I personally wouldn't mind a more compact desktop form factor which I can tuck underneath the monitor and take up less space on my table. You don't miss what you don't need.
Something like this, with maybe more usb-C and fewer usb-A ports.
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M4 Mac Mini to Become Apple's Smallest Ever Computer With Complete Redesign
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Something like this, with maybe more usb-C and fewer usb-A ports.
New Mac Mini could fit in the palm of your hand? Judging from Macbook logic board (left) and Raspberry Pi (right).
Source: https://gigazine.net/gsc_news/en/20150312-macbook-logic-board-small-raspberry-pi/
Source: https://gigazine.net/gsc_news/en/20150312-macbook-logic-board-small-raspberry-pi/
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Actually it doesn’t. The RAM is on the package and the SSD controllers are part of the die, but the SSD storage is off- package. Consider the Mac Studio that has removable storage modules.
I disagree. If you have limited space, a smaller desktop offers more options for positioning and is a lot easier to live with. I keep my computers under the monitor stand, which means I don’t require any additional floor or desk space, and they pick up far less dust.
Thank you for proving my point, with your failure to think of a single benefit miniaturisation could bring the consumer. 👌🏼
Possibly not as the m pro series cpu needs magnitudes more power than the arm CPUs in a pi. Better cooling solution required
And, er, it doesn't look as good as the traditional, sleek, flat design. It looks like a Mac Studio Wannabe.
If Apple can cool an M4 passively in an iPad (and its predecessors actively, yet quietly in a confined laptop), it should be able to cool it properly in a small desktop as well.
They might stop offering the Pro chip in the 'super-mini'...
They can cool an M2 Pro in a laptop. Thus I would expect them to be able to cool an M4 Pro in a Mac super mini.
I assumed the height would be more too.
Apple TV 4K 3rd gen had a slight decrease in height from 2nd gen after the fan was removed (difference is only 4mm) but the weight has apparently halved from 425g to 214g which is something I wasn't aware of. I guess this is a combination of removing the fan and maybe a heatsink change? The A15 is probably running less hot than the A12 does.
One thing that comes to mind while thinking about the input from co-location guys.
They want:
1. lower power draw (and heat generation) - better for their power bill
2. less of a rats nest in terms of cables (currently power has to be 2m away from the Mini in a co-location facility)
3. Easier to fix in case of issues
They don't care about:
4. total number of ports - fewer ports are fine by them I'd guess
I think a trade off could be that price stays the same or even potentially drops a little
So what we have coming up is a 3nm M4/M4 Pro that not only uses less power than even M1, even the Pro version uses less power than the previous generation (suspect someone had a word after looking at the M2 Pro power consumption under load).
Supply chain wouldn't necessarily be aware if the mini format continued in the existing mini case but with the M4 Pro only.
And what if Apple were to release a Mac Nano (just M4) in a tiny case and with 2 or 3 Thunderbolt ports plus HDMI and ethernet?
Power over Ethernet makes cable and power management less of a problem - if the power supply breaks an external power injector/supply is easy to swap out and PoE cabling can be a lot longer.
Obviously, for domestic users - lack of ports is potentially a pain but I'm sure there will be folks who come up with solutions, Thunderbolt docks would be an obvious one - USB-C ones a cheaper way out. Still waiting on manufacturers to do one with an internal PCIe SSD interface.
Could an M4 (and M4 Pro) mini be powered off as high power iteration of Power over Ethernet? It might already be happening in part thanks to the iMac 24 power supply to be fair.
That would explain a reduction in the number of USB ports - assuming Thunderbolt has to provide 15w while USB-C only needs to provide 5w. If you no longer need to power a screen and speakers plus the potential for extra (unused) ports, the 134w iMac PSU remains overspecified for the task.
Let's say that an M4 Pro is broadly the same in terms of power draw as an M3 Pro - the linked article suggests average consumption of 30w. It's already been noted that the M3 Pro appears to be tweaked for lower power consumption rather than performance as the M2 Pro was.
