Apple has unveiled its new redesigned Mac mini which is powered by the M4 and new M4 Pro chip to deliver even more power in a smaller form factor.
The new Mac mini is just 12.7cm x 12.7cm and 5cm tall so it takes up hardly any space on your desktop.
In fact, it is less than half the size of the previous version.
It will be priced from $999 when it is released on November 8.
On the performance side, the Mac mini with M4 has 1.8x faster CPU performance and 2.2x faster GPU performance when compared to the M1 model.
And the M4 Pro model takes that even further for users to take on even more demanding tasks and workloads.
The Mac mini also includes ports on the front and back and includes Thunderbolt 5 for the first time for faster data transfer speeds on the M4 Pro model.
And the new Mac mini is ready to go for Apple Intelligence when it is available in December.
“The new Mac mini delivers gigantic performance in an unbelievably small design thanks to the power efficiency of Apple silicon and an innovative new thermal architecture,” said John Ternus, Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Engineering.
“Combined with the performance of M4 and the new M4 Pro chip, enhanced connectivity on both the front and back, and the arrival of Apple Intelligence, Mac mini is more capable and versatile than ever, and there is nothing else like it.”
Mac mini with M4 has a 10 core CPU, 10 core GPU and starts with 16GB of unified memory.
When compared to the Mac mini with Intel Core i7, Mac mini with M4:
– Applies up to 2.8x more audio effect plugins in a Logic Pro project.1
– Delivers up to 13.3x faster gaming performance in World of Warcraft: The War Within.1
– Enhances photos with up to 33x faster image upscaling performance in Photomator.3
When compared to the Mac mini with M1, Mac mini with M4:
– Performs spreadsheet calculations up to 1.7x faster in Microsoft Excel.1
– Transcribes with on-device AI speech-to-text up to 2x faster in MacWhisper.1
– Merges panoramic images up to 4.9x faster in Adobe Lightroom Classic.4
Customers who want a higher level of performance would opt for the Mac mini with M4 Pro which includes the world’s fastest CPU core 5 with single threaded performance.
It has up to 14 cores including 10 performance cores and four efficiency cores.
The M4 Pro GPU has up to 20 cores and is twice as powerful as the GPU in the M4 version with both chips offering hardware accelerated ray tracing on the Mac mini for the very first time.
The M4 Pro supports up to 64GB of unified memory and 273GB/s of memory bandwidth – that’s double the bandwidth of any AI PC chip – to speed up AI workloads.
And the M4 Pro also supports Thunderbolt 5 which offers up to 120GB/s data transfer speeds on Mac mini which is more than double the throughput of Thunderbolt 4.
When compared to the Mac mini with Intel Core i7, Mac mini with M4 Pro:
– Performs spreadsheet calculations up to 4x faster in Microsoft Excel.1
– Executes scene-edit detection up to 9.4x faster in Adobe Premiere Pro.3
– Transcribes with on-device AI speech-to-text up to 20x faster in MacWhisper.1
– Processes basecalling for DNA sequencing in Oxford Nanopore MinKNOW up to 26x faster.1
When compared to the Mac mini with M2 Pro, Mac mini with M4 Pro:
– Applies up to 1.8x more audio effect plugins in a Logic Pro project.1
– Renders motion graphics to RAM up to 2x faster in Motion.6
– Completes 3D renders up to 2.9x faster in Blender.6
On the connectivity side, the Mac mini has two front USB-C ports that support USB-3 and an audio jack which supports high impedance headphones.
On the rear panel, you’ll find three Thunderbolt 4 ports while Mac mini with M4 Pro has three Thunderbolt 5 ports.
Mac mini also comes standard with Gigabit Ethernet, configurable up to 10GB Ethernet for faster networking and a HDMI port to connect to a TV or HDMI display without an adapter.
The Mac mini with M4 can support up to two 6K displays and one 5K display while the Mac mini M4 Pro supports up to three 6K displays at 60Hz for a total of more than 60 million pixels.
Apple says its new Mac mini is the first carbon neutral Mac.
It is made with more than 50 per cent recycled content overall including 100 per cent recycled aluminium in the enclosure, 100per cent recycled gold plating in all the Apple-design printed circuit boards and 100 per cent rare earth elements in all magnets.
And the electricity used to manufacture Mac mini was sourced from 100 per cent renewable electricity.
PRICING AND AVAILABILITY
Mac mini with M4 and M4 Pro are available to pre-order now and go on sale on Friday, November 8.
The Mac mini with M4 starts at $999 (16GB, 256SSD) while the Mac mini with M4 Pro starts at $2199 (24GB, 512SSD).
