News: Apple Updates Mac mini, iMac, & Mac Pro

Well it’s about time. Regular readers of this site know that we’re fans of the Mac mini and there were concerns over whether or not Apple was going to drop it since it hasn’t seen a major update in years. Thankfully, the little bugger got quite the upgrade under the hood, along with the other desktops in Apple’s lineup.

The Mac mini now features:

• 2.0 or 2.26GHz Core 2 Duo processor with 3MB L2 cache
• 1066MHz system bus
• 1 or 2GB of RAM, which can be upgraded to 4GB
• 120GB or 320GB hard drive
• An additional USB port (bringing the total to 5)
• FireWire 800 port (wonder what the MacBook users are saying?)
• Mini-DVI and Mini-DisplayPort connectors, allowing the Mac mini to run dual displays for the first time
• NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics processor with 128MB or 256MB of DDR3 SDRAM shared with main memory
• SuperDrive
• 802.11n

Not a bad upgrade, if we say so ourselves. The iMac also got an update, although less dramatic:

• 2.66, 2.93, or 3.06 GHz Core 2 Duo processor with 6MB L2 cache
• 1066MHz system bus
• 2GB of RAM, which can be upgraded to 8GB
• 320GB, 640GB, or 1TB hard drive
• FireWire 800 port (again, we wonder what the MacBook users are saying?)
• Mini-DisplayPort connector
• NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics processor with 256MB of DDR3 SDRAM shared with main memory3 (2.66GHz model)
• NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 graphics processor with 256MB of GDDR3 memory (2.93GHz model)
• NVIDIA GeForce GT 130 graphics processor with 512MB of GDDR3 memory (2.93GHz and 3.06GHz models)
• ATI Radeon HD 4850 graphics processor with 512MB of GDDR3 memory (2.93GHz and 3.06GHz models)

The Mac Pro made the move to an 8-core version:

• One or Two 2.66 GHz Xeon processors with 8MB L2 cache per processor
• 3 or 6GB RAM
• 640GB hard drive
• FireWire 800 port (again, we wonder what the MacBook users are saying?)
• NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 with 512MB GDDR3 memory, Mini DisplayPort, and dual-link DVI video output
• Built-to-order options including up to two 2.93GHz processors, 32GB memory, four GeForce GT 120s, or an ATI Radeon HD 4870 with 512MB GDDR5

Notably absent from the Mac Pro’s specs are an AirPort card – it’s an option.

Also, Apple now offers another keyboard with its computers—essentially it’s a wired version of the Bluetooth keyboard. It’s got the same layout as the MacBooks, but connects via USB. If you want a numeric keypad, it’s a free option when building your computer.

Finally, AirPort Extreme and Time Capsule got an update, allowing them to run dual networks. This means that devices connecting to the 802.11b/g antenna won’t slow down devices connecting to the 802.11n network. Finally, MacBooks and iPhones can play nicely!