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Updated Mac Mini Still Coming With M2 and M2 Pro Chips

Well, there's quite an obvious gap in the desktop lineup with the M1 Pro missing. That's a bit sad, since I can see a lot of former iMac users feeling right at home with a 8C/16G machine. Also many will be shying away from coughing up 3.5 grand for their new "iMac", but not feeling comfortable to go with the non-Pro Mini either. Personally for me a Mac Mini with an M1 Pro and 32 gigs would have been an instant buy.

Although: I don't think we'll be seeing these before October/November, maybe with the iPhone in September, but that's the absolute earliest. Apple will not release M1 machines after they already have released an M2 machine, as that would be something hard to communicate marketing-wise - and as they have said the MacPro is still missing. But frankly, considering how silicon allocation is now shared between iOS devices and Macs, I do believe November is the most likely date.

So, my prediction remains: M2 MacBook and new Mac Mini in November, and that M2 will be based on A16.
 
Right now there's no logical upgrade path from a recent (i.e. 2020) 27" iMac. If there is a new big iMac in the pipeline, it's probably going to be in higher price/performance class like an iMac Pro. A hypothetical Mac Mini M2 Pro + Display looks like the most viable path in the future.
 
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New Mac mini is not getting M2 Pro (not yet anyway). I wouldn't expect any of the "pro" variants for at least another year. Mini will get, M2 and M1 Pro this Fall.
 
ErikGrim said:
Right now there's no logical upgrade path from a recent (i.e. 2020) 27" iMac. If there is a new big iMac in the pipeline, it's probably going to be in higher price/performance class like an iMac Pro. A hypothetical Mac Mini M2 Pro + Display looks like the most viable path in the future.
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I think the 27" iMac will return at some point and it will sit above the 24" iMac in price just as it did before. At the moment your upgrade path is to just get the Max Studio and a cheaper display (~$200), if you don't need/want the Studio Display.
 
I’m still holding out for an HDMI 2.1 port on a MACMini, but Apple seems to be stuck in the past with these ports. Very frustrated with Apple these days…
 
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By the time they slot an M1 (or M2) pro into the Mini the price will probably jump several hundred dollars, then bump the RAM to 32 (it will probably come with 16 base) so the price will probably be quite close to a base Studio. I need a computer now as my 27" 5K Retina iMac died, so I guess I will buy the Studio even though it is a bit more power than I need. I believe it will only end up costing me a couple hundred more than the rumored Mini Pro.
 
Tagbert said:
Since the mini is a desktop computer, I doubt that it will be battery powered.
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The MacBook Pro has the same processor at the same clock speed, so the Mini isn’t a “desktop” inside anymore, it’s a laptop that has to stay plugged in all the time because the battery is dead (like my old MacBook).
 
anson42 said:
Dream on regarding battery power :) But I would expect any "mini" would be still be similar to the current mini form factor, and possibly fanless. If I can't hear them, fans are fine if that means a M1/M2 Pro chip isn't throttled otherwise.
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I predict M2 mini will be iPhone size, have a battery and usb charging like MacBook Pro, and be fanless. If throttling is problem, maybe an external heat dissipator.
 
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mjtomlin71 said:
New Mac mini is not getting M2 Pro (not yet anyway). I wouldn't expect any of the "pro" variants for at least another year. Mini will get, M2 and M1 Pro this Fall.\
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I didn't say when this hypothetical upgrade path would happen, but I'm very certain that the Mini will eventually get an M2 Pro.

mjtomlin71 said:
I think the 27" iMac will return at some point and it will sit above the 24" iMac in price just as it did before. At the moment your upgrade path is to just get the Max Studio and a cheaper display (~$200), if you don't need/want the Studio Display.
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I hope you are right. The main reason (other than the tidiness) for getting a 27" iMac was the display.
 
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Macative said:
That's great if an M2 Pro Mac mini is coming, but Apple's timing of releases and silent road map make it very difficult for people to make actual buying decisions.
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you should only buy when you need to buy. There will always be something better next year., and the year after....
 
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CWallace said:
Considering an M1 Ultra will obliterate an M2 on everything but a synthetic single-core benchmark...

And you can be sure that Apple will make sure everyone knows that when they do introduce M2. ;)

John Ternus: "And that is M2, our newest and most efficient Apple silicon chip. And it joins our M1 Pro, M1 Max and M1 Ultra chips, which together provide the most extreme performance available for our customer's most demanding needs in our most-capable Macs."
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I do not understand, its a hard pill to swallow to be buying a more expensive machine with the older M1 chip when the newer chip is found in a cheaper computer even if the older chip is faster.

I mean just look at the face of the consumer when the sales guy says "This new M2 chip is actually slower and cheaper than our older M1 Ultra chip in the Mac Studio"
 
MacBH928 said:
I do not understand, its a hard pill to swallow to be buying a more expensive machine with the older M1 chip when the newer chip is found in a cheaper computer even if the older chip is faster.
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Anyone buying a "prosumer/professional" Mac is buying it for it's performance and capability. And a fair number of them will be using that Mac to make a living. They don't care what it is called or how "old" it is. They just care that it helps them succeed.


MacBH928 said:
I mean just look at the face of the consumer when the sales guy says "This new M2 chip is actually slower and cheaper than our older M1 Ultra chip in the Mac Studio"
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Why?

Consumers understand newest is not always best when comparing within a product line. If they walk into a Toyota dealership to buy a car, the sales associate will tell them a 2021 Toyota Corolla is slower and cheaper than a 2020 Toyota Avalon and it also lacks a shedload of technological, comfort and luxury features.
 
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In an earlier report, William Ma said Apple was working on an "M2 Duo" which would effectively be two M2s - 8 performance cores, 8 efficiency cores and 18 or 20 GPU cores. That sounds superfluous in terms of efficiency cores.

But what if it was 12 performance cores, 4 efficiency cores and 18/20 GPU cores? And it was instead called M2 Pro (replacing M1 Pro)?

And then they make a version with 12P cores, 4E cores and 36/40 GPU cores and call it the M2 Max (to replace M1 Max)?
 
SFjohn said:
I’m still holding out for an HDMI 2.1 port on a MACMini, but Apple seems to be stuck in the past with these ports. Very frustrated with Apple these days…
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My guess is that this is going to be a feature (not a big one worthy of announcement) of the M2 architecture.
 
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There is an $800 price difference between a Mac mini with M1/16GB/512GB/10GbE and the Mac Studio with M1Max/32GB/512GB/10GbE, which is a pretty large gap.

I think Apple could add an M1 Pro and 32GB option to the Mac mini, but honestly I don't see anyone going for that configuration because it would drop the price gap to $200 and even if you didn't need an M1 Max, for $200 you also get more expansion and peripherals, so why wouldn't you just buy a Studio at that point?

But I could see people ordering an M1 Pro and staying at 16GB, which would save you $600 compared to the Studio.
 
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