If a co-location data centre only needed to power an M4 mini off an ethernet port (having upgraded their switches to support the high power PoE) then could they see it as a win for them? Or even if not then an adaptation of the iMac power supply so that instead of MagSafe it was acting as a high power PoE injector (90w for example) feeding a standard Cat6 Ethernet cable of sufficient length into the back of the mini (wherever it is) to provide power.
Apple could then provide a 2m cable in the box (for example), and a user need only provide one of suitable longer length if needed.
Feel free to correct me if I am missing something.
They want:
1. lower power draw (and heat generation) - better for their power bill
2. less of a rats nest in terms of cables (currently power has to be 2m away from the Mini in a co-location facility)
3. Easier to fix in case of issues
They don't care about:
4. total number of ports - fewer ports are fine by them I'd guess
I think a trade off could be that price stays the same or even potentially drops a little
So what we have coming up is a 3nm M4/M4 Pro that not only uses less power than even M1, even the Pro version uses less power than the previous generation (suspect someone had a word after looking at the M2 Pro power consumption under load).
Supply chain wouldn't necessarily be aware if the mini format continued in the existing mini case but with the M4 Pro only.
And what if Apple were to release a Mac Nano (just M4) in a tiny case and with 2 or 3 Thunderbolt ports plus HDMI and ethernet?
Power over Ethernet makes cable and power management less of a problem - if the power supply breaks an external power injector/supply is easy to swap out and PoE cabling can be a lot longer.
Obviously, for domestic users - lack of ports is potentially a pain but I'm sure there will be folks who come up with solutions, Thunderbolt docks would be an obvious one - USB-C ones a cheaper way out. Still waiting on manufacturers to do one with an internal PCIe SSD interface.
Could an M4 (and M4 Pro) mini be powered off as high power iteration of Power over Ethernet? It might already be happening in part thanks to the iMac 24 power supply to be fair.
That would explain a reduction in the number of USB ports - assuming Thunderbolt has to provide 15w while USB-C only needs to provide 5w. If you no longer need to power a screen and speakers plus the potential for extra (unused) ports, the 134w iMac PSU remains overspecified for the task.
Let's say that an M4 Pro is broadly the same in terms of power draw as an M3 Pro - the linked article suggests average consumption of 30w. It's already been noted that the M3 Pro appears to be tweaked for lower power consumption rather than performance as the M2 Pro was.
If a co-location data centre only needed to power an M4 mini off an ethernet port (having upgraded their switches to support the high power PoE) then could they see it as a win for them? Or even if not then an adaptation of the iMac power supply so that instead of MagSafe it was acting as a high power PoE injector (90w for example) feeding a standard Cat6 Ethernet cable of sufficient length into the back of the mini (wherever it is) to provide power.
Apple could then provide a 2m cable in the box (for example), and a user need only provide one of suitable longer length if needed.
Feel free to correct me if I am missing something.
Meanwhile, the phones continues to grow larger and bigger, not actually pushing the limits of portable technology. Bring back the iPhone mini, or rather the iPhone nano - ok, flip etc are coming.
Well I will in the future update to a Studio as the mini has just been shrunk to make it what Apple want it to be, a gimped device with less IO ports i imagine when the M2 pro is fast and has two USB A and four USB C/Thunderbolt 4 ports a HDMI 2.1 port a headphone jack, and Ethernet port thats built in. Not on a power cable which is is not a good idea (looking at you iMac) as Ethernet ports should be kept away from power cords as power cords chuck out RFI, hence you don't put leads near your Ethernet cables and make sure you use shielded ones for Ethernet ports and routers.I don't want dongles taking up my USB C ports to replace IO Apple have removed, this will look horrible as someone else said a wannabee studio.
