Updated September 19, 2005

Apple has put the $499 Mac Mini out there--bait for the switch. (For a couple hundred more, we prefer the SuperDrive Mac Mini.) Before the Mini, the lowest-cost Mac desktop was the $799 all-in-one eMac, which saddled you with a bulky CRT. Apple is betting that the standalone ("headless," in Apple parlance) Mini's tempting price and form factor will appeal to Windows users thinking of cutting bait with Gates and Co., as well as Mac users looking to add another computer to their home network.

All-in-one PCs such as the CRT-based eMac and the flat-panel iMac are great for some situations, but if you already own a perfectly acceptable monitor, then you don't need to run up the bill by purchasing a system with a display attached. Before the Mini, your only standalone Apple option was the high-end Power Mac G5; its price starts at $1,499 and quickly goes up from there. The Mac Mini certainly can't compete with the Power Mac in terms of sheer performance, but you could buy a half dozen Minis and not surpass the Power Mac's price (and size).

Time will tell if the Mac Mini convinces Windows users to switch in droves, but it's immediately apparent that the Mini has created a more well-rounded Mac desktop product line. Not only has the entry-level price dropped a few hundred dollars, the number of Macs in the line without a head now equals the number of those found with one.

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Apple iPod family  Editors' top desktops