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At the end of the day, the mini is destined to sit outside of Apple's public limelight like all the models that have come before it. It's the company's jack-of-all-trades, but a shining star for those in the know.

The Apple Mac mini (Late 2012) is Apple's best yet, packing as much punch into its compact chassis as a full-size desktop, and offering the sizable, speedy Fusion drive.

The least expensive Mac available today, the $599 Mac mini, has made its own performance strides and continues to be an affordable option for anyone wanting the Mac experience without paying a high premium.

With or without its new Fusion hybrid drive, Apple finally has a Mac Mini that competes well against mainstream Windows PCs in the same price range.

Whatever the use, the littlest Mac benefits greatly from its Ivy Bridge updates, and we're glad to see its continued presence in the Mac lineup.

If you're OK with a Mac whose specs are less than top of the line, and don't want the design grace of an all-in-one iMac, the answer is absolutely yes. This is a small, fast, affordable thing. But be warned: you will find the rear-positioned jacks a rear pain.

Intel graphics issue aside, we've enjoyed our time with the Mini. It really is powerful enough for most computer use. You could use this as your work PC all day, and never struggle with slowdowns or crashes. It's also prettier and smaller than almost any Windows-based PC you can buy...

Small and powerful, there’s little the Mac Mini can’t do for general users and a lot it can do for pro users with a few upgrades through a RAM and Fusion Drive boost.

The late 2012 Mac mini refresh brings welcome improvements, but no real surprises. The step up to the new Ivy Bridge processors was inevitable, but the benefits they give us aren't to be taken lightly.

Even after losing its dedicated graphics card (which makes it basically useless for gaming), the 2012 Mac mini is still one of the most powerful mini-computers around. And the design is still as stylish and well-built as they come.