Friday, February 20, 2009

New Mac mini to have two video outputs?

A user at the MacRumors forums has posted a picture purporting to show a new port layout for the rear of an unreleased Mac mini. Included in the update is a fifth USB port, Firewire 800 (replacing FW400), mini-DVI (replacing full DVI), and mini-DisplayPort.

The addition of mini-DisplayPort in itself is not surprising. However, what is surprising is the inclusion of both mini-DisplayPort and mini-DVI -- two separate video outputs. If true, this could possibly mean dual monitor support for the Mac mini, something many Mac users have been hoping for ever since the Mac mini was released.

Mini-DisplayPort can pass through video signals for DVI or HDMI if necessary. DVI is electrically compatible with HDMI as well. VGA can also be supported with the appropriate dongle. Assuming the picture of the Mac mini is real (which is a big assumption), and assuming that the Mac mini could use both ports simultaneously, this would provide very good flexibility for different combinations of dual display devices.

[Update 2009-02-20]

Video