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Apple resellers advised of 2-3 week delay on Mac mini orders

As reports of forthcoming hardware refreshes continue to mount, Apple has braced its certified resellers for unusually long shipping times of two to three weeks for both models of its minute Mac mini desktop systems.

Both the low-end, 120GB hard drive Mac mini and the top-tier 320GB model now have a wait time of two to three weeks. Typically, the hardware ships in one to three business days for non-custom orders, people familiar with the online Apple Store for Resellers told AppleInsider.

It's latest piece of anecdotal evidence to suggest that Apple's rumored Mac hardware refreshes are due sometime this month. This week, Apple told its U.S. retail outlets that orders for many existing desktop Macs would go unhonored, and the models will not be restocked. AppleInsider was later advised the low-end Mac mini model has been discontinued, and availability of its replacement is expected to improve in the next few weeks.

High-volime resellers like Amazon, ClubMac, and MacMall, are currently sold out of the low-end Mac mini. In addition, neither have any iMacs available through their own inventories, except for the low-end model at ClubMac and MacMall.

All four of Apple's all-in-one aluminum iMac offerings are also expected to be replaced in a forthcoming product update. The iMac lineup currently has a delay of three to five business days for reseller online orders — a wait longer than usual, but not entirely uncommon, one person said.

People familiar with Apple's Mac product roadmap have said the Cupertino-based company is ready and waiting with a redesigned iMac line, one that should turn up in the coming weeks. The new hardware is said to have a thinner industrial design, and will be available at more affordable prices. The hardware could also include support for Blu-ray discs.

iMac reseller

Similarly, the 13-inch polycarbonate MacBook also sports a wait time of three to five business days for resellers ordering direct from Apple. That product is also expected to see a refresh soon, as the Mac maker is expected to expand the low-cost lineup with new models at lower price points. Currently, the white MacBook is only available in one $999 model.

MacBook reseller

Slight delays have reportedly also hit the MacBook Pro lineup. On Thursday, their wait time was changed from a few days to a three-to-five-day turnaround time. It's unclear if these delays are indicative of any changes.



58 Comments

jazzguru 16 Years · 6380 comments

It would be cool if the iMac finally lost its "chin" and looked just like any other Apple display from the front.

technohermit 19 Years · 563 comments

Weird, I still see 1-3 days on both Minis. I wonder if they will be getting a real desktop chip this time

dkwalsh4 16 Years · 178 comments

I'm all over on of the new iMac's. Obviously I'm buying into the speculation but I have a feeling they'll look great. Here's to hoping they look like a slightly fatter 24" LED Display. In a size greater than 24" would be great too

(And I'm one of the minority here who actually like glossy)

wizard69 22 Years · 13358 comments

I say that because I'm expecting a big step forward on the iMacs. As to the Mini I'm not sure if it will be revamped or replaced. In any event Clarksfield or Xeon in the iMac would be sweet indeed. Couple that with a GT200 based GPU and you will have GCD and OpenCL covered for a couple of years. Add an LED backlight screen and a woody will be sprung.

The Mini on the otherhand is a different story. I'm not sure Clarksfield can go in there as it might be a bit to hot. I could see Apple growing the Mini vertically to enable better cooling or just scraping the case entirely. What is interesting is the 2-3 week delay here, if a simple processor bump was in order they could simply do a silent upgrade as they have in the past. This has caused me to rethink a bit and to suspect something major with the Mini.

My big concern with either platform is the proper heatsinking of the processor as it has been shown in benchmarking that Turbo Boost is questionable if the processor runs to hot. Since this is Apple you can see where my concerns lie. Dave

xwiredtva 18 Years · 389 comments

Quote:
Originally Posted by technohermit

Weird, I still see 1-3 days on both Minis. I wonder if they will be getting a real desktop chip this time

You know the speed difference between a Core2Duo 2.0ghz/1066/6mb laptop CPU and a Core2Duo 2.0ghz/1066/6mb desktop cpu is? NADA. The only difference is SpeedStep and TDP. IE: Less heat and less power to run it. So the desktop chip would not be good for a company putting it's green foot forward... Nor in the iMac.

Nah, there gonna go warp speed with the new Core series laptop CPU's. They are socket compatible and it would silly-stupid to pay the same price for a lower spec cpu. I think after the 2 year no update fiasco Apple learned a little lesson in early 2009... Update the Mini and they will buy. At $599 it's profitable to make and at the price point faster than most PC's which run the slower, older, more profitable cpu's... Yet they produce less on the balance sheet, Why's That? Simple, Windows cost more to support.