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Amazon Leaks Smaller Mac Mini With M4 and M4 Pro Chips, Two Front USB-C Ports, Up to 64GB of RAM, and More

HobeSoundDarryl said:
Many of them PC Minis will also have room for slotted RAM and at least 1- often 2- m.2 slots for competitively-priced storage too. But Apple can't/won't do that. Why? Not because they can't.
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Actually, the type of low-power-consumption memory (LPDDR5) used with Apple silicon typically can't be installed in DIMMs/slots. The same is true for the new Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite. However, I do remember reading earlier in the year that a new LPDDR5 format that can be installed in removable "slots" is/was under development but that may be too soon for use in Apple's current generation of Macs. Maybe next year in the Mac Studio or Mac Pro?

Here is a link to more information on this development:

https://www.crucial.com/articles/about-memory/what-is-lpcamm

However, it looks like this new type of memory "stick" is pretty expensive right now. A 32GB module is currently $175 from Crucial/Micron, while 64GB is $330. Meanwhile two sticks of 16GB DDR4 SODIMM memory (32GB total) is just $66.
 
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If a Mac can route the power to a USB-C port to then self-power an attached m.2 enclosure, I have to believe the very same approach could sufficiently power an m.2 stick inside if Apple was motivated to provide such consumer utility. Again, conceptually, a powered USB-C/Thunderbolt port could be turned inward instead of only outward as is the norm. If so, plug anything into that and have the full power available to that port to power anything inside or out.
 
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I've got an M2 Pro mini as my main driver, so I'm not in the market yet, but I'm still interested in the new form factor.

Plugged in right now -- power, Ethernet, HDMI, thunderbolt second monitor, external SSD, hub for keyboard and mouse. Sometimes I add a CD reader for ripping CDs. I *hope* the M4 Pro mini doesn't stint on ports, and I hope it keeps dedicated HDMI and Ethernet ports.
 
fpnc said:
Actually, the type of low-power-consumption memory (LPDDR5) used with Apple silicon typically can't be installed in DIMMs/slots. The same is true for the new Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite. However, I do remember reading earlier in the year that a new LPDDR5 format that can be installed in removable "slots" is/was under development but that may be too soon for use in Apple's current generation of Macs. Maybe next year in the Mac Studio or Mac Pro?

Here is a link to more information on this development:

https://www.crucial.com/articles/about-memory/what-is-lpcamm

However, it looks like this new type of memory "stick" is pretty expensive right now. A 32GB module is currently $175 from Crucial/Micron, while 64GB is $330. Meanwhile two sticks of 16GB DDR4 SODIMM memory (32GB total) is just $66.
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Fair points about RAM

Storage -- however 🫤
 
tenthousandthings said:
Since up to 20 core GPU is two more than M3’s 18, I think we can then extrapolate to up to 44 core GPU in the Max, four more than M3’s 40? The big question for the Max is will they stagger the GPU count/memory bandwidth, like they did for M3 (30/300 then 40/400) or will they go back to the M1/M2 model?

My guess is they will stagger it.
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I have a feeling Apple is going Middle-finger to the competition hard with the M4 Max.

up to 50-Core GPU on M4 Max & 550 GB of bandwidth.

It's time Apple went full Star Wars Palpatine
 
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Just out of curiosity, I have tried the trade-in operation in order to purchase this new model. And after paying almost €2.6K eighteen months ago for my Mac Mini M2 Pro with steroids, Apple only would give me €515.

Yes, I repeat it again, 515 euros.

Guess what? Apple, wake me up when you overpriced items know their demise, like Vision Pro, and start to cut the hype in half.
 
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b.la said:
Who at Apple said to you they would be releasing processor updates for the entire Mac line up at the same time?

I don’t understand this complaint. People build up this expectation around what they want and complain when they don’t get it. Why not just wait and see what a company releases (which is completely out of your control) and either buy it or don’t?

Is the Mac Studio less capable of doing what you bought it to do now compared to day 1? Nope. Have Apple continued to innovate on their chips to further accelerate what’s possible with these machines? Yep!

