New Mac mini, Updates to OS X, iTunes

Apple has had a busy week setting the stage for the arrival of the iPhone 4. But its biggest announcement was that of a new Mac: a re-designed Mac mini. The new mini is shorter and wider than the old model, with the power supply inside the case, rather than in a separate unit. The most notable change is the inclusion of an HDMI video out port. This shows that Apple recognizes the mini as a in-the-living room device that people may use to hook up to televisions instead of computer screens.
The new mini also includes a mini DisplayPort video connection, an SD card slot, upgraded processor, video chipset and 2GB of RAM by default. The price has gone up, however, with the base price of $699 instead of $599. There is also a $999 version with a second hard drive in place of the optical drive and Snow Leopard Server installed.
Along with the new Mac mini is a new version of Mac OS X — version 10.6.4 — to support it. This release is for all Intel Macs, and includes numerous bug, security and performance fixes, but no notable new features. You can get the new version by using Software Update.
Also available this week is iTunes version 9.2, which will support the new iOS 4 coming out on existing iPhones on June 21 and then the iPhone 4 on June 24.
Pre-orders for the new iPhone 4 in the U.S. began on the 15th, with reports of widespread ordering troubles. Those that wanted to pre-order the iPhone were faced with error pages on both the Apple and AT&T web sites. Apple reported that 600,000 orders did get through and currently orders are being taken only for shipments in July as it appears that launch day stocks are already sold out. Many ordered an iPhone for delivery, while others did it for in-store pickup which will start at 7 a.m. in Apple stores on June 24.