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HDMI hitch hounds Mac Mini holders

Apple owners await firmware fix

The latest generation of Mac Mini appears to be facing HDMI hiccups, with disgruntled owners complaining about poor colours, "snow-like interference" and momentary display blackouts.

While the Mini's alternative video outputs - Thunderbolt and Mini Display Port - appear unaffected, those who extend their desktop to a secondary screen through HDMI report dodgy colour fidelity, fuzzy displays and in some cases, no image at all.

Various owners have taken to the Apple Discussion forums to vent their frustration and to seek the source of the problem. While connecting the device with an HDMI to DVI adaptor eliminates the colour-quality issues, the fuzziness and random blackouts remain.

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An identical issue previously affected various Windows and Linux users whose machines were, like the Mini, equipped with CPU-integrated Intel HD 4000 graphics until a Bios update provided a fix. As Apple computers use an alternate system to control the base hardware, the company will need to provide its own firmware update to eliminate the issues.

Some users claim the company has recalled their new Minis in order for engineers to explore further, after the latest system update failed to provide a solution.

If you have a new Mac Mini and these issues sound familiar, let us know in the comments below. W'll give you an update if a fix eventually surfaces. Alternatively, you can follow the advice of several posters on the Apple forums: get a refund and wait for the 2013 Mac Mini. ®

Hat tip to Philip Tyler for bringing this to our attention.

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