Consumer Technology

The New Mac Mini: Not the Bargain It Used to Be

August 27, 2026August 25, 2026 by Greg Barton

Apple's redesigned Mac mini with M6 and M5 Pro chips, shown from the rear showing the Thunderbolt, HDMI, and Ethernet ports

BOTTOM LINE Apple’s new Mac mini now starts at $899, its second price increase in four months, as the AI-driven DRAM shortage spills into consumer hardware. The M6 chip is a genuine leap forward, but most buyers won’t have a workflow demanding enough to justify paying for it. Apple’s new Mac mini starts at $899, … Read more

Gbps Fiber at Home: What Changed After 30 Days

August 23, 2026August 18, 2026 by Greg Barton

Illustration of a home connected to gigabit fiber internet at 2 Gbps

BOTTOM LINE Gigabit fiber at home is sold as a transformation, but after thirty days the honest verdict is narrower. Day-to-day tasks, like browsing, email, video calls, and even 4K streaming, already ran fine on a mid-tier connection, so most of that bandwidth sits idle. The real payoff shows up in short, specific bursts: big … Read more