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Everything Apple has stated so far has said that any M-Series Mac will run Apple Intelligence. Including info on their main website. Pretty sure they are going to stick with 8gb as the minimum spec needed for AI. Will 12gb, or 16gb run it better? Sure, but that is to be expected.
That's quite possible as that applies to the iPad's and iPhone's with 8GB. However, the rumors posted on this website seem to indicate that base RAM will double to 16GB. Perhaps Apple employees have been reading the complaints regarding base RAM and pricing for Mac products and have decided now is the time to bump up the base RAM. We'll find out early next week.
 
I’ve waited so long for the M4 Mac Mini and my 2016 MacBook Pro still works well enough that I’m just tempted to wait it out for a M5/M6 instead.
 
That's quite possible as that applies to the iPad's and iPhone's with 8GB. However, the rumors posted on this website seem to indicate that base RAM will double to 16GB. Perhaps Apple employees have been reading the complaints regarding base RAM and pricing for Mac products and have decided now is the time to bump up the base RAM. We'll find out early next week.
Oh, I don't doubt that the base RAM is increasing in the Mac line. I just think it's key jangling by Apple to distract from the fact that their AI isn't ready to go.

I really think they want to get Apple Intelligence into the hands of as many people as possible in the hopes that it's a hit. If it is, they'll start charging a service fee for it later on down the line.

It remains to be seen if I, or many others, will find it useful enough to pay a monthly fee for it.

I love Apple products and have way too many of them in my home. My M2 Mac mini is one of my favorite computers that I've ever had. Heck, I will likely buy a new Mac mini at some point next year just because I like the idea of it being even smaller, not because I need it.

I just don't know if I want to give them any more money than I already do just to make emoji's and summarize emails...
 
I believe it, just saying I find it weird, when the Pro/Max variants have warranted a major promo after each M(x) release. Including the M3 which was, especially with the gimped Pro, fairly pedestrian. I expected M4 Pro/Max to be a tock.

OK that it's not, but it probably means it's not that exciting an update.

Could be wrong ofc, am regularly.
I agree it is somewhat strange given the performance updates seem strong. But for many buyers/watches they only get excited by physical changes to the machine. In the absence of even a new colour like last year, perhaps this explains why its not a full event.

My other theory is they think this is a week of the year they can own, and drip feed annoucments everyday to build excitement. I wonder if we will get the components of a video event, but drip fed every day. I find it strange they wouldnt do an explanation of the mac mini's redesign at an event and just releasing an AD for that with the press release would not be enough IMO.

Do note that the MBP is better than the MBA in every regard except weight. If all one cares about is power and finds the MBA RAM adequate then MBA is a good cheaper choice. Personally I find MBP speakers, display and available RAM essential.

MBA is also thinner. But more importantly its screen is a full inch bigger. The 14 pro is closer to the air, its only .6 inches bigger than the 13 air. Personally, at a comfortable sitting distance i find reading two documents side by side only really comfortable on a 15 air or 16 pro.

Many people dont particularly notice the better screen or speakers and dont do any performance work that meaningful requires a fan. So if we are talking base m4 macbook pro 14 vs macbook air 15, there are definitely reasons to prefer the air. Particularly once air moves to M4 if it also comes with 16gb of ram and proper dual monitor support. I'm sure for most of my friends nad family, they would prefer to save the money than to have a heavy machine, with a fan and better screen and speakers which they'd probably never notice.

I do not understand the comment "the 15" Air screen was excellent for productivity and aging eyesight." I find the MBP's brighter, better XDR display far superior for aging eyesight.

Because indoors teh brightness and HDR for most people dont improve the readability, the resolution and screen size do. The 15 is a full inch bigger than the 14 pro (which as i noted above is only .6 inches bigger than the 13 air). 14 pro also has a higher screen resolution so font ends up smaller again at suggested scaling. Thats great if it works for your eyesight, but its pretty clear why many would prefer the 15 for their eyesight.

also,

is that a certainty?

is it not also possible that the m4 could just cost more?

I haven't bought a new Mac since 2012 and have been going the hackintosh route so haven't been following Mac pricing ups and downs very closely for years
Nothing is a certainty. But apple likes to hit certain price points, they are very strategic. Typically they retire the outgoing model and replace it with the new one (likely to happen with m3) at the same price point or if they do increase price of new model its a fairly minor increase in price to reflect inflation but typically this is unnecessary as they find efficiencies in the chain to maintain their margins.

Given teh base m4 appears to be moving to 16gb of ram as standard (from 8), there is an argument that price might increase, but it is also the most price sensitive part of the market, so any price increase here is likely to be minimal the raw cost to apple for this change is likely in the 10s of dollars.

Not for me unfortunately. The iMac form factor is so much better.
Agree. There is a very strong appeal to the all in one design.

This is pure speculation.
Yes tehy are speculating. But you are acting as if a rule that they must upgrade the design every 4 iterations. They are updating at a faster cadence than usual due to the more consistent chip cycles.

I agree with their speculation, it makes sense to delay the redesign to when the oled screens are ready. What is the redesign without it? A thinner laptop with possibly worse battery life? They may need OLED to offset battery impact either in battery life or as a trade off worth having. In any event, they wouldnt want to change all tooling between 2025 and 2026 to account for different displays with different dimensions and requirements.

