Intel Mac mini good at what it does

Posted by Dennis Sellers Mar 21, 2006 at 2:29am

Nope, the first Intel Mac mini hasn’t added digital video recording capabilities (and, according to Apple’s Phil Schiller, may never), it’s still a good Mac at a decent price for those needing an entry-level system. Keep the phrase “entry level system” in mind when you read this review because it’s the key to putting everything in perspective. I’ve played around with the Core Duo version a bit, and where’s what I’ve found.

First, let me note that I have mixed feelings about the Intel Mac mini’s price point. On the one hand, the dual-core Mac mini’s US$799 price tag seems to be a bit steep. On the other hand, it does have a dual core processor, something pretty impressive in an entry-level system.

The Intel Mac mini is the first mini to utilize Intel integrated graphics versus the ATI Radeon graphics processor used in the previous Mac mini design. It sports an Intel GMA950 graphics processor with 64MB of DDR2 SDRAM shared with main memory. There’s quite a bit of debate about this, but it seems to me to be a step down from the previous PowerPC Mac minis.

As pointed out in a MacFixIt report, the integrated graphics mean that the Intel Mac mini shares RAM between the system and the graphics processor. The GMA950 uses “Dynamic Video Memory Technology” (DVMT) to support up to 224MB of video memory; system memory is allocated where it is needed dynamically. It has 64MB of DDR2 SDRAM of its own, shared with main memory.

Still, Apple says that the GMA950’s specs best those of the Radeon 9200 card used by the PowerPC-based Mac mini. For instance, the GMA950 claims 1.6 billion pixels per second vs. 1.1 billion pixels per second for the Radeon 9200. And the GMA950 includes a 256-bit graphics core running at 400MHz while the Radeon 9200 uses a 400Mhz 128-bit core. The Intel mini does offer a graphics boost over its PowerPC predecessor—but I can’t help but wonder how much more oomph we would have gotten from a dedicated graphics processor. Still (repeat after me): this is an entry level computer. Those hoping for more horsepower should consider the Intel iMac or MacBook Pro (among Mactels) or the PowerPC G5 (among PowerPC systems). Especially, if you’re a serious gamer. Unreal Tournament (a non-Intel optimized version) only averaged 12.2 per second for the Core Duo.

The new Mac minis offer DVI video output to support digital resolutions up to 1920 by 1200 pixels. They support 20-inch and 23-inch Apple Cinema Displays (but not the 30-incher), support coherent digital displays up to 154MHz, and support non-coherent digital displays up to 135MHz. The Intel Mac mini also provides VGA video output (using an included adapter) to support analog resolutions up to 1920 by 1080 pixels. And the machines comes with S-video and composite video output to connect directly to a TV or projector (using an Apple DVI to Video Adapter, which is sold separately).

The new video chipset is suitable for home theater use as it has hardware motion compensation, MPEG-2 hardware decoding, support for native HDTV resolutions and 16×9 aspect displays. However, you should know that with iTunes sharing, you can’t play music or video content purchased from the iTunes Music Store unless you authorize the Mac mini for that account. If you haven’t done that, Front Row gives you error messages when you try to play such content.

As before, the Mac mini uses notebook hard drives, which are typically slower (5400 rpm, rather than 7200 rpm) than higher-end desktops, though in routine operations this doesn’t really affect performance and should be adequate for the mini’s target customers. On the other hand, I’ll again decry Apple’s decision to omit a modem, forcing you to spring $49 for an external one if you don’t have broadband or wireless connectivity. Bad, bad Apple.

The Mac mini has enough oomph to handle word processing, email, Web surfing and the iLife ‘06 apps well. Microsoft Office apps run respectably, even under the Rosetta environment, though Photoshop, which isn’t yet optimized for Intel Macs, is very sluggish. And even under “Universal Binary” software that is (such as iLife ‘06 and iWork ‘06), performance on even the new dual core Mac mini isn’t nearly twice as fast as the single core PowerPC model. I found it to be around 15-30 percent faster, a smaller-than-expected speed boost perhaps due to the fact (and this is merely my theory) that new Intel mini uses some of its 512MB of RAM for the integrated graphics. A boost to 1MB of RAM should make a noticeable difference.

On the other hand, the new minis offer a faster system bus (667MHz versus 167MHz), faster RAM (667MHz DDR2 SDRAM versus 333MHz DDR SDRAM), and more L2 cache (2MB versus 512KB), all of which add a speed boost. The mini now has two RAM slots and can support twice as much physical RAM as before (2GB instead of 1GB). And the updated minis have Serial ATA hard drives, which offer 1.5 times the bus bandwidth of the previous ATA drives.

The new Intel Mac mini is a solid upgrade to the teeny Mac, if not an earthshaking one. It makes a good, basic system, a solid second Mac or a sleek home entertainment system (especially if you add an elGato eyeTV or similar device). And that’s pretty much what it’s designed to accomplish.

The new 1.5 GHz Mac mini, for a suggested retail price of $599, includes:
•1.5 GHz Intel Core Solo processor;
•512MB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM, expandable up to 2GB;
•a slot-load Combo (DVD-ROM/CD-RW) drive;
•60GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 5400 rpm;
•Intel GMA950 graphics processor;
•built-in AirPort Extreme wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.0+EDR;
•Gigabit Ethernet (10/100/1000 BASE-T);
•four USB 2.0 ports;
•one audio line in and one audio line out port, each supporting both optical digital and analog;
•DVI-out port for external display (VGA-out adapter included, Composite/S-Video out adapter sold separately); and
•the infrared Apple Remote.

The new 1.66 GHz Mac mini, for a suggested retail price of $799 (US), includes:
•1.66 GHz Intel Core Duo processor;
•512MB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM expandable up to 2GB;
•a slot-load 8x SuperDrive™ with double-layer support (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW);
•80GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 5400 rpm;
•Intel GMA950 graphics processor;
•built-in AirPort Extreme wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.0+EDR;
•Gigabit Ethernet (10/100/1000 BASE-T);
•four USB 2.0 ports;
•one audio line in and one audio line out port, each supporting both optical digital and analog;
•DVI-out port for external display (VGA-out adapter included, Composite/S-Video out adapter sold separately); and
•the infrared Apple Remote.

Build-to-order options and accessories include up to 2GB DDR2 SDRAM, 80GB, 100GB and 120GB Serial ATA hard drives, iWork ’06 (pre-installed), AirPort Express and AirPort Extreme Base Station, Apple Wireless Keyboard, Apple Wireless Mouse, Apple USB Modem and the AppleCare Protection Plan.
Macsimum rating: 7 out of 10.

Commenting is not available in this weblog entry.

  Advanced Search

Article Information

Comment on this Article Print this Article Email this Article Digg This

Contributor

Recent Articles

Hotel München