Following yesterday’s unveiling of the M4 iMac, Apple is continuing its Mac-focused announcements with a major refresh to the Mac Mini today. The new model features Apple’s latest M4 chip and Apple Intelligence capabilities, all in a dramatically smaller design. Let’s get into the details here.
Apple Mac Mini M4 Specifications
The most notable change is undoubtedly the revised design. As speculated, Apple has significantly reduced the size of the already compact Mac Mini. Measuring a mere five inches on each side, this iteration is truly miniature.
For thermal management in such a small space, the M4 Mac Mini has “an innovative thermal architecture” that channels air throughout the system with ventilation routed exclusively through the base.
Despite its smaller size, the Mac Mini retains a healthy selection of ports. The front features two USB-C ports and a 3.5mm headphone jack. The rear offers ethernet, HDMI, and three USB-C ports, all of which support Thunderbolt connectivity.
Notably, the USB-A ports that were present in previous iterations have been omitted. However, users should find the configuration comparable, as the base M4 Mini replaces the two USB-A ports with an extra Thunderbolt port for a total of five.
The speed of these ports depends on the flavors of the M4 processor. The standard M4 provides Thunderbolt 4 connectivity, while the M4 Pro features the latest Thunderbolt 5 with faster read and write speeds.
Unsurprisingly, the M4 Pro delivers superior performance with its 14-core CPU and 20-core GPU configuration. The base M4 chip has a 10-core CPU and 10-core GPU.
For the first time, the new silicon supports ray tracing, and Apple ships the computer with a base RAM of 16GB, likely to support the Apple Intelligence features. Users can configure RAM up to 32GB with the M4 and up to 64GB with the M4 Pro.
Storage options extend to an impressive 8TB, making the diminutive Mac Mini a surprisingly powerful machine for those willing to invest. The familiar 10-gigabit ethernet is also available as an optional upgrade for users seeking faster-wired connections.
Pricing and Availability
Although Apple has made efforts to improve the portability of the new Mini and introduce various updates, there’s not much change in terms of price. It starts at the same $599 for the base M4 model, while the more powerful M4 Pro version starts at $1,399. Both configurations are available for pre-order now and will be in stores on November 8th.
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