Apple has officially announced the M4 Mac mini. It’s the second of three expected announcements, with theM4 iMacbeing revealed first.
The new Mac mini features an M4 or M4 Pro chip, with the base version featuring a 10-core CPU/10-core GPU. The entry-level model starts at $600, while the higher-end M4 Pro Mac mini starts at $1,400. The release date is set for November 8th.
Storage-wise, the Mac mini starts at 256GB, but it can be upgraded with up to 8TB of SSD storage. RAM starts at 16GB and can be upgraded to 64GB. The Mac mini is still only available in silver, making it not nearly as colorful as Apple’s recently announcedM4 iMac lineup.
Apple Mac Mini (M4, 2024)
Apple’s new Mac mini has been upgraded to the M4 and M4 Pro chipset. It has also features a new, smaller design.
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The first of Apple’s several expected M4 Mac announcements has arrived.
The smallest Mac mini yet
Almost as small as Apple TV
The most significant change with the new Mac mini is its design. Its footprint is less than half of its previous design, which came in at 5 x 5 inches. That’s pretty wild, considering the performance packed into this thing.
Apple says the Mac mini’s compactness is due to the power efficiency of its silicon and the innovative thermal architecture that allows the system’s air to be guided to different areas of the machine. All the venting is done through the foot of the Mac mini. Apple claims the Mac mini is up to six times faster than the best-selling PC desktop in its price range at one-twentieth of the size. To put the size in perspective, the Mac mini is so small you could easily play catch with it (though I don’t recommend anyone actually do that).
Also, here’s a fun fact: the Mac mini’s power button is on the bottom of the device.
Port-selection wise, the Mac mini is loaded. The front has two USB-C ports and a 3.5mm audio jack. The back features Ethernet, HDMI, and three USB-C/Thunderbolt ports. The speed of the Thunderbolt ports depends on the M4 chipset you select. The regular M4 chip includes Thunderbolt 4, whereas the M4 Pro features Thunderbolt 5.
Also, here’s a fun fact: the Mac mini’spower button is on the bottom of the device. This is a very Apple-like, interesting choice, to say the least.
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There’s a lot of performance under the hood
Apple’s M4 chipset is a force to be reckoned with
Aside from redesigning the Mac mini, the other notable change is the M4 chipset. The 10-core CPU found in the base model is an upgrade from last year’s 8-core. However, the GPU core count is the same at 10.
Apple claims the Mac mini’s M4 Pro chip features “the world’s fastest CPU core with lightning-fast single threaded performance.” The M4 Pro can be configured up to a 14-core CPU and 20-GPU, an upgrade from its predecessor’s 12-core CPU and 19-core GPU. Apple claims the Mac mini with M4 Pro, compared to the Mac mini with M2 Pro, renders motion graphics to RAM twice as fast in Motion and completes 3D renders up to 2.9x faster in Blender.
With the M4 chip, the Mac mini can support up to two 6K displays and up to one 5K display. On the other hand, the M4 Pro works with up to three 6K displays at 60Hz. Of course, the M4 chip supportsApple Intelligence, which launched alongside macOS Sequoia 15.1. The previous M-series Mac mini also supports Apple Intelligence.
I’m very interested in seeing how the new Mac mini’s M4 chip performs given its smaller form factor.
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