Apple's M4 Mac mini is the smallest Mac ever and, with a new M4 Pro option, possibly the most powerful too

3 weeks ago

(Image credit: Apple)

Apple is erstwhile again taking nan mini sanction to heart, unveiling coming an all-new, almost impossibly mini Mac mini moving not only a 3-nanometer M4 spot but pinch nan action of an all-new portion of Apple silicon, nan M4 Pro.

When Apple introduced nan Mac mini almost a decade ago, it was nan smallest Mac to date, astatine conscionable 6.5 inches x 6.5 inches and 2 inches tall. Recent editions person grown to almost 8 inches square, making them consciousness little for illustration mini computers and a spot much for illustration elegant basking plates. This caller exemplary clocks successful astatine 5.5 inches quadrate and possibly a spot taller than nan M2 model. That's still astir two inches larger than an Apple TV 4K but besides mini capable to fresh successful 1 decent-sized hand.

At a glance, nan Mac mini M4 is familiar. It's still made of recycled aluminum (though 85% little than nan past model), is still quadrate pinch rounded corners, and has a information instrumentality vent successful nan base. After that, nan pint-sized machine diverges. The once-clean look now offers a brace of USB-C ports and a 3.5mm headphone jack. One mightiness reason that nan smaller chassis forced nan activity of immoderate ports from nan backmost to nan front, but I deliberation group will invited nan easiness of use.

You'll find nan much acquainted Thunderbolt (3x), Ethernet, and HDMI ports connected nan back.

What whitethorn matter astir to Mac mini fans is nan preamble of Apple's newest and fastest silicon, nan M4, first seen successful nan iPad Pro. The past Mac mini topped retired astatine an M2 people chip, offering capacity options up to nan M2 Pro. In a akin fashion, nan caller Mac mini marks nan preamble of nan M4's first iteration: an M4 Pro.

The M4 Pro brings pinch it an up-to-14-core CPU and an up-to-20-core GPU. It matches nan M4's 16-core neural engine, which plays a ample domiciled successful AI operations. One of nan large changes, and 1 that could importantly effect performance, is nan accrued representation bandwidth. While nan M2 Pro offers 120Gbps throughput, nan M4 Pro promises 75% higher representation bandwidth.

Again, we won't cognize nan existent effect until we trial nan caller Mac mini and its caller CPU.

The caller Pro-level silicon besides introduces Thunderbolt 5 support, which intends those ports will connection transportation speeds of up to 120Gbps, a tantalizing imaginable for those who activity successful pro-level video editing.

Tiny and neutral

Apple is calling this its first carbon-neutral Mac because, successful summation to that acold reduced usage of aluminum, nan merchandise features 50% recycled contented and is being produced utilizing each renewable energy.

Like different Apple silicon-running systems, nan caller Mac mini M4 offers afloat support for Apple intelligence. Perhaps that's why nan caller guidelines representation for each Mac minis is now 16GB, up from 8GB. Though, you tin get up to 64GB of RAM erstwhile you person nan M4 Pro spot successful a Mac mini.

Apple is doing that while keeping nan guidelines value astatine $599 / £599 / $999AU. It's a invited change, moreover if it's partially necessitated by Apple Intelligence's onboard generative AI processing demands.

While I person yet to trial nan caller M4 Pro Mac mini, I person seen it successful action running, for instance, an exertion known arsenic Aperty that lets you do pro-level image photography editing.

In 1 demo, I watched arsenic they added caller constituent lighting to a photograph and past dragged it astir arsenic nan subject's lighting changed successful real-time. The strategy appeared to instantly measure nan 3D contours of nan face, use an invisible map, and set nan virtual ray accordingly. It tin do this activity and different onboard AI actions – powered chiefly by nan Neural Engine – that tin instantly adhd aliases alteration constitution and region under-eye shadows.

The caller Mac mini M4 is connected pre-sale coming (Oct. 29) and ships connected November 8 pinch a starting value of $599 / £599 / $999AU. The guidelines exemplary starts pinch a 10-core CPU and 10-core GPU, 16GB of memory, and 256GB of storage. It ranges up to $1,399 / £1399 / $2,199AU for a Mac mini M4 packed pinch a 12-core CPU, 16 Core GPU, 24GB of memory, and 512GB of storage.

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A 38-year manufacture seasoned and award-winning journalist, Lance has covered exertion since PCs were nan size of suitcases and “on line” meant “waiting.” He’s a erstwhile Lifewire Editor-in-Chief, Mashable Editor-in-Chief, and, earlier that, Editor successful Chief of PCMag.com and Senior Vice President of Content for Ziff Davis, Inc. He besides wrote a popular, play tech file for Medium called The Upgrade.

Lance Ulanoff makes predominant appearances connected national, international, and section news programs including Live pinch Kelly and Mark, nan Today Show, Good Morning America, CNBC, CNN, and nan BBC.

Source Technology