Deals: Apple's M2 Mac Mini Drops to New Record Low Prices, Starting at $499.99 [Updated]

[MacRumors]

Apple's 2023 M2 Mac mini has hit new all-time low prices in both storage configurations today on Amazon. As of writing, only Amazon has these deals and you can get the Mac mini delivered as soon as April 9.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Starting with the 256GB M2 Mac mini, you can get this model for $499.99, down from $599.00. This is now the best price we've ever tracked for this version of the computer, and stock is beginning to dwindle so be sure to lock in the sale price soon if you're interested.

M2 Mac mini (256GB) for $499.99 ($99 OFF)​

Additionally, the 512GB M2 Mac mini has dropped to $689.99, down from $799.00 on Amazon. This is another best-ever price for the new Mac mini, and delivery dates are available for mid-April as of writing.

M2 Mac mini (512GB) for $689.99 ($109 OFF)​

We aren't currently tracking any discounts on the M2 Pro Mac mini, besides a small $50 discount on Amazon. Be sure to visit our full Deals Roundup to shop for even more Apple-related products and accessories.

Updated: The 256GB model is now out of stock on Amazon, but the 512GB option is still available.

Article Link: Deals: Apple's M2 Mac Mini Drops to New Record Low Prices, Starting at $499.99 [Updated]

 

[Blackstick]

Really good deal for a very powerful Mac.

 

[Justin Cymbal]

What an unbelievable price!

You can also get an additional 5% off if you use the Amazon credit card to pay for it

 

[usersince86]

Nice! Under $500 for a great Mac is a win for Apple (thanks Amazon)!

 

[bradman83]

It's a shame there's no option via third party resellers to up the RAM on the M2 models to 16 GB for an uncharge off of these discounts. For casual home users 8GB is fine but users doing anything beyond basic email and web browsing would benefit from 16.

 

[mrat93]

Additionally, the 512GB M2 Mac mini has dropped to $689.99, down from $799.00 on Amazon. This is another best-ever price for the new Mac mini, and delivery dates are available for mid-April as of writing.

$190 difference for an additional 256GB of storage.

$190 can buy you a high-end 2TB SSD or a low-end 4TB SSD.

 

[CharlesShaw]

I promised myself no Mac upgrades until after the AC+ expires on my refurbished baseline Intel mini, but this is really tempting.

 

[floral]

I promised myself no Mac upgrades until after the AC+ expires on my refurbished baseline Intel mini, but this is really tempting.

Go for it! You won't regret it :D

 

[adamw]

That is a great deal for either the base M2 Mac mini or the 512GB SSD M2 Mac mini! The only limitation is the 8GB RAM on the Apple Silicon M2 chip. I just picked up two M2 Mac minis (16GB RAM/512GB SSD) and (24GB RAM/256GB SSD) recently on B&H Photo in their Used Department, for about 15% off retail list price each. They go fast, so search M2 Mac Mini often to find a Used one if you are trying to find a unique M2 or M2 Pro Mac mini configuration, such as with 10GB Ethernet port, larger RAM, and/or 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, or 8TTB SSD models. They also have many of the new higher end Mac M2 minis and M2 Pro Mac minis for sale in stock currently with custom configurations.

If you get a great deal with a M2 or M2 Pro Mac mini, remember to get the most RAM for your future needs. You can always add an external USB-C or Thunderbolt SSD drive, and even make that a Boot drive if you like. I did that with the 24GB M2 Mac Mini with only 256GB SSD. I bought a Plugable 2TB Thunderbolt 3 External SSD from B&H for $279.99, and made it the Boot drive for Ventura for the M2 Mac mini. With 24GB of RAM, I should be happy with that for a while. The other 16GB RAM and 512GB SSD M2 Mac mini, I will use either a USB-C or Thunderbolt external SSD as a data drive with.

 

[WilliamG]

It's a shame there's no option via third party resellers to up the RAM on the M2 models to 16 GB for an uncharge off of these discounts. For casual home users 8GB is fine but users doing anything beyond basic email and web browsing would benefit from 16.

Probably why these are on sale. You'd have to be bonkers to buy this system with 8GB RAM except for casual use. Just Apple being cheap. I'd have one if the 16GB/512GB wasn't so maddeningly expensive.

 

[Realityck]

M2 Mac mini is such a bargain at that price for anyone who starting to use Macs.

 

[adamw]

Do we believe that Apple is clearing out inventory, making way for M3 chips? I saw Apple stopped production on M2 chips at their chip fab for 2 months, due to slow M2 chip device sales. Will we get an April Apple event?

 

[Kar98]

Where the Mac mini should be priced at in first place.

 

[Realityck]

Do we believe that Apple is clearing out inventory, making way for M3 chips? I saw Apple stopped production on M2 chips at their chip fab for 2 months, due to slow M2 chip device sales. Will we get an April Apple event?

The current April timeframe thru Mid May allows Apple to just announce anything they want before WWDC early June. Nothing would happen 2 weeks before WWDC 2023. They can also announce late June/July Afterwards.

 

[Jamo12]

$190 difference for an additional 256GB of storage.