Apple can ship it for less it wont cost so much to make they dont make things smaller for our benefit, its to increase thier cash flow, think how many more will now fit on plaets and also less weight. Honestly Apple it fits under the monitor just fine like a studio does, size was not top of the to do list of what's wrong with a Mac mini <faceplam> I hope the Mac Pro version is a normal size mini for better cooling. The M4 iPad is not hot but I bet its throttled like hell in that space. Apple cooling is just stick Graphene on it that will do for the iPhone 16, I hope they are not going to have a bunch of scrapheap Mac mini's because they are small full of glue and hard and to repair unlike the present mini. Apple taketh away but rarely give back.
Apple can ship it for less it wont cost so much to make they dont make things smaller for our benefit, its to increase thier cash flow, think how many more will now fit on plaets and also less weight. Honestly Apple it fits under the monitor just fine like a studio does, size was not top of the to do list of what's wrong with a Mac mini <faceplam> I hope the Mac Pro version is a normal size mini for better cooling. The M4 iPad is not hot but I bet its throttled like hell in that space. Apple cooling is just stick Graphene on it that will do for the iPhone 16, I hope they are not going to have a bunch of scrapheap Mac mini's because they are small full of glue and hard and to repair unlike the present mini. Apple taketh away but rarely give back.
What not USB-C PD? Powers MacBook Pro just fine. ASD or other PD monitor would easily delivery 65W+. I can’t imagine a M mini needs more.
Huh? USB-A is still quite commonly used. Optical discs are not.
And the studio has a 400GB/s memory bandwidth compared to 200 in the M2 Pro mini.
I agree. Thin and flat would be less obtrusive on a desktop. Not to mention the ecosystem that has grown up around the current Mac Mini form factor, for mounting it on the back of a tv or in a server rack, etc. In fact I have an old Mini nestled right on top of a Mac Studio right now.
Just taking the current form and making it half as high would be great.
I agree. I don't understand why you downvoted my post saying consumers aren't gaining anything from this miniaturisation, (aside from a few centimetres of bonus desk space.)
I remember hearing a feature from Apple marketing about how a new iMac was thinner than the last generation one. It sits on a desk-no one is coming over and measuring the millimeter thickness of your computer.
Mac Mini size/color/shape is quite possibly the last thing I care about when picking out a new computer.
100%. Extreme thinness of the iMac is negative for most people. Make it thicker and the speakers could be better, the cooling could be better, the port selection could be better, the PSU could be built in, it could be more repairable etc. Heck, even heavier would be better, because it's more stable on the desk and not so easy for a little kid to knock off!I remember hearing a feature from Apple marketing about how a new iMac was thinner than the last generation one. It sits on a desk-no one is coming over and measuring the millimeter thickness of your computer.
Mac Mini size/color/shape is quite possibly the last thing I care about when picking out a new computer.
My 23 inch Dell AIO has a side mounted DVD player. The only downside is having to be careful not to break it. The whole thing, spindle and all comes out. I do like that more than the slot load optical drives.
Some rely on DVDs and even CDs. Not everyone has blazing fast Internet for streaming.
Of course Apple does not support the use of an SD reader. Yeah that happens with some Android devices too.
Since the beginning, Apple has supported plugging things into your device, going all the way back to Apple computers with SCSI.
Apple has this thing about thin. Steve was the same, introducing the MBA in a manila envelope.
The old white plastic MacBooks had an optical drive. The old mini did too.
A rumor does suggest an SD reader for the new mini.
(I do not support the idea of a built-in optical drive)
External with both USB and HDMI.
I understand this feeling, but I find it to be very amusing. The old Mac mini design has been around for quite a while. It’s the Mac Studio, who is the new kid on the block.
When the Mac studio first got introduced in 2022 I remember a common complaint at the time, was it look like a Mac mini on steroids.
The m2 pro in a laptop has a fan (actually 2 fans). I think Apple can do it in smaller case but will still require a heat sink and a fan.
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