Talk:Mac Mini/GA2

GA Review

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Reviewer: Ritchie333 (talk · contribs) 20:36, 19 November 2021 (UTC)

As you can see from my user page, I like fixing up old Macs; indeed I am typing this on a 2012 Quad Core I7 Mini with 16GB RAM and 3TB of disk space. So I think I'll be an ideal person to do the review.

I notice there is still a split discussion; I'm going to close that as "no consensus" as there's been hardly any input and the article is now down to a reasonable 18K of prose.

I tend to copyedit and ask questions as I go. Specific comments will follow.

Lead

• "The Mac Mini (stylized as Mac mini)" - is this necessary?
  • Yes, because official stylized name is "Mac mini," not "Mac Mini". It is there to clarify potential confusions. Wingwatchers (talk) 03:32, 20 November 2021 (UTC)
• The second paragraph mentions the PowerPC G4, but not the switch to Intel - why is that?

 Added Wingwatchers (talk) 03:32, 20 November 2021 (UTC)

Lineup

• "and runs the macOS operating system" - worth qualifying this was called Mac OS X at the time and later OS X?

 Fixed Wingwatchers (talk) 03:45, 20 November 2021 (UTC)

• "A removable panel was attached to the bottom of the chassis of the Mac Minis to allow for Random Access Memory (RAM) upgrades." - this is the only case for 2010, 2011 and 2012 models (and 2018 models, but not by unqualified personnel)  Fixed Wingwatchers (talk)
• "Since the 2011 third generation revision, the Kensington Security Slot and the optical drive were removed from all models" - the Kensington slot is not in the 2010 model either  Removed Wingwatchers (talk) 03:45, 20 November 2021 (UTC)

First generation (PowerPC G4)

• What makes this post on macrumous.com a reliable source?

This is not an official news article from a MacRumors staff, and it is used in the good article Safari (web broswer) and many others. Wingwatchers (talk) 03:59, 20 November 2021 (UTC)

• "The company described this procedure in detail, including an official Apple part number for a "modified putty knife"" - this doesn't appear to be mentioned in the source given, which looks like a blog

 Removed Wingwatchers (talk)

• "The Mac Mini G4 was supplied with Mac OS X 10.4" - this link as a redirect to Mac OS X Tiger, so should go there instead

 Fixed Wingwatchers (talk)

• "Later, Mac OS 9 was able to run on the Mac Mini G4 through an unofficial patcher, though this was not supported by Apple" - this is cited to a post in macos9lives.com - what makes that a reliable source?

 Removed Wingwatchers (talk)

• In File:Mac Mini G4 Tech specs.jpg, what is the lower picture? It doesn't look like a Mac Mini.

 Removed Wingwatchers (talk) 03:59, 20 November 2021 (UTC)

Second generation (Intel-based)

• "which is based on the Intel Core Solo or Duo CPU, which is four times faster than its predecessor" - do you mean the PowerPC G4?

 Added Wingwatchers (talk) 00:28, 21 November 2021 (UTC)

• "An updated server version of the machine was released in October 2009" - how can a source from 2005 verify something in 2005?

 Added Wingwatchers (talk) 00:28, 21 November 2021 (UTC)

• "which could be replaced with 64-bit Core 2 Duo processors through a simple upgrade" - I think this needs to be qualified. Compared to a desktop PC, replacing a CPU is not simple! Do you mean it's simple as in you could take it to Apple for an upgrade?

 Fixed Wingwatchers (talk) 00:28, 21 November 2021 (UTC)

• "If the 2006 model is upgraded to a Core 2 Duo CPU, it can support up to 2 GB of memory and can run Mac OS X Lion through a minor modification" - what makes either of the two sources citing this reliable?
• "Some users have found such upgrades" - which users exactly?
•  Fixed Wingwatchers (talk)
• "While the Mac Mini G4 contains a separate GPU, except in the 2011 2.5 GHz model has a separate AMD Radeon GPU" - this doesn't make sense. PowerPC Macs were dead by 2011.

 Fixed Wingwatchers (talk) 00:28, 21 November 2021 (UTC) The last paragraph of the "Hardware" subsection doesn't appear to be sourced. The single citation at the end doesn't verify any of the claims in it.  Removed No reliable source found for this topic Wingwatchers (talk)

Third generation (Unibody)

• What CPU does the original 2010 unibody model have? (AFAIK Core 2 Duo, but this should be mentioned with a source)

 Added Wingwatchers (talk)

• "Apple updated the line on October 23, 2012" - is the exact date important, or will "October 2012" suffice? Also, I'm not sure this date is correct, as it's the date the Verge reported the new models, not when they actually shipped.

 Fixed Wingwatchers (talk)

• "On October 16, 2014" - same again

 Fixed Wingwatchers (talk)

• "Memory can again be replaced, although it is not officially user-replaceable according to Apple, and requires service by an Apple Store or Apple Authorized Service Provider." - this is not true for either the 2012 (user upgradable) or 2014 (soldered) models. I think this is in the wrong place, so I've moved it
•  Already done Wingwatchers (talk) 00:35, 21 November 2021 (UTC)

Reception

• This section doesn't look long enough. The 2014 models came in for criticism for removing the quad core CPU option and upgradeable RAM. Everymac.com described it as "one step forward, one step back". The lack of an SD slot has been a common criticism of Macs generally for video content creators for years, which is why newer MacBooks are putting them back. There should be something about the performance of the 2020 M1 Model, which had very positive coverage for its speed and performance. There should be something about the lack of upgradability contributing to e-waste.

 Partly done Wingwatchers (talk) 02:23, 26 November 2021 (UTC)  Done Wingwatchers (talk) 20:27, 26 November 2021 (UTC)

Home theater and server

• "As of the June 2011 revision" - that's ten years out of date

 Removed It is a repetition of the features on the June 2011 model, so it have really nothing to do with the theater. Wingwatchers (talk) 21:56, 24 November 2021 (UTC)

General

• About ten years ago, there was a discussion (when Macintosh was delisted at WP:FAR) about whether everymac.com was reliable. Personally, I think it is, it cannot be user generated and whenever I have looked up a spec on it, it has been correct.
  • I hopes Macintosh will be relisted to featured status in the near future. Wingwatchers (talk) 01:04, 21 November 2021 (UTC)
• There needs to be better definition of the models by years. Many Mac users identify their model what's printed on the "Apple / About this Mac" dialog: ie: Mid 2010, Mid 2011, Late 2012 etc.
  • I think that is sufficient enough; can't really add the year the models is released on their respective section because almost every models were cross-yearly released. Wingwatchers (talk) 01:04, 21 November 2021 (UTC)

Summary

There's a bit more required before this can meet the GA criteria, but not a significant amount, so I'll put the review on hold now pending improvements. Ritchie333 ^{(talk) (cont)} 20:36, 19 November 2021 (UTC)

Hi, how's progress going with this? The "Reception" section is still quite short, as discussed above. Ritchie333 ^{(talk) (cont)} 16:09, 24 November 2021 (UTC)

 Working@Ritchie333 Wingwatchers (talk) 06:02, 25 November 2021 (UTC)

@Ritchie333 All  Done Wingwatchers (talk) 20:27, 26 November 2021 (UTC)

@Ritchie333: Wondering if you can now pass the review?? Wingwatchers (talk) 21:45, 30 November 2021 (UTC)

Okay, this looks a lot better now, so I'll pass it. Well done. Ritchie333 ^{(talk) (cont)} 21:58, 30 November 2021 (UTC)