what bill-the-wanker totally missed is this:
a full-stop 1.25Ghz Apple G4 Mac..... for $500?? I say wow....
Add ANY monitor, ANY keyboard, ANY mouse (I can get all three, and with decent enough quality for a "low-end" computer, for about $300 -- nothing says you have to buy them from Apple).... but I already do have a pretty good monitor that I could use (no need to buy another one), and anyway, I want this as a THIRD computer -- in addition to my powerbook and main studio tower..... chances are, I'd use a monitor/keyboard/mouse switchbox hooked up to the mini (cost = $50), so I don't need ANY of those bits in addition..... See, I want to use my Mac mini as:
1. An outboard VST processor & archive storage unit
2. A "Media Center" hooked up to my A/V gear (think Air Tunes, DVD Player, Photo Library, etc.)... so I don't have to use my main studio Mac to store or deal with photos, movies, iTunes, etc. etc.
3. My main box Word-processing, Internet (email, browsing, chat), etc.... so my primary studio Mac remains pristine and optimized for audio and video production.....
And yet, it's tied into my main system via the network, so I can keep them synched, talking to each other when needed, etc.......
They're going to sell as many of these to existing Mac owners who've wanted a "cheap" second Mac as they do to newcomers... at least at the beginning........
One thing Bill forgot was, in the OLD days of Apple, the keyboard and mouse (and monitor with some models) were sold separately, and that's when Macs cost $5,000!!!
So to bill-the-wanker, I say "So what!!" In the end, it may cost $800 ~ 1,000 to *fully* outfit your new Mac mini..... but that's still a heck of a good price for a full-fledged Mac, and is still less than an iMac G5.... so the price point is spot on, IMO.....
Flexibility is the key here..... there's nothing "fraudulent" about it.....
If Bill had allowed comments on his blog post, he'd be major flame-bait right about now!
peace,
tribalogical
