New Mac minis add Thunderbolt, lose optical drive | Desktops

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New Mac minis add Thunderbolt, lose optical drive

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Source: macworld.com

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Summary:

The MacBook Air line wasn't the only Mac hardware to get a Thunderbolt-inspired makeover Wednesday.
Apple also added a Thunderbolt port to its Mac mini desktop, which sports new processors and discrete graphics as well.
The new mini retains the 7.7-by-7.7-by-1.4-inch shape of its predecessor, though there is one key difference to its exterior - there's no optical drive, giving the new mini the same look as the server configuration.
That's the clearest sign yet that Apple, with its Mac App Store for software downloads and its iTunes Store for music and video content, believes that the future belongs to digital downloads.
That would also explain the addition of Thunderbolt, an interface technology that promises high-speed input and output.

As on the updated MacBook Air models released Wednesday, the Thunderbolt port on the new Mac mini replaces the Mini DisplayPort, though it remains compatible with Mini DisplayPort for video out purposes.
The previous Mac mini generation featured a single configuration: a $699 model with a 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo processor, 2GB of DDR3 SDRAM, a 320GB SATA hard drive, and nVidia GeForce 320M integrated graphics.
Apple has replaced that version with two new models, both of which feature more powerful Intel Core i5 processors.
In addition to returning to two configurations, the mini lineup is also returning to its old pricing structure, with a lower entry price.
The entry-level mini features a 2.3GHz dual-core Core i5 chip.
It also ships with 2GB of memory and a 500GB hard drive, though you can opt to boost memory and storage capacity to 8GB and 750GB, respectively.
This $599 model also features Intel HD Graphics 3000 processor with at least 288MB of DDR3 SDRAM that it shares with the system memory.
The other Mac mini configuration offers discrete graphics with an AMD Radeon HD 6630M processor with 256MB of GDDR5 memory.
It's also powered by a 2.5GHz core-duo Core i5 chip and ships with 4GB of RAM and a 500GB hard drive.
(Again, you can upgrade memory and storage capacity if you wish.)

Mac Mini Server

Apple also offers a version of the Mac mini with Lion Server installed.
The 2.0 GHz quad-core Intel Core i7-powered Mac mini with Lion Server also offers 4GB of memory and dual 500GB hard drives.

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Concepts:

Mac, Mac Mini, Cameras, Drives, Apple, Thunderbolt, Macworld, Macbook Air, Accessories, Imac, Camcorders, Memory, Hard Drives

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Related articles

• New Mac Mini Gets Better Processors, Loses Optical Drive (mashable.com)
• iFixit releases kit for a second hard drive in the Mac mini (tuaw.com)
• Apple updates the Mac Mini with Sandy Bridge and Thunderbolt (geek.com)
• New 2011 Mac mini pictures (digitaltrends.com)
• Apple releases new Mac Mini with Thunderbolt (edibleapple.com)
• New Mac mini loses optical drive, gains Bluetooth 4.0 (updated) (zdnet.com)
• Review: Apple Mac mini (Mid 2011) (macworld.com)

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New Mac minis add Thunderbolt, lose optical drive | Desktops | Macworld

Image via WikipediaNew Mac minis add Thunderbolt, lose optical drive Desktops Macworld

The MacBook Air line wasn't the only Mac hardware to get a Thunderbolt-inspired makeover Wednesday.

Apple also added a Thunderbolt port to its Mac mini desktop, which sports new processors and discrete graphics as well.

The new mini retains the 7.7-by-7.7-by-1.4-inch shape of its predecessor, though there is one key difference to its exterior - there's no optical drive, giving the new mini the same look as the server configuration.

That's the clearest sign yet that Apple, with its Mac App Store for software downloads and its iTunes Store for music and video content, believes that the future belongs to digital downloads.

That would also explain the addition of Thunderbolt, an interface technology that promises high-speed input and output.

As on the updated MacBook Air models released Wednesday, the Thunderbolt port on the new Mac mini replaces the Mini DisplayPort, though it remains compatible with Mini DisplayPort for video out purposes.

The previous Mac mini generation featured a single configuration: a $699 model with a 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo processor, 2GB of DDR3 SDRAM, a 320GB SATA hard drive, and nVidia GeForce 320M integrated graphics.

Apple has replaced that version with two new models, both of which feature more powerful Intel Core i5 processors.

In addition to returning to two configurations, the mini lineup is also returning to its old pricing structure, with a lower entry price.

The entry-level mini features a 2.3GHz dual-core Core i5 chip.

It also ships with 2GB of memory and a 500GB hard drive, though you can opt to boost memory and storage capacity to 8GB and 750GB, respectively.

This $599 model also features Intel HD Graphics 3000 processor with at least 288MB of DDR3 SDRAM that it shares with the system memory.

The other Mac mini configuration offers discrete graphics with an AMD Radeon HD 6630M processor with 256MB of GDDR5 memory.

