and has been at it for months.

What do you know that I should know?

Bob

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Are you saying that you are
Nov 18, 2005 3:47AM PST

running OS X on a Dell, not an Apple Developer box, and using it as a CCTV Recorder?

I was referring the Dell, mentioned at the beginning of that post, that was currently running OS X, the cracked version.
I doubt the real version will run unless Apple is going to "allow" that to happen?

P

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ipod Boosting Mac Sales
Nov 18, 2005 11:15AM PST

I don't think that the ipod will increase Mac sales enough to make a big difference. Because the Mac mini comes striped down for $500 by the time you get up to Spec we are talking $800. Which is alot to pay for Mini PC. When you can get a real kicking pc for $600.
Plus the software is very expensive and not available everywhere.

Juan

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Played a Role in My Choice!
Nov 20, 2005 6:46PM PST

My decision to switch to my iMac was at least partly due to the iPod purchase a few months before. I did take a closer look at the Mac and boy, am I happy! Convert for sure.

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Don't know about the Minis, but...
Nov 20, 2005 11:04PM PST

I have purchased a powerbook and an ibook since buying the ipod. I ended up taking a closer look at a Mac while buying the ipod and could not be happier with the decisions.

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The iPod wasn't my first mac but......
Nov 23, 2005 2:38AM PST

For me the iPod wasn't the first apple product I have owned. I'm eighteen and I have been using apple computers since I was four. My first was a Perfoma 5200, what a beast that was, I still have it for nostalgia, but it ran on mac os 6 ( I might have grow up with apple but that whole period of time just sucked ***). I was at the tail end of my mac life until the iPod showed up soon after we had got a g4 quicksilver running os 9 (better but not much better then what was out there). At that point I was looking at pcs (yeah I had grow up with a mac and i was goin to pc). I needed to upgrade to mac os X before i could get on of the new iPods in 2002. Now thats when everything changed for me. Now I have got one of the new HR 15 powerbooks w/ 2 GBs ram, 100 GB hard drive. So I would have to agree that the iPod has help sell macs.

on other note, im not too sure bout the intel processors yet, it prolly will help out the under powered systems (Mini, iPook, even Powerbook), and i can't really think that it would hurt the nicer system ( iMac, Power Mac) and that IBM is having a lot of trouble with the g5 and getting it up to the standards Jobs wants ( a 3 GHz processor would be nice) IBM does seem solid right now for the higher grade systems. Although I would have like to see a G5 Powerbook with the last product line upgrades, so that was sort of a bummer for me cause i would have gotten one, but I'm still not sure I would want something that runs in a dell in my mac

-Matthew