Let's assume for a moment that Apple aren't going for full replacement of the non touch bar MacBook Pro and instead looking to cost reduce the MacBook Air with a similar but all-new product. One retaining the familiar wedge shape but with thinner bezels and higher resolution retina display. It would certainly sell in enough quantity to justify engineering costs - the original article also hints at use of a bespoke screen if not the standard 13" Retina display we've all become used to.
Keyboard may be an issue, especially if they intend to go all out for the third generation butterfly model as used in the MacBook Pro but keeping the old design shape could give them a free pass to re-use the old scissor design. Keeping repair costs down in part by keeping the old style keyboard could work on a budget laptop.
Back to the Mini though, and if - as the article suggests - pro users will get favoured (along with developers and folks aiming to run media centres and server farms - such as Mac Mini Colo) we could be looking at a Mini that goes up market. Perhaps these folks have basically said they would order in bulk for something that won't cost the earth, can be stacked in data centres or under televisions or tucked away elsewhere.
It's this professional option - containing folks who may rate GPU compute power third behind storage capability and some decent CPU power - that Apple could be targeting for up to $2k. The programmers, musicians, and graphic artists rather than the all powerful video guys.
At the very least the storage options would be upgraded perhaps with more internal options. These guys may not be bothered about overt GPU options meaning our choice of CPUs opens up a bit.
Here's a popular choice for marketing reasons - you can see it on the end of Steve Jobs' desk near his 30" display.
It's a design model of a G5. Designing a small version of something like that - last seen 6 years ago in the 2012 Mac Pro - with the famous side door and upgradable RAM and drives would be akin to Rey and Finn running past the Millennium Falcon in The Force Awakens. The nostalgia factor alone should get people to thinking.
Chu-Wi are already ripping off the G5/Cheese Grater Look with their
Kaby Lake G PC. Most reviews of this and the laptops created using the chipset point
towards heat/noise issues though. Even Hades Canyon NUCs appear to run hot. Something Apple may find unacceptable unless they have a bespoke cooling system that will cope with it.
