Filed under: Hacks, Cult of Mac, Mods, Mac mini
Mac mini Portable - Tablet Edition
Peter Green, who introduced us to the Mac mini portable (MMP) - a battery powered Mac mini rig with an 8-inch LCD, has turned out a new MMP: The Tablet Edition. Also known as the Mac Mini Portable MK III (MMP MKIII), based on the Intel Core Solo 1.5GHz Mac mini.
Peter says: "This thing is smaller than a MacBook or anything else made by Apple! It's got a 3 hour battery life, integrated 8" touch screen tablet, full Blue Tooth, Airport, full SPDIF audio in/out and Front Row capabilities, on screen touch keyboard - no hardware keyboard required and has it's own stand!"
It's a cool project and impressive from a technical standpoint and yes - I want one - but it's not the most aesthetically pleasing rig, of course. The MMP MKIII is roughly the same height as the original Mac mini, but a tad wider to accommodate all the parts and for better ergonomics. The battery is upgradeable and Peter says "if someone can write me Intel drivers for my webcam - it'll have a built in iSight too!" That sounds like a dare to me.
Check out Peter's website for lots more pics, details on how he made the case (plastic sheeting panels and a gas cooker ignition lighter) and how the electronic components were assembled. Great work, Peter!
Thanks, Jonathan!
![TUAW [Cafepress]](http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.tuaw.com/media/tuaw-cafepress-promo.png)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Rick Ludwig said 11:01AM on 11-05-2006
Okay, first I have to give the guy MAJOR credit for building this thing (and being a Red Dwarf viewer). Overall, it's a pretty cool device, HOWEVER the major concern for me is in the thickness. I would much rather take a MacBook and have it turned into a tablet (which, I gather, should be much easier to do). For one, it would be much thinner, and the screen size should be bigger. There were a couple people who turned duel-usb iBooks into tablets 2-3 years back.
Kewl project, but seems more portable than mobile.
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jurno said 11:10AM on 11-05-2006
Anybody know what keyboard he's using? It's shown in one of the shots -- about 8 inches wide. I need one of those.
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Thomas said 11:28AM on 11-05-2006
It may be smaller than a Macbook but it's way, way thicker so in overall volume it may not be a lot different plus it's only an 8" screen. What's the point?
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www.turbino.dk said 12:00PM on 11-05-2006
where can i get it (((((
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PixelNurse said 12:35PM on 11-05-2006
I agree with the other posters, kudos on a fun little project, but as for the claim that it's smaller than anything Apple make, I'm not so sure. It looks to be perhaps 3 times as thick as a MacBook, which if true would make it's volume/size quite a bit larger. I'm not a fan of tablet form-factors though.
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StuFF mc said 1:45PM on 11-05-2006
What's weird is that TUAW does not mention the Video Interview we made with Peter Green showing his Tablet mac mini at http://www.pomcast.com?s=en&c=its (Podcast 18)
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StuFF mc said 1:52PM on 11-05-2006
BTW - http://digg.com/apple/Pomcast_Interviews_Peter_Green_See_The_Tablet_Mac_mini_in_Video
And I used "/tips" before the digg was in place by a listener...
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Sherman Homan said 8:00PM on 11-05-2006
This is put together as a early generation beta concept and people are complaining that it isn't perfect?!
It is a work of genius.
Apple needs to pay attention.
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Rick Ludwig said 10:18PM on 11-05-2006
What, exactually, does an "early-generation-beta-concept" mean? And who's complaining? Isn't the purpose of having a "concept" to gather feedback?
If he built this device for himself, and it fits his need and wants, then kudos! If he intends to market the device, as a mod, then he would be wise to listen to people's feedback (i.e. look and thickness issues).
And while I agree that Apple should pay attention to the fact that people WANT a tablet mac, I most certainly would hope Apple isn't paying attention to the industrial design/engineering aspects of this device.
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Tom said 12:58AM on 11-06-2006
Bluetooth dammit! BLUETOOTH. Not Blue Tooth. Not BlueTooth. Bluetooth!
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samfish said 12:58AM on 11-06-2006
Hi. Apple? Yeah, hi. We're the people who actually buy all your products and we're still waiting for you to release an touch sensitive Mac. WTH IS IT?!?
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om. said 4:34PM on 11-06-2006
OMG, this thing is being held together mainly by duct tape...! :D
om.
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Jason said 4:16PM on 11-21-2007
First, great job Peter for actually building this thing. Next, for all of those people who are criticizing this thing, why don't you guys actually build one of these, and add in your improvements? This guy made it for what he needs, and if you don't need that functionality, well, that's fine, keep it to yourself.
The last thing isn't as related, but does anyone know the battery or touchscreen in this thing? I tried emailing Peter but I got a Mailbox Full error (from his server, not mine). I'd really like to build one but I need to know what battery powers this thing, and I'd also like to get the same touchscreen.
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