The 2006 Mac mini was Apple’s first computer to use Intel graphics and the first Mac in a long, long time to use “vampire video” (that’s where the video bites into system memory). All you’re gaining is 20 GB more drive space (a $50 option), the SuperDrive, and a 10% faster CPU. At US$799, it seems somewhat overpriced in comparison to the 1.66 GHz model. The better model has a 1.83 GHz CPU, an 80 GB hard drive, and a dual-layer 8x SuperDrive in addition to all the features of the 1.66 GHz model. Except for using a Combo drive instead of a SuperDrive, this is essentially the same model Apple was selling for US$799. It retails for US$599, the same price as the 1.5 GHz Core Solo model it replaces. The base version now runs a Core Duo at 1.66 GHz and includes 512 MB of RAM, a 60 GB hard drive, and a Combo drive. Their test results show that in general there is more benefit from having more RAM – even mismatched – than there is from having less RAM that is matched. The Late 2006 Mini has the same 667 MHz memory bus as its predecessor and supports two memory modules for up to 2 GB of RAM. There’s one bank with two memory sockets, so to upgrade RAM, you have to remove the 256 MB modules that came with the computer.Īpple says that memory upgrades should always be done in matched pairs, but Other World Computing has discovered that you can use “mismatched” memory in the Mac mini (and some other Intel-based Macs where Apple specifies that upgrades should only be done with matched pairs). Oddly, these are the only second-generation Intel Macs not to use Core 2 Duo CPUs, something we’ve never understood. With the September 2006 revision, both models have Core Duo processors. Kudos to Apple for abandoning the Intel Core Solo used in the original entry-level Intel Mac mini.

Refurbished mac mini core 2 duo