Filed under: Hardware, Humor, Holidays
The definitive Mac mini/Honey Baked Ham smackdown
The holidays. A time for joy, a time for gathering, a time for product smackdowns. So which is the better buy? A Mac mini or a festive honey baked ham? Let TUAW do the comparison work for you.
| Mac mini/Ham Smackdown | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Feature | Mac Mini | Honey Baked Ham | Winner |
| Availability | Apple and a few select vendors | Widely available | Ham. |
| Cost | From $600, although the $800 model is far superior | $50 or so | With over an order of magnitude difference in price, the ham is the clear winner. |
| Environmental impact | Contains lots of chemicals but can run on relatively green energy sources, meeting Energy Star requirements. | Completely organic but may produce lots of emissions after a large meal with all the trimmings. | Tie. |
| Social impact | Lots of fun for your entire family. | Forbidden for consumption by many major religious denominations. | Mac mini. |
| Geometry | 6.5" x 6.5" x 2". A rectangular block. | Spiral cut, conforming to an aesthetically pleasing geometry of curves. | Ham. |
| TV Compatibility | Works well with both standard def and high def television sets, packaged with Apple Remote. | Can be eaten in front of both standard def and high def television sets, with any standard remote. | Tie. |
| Documentation | Packaged with full printed and electronic documentation. | No documentation needed. Unless you are Homer Simpson. | Tie. |
| Leopard Compatibility | Yes. | Yes. But it may give the Leopard indigestion. | Mac mini, by a hair. |

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Jonathan Allen said 11:07AM on 12-17-2007
NICE
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Steve Hyde said 11:15AM on 12-17-2007
Who else but Erica?
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Michael said 11:19AM on 12-17-2007
well....who's the overall winner?!?! gotta know what to get this holiday season. ;)
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JJV said 3:16PM on 12-17-2007
LOL its the ham
Ed said 3:37PM on 12-17-2007
Why not both?
JohnPQ said 11:25AM on 12-17-2007
Funny, but this is another example of why I don't take this site seriously anymore. Can I have that 2 minutes back of my life?
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sleepcountry said 11:58AM on 12-17-2007
You don't deserve it back if
- it took you 2 minutes to decide it wasn't worth reading,
- you actually took the time to post about it.
I'll never understand people who complain about posts that don't interest them.
And I'll never understand people who bother to post about such people. :p
Michael Rose said 11:25AM on 12-17-2007
Imagine a spiral-cut, honey glazed Mac Mini... yum.
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Ed said 3:04PM on 12-17-2007
Though shalt not dishonor steve by spiral-cutting his products.
Simon Arch said 4:07PM on 12-17-2007
It's insanely delicious!
Justin said 11:27AM on 12-17-2007
What about the CHICKEN? Will someone please think about the CHICKEN!?
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pjg said 11:29AM on 12-17-2007
and the clear winner is... appleinsider.com
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Fernando said 11:58AM on 12-17-2007
and the loser is Erica!
Stephen P said 11:31AM on 12-17-2007
A point in favor of the ham: Guys like me (with lots of data requiring a big hard drive) can enjoy the ham 'as is,' whereas the mini requires the purchase of an external, 3.5" hard drive to be able to hold my photos, mp3s, documents, apps, movies, etc.
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Pete Zich said 11:49AM on 12-17-2007
Great way to start off the holidays.
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Matt said 11:51AM on 12-17-2007
I don't eat meat. Looks like it's the Mac mini for me!
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backasJac said 11:53AM on 12-17-2007
I would add the line - "So the leopard may be wiser to choose a rabbit instead." to the leopard compatibly under Ham. And then change the winner quote to "Mac Mini, by a hare." But overall, very entertaining.
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billg said 12:14PM on 12-17-2007
sigh...
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Kevin said 12:10PM on 12-17-2007
Come on, ham has clearly had a much stronger cultural impact than the mac mini. Ham has been around for eons! The Mac Mini... not so much. Ham FTW.
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Bryan Hughes said 12:22PM on 12-17-2007
Seriously, you guys can do better than this.
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