Is Apple's Mac Mini a MacBook inside?
The premium pricing of Apple's Mac Mini desktop is due to its laptop lineage, according to a teardown analysis by iSuppli.
Apple Mac Mini
(Credit: Apple)Though probably not a surprise to Mac Mini connoisseurs, the diminutive desktop bears higher component costs due to its use of parts designed for mobile PCs, iSuppli said in a report released Friday. In short, inside the Mini is a virtual laptop.
The entry-level version of the new-generation Mac Mini carries a bill of materials (BOM) of $376.20, which increases to $387.14 when manufacturing costs are added, iSuppli said. The low-end model in the Mac Mini lineup is priced at $599, "reflecting the relatively thin BOM/manufacturing margins" of Apple's PCs in relation to its lower-cost consumer items, specifically the iPod line, according to iSuppli.
"Unlike most desktop computers from other brands, the Mac Mini and, indeed, Apple's entire Mac line make extensive use of components designed for notebook computers," said Andrew Rassweiler, director and principal analyst for iSuppli. "Apple knows how to make computers better, smaller, and more attractive," he said. "Such an achievement, however, comes at a premium."
This sentiment is echoed in a CNET Reviews write-up of the Mac Mini. "While we're still impressed with the Mac Mini's ability to pack so much into a tight package, Apple can't get away from its PC competitors that offer more features for less money," CNET Reviews said.
That said, mobile components abound. The main Intel processor in the lower-end model is the 2GHz Core 2 Duo P7350 microprocessor, a mobile chip rated at only 25 watts, less than half of the typical 65-watt desktop Intel chip. The chip carries an iSuppli estimated price of $118.35. The higher-end Mac Mini model uses a 2.26GHz version of the processor, available from Apple at a $150 premium.
Another mobile chip of note is the Nvidia GeForce 9400M graphics and I/O controller hub. This is also used in designs like the ultrathin Apple MacBook Air laptop. The chipset also appears in tiny notebooks like the Lenovo Ideapad S12 and pint-sized desktops like the Acer Aspire Revo--the latter is similar in size to the Mini. The Nvidia GeForce 9400M costs an estimated $65.16, according to iSuppli.
Other relatively costly mobile components in the Mac Mini include the 2.5-inch hard disk drive (HDD) and the slim optical disk drive (ODD). The Hitachi 120GB 2.5-inch-format HDD is priced at $46, while the Mac Mini's ODD--a DVD?R DL/DVD?RW/CD-RW 8 x speed drive--is priced at $32.
The Mac Mini uses a 110-watt external power supply--and this is where it parts ways from most laptops that have lesser power requirements. This power requirement is also greater than the 85-watt rating of the previous-generation Mini. "The new Mac Mini is a more powerful computer than the first-generation model, causing its peak power requirements to rise," said iSuppi's Rassweiler. On the other hand, the Mac Mini has a green designation as it consumes less than 13 watts in idle mode, he said.
Brooke Crothers has served as an editor at large at CNET News, an editor at Dow Jones' Asian Wall Street Journal Weekly, and a senior editor at InfoWorld. His CNET blog covers chip technology and computer systems, and how they define the computing experience. He also contributes to The New York Times' Bits and Technology sections. He is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not an employee of CNET. Disclosure. Follow Brooke on Twitter @mbrookec. 
well, news flash, this information has been available for about three years now, at the moment the mini arrived it was teared down by ifixit and other sites.
and how do "PC competitors that offer more features for less money"
you mean features like:
- viruses and worms
- vista
- no resale value after 3 years
- no iLife and mac os x
- cheap glued together plastic
ah forgot, it's my fault - you mean ghz and gb
No grey-market or "house brand" parts.
Dell and HP manage to offer "more features" because they skimp on everything that isn't the magic numbers required to "exceed spec". This means that basically only the CPU (Intel) and maybe the video chip (NVIDIA or ATI) is up to spec and QA standard... everything else (mobo, RAM, HDD, etc) are cheap parts.
This is why you can still use almost any MacBook Pro made 5-8 years later, but the numbers of surviving Dells and HP's of a given model tend to drop off dramatically (or require parts) after just 3-5.
I have surviving computers from the days of the original Pentium and even a bit before that
I think a MS fanboy got Win7 "working" on the Pentium, 30 minute boot time isn't really what working though, P3 systems are the slowest that you can run Win7 on and still use it.
You've obviously never really looked at or used a mini.
They are selling fine... they are awesome computers... just like the notebooks they are based on.
but will it it as small and power efficient
will it come with that Apple quality custom care etc
will it last as long ? will it have any resale value at all ?
and above all will it come with a full working copy of OSX
cause thats the reason why people buy Macs in the first place !
I know that system builders like you care about specs and stuff but the average user won't !
and the mini specs are fine for 90% of the consumers {other than HD size}
Sure - scrounge around in newegg or pricewatch. Spend the time waiting for the parts to arrive, build them patiently yourself, and etc.
...and wind up with something larger, noisier, and far more power-hungry. I have a Hackintosh that came together that way.
Now let's see Joe Sixpack do that.
...all you have to do is show us where you can get that, in the same form factor.
Alternately build yourself a PC in the Boot Camp partition after all you have all the software on your PC and you can run Mac OS X, Windows, or still using VMWare Fusion (or Parallels Desktop) you can run both concurrently.
