Well at least Apple created a business for someone making a rack-mount button panel with a complicated lever system that presses the power button. 
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M4 Mac Mini's Power Button Has New Bottom Location
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I though the Mac Studio power button was a pain because it's in back and it is flush with the rest of the chassis so it are to find the exact spot to press. But putting it on the bottom is plain dumb. For me it would be a pain because I have my external drives sitting on top of my Mac Studio.
The M4 Mac mini has an overhauled design that adds more ports in a slimmed down package, and to make everything fit, Apple needed a new place for the power button.
As it turns out, the power button for the device is located on the bottom, so as Mr. Macintosh pointed out, you'll need to tip the Mac mini up in order to turn it on (or off, using the physical button).
Apple has been criticized for questionable button and port placement with other devices such as the Magic Mouse, but accessing the power button is probably not something most people do often with a desktop machine. Macs don't often need to be turned off, and most people put them into a sleep mode rather than shutting them down on a regular basis.
The power button is located on the rear left of the Mac mini, below the three Thunderbolt ports.
Pricing on the Mac mini starts at $599, and it can be pre-ordered today. It will launch on Friday, November 8.
Article Link: M4 Mac Mini's Power Button Has New Bottom Location
Plot twist: It was designed by Apple Intelligence for this purpose.
Apple:
power button at the front (think iMac G3, power mac G3/g4/G5/Mac Pro gen 1) -> not aesthetically pleasing
dongle city for plugging in non-usb-C peripherals -> aesthetically pleasing
power button at the front (think iMac G3, power mac G3/g4/G5/Mac Pro gen 1) -> not aesthetically pleasing
dongle city for plugging in non-usb-C peripherals -> aesthetically pleasing
Why not complain about both? And here I was thinking Apple got the mouse out of the way yesterday so as not to distract from the other news. They are so helpless these days
I agree. Easier to tip up from the front. Especially with cables attached.
LOL it’s not a problem for me so it doesn’t exist- such magical thinking.
For instance, in one installation, a custom housing is built to hide several minis driving a series of overlapping, high projected images- due to the nature of this installation and it using a Kinect for the interactive bits we’ve only got room for a small rectangular cutout at the back for the ports. The rest (above and below) is filled with actuators and servos for the other part of the art. The mini is literally sandwiched into the stack. On occasion we need to restart or calibrate the piece and so that means hitting the power button. There are tons of artists that use minis and this is but one example.
I can’t imagine how one goes about rack mounting this any way but sideways. Clearly Apple intended for it never to be powered off but the days of them making hardware let alone software that stable are behind us.
Apple continues its efforts doing the dumbest things they can think of.
So... you've got a power cable, network cable, HDMI and a few USB cables. Aside from physically lifting the computer entirely up and off of the surface it sits on, how are you supposed to reach this button? I guess placing anything on top of the computer is impossible.
They could have at least put the button towards the front on the bottom for it to be somewhat accessible. Making the power LED a recessed button that requires a paperclip to turn it on and off would be more convenient than this.
I have the M2 Pro Mini. Honestly, with my setup, the button being on the back of the computer is the most I'm capable of being inconvenienced. Putting the button on the bottom ensures I won't be able to purchase another Mini.
FWIW, I also daily drive the Magic Mouse and I have zero complaints about the charging port being on the bottom.
So... you've got a power cable, network cable, HDMI and a few USB cables. Aside from physically lifting the computer entirely up and off of the surface it sits on, how are you supposed to reach this button? I guess placing anything on top of the computer is impossible.
They could have at least put the button towards the front on the bottom for it to be somewhat accessible. Making the power LED a recessed button that requires a paperclip to turn it on and off would be more convenient than this.
I have the M2 Pro Mini. Honestly, with my setup, the button being on the back of the computer is the most I'm capable of being inconvenienced. Putting the button on the bottom ensures I won't be able to purchase another Mini.
FWIW, I also daily drive the Magic Mouse and I have zero complaints about the charging port being on the bottom.
For a minute I thought it was a joke, I always turn my Mac Mini M1 off when I’ve finished with it, i wonder if clicking the mouse or pressing a key on the keyboard would turn it on, similar to opening the lid on my Macbook Pro? Maybe the new updated keyboard has a power on/off button?
No, it doesn't make sense to put a button which has a purpose in a spot where it becomes impractical.
Not everyone uses a Mac mini daily, so for many people it does not make sense in keeping a Mac turned on and sleeping for days without using it.
I use a Mac mini as HTPC, and use it occasionally in the weekend. It do turn it off after using it, knowing I am not going to use it for several days, sometimes weeks.
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This release was so perfect that I was extremely curious what everyone would decide to manufacture outrage over. I assumed it would be no 512GB standard, was wrong.
