2005: Apple introduces the Mac Mini as the “most affordable mac ever” at $499
2006: Mac Mini moves to intel, but the price of the “most affordable mac ever” is now $599
2010: Mac Mini gets a faster, sleeker form factor, and the “most affordable mac ever” gets bumped up to $699
Over time, the mini seems to have moved from the cheap, entry level Mac to the dedicated home theater Mac. The HDMI instead of a DisplayPort video output shows that it’s not really meant for the average desktop.