Apple Unveils new Mac Mini with M4 chip, Smaller than Ever


Apple has introduced the smallest Mac Mini having an M4 chip with major upgrades.

Apple’s week of Mac announcements started on October 28, in the series of major announcements, the company has unveiled the smallest-ever Mac Mini. The device will have the M4 chip, support ray tracing for the first time, and have a default storage of 16 GB of RAM. 

In the Apple Intelligence era, this seems to be the new standard. The machine begins at $599 with the standard M4 chip, while the more robust M4 Pro model starts at $1,399. Similar to the updated iMac on October 28, the Mac Mini is available for pre-order now and will hit stores on November 8th.

Exploring Features of Mac Mini with M4 Chip

The Mac Mini will come with a new design which couldn’t remain the same considering the change in size. As anticipated the Mac Mini is now much smaller although it was already a small desktop to start with. Apple has worked on the cooling system as devices with M4 chips require more power and get hotter, “an innovative thermal architecture, which guides air to different levels of the system, while all venting is done through the foot.”

Still, Apple has packed this device with plenty of ports! On the front, you’ll find two USB-C ports and a 3.5mm audio jack. At the back, there’s an ethernet port, HDMI, and three USB-C/Thunderbolt ports. While the USB-A ports are gone, it’s interesting to note that the base M2 Mini only had two Thunderbolt 4 and two USB-A ports. With the M4, you get a total of five ports, so you’re trading a USB-A for an extra Thunderbolt port.

The M4 Pro Mac Mini packs a punch with its 14 CPU and 20 GPU cores, offering impressive overall performance. You can upgrade the RAM to 32GB with the regular M4 or go up to 64GB with the M4 Pro, and storage can reach a massive 8TB. So, while the Mini is compact, it can be incredibly powerful if you’re ready to invest. Plus, you can opt for a 10-gigabit ethernet if you want that extra speed.

We’re also expecting to see the M4 Pro chip in the upcoming 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros, along with an even more powerful M4 Max chip that won’t be in the Mini. However, the Pro version should be more than enough for many prosumers and creatives!

What to Expect from Mac Week of Announcement?

It’s a packed week for Apple! The M4 iMac launched on Monday, and the company introduced its first Apple Intelligence features across iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. More AI tools, like image generation and ChatGPT integration, are coming in December. We might see the new MacBook Pros as Apple wraps up its hardware updates tomorrow. Plus, the company will report its quarterly earnings on October 31, which will surely highlight its latest lineup of Macs!



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