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January 24, 2008 9:40 AM PST

Asus Nova P20: Mac Mini mangler

by Rory Reid
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(Credit: Crave UK)

We've just taken a cheeky advance look at Asus' new Nova P20. It's the latest in a line of alternatives to the Mac Mini and at first glance it ticks all the right boxes for a small form-factor PC: It's tiny, it's very, very quiet, and it's not beige.

You can position it in vertical or horizontal orientations and it has touch-sensitive power and optical drive eject buttons, which help to keep the front looking uncluttered. 'Round the back there are four USB ports and three audio jacks that support surround sound. It also has a DVI port, but you can always use an adapter if you fancy turning that into HDMI.

As expected, the P20's specs are in line with those of the Mac Mini. It uses an Intel 2160 1.8GHz CPU, 1GB of RAM, a 120GB hard drive, and a DVD rewriter drive, as well as a built-in speaker and integrated Intel graphics. Games are pretty much out of the question, but that's not what this thing's about.

Asus reckons it'll cost somewhere in the region of 450 pounds (about $886)--which is about the same as you'd pay for a Mac Mini of the same spec. It's available in black or white (the white version looks the sexier of the two) and should be available later this year.

(Source: Crave UK)

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how exactly??
by h4rb1ng3r January 24, 2008 4:52 PM PST
how is it a mac mangler when a mac includes fully funtional software out of the box, which from the looks of things this one doesnt even include Windows??
Reply to this comment
It's about the OS, not the box.
by KaplanMike January 24, 2008 5:00 PM PST
You can't be a threat to the Mac Mini unless it runs OS X. It could be the
exact same size, with the exact same feature set, and it wouldn't be the same
thing. In 17 years of daily Mac use, I've never had a virus, worm, Trojan,
spyware or crapware invade my system. I've never had a system crash that
involved loss of data (beyond whatever current document I was working on). I
have no interest in tweaking, over-cranking, modding or customizing my
computer. I just want it to work. And it does.

When another computer can do that reliably, it'll be a threat to the Mac and
Mac Mini. Otherwise...forget about it.
Reply to this comment
and it just goes to show...
by h4rb1ng3r January 24, 2008 6:33 PM PST
..that Macs arent as expensive as everyone seems to think they are. That argument is dead.
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Not really much of a competitor.
by schattenteufel January 24, 2008 6:46 PM PST
It may match the Mac Mini in size, specs, and price, but it has a long way to go
in the looks department. Man, that thing is UGLY!
Reply to this comment
Price way off
by macgeek4 February 17, 2008 2:51 PM PST
The Mac Mini with a 2.0 GHz Core 2 Duo is $799, the 1.8 GHz is $599! Asus will
NEVER match the mini.
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Mac mini Impersonator?
by joeguitar55 February 23, 2008 10:30 PM PST
There really is no comparison here. I've been a PC user for years, and have finally switched over to Mac. Wish I'd done it much sooner. There are several systems out there claiming Mac mini comparison status - Not one makes the grade, or even comes close. As was stated by another poster, it's the OS, and with Mac - hardware superiority.
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