Chicago (IL) - Images of what the next generation Mac mini may look like have leaked online, thanks to an anonymous source who claims to have the knowledge of hardware specifications as well. According to these images, the next-gen Mac mini will feature both the Mini DisplayPort and Mini DVI monitor ports, FireWire 800 and one more USB port to enable greater native expandability. Clock speed for the system's Intel Core 2 Duo processor will begin at 2 GHz, though a faster front-side bus and DDR3 memory should enable an even greater speed gain for the company's least expensive Macintosh.

We wouldn't normally dignify this leak with an article, but it has been 563 days since Apple updated current Mac mini. With speculations flying all around, ranging from an entirely new form factor and architectural changes, all the way to the claim Apple will simply kill the system entirely. We welcome any new pieces of credible information. On top of that, this leaked spyshot looks realistic enough to exclude possible Photoshop trickery with a reasonable degree of certainty.

The source of the image also provides system specs that corroborate others published by the usually well-informed the Apple Insider -- although we ourselves have some doubts about some claims of system specifications (explained bellow). The credibility of the spyshot is strengthened by Apple Insider, which commented that the image looks pretty much the same as previous image of pre-production next-gen Mac mini the publication was allowed to see, but not publish.

The leaked spyshot photo was first published in this forum post at MacRumors and shows configuration of the expansion ports hidden behind the back of the system. If you believe the image, the new Mac mini will sport five USB ports, a Mini DVI and Mini DisplayPort, as well as FireWire 800. In our opinion, the choice of ports shown on the photo gives us over to doubt. Let me explain why.

Phasing out FireWire

While we could swallow the inclusion of five USB ports, up from four that current Mac mini has, we seriously doubt the new Mac mini will feature FireWire 800 (the current Mac mini has one FireWire 400 port). This is for one simple reason: Apple has been slowly but surely phasing out the FireWire interface for some time in favor of the more ubiquitous USB. In fact, the company bravely ditched FireWire from new unibody MacBooks, a move that sparked user complaints, and stuck with FireWire 800 only in its high-end MacBook Pro. Some even think the upcoming iMac revision will ditch its FireWire interface in all but high-end model as well.

Mini Display Port AND Mini DVI? We don't think so!

Second, Steve Jobs clearly said at the notebook media event last October that Apple would move all its products to the industry backed DisplayPort standard with HDCP copy protection. And so far, all unibody MacBooks, and the 24-inch LCD-backlit Cinema Display, exclusively rely on DisplayPort. There is no doubt that hardware revisions for the rest of the company's lineup will bring DisplayPort into the mix as well. "We're building it into everything we make," Jobs told us at the notebook event.

With that in mind, we don't see Apple equipping the Mac mini with a Mini DisplayPort interconnect while leaving a Mini DVI port there as well at the same time. We believe this holds true even when taking into account that Mac mini is sold on the BYOKD mantra (Bring Your Own Keyboard and Display) so it really could benefit from having both interfaces, allowing users to connect cheap system to the latest DisplayPort-compatible monitors as well as plethora of existing DVI displays. Also, don't forget the fact that Apple separately sells Mini DisplayPort to DVI ($29.99) and DisplayPort to dual-link DVI ($99.99) converters that would easily enable DisplayPort-equipped Mac mini users to use their existing DVI displays, including even the company's current 30-inch Cinema Display.

Specs galore

The user who leaked the image claims the entry-level model of the next-gen Mac mini will be built around a 2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 3 MB of Level 2 cache, 1066 MHz front-side bus and 2 GB of DDR3 RAM. If true, the refreshed system would actually represent a minor speed bump over the 1.83GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor that ticks in current Mac mini. However, even more substantial speed gains may be brought thanks to a faster front-side bus (compared to 677 MHz in current Mac mini) and RAM (667MHz DDR2 SDRAM used in current Mac mini).

The source also claims that the built-in slot-loading SuperDrive will rely on SATA interface. On top of these specs, you can add the same Nvidia graphics subsystem found in unibody MacBooks and upcoming line of iMacs that Apple Insider last month claimed to have learned from "people familiar with Apple's plans."

NEXT-GEN MAC MINI SPYSHOT
If you believe this image, the next-gen Mac mini will pack up to five USB ports and will ditch legacy FireWire 400 in favor of FireWire 800 interface. Perhaps most eyebrow-raising is its Mini DisplayPort and Mini DVI interfaces, likely to make it easy for customers to connect Mac mini out-of-the-box to a range of both DisplayPort- and DVI-compatible displays.