Talking about Apple’s lack of focus on their high end machines… the things we use our computers for today wouldn’t be possible without the innovation on these chips but as the saying goes, you can’t please all of the people all of the time.
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One of the big reasons for ditching Intel is because they kept slipping with their roadmap.
 
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iPay said:
Yes, but Apple RAM has a special quality: it's more, er..., expensive.
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With Apple Silicon and [i'm assuming game consoles as well], SSD and RAM comes down to latency and the controllers itself. While you can buy DDR5 RAM at insane power and price, the latency and overall "marriage" between components won't match what a ARM single SoC can do.

There's plenty of videos that show that even a laptop with swappable RAM/SSD is slower then Apple's RAM.
 
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This begs a question relating to the iMac: why doesn’t it offer M4 and M4 Pro configs? Seems that the All-In-One crowd would benefit from this. Is it a technical limitation like heat? Or is it more of a keep one design for iMac to me streamlined, and anyone looking for more can bring their own display and peripherals to Mac mini?
 
Cervisia said:
Up to 14 cores. I hope it means Apple fixes the mistake with gutting out M3 Pro and also giving an ick to people with OCD with the 5 perf core model, and yet another two e-cores to increase benchmark scores without much real-world benefits.
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The M3 Pro was "gutted out" to balance out their lineup of chips and to create more of a difference between Pro < Max < Ultra (< Extreme for the future?).
 
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Tyler O'Bannon said:
This begs a question relating to the iMac: why doesn’t it offer M4 and M4 Pro configs? Seems that the All-In-One crowd would benefit from this. Is it a technical limitation like heat? Or is it more of a keep one design for iMac to me streamlined, and anyone looking for more can bring their own display and peripherals to Mac mini?
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The hope is that Apple has an iMac Pro in the works, but has issues with the cooling [which is why we have not yet gotten one]
 
hovscorpion12 said:
With Apple Silicon and [i'm assuming game consoles as well], SSD and RAM comes down to latency and the controllers itself. While you can buy DDR5 RAM at insane power and price, the latency and overall "marriage" between components won't match what a ARM single SoC can do.

There's plenty of videos that show that even a laptop with swappable RAM/SSD is slower then Apple's RAM.
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I think that applies only to laptops but basically, yeah. On the desktop with even Intel bringing controllers on die, and versing with CUDIMM I’d expect the industry will surpass them on non-portable computers
 
I hope Apple doesn't skimp on the fan/heatsink on the M4 Pro Mac Mini. If it keeps quiet and fairly cool under extended heavy operations, then this would be a great option for those that don't need the larger Mac Studio and its additional Max and Ultra GPU cores.

I really want to update my 2018 i7 Mac Mini, but I'm tired of its noisy fan ramping up and down. Hopefully Apple were smart enough to don't go backwards in the performance vs quiet fan department.
 
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Truben said:
Just out of curiosity, I have tried the trade-in operation in order to purchase this new model. And after paying almost €2.6K eighteen months ago for my Mac Mini M2 Pro with steroids, Apple only would give me €405.

Yes, I repeat it again, 405 euros.

Guess what? Apple, wake me up when you overpriced items know their demise, like Vision Pro, and start to cut the hype in half.
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This is always the part that cracks me up about the Apple gouging

They are fully admitting how bad it is ... by the awful trade in pricing they themselves offer to folks on relatively recent components.
 
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Would have to await the proper release details, but have to say I had hoped for a similar form factor as the present, just slimmer and a smaller footprint. First impression only: not marvelous proportions/aesthetics.

IF the power supply becomes external and iMac-style: Fire those who approved the design.
 
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All the renders people make have a separate power & ethernet port, can't they use a similar method to the iMacs especially on a small mini where they have to make the most out of what they can provide for ports in a small space? I like how clean it is on the iMac
 
So does this mean that the MPB with M4 Max will be announced tomorrow? I was hoping they reveled it today
 
it was always the case. Gradual reveal. You don't reveal your most powerful chip in the middle but at the end.

lanomds1 said:
So does this mean that the MPB with M4 Max will be announced tomorrow? I was hoping they reveled it today
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