That's stupid. Now I can grab the magic keyboard and a wireless mouse and airplay to my tv while the cables are still connected to the machine.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
M4 Mac Mini to Become Apple's Smallest Ever Computer With Complete Redesign
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Tons of things still use USB-A sold new today, plus older tech that people still have around. Right now plugged into my M1 Studio I have a wired USB-A keyboard, the USB-A dongle for my Logitech mouse, 2 different USB3 drives, and then some other stuff attached to docks through a single USB-C port. Honestly I have very little USB-C stuff in my life right now other than my iPad Pro.
Definitely. Apple have an annoying habit of pouring half a billion dollars of R&D into something, over-engineering the heck out it and then saying “Well, we need to recoup this from the customer so let’s put the price up by $200”.
We don’t want that for products like this, we want it cheaper if anything. The Mac Mini at its 2005 price of $499 would be fantastic. Certainly when you take the world view, that the dollar has been strong for some years now and this has resulted in price increases across Europe and the World which put the products out of reach for many people.
Fanless would result in throttling with heavy use like a MBA.
Sounds like you'll need to add-in the price of a good Thunderbolt dock with the purchase of this mini Mac mini.
Apple is planning to debut completely redesigned Mac mini models with the M4 and M4 Pro chips later this year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports.
The new Mac mini will be the first major design change to the machine since 2010, making it Apple's smallest ever desktop computer. The new Mac mini will apparently approach the size of an Apple TV, but it may be slightly taller than the current model, which is 1.4 inches high. It will continue to feature an aluminum shell. Individuals working on the new device apparently say that it is "essentially an iPad Pro in a small box."
Apple is said to have tested Mac mini models with at least three USB-C ports on the back, as well as an area for the power cable and an HDMI port. There will continue to be two versions of the Mac mini: one with the standard M4 chip, similar to the iPad Pro, and one with an M4 Pro chip. The base model is set to begin shipping from suppliers this month ahead of release later in the year, while the high-end model will not be ready until October.
The M4 generation of Apple silicon will purportedly be the first time that Apple has used the same chip generation across all of its Macs, with refreshes to add the M4 chip to the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro planned to take place over the next year.
Article Link: M4 Mac Mini to Become Apple's Smallest Ever Computer With Complete Redesign
A smaller Mac Mini, with significant fewer ports than that the current M2 models have on the rear. No thanks! Not for me.
Last edited:
Attach it directly to the back of the TV/monitor with 3M command strips. Use nice short cables to connect it and it’ll be perfectly tidy and invisible. I’ve done this with Apple TVs, and SSDs - works great!
Ridiculous. A desktop does not need to be small, let alone that small. You might as well just get a MacBook Air and dock it!
It could easily impede maximum output due to lack of heat dissipation. Will it even offer a decent sized hard drive? I'll assume the SD card slot is also gone.
It seems obvious to me that the reason for the redesign is to make it less desirable so more are pushed to the Mac Studio, which is ridiculously overpriced compared to the current Mini and would be more so when a M4 version comes out.
Frankly, it bothers me what a money grubbing parasite of a company Apple has become. But the Microsoft always has been a money grubbing parasite. I'm pretty disenfranchised with both, which probably explains why I'm still using an artificially outdated Mac Mini Server from 2012. With 2TB SSD, 16GB of RAM and 18TB of media storage on it, it does quite fine. The lack of security updates and browser us the only real concern. Apple claims to be green, but seemingly can't afford simple security updates to keep older computers out of landfills....
It could easily impede maximum output due to lack of heat dissipation. Will it even offer a decent sized hard drive? I'll assume the SD card slot is also gone.
It seems obvious to me that the reason for the redesign is to make it less desirable so more are pushed to the Mac Studio, which is ridiculously overpriced compared to the current Mini and would be more so when a M4 version comes out.
Frankly, it bothers me what a money grubbing parasite of a company Apple has become. But the Microsoft always has been a money grubbing parasite. I'm pretty disenfranchised with both, which probably explains why I'm still using an artificially outdated Mac Mini Server from 2012. With 2TB SSD, 16GB of RAM and 18TB of media storage on it, it does quite fine. The lack of security updates and browser us the only real concern. Apple claims to be green, but seemingly can't afford simple security updates to keep older computers out of landfills....
Hugh changes to shipping and weight and thus emissions.
Sir Tim Apple, Lord of LogisticsWell, this certainly is interesting... but at the same time:
Who was actually complaining that the Mac Mini was too big?
If you love thermal throttling
…and the Intel & Apple Silicon Mac Minis got rid of it. Even while making the Mini smaller.
Which was progress.
Yeah, I have a USB-A Logitech receiver as well -- but again, I just put an adapter on it. I still get to use the receiver, but I also have a USB-C port if I need it.
Since they don’t use i names anymore I guess they can call it Apple Mac!
A smaller Mac Mini will look great in the Apple Store but on your desktop, it is going to be dongles galore.
One again, the current Mac mini does NOT have an SD card slot. I doubt Apple will ADD one to this updated M4 Mac mini when the current M1/M2/M2Pro Mac minis don’t have one
Current Mac mini doesn’t have any battery.
I wonder how many things Tim Cook will remove from the current design in order to save manufacturing costs, and then not pass those savings on to consumers. Instead of lowering prices, and also instead of keeping prices the same, it won't be surprising if Cook actually raises prices.
And if all that happens, sadly, many Apple fans will still praise Cook's anti-consumer decisions.
And if all that happens, sadly, many Apple fans will still praise Cook's anti-consumer decisions.
It could be designed to be half the size, so two would fit side-by-side. Or a blanking plate could be used.
I'm staring at the back of my Apple TV 4k and wondering how the heck they'll manage to fit power, HDMI, 3xUSB-C, and an Ethernet port, and I just don't see it. Knowing Apple, they'll skimp on the Ethernet. Which I would not like because I use it.
And then, upon further consideration, it occurs to me that they really can't give up the Ethernet port because too many pro installations need one (including server farms). So how the hell will they fit all those ports back there?
Two thoughts:
1) They'll turn the HDMI and USB-C ports 90 degrees. They might fit in that case.
2) Crazy idea: What if they put USB ports on the sides, like a laptop?
Of course, if the new mini is smaller, but not exactly as small as an Apple TV, they may have all the room they need.
And then, upon further consideration, it occurs to me that they really can't give up the Ethernet port because too many pro installations need one (including server farms). So how the hell will they fit all those ports back there?
Two thoughts:
1) They'll turn the HDMI and USB-C ports 90 degrees. They might fit in that case.
2) Crazy idea: What if they put USB ports on the sides, like a laptop?
Of course, if the new mini is smaller, but not exactly as small as an Apple TV, they may have all the room they need.
Any savings would be reallocated to advertising and marketing?
So they put the Mini in the TV chassis. Will they then put the Studio in the Mini chassis?