Perhaps they solve this issue by not releasing a pro in 2025 but early 2026 when the oleds are ready.

But as someone else asked you, what are you actually looking for in a chassis redesign? Because its probably going to be thinner and maybe change ports which may not be beneficial.

Since when does Apple tease upcoming product announcements? It just tells me that they know they have to create excitement for something they know to be unexciting.
I feel this is a very weird take. They always tease upcoming events, and this is a mild tease on their social media accounts, not ads.

By not doing a big event for these announcements, seems a concession to the announcements relative importance the reverse of trying to make them seem more exciting than they are. If anything, it shows they are thinking about how important it is to keep the events for meaningful announcements to core products rather than redesigns of marginal products (mac mini) and iterative updates to popular products (macbook pro).
 
32” iMac please, available in Space Gray and Space black with razor thin bezels and no chin. If there must be a chin, place a damn Apple logo on it! Pro version? OLED, or at the very least, miniLED.
 
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I agree it is somewhat strange given the performance updates seem strong. But for many buyers/watches they only get excited by physical changes to the machine. In the absence of even a new colour like last year, perhaps this explains why its not a full event.
So sad, so true. A big proportion of shoppers in the tech marketplace are overly concerned with superficialities. The rest of us could not care less. To justify our investment we require solid improvements in performance and capacity, and the future proofing that should imply, at a competitive price. I don't care if it's sky-blue pink or space-fricken grey, that's not at all important to me, damn it! ;) It's all about the price / performance ratio. For me.
 
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Many people dont particularly notice the better screen

I went to the store to look because even though I wanted the pro for performance I was torn between 14 and 16 and thought the 15" might be the sweet spot size wise

side by side the screens are worlds apart. the pro looks amazing and the display on the air, in comparison, looks like cheap junk

I ended up with a 16 but for my eyes alone I would have taken the 14 over the air
 
Should be 2 to 3 days of press releases. Hopefully the iMac retains its bright and beautiful colours.
 
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No event is fine because the last event really felt like an over-produced lack of substance. On the other hand it will mean that there are only incremental upgrades coming, for the most part with the exception of the Mini going mini again. Which is what Apple does these days and the last decade, especially after the big innovations fizzled. I always thought it was the COVID effect or the recent brain drain, but the mix of innovative projects getting canned or being a flop and the molasses-like slowness of improvements on their established consumer-oriented products is not without dangers, even if you’re the biggest tech company.
 
I'm not getting my hopes up about this one. It seems so obvious they should take it to USB-C and move the port. It's just as likely they will update the port and nothing else, or cancel it entirely. We'll see. For the most part id doesn't seem like Apple listen as much as they should these days.
whilst I hope they have listened about the port on the mouse, I'm inclined to agree with you. My fear is it will just get an update to the USB-C in the same stupid place. For the most part, it doesn't seem like Apple listen as much as they should these days.
 
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I would be very (positively) surprised if it was an actual update to the Magic-devices. It would be very very very overdue and there is lots that could be improved upon, but I am not sure that Apple will do this.
 
I would be very (positively) surprised if it was an actual update to the Magic-devices. It would be very very very overdue and there is lots that could be improved upon, but I am not sure that Apple will do this.
I agree, I'm not overly convinced these days that for the most part, Apple listen as much as they should.
 
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I totally understand why Apple is conservative considering their size and (changed) target clients. If you ever stood next to a 60-yo lady at the Genius Bar trying to have her data transmitted and not understanding iOS at all, you understand their point. Plus, every time they try to innovate, the Users come frothing at the mouth with pitchforks out because there is a Touch Bar or a notch or whatever small improvement Apple tries to deliver. It's understandable that they lost the urge to innovate considering that mix of users – and we all are part of the problem. We WANT innovation but all hell breaks loose when we get it because we sure as F did not mean THAT, why does my MacPro now look like a Dieter Rams lighter? (Which I loved, I LOVED that version of the pro, **** the thermic problems, so pretty and a precursor of AS-machines!). Or the current upheaval over the Photos app (which I absolutely understand, that is totally not an example of good UI design, especially on the iPhone.)

That said, as a brand you run into the problem that you become «good but not different» in the Marty Neumeier Matrix, Toyota instead of Tesla. Boring, in other words. And Apple was the shining example for «good AND different», which is best-in-class as a brand. And this is where they should try to stay, by giving a **** about what us users moan while paving a clear and strong path to the digital future in sync with the values (PERSONAL computing, creativity, privacy etc) that Apple stands/stood for, while being wildly and sometimes annoyingly innovative with what they do. That was part of the Jobs/Ive-dynamic that, despite its own flaws and misfires, made the brand fun and crazy good. Plus, they are big enough to do these kinds of experiments and see what works and incorporate it into the main lines later-on. What Apple needs is a post-«pro»-line of products that are basically ape-**** on the cutting edge and rim-filled with almost-beta ideas, in tight integration with the users, basically a Formula 1 racing car division.

That, and Interface-designers that never ever think the bottom of the mouse is a good solution for a port in the first place :-D.
 
I think it might happen, but is likely at very least a year off, IF a bigger one is coming.
I are hope so, despite the fact that I more or less have switched to Studio and MacBooks on Studio Displays for the office by now. Two iMacPros still here, but currently inactive, because I love these machines so so so much. MacBook plus Screen seems to be the (hyper expensive) way to go, though.
 
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