Mac mini Late 2012

The Apple Mac mini "Core i7" 2.3 (Late 2012/Server) is equipped with a 22-nm Quad Core "Ivy Bridge" 2.3 GHz Intel "Core i7" (3615QM) processor, featuring four independent "cores" on a single chip and a 6 MB shared L3 cache. It includes 4 GB of 1600 MHz DDR3 SDRAM (PC3-12800), dual 1 TB hard drives, and Intel HD Graphics 4000, which shares system memory. There is no internal optical drive, though an external one was available for US$79.

Connectivity comprises a Firewire "800" port, four USB 3.0 ports, HDMI, Thunderbolt, combined "audio line in (digital/analog)" and "audio line out/headphone (digital/analog)" minijacks, a 10/100/1000Base-T Gigabit Ethernet port, 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, and an SDXC card slot.

Compared to its forerunner, this model looks identical but has a more advanced internal architecture with a faster processor, graphics, RAM, and the addition of USB 3.0 ports. For all intents and purposes, the "Server" configuration is identical to its non-server counterpart of the same era, but it ships with dual hard drives and a pre-installed version of OS X Server for Mountain Lion.

All Mac mini systems are sold by default without a display, keyboard, or mouse, but numerous Apple and third-party options are available.

The late 2012 Mac mini Server continued to be a compelling option for those needing a compact yet powerful server solution. It featured a fast 2.3GHz quad-core Ivy Bridge i7 processor and came standard with dual 1TB hard drives, providing ample storage for server duties. The move to the Ivy Bridge architecture brought with it improved performance and more capable Intel HD 4000 graphics. A significant and welcome upgrade was the inclusion of four USB 3.0 ports, greatly increasing its connectivity speeds for external devices. It was also praised for its easy RAM upgradability, allowing users to install up to 16GB of memory without issue. While it lacked an optical drive, a trend that was becoming standard, its overall package of a powerful processor, dual drives, and OS X Server software made it an attractive and cost-effective choice for small workgroups and home power users.