Mac Mini to Take Over Livingrooms

So, Think Secret published their speculations on rumors about the future of the Mac Mini, Apple's miniscule desktop computer.

While I agree that the "next generation" Mac Mini will be based on the new Intel chip, I disagree that it will use a 3.5 inch hard drive. Using the desktop hard drive will significantly increase the size of the Mini and increase the amount of heat it produces. Increased heat means a need for more cooling. More cooling means more effective fans. And that usually means louder fans.
Making a bigger, louder Mini is counter-productive. It flies directly in the face of what Apple achieved with the Mini in the first place.

When I throw my Mini out into the living room, it happily, and silently sits directly under my plasma TV. Not coincidentally, the Mini also fits directly under Apple's 20 and 23 inch Cinema displays. Using a 3.5 inch hard disk drive takes that happiness away. It also removes that silence.

Apple has a good thing going with the Mini. Think Secret's speculations would call for modifications to the Mini that would make it more like the ill-fated G4 Cube... a mistake Apple is trying to forget, not emulate.

Not that the Cube was a bad machine. On the contrary, it was beautiful and revolutionary. Its downfall was its price, not its allure. By using cheaper components and not making the Mini a small supercomputer, Apple avoided that landmine this time out. So why would they travel down that path now?

They wouldn't.

My predictions on the "next generation" Mac Mini:
- Increased FSB speed
- Use of the new Intel processor
- Built-in S-video/Composite out
- 64mb Nvidia 5200 video "card"
- Front Row with Apple Remote (on higher-end models)

I'd like to wish and hope that they build in a digital audio out port (SDPIF or TOSlink)... however, that my just be a dream.

But I wholeheartedly agree that the Mini will be positioned not only as a capable desktop computer, but as the "consumer's small, silent, stylish entertainment solution."