The Register reports the uncovering of a mysterious component to the Mac mini: An Ultra ATA riser board connecting the optical drive to the motherboard. However, the riser board has a Firewire bus, suggesting some future plans for this part. The most popular assumption is that Apple may intend on using it for a built-in iPod dock, but posters in a MacRumors Forums thread speculate that it may be used for other purposes, such as for a future Mac mini media center.

An AppleInsider article from December 2004 mentions that an iPod dock was initially planned for the Mac mini, but was later removed.