Closing the book on Apple's Mac mini

[steve harley]

they whom i call LuKreme wrote:
> No one is trying to decide between a mini and a mac Pro, let's be serious.

i think the point is that a less-crippled replacement for the 
Mini could indeed compete with Mac Pro sales; and we've already 
discussed how the Mini competes with XServe sales ...

> Improved form factor?  I think the mini's form factor is just about 
> perfect.  It couldn't be smaller without eliminating the optical drive, 
> and I don't think that's a good idea.

i think it could be a bit *larger*; use full size hard drives for 
economy, be easier to open and swap stuff out; it would have a 
little more longevity if it parts were easier to swap out

a few months ago i won a "mini PC"; i think this is about it:

<http://www.jr.com/JRProductPage.process?Product_Id=4159266>

very ugly, and i sold it immediately, but what struck me was that 
it had a decent sized hard drive, a pretty good audio system, and 
it was bristling with USB, FireWire and media-card slots, and i 
could replace the video card (which was worse than the Mini's video)

for whatever reason i found the vertical form factor appealing -- 
the Mini's flatness is initially appealing, but in the end it 
doesn't integrate well with other peripherals unless you buy 
premium accessories