Mac Mini: What if?

Joe Wilcox | January 11, 2005, 05:15 PM

Today's Apple announcements (see colleague Josh Green's blog on iPod Shuffle, Michael Gartenberg's blogs on Mac Marketing, Mac mini and iPod Shuffle, David Card's blog on iPod Shuffle and my Microsoft Monitor blog on Mac mini) are generating lots of good buzz about the Mac.

Apple's new products and their position again highlight the different market focuses for Windows and the Mac. Looking at Windows XP Media Center, the focus is more consumption. Watch TV. Record TV shows. Listen to music. Watch DVDs. By comparison, iLife, centerpiece of Apple's digital entertainment consumer products, takes a more creative approach. Make music. Make movies. Create photos. Burn DVDs. Focus is more on creation than consumption, and there is place for both in the market. Probably more for consumption. Consumers are called consumers for a reason. The new iWork suite also emphasizes creativity. The product's Pages application appears to offer basic desktop-publishing capabilities as well as word processing.

That's not to say Apple ignores consumption. There are products iPod, iTunes and the iTunes music store. And there is Mac mini. The more I look at the features, the more I think entertainment hub. Hypothetical: What happens if a couple million Windows iPod users buy a Mac mini? Where will they put it? Well, JupiterResearch surveys show two-thirds of U.S. households with a computer in the living room. Like the TV or home stereo, the computer is a family device, which is one reason for the living room placement. I figure that a bunch of these Mac minis will end up there, too.

Apple's main digital media focuses are photos and music, which are top consumer priorties, according to JupiterResearch surveys. The tiny Mac mini is well suited for photos and music, right there in the living room. The computer has lots of connectivity options--USB 2.0 FireWire, DVI, VGA, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi--should anyone want to start moving content `round the house. Apple has AirTunes, for music right now but why not photos in the future?

Apple competitor and partners should start asking "what if this" or "what if that" about Mac mini and its potential role as a mini entertainment hub. Of course, Apple needs to sell a bunch of these computers to Windows first. But if it does, what if?