Mac Mini 2011 Comparison Chart

By Jon Quach on July 21, 2011 in Macs

Mac Mini 2011

It sometimes feels like the MacMini is the forgotten child of the Apple line of computers. The funny thing is, it’s grown quite popular with certain sectors for doing things other than being a normal desktop computer like running websites, strapped to the backs of TVs and even used to record security footage at Las Vegas casinos. There are a lot of potential uses for the littlest Mac desktop, Before you go writing it off, think about its size, power and where you can potentially place one, and suddenly the Mini becomes a whole lot more interesting.

We’ve set up a chart to show you how it’s been upgraded from the last version, and it’s looking like a pretty powerful little machine. No, it doesn’t have an optical drive, but if you have another Mac with one, you’re set. Want to set up a server farm of thee? Buy one Super Drive and you’re off to the races.

What do you think of the MacMini? Heard any interesting use cases for one? Are you tempted to pick one up?

	Mac Mini 2011		Mac Mini 2010
Version	2.3GHz	2.5GHz	2.4GHz
Price	$599	$799	$699
Size and Weight	Height: 1.4 inches (3.6 cm) Width: 7.7 inches (19.7 cm) Depth: 7.7 inches (19.7 cm) Weight: 2.7 pounds (1.22kg) Height: 1.4 inches (3.6 cm) Width: 7.7 inches (19.7 cm) Depth: 7.7 inches (19.7 cm) Weight: 3.0 pounds (1.37kg)
Processor and Memory	Processor 2.3GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 with 3MB on-chip shared L3 cache Processor 2.5GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 with 3MB on-chip shared L3 cache Configurable to 2.7GHz dual-core Intel Core i7 Memory 2GB of 1333MHz DDR3 memory Configurable to 4GB or 8GB Memory 4GB of 1333MHz DDR3 memory Configurable to 8GB		Processor 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 3MB on-chip shared L2 cache Configurable to 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor Memory 2GB of 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM onboard memory Upgradable to 8GB maximum
Storage	500GB 500GB (5400-rpm) hard drive Configurable to 750GB (7200-rpm) hard drive; 2.5GHz model also configurable to 256GB solid-state drive or 256GB solid-state drive and 750GB (7200-rpm) hard drive		320GB 320GB Serial ATA hard disk drive	500GB 500GB Serial ATA hard disk drive
Graphics	Intel HD Graphics 3000 processor with 256MB or 384MB of DDR3 SDRAM shared with main memory	AMD Radeon HD 6630M graphics processor with 256MB of GDDR5 memory	NVIDIA GeForce 320M graphics processor with 256MB of DDR3 SDRAM shared with main memory
Video Support	Thunderbolt port with support for up to 2560-by-1600 resolution HDMI port with support for up to 1920-by-1200 resolution DVI output using HDMI to DVI Adapter (included) Support for dual display and video mirroring		HDMI port with support for up to 1920-by-1200 resolution DVI output using HDMI to DVI Adapter (included) Support for dual display and video mirroring
Connections and Expansion	Thunderbolt port (up to 10 Gbps) FireWire 800 port (up to 800 Mbps) Four USB 2.0 ports (up to 480 Mbps) HDMI port SDXC card slot Gigabit Ethernet port Audio in/out		FireWire 800 port (up to 800 Mbps) Four USB 2.0 ports (up to 480 Mbps) HDMI port SD card slot Gigabit Ethernet port Audio in/out
Operating System	Mac OS X Lion		Mac OS X Snow Leopard
Wireless	Wi-Fi 802.11n Wi-Fi wireless networking; IEEE 802.11a/b/g compatible Bluetooth Bluetooth 4.0 wireless technology Ethernet 10/100/1000BASE-T Ethernet (RJ-45 connector)		Wi-Fi 802.11n Wi-Fi wireless networking; IEEE 802.11a/b/g compatible Bluetooth Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR technology Ethernet 10/100/1000BASE-T Ethernet (RJ-45 connector)