Cringely on the Mini
on 01.21.05, 07:14am in home theater, mac • comments (4)
[I, Cringely] Here’s my thinking, and it is just thinking — I have no insider knowledge of Apple’s plans, I haven’t been diving in any Cupertino dumpsters, and nobody who knows the truth has told me a darned thing. I think the Mac Mini is a fixed component in a system that will extend iTunes to selling and distributing movies.
I really recommend reading Cringely’s post on this - it’s extremely well thought out and makes a lot of sense.
Also read Joe Wilcox on the Mini being positioned as a consumer electronics device: "So when is a Mac a CE device? Basically, when Steve Jobs says it is. He officially hasn’t in so many words, but the product’s compact and fairly nailed-shut design does. Such a move wouldn’t be inconsistent with Apple’s longstanding marketing position of the Mac as a digital media hub for consuming or creating content and connecting devices. Then there is the booming success of iPod, which is as much about CE as it is about computing."
Shoot - maybe I want a mini again :).
John (January 21, 2005 @ 5:46 pm)
I agree with alot of Cringely’s points (and I can understand benefits for the movie industry) but I’m skeptical that the mini is targeted at this. For one, the mini is missing one very important feature; optical spdif out. I’m certainly not going to watch movies in stereo anymore. It would also need and IR interface. -Now I’ll admit you can do both of these as add-ons, but you shouldn’t have to if this is what it is intended for.
The other major problem with this is just bandwidth. The main reason for the new formats like blueray, is that HD movies are going to take more space. I don’t think people have enough bandwidth to make downloading an HD movie a positive user experience.
Steve (January 22, 2005 @ 3:19 pm)
I agree with you on the bandwidth, just based on what I’m seeing on moving recorded tv around from the Tivo. I dont think the optical out is a big deal though for most home consumers.
Randy H. (January 23, 2005 @ 7:59 am)
Cringely wants that to be the case so badly. He wants anything that will will displace Windows as a computing platform for home users. I think he’s out of luck on this one.
My guess is that the Mini is exactly what is advertised- a low cost computer designed for those looking for an easy upgrade to their PC platform (and willing to take a chance on a new OS) or those looking for a second PC.
Frank (January 28, 2005 @ 12:15 pm)
Could be that that’s what this (possibly ill-advised) “dashboard” feature in 10.4 is part of?
I, for one, wouldn’t want to have to read 12pt Lucida Grande from across the room, even on a 32″ HDTV. Not to mention screen burn-in (hence the “not intended” language?).
I have my doubts that the Mac Mini in its current configuration is intended as a HTPC, but Apple’s traditionally been big on A/V versions of their products.