I find this quite bizarre. I could see it causing issues when densely mounting these in server racks, etc. Even having to tip the device up on your desk to press the button feels... strangely inelegant. Why not just put it on the back? The bottom is probably the most inconvenient place you could possibly put it.
Once again, Apple added a gimmick to the redesign. Power button on the bottom...wow...no SFF PC chassis have the power button on the bottom, yet Apple did just that...wow...
i wish they made the apple logo on the top the button, and it lays flush like it does now.
that would be cool.
Seems to me like the base is high enough that a finger fits gracefully underneath. Are people complaining about nothing?
You never turn off your computer. Question answered. Why add a visual button blemish when it's so rarely used?
There is another argument to this... that it's much less to be pressed accidentally when fiddling with cables, so that is a plus for usability. 🤗
I'm sure the 3D printer brigade and the AliExpress suppliers will already be designing, if not making and selling, devices which make it possible to press the power switch from above, in front, to either side, entirely remotely, and numerous other options.
And what about auto-restart after power failure? I have not tried it, but if you do a clean shutdown, then use a remotely activated mains switch, would the Mac start up on power being re-applied?
Have to say, it would have been quite cool to incorporate a mains switch that could be operated by a phone, a watch, or even passing a suitable magnet over a particular area of the case - preferably at the front.
And what about auto-restart after power failure? I have not tried it, but if you do a clean shutdown, then use a remotely activated mains switch, would the Mac start up on power being re-applied?
Have to say, it would have been quite cool to incorporate a mains switch that could be operated by a phone, a watch, or even passing a suitable magnet over a particular area of the case - preferably at the front.
If you read my initial post, the parent post was not talking about the power requirements of sleep vs off.
The parent post I replied to was talking about Apple themselves using our Macs for their own AI processing when we don't use them. The specifications lists a maximum continuous power of 155W, so in theory up to 3.72kWh per day or 1357.8kWh per year, so up to around 200 dollars per year for 13 cents per kWh. So much power would also dissipate a lot of heat, potentially increasing the AC requirements for at least the room the Mac is in. It would also use our internet bandwidth, which many of us have monthly quotas with huge costs for going over them, for example 10 dollars per gigabyte over the monthly quota.
If such a situation were to arise, I'm sure you would also be part of a lawsuit against Apple. Or would you just be happy to pay hundreds or even thousands of dollars to both your power company and ISP because of Apple?
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The M4 Mac mini has an overhauled design that adds more ports in a slimmed down package, and to make everything fit, Apple needed a new place for the power button.
As it turns out, the power button for the device is located on the bottom, so as Mr. Macintosh pointed out, you'll need to tip the Mac mini up in order to turn it on (or off, using the physical button).
Apple has been criticized for questionable button and port placement with other devices such as the Magic Mouse, but accessing the power button is probably not something most people do often with a desktop machine. Macs don't often need to be turned off, and most people put them into a sleep mode rather than shutting them down on a regular basis.
The power button is located on the rear left of the Mac mini, below the three Thunderbolt ports.
Pricing on the Mac mini starts at $599, and it can be pre-ordered today. It will launch on Friday, November 8.
Article Link: M4 Mac Mini's Power Button Has New Bottom Location
Mac users - "I can't believe they left the charge port on the bottom of the mouse?!?!"
Mac mini - "Hold my beer"
Absurdly funny.
I wonder how many people will use it on it's side to accommodate this change?
If the "Mac mini" logo on the bottom was rotated 90º I'd be convinced that was the plan all along...
Or, maybe we're all overthinking this? Maybe someone at Apple just enjoys making people say (and type) "bottom" a lot.
SMH
I suppose it depends on your setup and where you keep the device. Desktops aren't generally designed to be moved, so having to lift it to access the button seems awkward even though in daily it will be fine. The last Mac mini had it's switch at the back which also wasn't easy - I bought one for my dad and he can never find it.
The power button on the Mac mini has always been, or should I say always was, in the back, close to the power cable.
And it's been flush with the body since the Unibody/Intel update in 2010.
There's also Mac mini-shaped hubs and drives made to sit at the bottom or on top of the Mac mini, not only will companies need to create even smaller M4 Mac mini-shaped hubs and drives now, but that bottom power button will become a problem with such hubs and drives. Imagine having to lift the corner of a mini stack of hardware, that may end badly.
Other members suggested putting the power button at the top. I think it would have destroyed the clean look of the unit. Someone suggested using a combo button/LED at the front, which I think would have been the more sensible option especially with the two USB-C and the headphone jack now in the front too. Two functions in one control seems like a logical thing to do, so I really can't understand why Apple went with a button at the bottom instead.