
It has been coming for a while but Apple released new updates across the whole Mac Desktop family, starting from the smallest Mac mini to the powerful Mac Pro. In between there are updates to the iMac, Airport Extreme Base Station, Time Capsule and also a new Apple Keyboard.
Faster. Greener. Still mini.
The “star buy” (for me at least) must be the new Mac mini – coming in at a low S$988. Sporting new 2.0GHz (upgradable to 2.26GHz) Core 2 Duo processor, DDR3 SDRAM from 1GB to 4GB (BTO), SATA HD ranging from 120GB to 320GB and the new NVIDIA GeForce 9400M that first appeared in the new iMacs. As shown in the rumor photo, the Mac mini comes with 5 USB 2 ports, 1 Firewire 800 port, Mini DisplayPort and mini-DVI output to support up to two external displays.
The Mac mini is definitely good for families looking for an entry level Mac suitable not just for its computing features, but also as a good media centre beside your new LCD TV. Definitely something I’m looking at for my new house even though there are much lost opportunities to make Mac mini a kick ass computer for your TV.
The newer and cheaper iMac
The updated iMac is now available in 4 basic configurations – ranging from S$1,948 for a 20-inch model right up to S$3,488 for a 24-inch 3.06GHz model. As it is, the entry iMac is more than sufficient for most users who wants to have a machine fast enough to handle most basic requirements to do photo and video editing, productivity work and non-productivity work like surfing and social networking.
The premium model boast the highest speed available across all Macs – a whopping 3.06GHz quick. With its beautiful 24-inch screen and the powerful NVIDIA GeForece GT 130 (or ATI Radeon HD 4850) with 512MB GDDR3 memory, this is more than sufficient for professionals to do their creative work without having to purchase the workhouse Mac Pro.
The new iMacs are also equipped with the new Apple Keyboard which is without the Numeric Keypad, giving you back more space on your desktop. This is packed with two USB 2 ports on the side giving you a maximum of 6 USB 2 ports. It is also has a FireWire 800 port, iSight, Mini DisplayPort to allow you to connect to the new Apple LED Cinema Displays. Whether removing the Numeric Keypad to save space will sit well with users, we will have to wait and see.
Beauty outside, Beast inside
Last but not least, is the Mac Pro – the powerful workhorse used by those who requires raw power. The new Mac Pro is running the new Intel Quad-Core Xeon “Nehalem” Processors … what a mouthful. Even though numerically the processors seem “slower” than those for the iMac, each being Quad-Core, means you get twice the processing power in one chip. For a low price of S$3,988 you get one 2.66GHz (upgradable to 2.93GHz) Quad-Core processor, 640GB hard drive and 3GB of RAM, upgradable to 8GB in total.
If you seriously new more processing horses, you can opt for the 8-core Mac Pro that starts from S$5,288. You get two 2.26GHz Quad-Core (upgradable to two 2.93GHz processor), 6GB of memory with the option to upsize all the way to 32GB of memory. The graphics option is mind blogging too – from one NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 with 512MB up to 4, yes you read that correct, 4 NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 graphics chip.
As the beauty of the Mac Pro is its expandability, with 4 SATA Drive Bay, you can get up to 4 TBs of HD space. That is ALOT of HD space. With its new internal redesign, getting access to these bays and slots makes it easy for one to upgrade the Mac Pro yourself.
However, for all the money you spend on the Mac Pro, it doesn’t come with an AirPort Extreme Wi-Fi card – a S$78 option. Weird.
Basically the Mac Pro is something you’d want to have if you are filming and editing a Hollywood blockbuster – one that can give you much raw processing power.
Just for the fun of it. You can built-to-order, a Mac Pro with two 30″ Apple Cinema HD Display and the bestest of the bestest options for a nice total of S$29,120.71. Do let me know if you are considering that option.
Also mentioned in the beginning, the AirPort Extreme Base Station (S$268) and the Time Capsule (S$448, basically an AirPort Extreme Base Station with storage) were also updated. Now it has simultaneous dual-band Wi-Fi – 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands – that will allow better usage of the wireless bandwidth for devices that can tap the higher band but not neglecting the slower devices.
There is also an option to have a separate network for your guest that can only be accessed with a password for your visitors so that they can tap onto the Internet but with no access to your own network. Apple sure make us friendly and generous people. Too bad the Time Capsule were not updated with the higher 1.5TB capacity hard drives.
There is also a new feature that allows you to remotely access your Time Capsule or external Harddisk connected to the Airport Extreme via Internet when you access it with MobileMe.
“Say you’re traveling and you need a file on your Time Capsule back at home. If you’re a MobileMe member using a Mac with Mac OS X Leopard, no problem,” Apple says. “You can now access all the files on your Time Capsule drive over the Internet. Simply register your Time Capsule with your MobileMe account, and its drive appears in the Finder sidebar of your Mac just like any other attached drive. It’s like having your own personal file server wherever you go.”
Read more at the AppleInsider
Slimmer and smaller keyboards
Bucking the trends of having keyboards with more keys and more functions, Apple’s new Keyboard is much more compact as it removed the Numeric Keypad from itself. It comes with two USB 2.0 ports on the sides for you to attached a mouse and can be used for plugging your iPhone or your external storage device. It is available at S$78.
Buried beneath these updates to the Mac Desktops, Apple also slipped in updates to the 15″ MacBook Pro with new 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processors, upgradable to 2.93GHz.
All in all, these updates across the whole Mac product line will benefit everyone, from students, to families to professionals who wants a machine that give them maximum value for every buck they spend.
I for one, is looking forward to getting a new Airport Extreme to replace my DLink router and the Mac mini to replace my now obsolete QuickSilver PowerMac that served me well since 2000.
Will you be getting any new Macs soon?