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Updated Mac Mini Still Coming With M2 and M2 Pro Chips
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My guess is it will be an M2 variant, where the “M2 Max” has a more flexible fabric that allows for talking to two neighbors, and has some special sauce to deal with the complexities of increased RAM latency and more sophisticated cache coherency.
Last week, Apple said that the M1 Ultra was the last of the M1 chips. They also said that they have one last computer to update to Apple Silicon, the Mac Pro. They said that is a story for a different day.
This implies that either the Mac Pro will use an M1 Ultra or multiple M1 Ultras or that it will use a chip from the upcoming M2 family. Most people are expecting them to announce the new Mac Pro in June at WWDC but probably not shipping until later in the year. Apple may keep an Intel version of the Mac Pro around for a while for those customers who are stuck on software that needs Intel.
If the Mac Pro does get something from the M2 family, that means that the base M2 chip is likely ready and Apple could start upgrading their consumer computers (Mini, Air, iMac) from M1 to M2. That could happen any time between June and December.
Launching the M2 does not mean that the higher performing M1 chips, Pro/Max/Ultra, are outdated or are lesser than the M2. the M2 is not expected to be dramatically faster than the M1. Those performance variants will still be faster in most tasks than the base M2. Eventually (next year?) there will be M2 versions of those higher performing chips and they will be integrated into the computers with the M1 Pro/Max/Ultra.
Reviewing the past M/A/Ax chip family it comes to my mind:
M2 will be based on A16
2020: A14 -> M1 family
2022: A16 -> M2 family
- this would mean a 2 year cycle
- 2022 chips probably implementing arm v9
M2 will be based on A16
2020: A14 -> M1 family
2022: A16 -> M2 family
- this would mean a 2 year cycle
- 2022 chips probably implementing arm v9
Since Apple has not yet launched their A16 and its cores, I would not expect M-series offshoots from that this year. With the rumors of M2 chips launching this year, it is more likely that M2 is based on the A15 cores.
With arm v9 being new, It's not clear if Apple has had time to incorporate that into their chip or if they plan to do so at all. Apple does not really use Arm's chip designs, they really just use the ISA which is analogous to the chip's API. Apple has their own chip designers and their own solutions under the hood.
If that's the case, now I really don't know if later this summer or autumn I should buy a Mac Studio with M1 Max chip, or wait for the M2 Pro Mac Mini? The question is, how long will the wait be?
Ah, I see it another way:
in 2020, A14 also was new, and they announced M1 shortly after.
why should apple release an M2 based on a chip from 2021 in 2022 When it’s still launching M1 derivats.
Mx is roughly what AX has been and there have been year without AX iteration like no A7X, or no A11X or no A13X -> especially in the last years Apple stayed true to this 2-year pattern.
This would of course result in M2 based Macs/iPad Pros being unveiled around October/November.
What absolutely makes sense:
- WWDC: Mac Pro with some funky M1 Ultra x2 or what ever it’s called.
- Sept/October: iPhone 14 line with A16
- October/Nov: new mobile Mac (maybe Macbook air/entry pro M2 or fusion of those two), iPad Pro M2
A few other things we’ll need to consider for M2 for the Mac Pro is:
RAM … how much RAM will be available and suitable for high-end/high-demanding professionals that live, breath and earn based on the best performance Mac available.
Storage … Apple has incredible increased on-die or soldered motherboard storage for various reasons, the main benefit is the incredible Read/Write Speeds that seem on-par or slightly better in 1 aspect or another than the industry.
Expansion … will this be PCIe and will it be the latest or ?
I’m still sceptical Apple will release the Mac Pro based on a newer M2/Mx chip when upgrades for existing MB Air, MBP 13” and Mac Mini M1 is pending. This I guess will depend on Apple’s view if those devices are still competitive in the market vs competition or their other offerings.
Either way we’re beginning to see M1, M1 Pro and M1 Max SoC’s scale very well not just in performance but cost in devices chosen. M1 Ultra is a big financial jump but for what we’re seemingly getting in the Mac Studio seems worth it.
Who says that the new mac pro is coming before the new macs you mention?
idl , I am accustomed to the idea that the new thing is the better thing unless the new thing is actually a lower model. So last year Mac Pro would be a definitely better buy than just released Mac Mini for pro users but when talking about next generation chips...? I can see your point of view that a new chip is introduced in its basic form then built upon to be great until it reaches the top of the line Macs just like they started with the M1 in MBA and worked its way up to Mac Studio with M1 Ultra. I understand the concept.
glad to finally read some movement in refreshed (rumored) mac mini - its about time...
in the mean time i'm ok with my almost maxed out 2018 mac mini 6 core i7 in space grey
in the mean time i'm ok with my almost maxed out 2018 mac mini 6 core i7 in space grey
After much waffling, I am going to get a Macbook Pro instead, and use it in clamshell mode, just like I do my work Macbook Pro. I need to replace my 2014 model...I don't use my laptop for portability much, but can imagine some times that it would be useful. I ordered the base M1 Pro upgrading just the SDD to 1GB.
I'm curious why you use your MBP in clamshell mode? I use an MBP and the screen is very nice. I use it in conjunction with an external 27" display. The laptop sits in front/below the 27". I use the laptop screen for email and Slack. Documents in the larger screen. I would feel a little constrained with only one screen.
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"I'm curious why you use your MBP in clamshell mode? I use an MBP and the screen is very nice. I use it in conjunction with an external 27" display. The laptop sits in front/below the 27". I use the laptop screen for email and Slack. Documents in the larger screen. I would feel a little constraint with only one screen."
That is a good idea, I will look into it.
That is a good idea, I will look into it.
I prefer my MBP in clamshell mode at my desk but then I also have a 34" curved ultra wide on which I focus all my work. I used to keep my MBP open on the side of a 24" monitor but I find that is more distracting than useful so I went with an ultra wide for the uninterrupted screen real estate. That's also the same reason I don't like having two monitors and prefer a single wide space.
I‘m kind of torn, I’ll probably wait for the M2 mini. Here‘s my issue- I have a 2014 mini that I dont use very often.. I mostly use my 2015 MBP and RDP into the mini for things like doing taxes and as a photo repository. Problem is that it’s starting to show its age… TurboTax runs at a crawl. I have to see if TT seems to be faster if I’m not screen sharing — that has to put a load on system resources. I was planning on replacing it when Apple stopped providing OS updates.. which I suspect will be soon. What I’m wondering is if a lower end Studio would be a better choice given the improved graphics. I also use the second drive bay in the mini… which I fear will be gone in newer Mini’s.
I didn't know they did a Turbo Tax port to Colossus. What does Guardian think?
But that may have already happened. There is only the Mac Pro left, and given the likelihood that it has to have a more powerful SoC than the Mac Studio, it may well be part of the M2 family, not M1.
We don't actually know what Apple is planning. M1 Max seems to be limited to expanding to two SoCs, in the form of the M1 Ultra using the interconnect. A future Mac Pro could have 2 M1 Ultra chips on some kind of card module, using an as yet undefined inter-SoC interface. Or it could have a next-gen "M2" version with the ability to cluster 4 or more "Max" SoCs. We don't know yet! I expect (and hope) that the technical approach will be announced at WWDC 22.
I measured the space under my 43" monitor. I'm 1cm too short to fit a Studio
Plus, the existing mini is all I really need, except for a bit more RAM.
You can always raise the monitor a bit... But if you're looking for an excuse to avoid spending money, yours is as good as any, LOL.I measured the space under my 43" monitor. I'm 1cm too short to fit a Studio
Not to worry - Apple will ell you a fitting display, too. ?
