Wednesday, October 31st 2018
Apple Launches All-New MacBook Air and Mac Mini
Apple today announced a slew of updates to there product lines including an all-new MacBook Air and Mac Mini. Starting with the MacBook Air, Apple has finally given the system a proper upgrade bringing it back to relevance after years of stagnation. These upgrades include a 13.3-inch Retina display, Intel's 8th generation Core i5 processor with UHD Graphics 617, up to 16 GB 2133 MHz LPDDR3 and SSDs with capacities up to 1.5 TB. In terms of design, the shell is made of 100% recycled aluminum with the entire system weighing in at just 2.75 lbs compared to the outgoing models 2.96 lbs.
On top of the various hardware improvements, Apple has also included their Touch ID fingerprint sensor which is paired with their T2 chip for a secure login much the same as the current MacBook Pro. These two inclusions, along with the T2 chips ability to deliver on-the-fly data encryption makes the MacBook Air one of the most secure notebooks on the market according to Apple. However, one thing missing here is the Touch Bar, which will likely make more than a few users happy. The keyboard also gets upgraded to the same third generation with butterfly mechanism used on the MacBook Pro lineup.
In regards to connectivity, the MacBook Air has two USB-C / Thunderbolt ports which allow for an external 5K display or external graphics enclosure among other things. Don't worry unlike Apple's phones there is still a 3.5 mm headphone jack as well. The base model will come standard with a 1.6 GHz Intel Core i5, 8 GB of system memory and a 128 GB SSD with a price tag of $1,199 with it being available for purchase now.
The all-new Mac mini gets some massive upgrades too, being configurable with either an Intel quad-core i3 or hexa-core i5 or i7 processors with integrated UHD Graphics 630. System memory ranges in capacity from 8 GB to 64 GB at 2666 MHz DDR4, meanwhile the included SSD storage comes in multiple capacities from 128 GB up to 2 TBs. When it comes to connectivity Apple didn't skimp either, including four USB-C / Thunderbolt ports which allow for external high-speed storage, 4K, and 5K displays. Rounding out the rest is two USB-A ports along with an audio jack, Gigabit Ethernet and an HDMI 2.0 port.
Made from the same recycled aluminum like the MacBook Air the base model Mac mini comes equipped with a 3.6 GHz Intel Core i3 quad-core, 8 GB 2666 MHz DDR4 and a 128 GB SSD for $799. Jumping up the i5 hexa-core will push that to $1099, while the i7 sees a further increase to $1299. The all-new Mac mini is available now. For a more in-depth look you can view the press release information in the sources below.
Sources:
Apple Mac mini, Apple MacBook Air
On top of the various hardware improvements, Apple has also included their Touch ID fingerprint sensor which is paired with their T2 chip for a secure login much the same as the current MacBook Pro. These two inclusions, along with the T2 chips ability to deliver on-the-fly data encryption makes the MacBook Air one of the most secure notebooks on the market according to Apple. However, one thing missing here is the Touch Bar, which will likely make more than a few users happy. The keyboard also gets upgraded to the same third generation with butterfly mechanism used on the MacBook Pro lineup.
The all-new Mac mini gets some massive upgrades too, being configurable with either an Intel quad-core i3 or hexa-core i5 or i7 processors with integrated UHD Graphics 630. System memory ranges in capacity from 8 GB to 64 GB at 2666 MHz DDR4, meanwhile the included SSD storage comes in multiple capacities from 128 GB up to 2 TBs. When it comes to connectivity Apple didn't skimp either, including four USB-C / Thunderbolt ports which allow for external high-speed storage, 4K, and 5K displays. Rounding out the rest is two USB-A ports along with an audio jack, Gigabit Ethernet and an HDMI 2.0 port.
25 Comments on Apple Launches All-New MacBook Air and Mac Mini
en.wikichip.org/wiki/intel/cores/amber_lake_y
en.wikichip.org/wiki/intel/cores/whiskey_lake_u
Only Apple can sell you a glorified netbook for $1200.Just like w/ DDR3 power packages there is regular DDR4 (1.2-1.35V), DDR4L (1.05-1.2V), and mobile LPDDR4(1.1V), LPDDR4x(0.6V).
The only difference is that DDR4L is not on the market yet (and no word on when to expect it). Spec itself was published almost 4 years ago.
What intrigues me is the Mac Mini refresh. That's a lot of computer in a small form factor. Once again, ignoring whether or not you agree with paying the Apple tax.
Eh.. I should've known. Looks like I'll still be sticking with PCs.
To put it into perspective: an LPDDR3-1866 has about the same power draw as a regular DDR4, so it's definitely not the performance point, not the power saving benefit, but just the banal "cutting corners" with cheaper components (or,optimistically,using it as a workaround for DDR4 deficit).
I'd still 100% take an Inwin Choppin+2400G system over this any day