$190 can buy you a high-end 2TB SSD or a low-end 4TB SSD.

Yep. Just get one of those and have it always connected to one of the thunderbolt ports since your computer isn’t going to move much. If you want it to look pretty, you can get an enclosure that matches your computer

 

[nutmac]

It's a shame there's no option via third party resellers to up the RAM on the M2 models to 16 GB for an uncharge off of these discounts. For casual home users 8GB is fine but users doing anything beyond basic email and web browsing would benefit from 16.

True, but if you are in the US, you can order from Apple Store Education to get the similar discount, and you can customize Mac mini with your desired RAM capacity.

 

[adamw]

Yep. Just get one of those and have it always connected to one of the thunderbolt ports since your computer isn’t going to move much. If you want it to look pretty, you can get an enclosure that matches your computer

I agree. Any external SSD will do (a USB-C 10 Gbps or a Thunderbolt 3 or 4 model). If the fastest external speed matters, I would advise you go with a Thunderbolt External SSD option, to max out the 32 Gbps maximum data transfer rate that Thunderbolt 3 or 4 provides. You can either buy a Thunderbolt 3 or 4 case, and put your own M.2 SSD (not a M.2 SATA SSD) in, or else buy a premade Thunderbolt External SSD model (such as the Plugable 2TB Thunderbolt 3 model that I purchased.) Or, for a clean appearance on your desk, you can buy a Satechi case for the M1/M2 which sits right under your Mac mini, which has a M.2 SSD slot, but only M.2 SATA drives will work with the Satechi M1/M2 case.

 

[adamw]

True, but if you are in the US, you can order from Apple Store Education to get the similar discount, and you can customize Mac mini with your desired RAM capacity.

But the waiting for a custom Mac mini to be made, and come from China, can take several weeks or longer, depending on the supply chain and shipping. The choice of near instant gratification, or having to wait...

 

[ApplesAreSweet&Sour]

I promised myself no Mac upgrades until after the AC+ expires on my refurbished baseline Intel mini, but this is really tempting.

None of the baseline M2 Macs are worth getting despite these low prices.

-All of them have either crippled SSDs or too little RAM to really fit more than basic needs.

On a tight budget, you'll be getting the same performance on baseline M1 configurations and most of them sell for even lower than these M2 sale prices.

 

[nutmac]

But the waiting for a custom Mac mini to be made, and come from China, can take several weeks or longer, depending on the supply chain and shipping. The choice of near instant gratification, or having to wait...

Better yet, Apple should just increase the base RAM capacity to 16GB (at least on configurations other than the lowest-end model). Given the unified memory architecture (GPU "steals" about 2GB RAM), 16GB is much safer option.

 

[ApplesAreSweet&Sour]

Where the Mac mini should be priced at in first place.

Yes, considering how much the SSDs have been crippled compared to similar M1 Macs there definitely shouldn't be a price increase at all.

Only custom configure M2 Macs are a genuine upgrade. But you don't get those from retail.

 

[azentropy]

Tempting as a secondary machine. But again really wish Apple would move off of 8GB for even the base models. I don't really need that much storage anymore and external fast storage is so cheap now, but you are locked into what RAM configuration you get.

 

[adamw]

Only custom configure M2 Macs are a genuine upgrade. But you don't get those from retail.

Perhaps you are not aware, but B&H Photo tries to keep various Mac mini and Mac Studio models with custom configurations in retail stock, such as with or without 10G Ethernet ports, and larger SSD and RAM options, which appeal to Photographers and Videographers, without having to custom order your Mac from China. Here is a link to see many of the custom M2/M2 Pro Mac mini models, many of which are In Stock: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?q=m2 mac mini&sts=ma

 

[ApplesAreSweet&Sour]

Perhaps you are not aware, but B&H Photo tries to keep various Mac mini and Mac Studio models with custom configurations in retail stock, such as with or without 10G Ethernet ports, and larger SSD and RAM options, which appeal to Photographers and Videographers, without having to custom order your Mac from China. Here is a link to see many of the custom M2/M2 Pro Mac mini models, many of which are In Stock: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?q=m2 mac mini&sts=ma

I did not know.

But then I have to assume they only rarely or never go on sale? Or at least not as frequent as the baseline configurations do?

 

[badgerbadgerx2]

They were $499 pre-order *before* they came out, and have been $549 many times since. As the owner of 3 base M1s -- mini and 2 MBAs -- they are spectacular, even with the 8 GB ram limit. Kids have the MBAs, both high school and the oldest does social media work for a couple of businesses. Wife uses a mini to VPN into her work PC, running dual screens. full Office suite, zooms, all the normal "work" stuff most office people do -- all are zippy. Never an issue with ram (or anything else)

The web browsing is noticeably faster than my 2020 iMac, even with my 128 GB of ram.

yeah, sure the drive speed is a bummer vs M1, but we are still talking about a 1500 MB/s drive -- no slouch. No basic user will notice, and if you are a user that thinks this is important, then no the mac for you. Simple.

Best price on a 16/256 M1 is $640 refurb from apple -- delivery in 2 days. 16/512 is $800, 16/1TB is $979 -- both 2 day delivery.