Mac mini still important to Apple, says Tim Cook

It’s been over three years since the Mac mini was last refreshed, leading some folks to wonder if Apple has forgotten about the compact computer, but apparently that isn’t the case, at least according to Tim Cook (and as Apple CEO, he should be in a good position to know).

Apple has plans for a new Mac mini and it’s an important device for the company, according to a response a customer received from Tim Cook (the chief executive has been known to reply to customer mails from time to time, as Steve Jobs used to).

As MacRumors reports, one of its readers, Krar, emailed Cook to say: “I love the Mac mini but it’s been over three years now without an update. Are we going to see anything in pipeline anytime soon?”

Cook’s response was: “I'm glad you love Mac mini. We love it too. Our customers have found so many creative and interesting uses for Mac mini. While it is not time to share any details, we do plan for Mac mini to be an important part of our product line going forward.”

So there you have it. Unfortunately, he didn’t reveal any further information aside from this titbit.

Schiller spiller

You may recall that early on this year, people were wondering whether Apple had forgotten about its desktop computer range entirely, at least before spring arrived, when the company unveiled refreshed iMacs and a new (‘completely rethought’) Mac Pro.

At the time, Apple marketing guru Phil Schiller did pass comment on the Mac mini, saying that: “The Mac mini is an important product in our lineup and we weren't bringing it up because it's more of a mix of consumer with some pro use.”

So Tim Cook’s latest assertion backs this up, and hopefully it won’t be long before we hear some further news on the latest spin of the Mac mini.

Hopeful types might theorize that the long wait for a refresh of the compact PC could suggest it will be getting a major revamp, but that’s probably rather optimistic.

At any rate, the Mac mini certainly needs a refresh given that it still runs with a Haswell processor (fourth-generation, when Intel is now on 8th-gen chips), with no quad-core option at that, as we bemoaned in our review.

Mind you, there are plenty of other mini PCs out there these days, and there may well be some big price cuts on these devices when Black Friday rolls around.

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