It's also powered by a 2.5GHz core-duo Core i5 chip and ships with 4GB of RAM and a 500GB hard drive.

(Again, you can upgrade memory and storage capacity if you wish.)

Apple also offers a version of the Mac mini with Lion Server installed.

The 2.0 GHz quad-core Intel Core i7-powered Mac mini with Lion Server also offers 4GB of memory and dual 500GB hard drives.

Related articles

• Apple Mac Mini Core i5 2011 (go.theregister.com)
• New Mac Mini Gets Better Processors, Loses Optical Drive (mashable.com)
• Apple Mac mini refreshed: Sandy Bridge and dual-drive Server (slashgear.com)
• Apple releases new Mac Mini with Thunderbolt (edibleapple.com)
• Apple adds Thunderbolt to MacBook Air, Mac Mini (infoworld.com)
• Mac Mini Line Padded Out With Three Thunderbolt-Packin' Models [Apple] (gizmodo.com)
• Apple introduces new Mac mini with faster processors, Thunderbolt, server option (tuaw.com)

Image via Wikipedia

Ten Safari shortcuts you should know

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Source: macworld.com

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While I like my Magic Trackpad, and the trackpad on my MacBook Air, I do as much as I can from the keyboard.


As such, I use LaunchBar () to launch applications, and have learned a number of essential iTunes shortcuts to save time when I work with my music collection.
I know dozens of shortcuts for the apps I use most.


Since it's easier to use the keyboard - no need to move my hand to my trackpad - I've memorized a handful of useful shortcuts for browsing the Web.
Here are ten that I think are essential. (These should work in both Snow Leopard and Lion unless otherwise noted.)

1. Quickly enter URLs

When I want to type a URL, I don't use a mouse or trackpad to click in the Address Bar, clear it, then type. Just press Command-L, and all the text in the Address Bar is selected, so whatever you type replaces it immediately. Start typing a URL for a favorite site, and Safari can auto-completes it by looking at your history or bookmarks. If Safari displays a list of sites, use the up- and down-arrow keys to choose the right one, and then press Return to go there.

2. Search in a snap

Like everyone, I search a lot using Google. Why click in the Google search field when you can go there by simply pressing Command-Option-F? Remember this shortcut, as it works in many Apple programs. Use it in Mail, iTunes, Address Book and more when you need to zip to the search field.

3. Hop to your history

There are times when I want to browse my History list to find a Web page I visited recently, but whose URL I can't remember. Pressing Command-Option-2 takes me to the History list, and puts the cursor in the search field. I can type a word or two and narrow down the display to find what I want. Double-clicking an entry in the History list takes me to that page, and pressing Command-Option-2 again takes me back to the previously visible Web page.

4. Scroll with the spacebar

When I get to my favorite Web page, I rarely bother to use scroll bars, or even my trackpad, to scroll. Just press the spacebar, and Safari scrolls down one screen. Need to go back up a screen? Press Shift-Spacebar. It's fast and efficient, and doesn't make me dizzy watching the page move up and down.

5. Open tabs in the background

Safari’s Tabs preferences show the shortcuts you can use to create new tabs. Go to Safari -> Preferences and click on Tabs to see these. The shortcut I use most is Command-Shift-click, which opens a new tab in the background. I use this a lot when I’m doing research on the Web and want to open several pages from search results without looking at them right away. Safari's tabbed browsing is a practical way to have several Web pages open at once without getting confused by multiple windows. IMAGE - SAFARI-TABS Safari's Tabs preferences let you choose how you want tabbed browsing to work, and show you the available keyboard shortcuts according to your settings.

6. Navigate your tabs

Use Command-Shift-Left Arrow or Right-Arrow will take you from one tab to the other. Just make sure that your cursor isn’t in a text field on any window displayed in a tab

7. Send a page (or its URL) to a friend

To email a neat Web page you’ve found to a friend.

• Command-I does the trick; it takes the contents of the page and send it to the person in a new message in Mail, with the page’s title as the message subject.
  
• Command-Shift-I Will just want to send a link
  

8. Save pages for later

New in Lion is Reading List, a sort of temporary bookmark list that you can use for pages you want to come back to and read later. If you press Command-Shift-D, you can add the current page to the Reading List.

9. Save links for later

The above Lion shortcut works when a page is visible. If you want to add a linked page to the Reading List - a page in search results, or a link, say, on the main page of macworld.com - just hold down the Shift key and click on that link

10. View Lion’s Reading List

To view the Reading List, you could click on the eyeglasses icon in the Bookmark Bar, if it was visible. Since we’re discussing keyboard shortcuts, however, instead you use the easier method of just pressing Command-Shift-L.

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Concepts:

Mac, Shortcuts, Tabs, Safari, Command-L, Command-Option-2, Command-Option-F, Command-Option-2, Command-Shift-Click, Command-Shift-Left Arrow, Command-Shift-I, Right-Arrow, Command-Shift-D, Command-Shift-L, Lion, Macworld, Business, Accessories