I constantly compile open source software on Intel mini and I am basically amazed in the performance. Even amazingly optimized software like mplayer compiles from source in a time period which some people downloads the binaries.
This is why I got a mac mini. I wanted to start messing around with the mac market. I tried several setups including using a kvm switch which worked out really well for me.
It's also nice to have on my desktop a machine dedicated to the mac and another dedicated to windows.
is that real?
i'd love to be able to block out sub-standard journalists and 'reporters'.
Apple is very much using many notebook parts in many of its computer. In fact except for the Pro desktop I would guess they all have roots in notebooks. Hence the lack of upgrades to these configurations.
If you want more computer for your money then go with a big box. I still think Apple does a little better in the profit area. We see the parts for a Mac Mini at around $385.00 but Apple selling it for $599. I think that's a pretty good mark up. Especially considering a MacBook White is under a grand with a monitor? I think if Apple dropped the Mac Mini to $500 they would sell a ton more of them.
Dont matter how much profit they are making or what you get the same PC with the same internal parts for. What matters is that the Mini is very popular and it sells well. Its called supply and demand.
The mini has some what of a cult following. Its very popular among media center enthusiasts because of its size and it is silent. Hook a Eye TV unit up to it and some people ditch their cable TV.
As for this article its kind of lame. This has been known for a long time. In fact most of the iMac parts, CPU, RAM etc are notebook parts.
Actually no. I will take a top of the line laptop CPU over a bottom of the line desktop CPU anytime. As far a the graphics go, I wouldn't advise anyone buying a new computer to purchase a one without a GPU with plenty of dedicated RAM regardless of platform.
I would take a low end desktop CPU over a low end laptop one though
Atom vs Athlon X2
<sarcasm>wonder which one is faster?</sarcasm>
I bet they'd sell twice as many units
"sub $500 computer" sounds much better than "$600 computer" to budget buyers, trust me
Or should they also drop the processor speed and drop FW800 and Gigabit E.net and n-wireless to save money?
I spent some great (!) time setting up Windows 7 64bit and I can assure you that, it is not a standard (put Nvidia chipset, pack it) type of machine. BTW while on it, let me do a favor to CNET readers. Either slipstream nvidia mb drivers somehow (like Intel guys) or don`t even bother with XP SP2 install. It wont boot. IMHO that machine deserves a Windows 7 (or Vista) 64bit.
the Mac Mini is a Media center Pc
perfect for living rooms and other Media related tasks
why cripple it with a lousy 120 GB hardrive
If you want to use it as a media pc, there are multiple brands of matching HD enclosures that sit under the unit, that are USB2 (or + FW800) and can be outfitted with drives up to 2TB.
Mini is a really misunderstood machine since G4 days. Poor Mini...
Isn't it odd that when cnet reviews the mini they never mention how quiet it is. Put one of those cheapo Dells or HPs next to a mini and lets see which one is loudest. But I forget, real users don't care how loud or small their computers are. As long as it's got 10 fans in the case, it must be good!
but the average user won't be able to do this
infact the procedure is quite complicated not as straightforward as normal desktops !
I'm not asking them to put in 1 TB drives
but they should bump it up to 250 GB
the difference is only 20$ or so
It is easy to whine about Intel monopoly now. Where were you when Apple offered G5 64bit processor offering which was ages ahead of Intels of that time? AMD and Intel, pick your poison. It is the sad reality now... Oh BTW, I keep seeing idiots claiming Intel Atom is better than RISC/ARM because of higher Mhz... Look out, they are coming.
Mini future is guaranteed because Apple have finally chosen a real GPU, at least a chip from a vendor who knows what they do. Also, on OS X, Apple codes the drivers and be sure they work perfectly. I haven`t seen any kind of problem under Windows 7 RC 64bit either. Where are the bug ridden drivers you talk about?
The mini is made with a few components that could be used in laptops because those components are small, you dunderhead. Have you looked inside one before? not much of anything in the way of free space to cram in more.
some people, like the HTPC folks like small and silent
but Joe Six pack won't care if his computer is a small Mac Mini or a large generic Mid tower
What a rip-off ! Typical Crapple. Style with no substance.
- by baconstang June 28, 2009 2:53 PM PDT
- People use to work, not play games. Typical ASL BS comment.
- Like this Reply to this comment
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- by LegatoRedrivers June 29, 2009 6:10 AM PDT
- People use it to work? Don't, like, 90% of businesses in the US still use Windows XP? :-P
- Like this
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- by SteveW928 June 29, 2009 10:11 PM PDT
- @ LegatoRedrivers -
- Like this
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- by pithenumber July 1, 2009 2:47 PM PDT
- @Steve
- Like this
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- by SteveW928 July 3, 2009 11:21 PM PDT
- @ pithenumber -
- Like this
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Showing 1 of 2 pages (85 Comments)And your point would be? Do you do everything you do just because it is popular, or do you actually think for yourself? What most companies do != smart. Many companies use Lotus Notes as well... I rest my case.
companies use software the is Windows only and refuse to emulate
and there is no Linux/Mac alternative either
Yea, I suppose dumb companies do that. Although, you can very easily run Windows on a Mac these days at full speed, so if you happen to work for one of these dumb companies, it would still be a non-issue.