My Personal Apple Mini Mac Review

In this Apple Mini Mac Review I talk about the budget desktop computer from Apple. How does it perform and is it really something to consider if you are going to buy a Mac? Continue to read this Mac Mini Review for all details.

My main reason for buying this computer was to use it as a mac mini home theater hub. You can read more about that setup here: Mac Mini As Media Center, My Mac Mini Home Theater Hub. This computer is perfect for HTPC use in my opinion, albeit a bit expensive ...

Apple had neglected to update the Mac Mini for some time. When 2009 came they decided to bump up the specs a little bit. This was the time when I decided to buy one, for my media center needs. I bought the baseline model with a 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU. 1GB memory, 120GB hard drive, 8x double-layer SuperDrive and NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics.

As of this writing you can also buy it with an 2.26GHz Intel Core 2 Duo and 4GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM if you want. I am planning to add more memory myself later on but I haven't done that yet. Also I could not justify the cost of $150 to upgrade the CPU to 2.26GHz.

Update: Since this article was written the mini got more updates, now it is possible to get it with an 2.5GHz i5 Dual-Core CPU, faster graphics, thunderbolt and more storage. Another change is that Apple finally have removed the DVD Drive. Making room for another hard drive if you want.

Packaging and initial setup

The packaging is as we come to expect from Apple. Neatly organized and as compact as possible. The computer itself is small, light and with a good robust design. The computer feels rigid and sturdy when you lift it. This is also something you can place in your living room without people noticing it, or your girlfriend going mad. You can probably lose it if you have a cluttered desk. In other words the WAF (Wife Acceptance Factor) is good on this one!

The power supply is pretty big, that is probably the reason they could make the computer so small. The power has to come from somewhere and the power-supply can be hidden anyway so I do not see that as a problem. When this Apple Mini Mac Review was written it came with a powerbrick, newer Mac Minis have the power-supply built-in, no power brick! Just one cable

The initial setup when you start it up is as easy as we expect. The Mac Mini comes pre-installed with Mac OS X and after you have installed some updates from software update you are ready to go.

Remember you have to bring your own keyboard, mouse and screen. The Mac Mini doesn't come with that.

Pretty Decent Performance

In this Apple Mini Mac Review we have to realize this computer is the cheapest computer apple offers at the moment and thus, the performance is not exceptional compared to others, but good enough. Games like Unreal Tournament 2004 is playable with about 63 fps, and Quake 4 with about 32 - 39 fps according to the Macworld benchmark. Even though some games might work okay I would not buy this computer just to play games.

Should I buy it?

If you want to use it as a media center, sure go get one now! Also get it if you only do basic tasks like checking e-mail, using office applications, surf the web, listen to music or organize photos. This is what I consider basic usage and it will work really good for that. First you have to think about your needs and after that decide what you will get.

More information

If you feel this Apple Mini Mac Review doesn't supply you with all information you would like. Take a look at the Mac Buyers Guide for more information about the computers Apple have available for purchase.