Apple’s been launching new products left and right these past few days – so far we’ve gotten a new iPad Mini, a new iMac as well as Apple’s much-anticipated AI features. With that said, Apple took to the internet today to announce the arrival of the new Mac Mini, its compact desktop PC. Aside from a new look, the 2024 Mac Mini also features some much-welcome upgrades on the inside – let’s see what it offers.
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Size Matters Not
Perhaps one of the most obvious changes with this year’s Mac Mini is its smaller footprint. Unlike the 2024 editions of the iPad Mini and iMac, Apple has given the Mac Mini a redesign, which better lives up to its “mini” moniker. It measures at 5×5 inches, which is less than half the overall size of the older model. Apple says that it’s also improved the thermal management design inside the new Mac Mini, allowing it to run cooler this time around. Despite the smaller size however, Apple claims that the 2024 Mac Mini is up to six times faster than most competing PC desktops. It comes in both M4 and M4 Pro chip variants, with the former available with a 10-core CPU and GPU, starting at 16GB RAM – double than the usual 8GB that Apple offered with older devices.
As for what we can expect with software, the Mac Mini will of course ship with Mac OS Sequoia onboard, so users get access to a ton of exclusive software features and apps from Apple, including staples such as iMessage, FaceTime, Pages, Notes, Safari, and more. Additionally, the Mac Mini also gets access to Apple’s new AI features (depending on regional availability), courtesy of the new M4 chip – this includes the upgraded Siri features, ChatGPT integration, email summaries, and more.
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Other Hardware Details
Being a desktop computer (albeit in a tiny package), the Mac Mini does come with a wide array of hardware ports for connectivity – this includes a pair of front-facing USB-C ports with USB 3 compatibility, as well as a 3.5mm audio jack. Turn it over to the rear, and you’ll find a trio of Thunderbolt 4 ports (Thunderbolt 5 on the M4 Pro model), and support for Gigabit Ethernet, which Apple says is configurable with up to 10Gb speeds. There’s also an HDMI port, support for up to two 6K-resolution displays and one 5K display; meanwhile, the M4 Pro variant works with up to three 6K displays at 60Hz.
As for availability, the new Mac mini is available for pre-order starting on October 29th, and will start shipping on November 8th. The M4 model starts at £599, while the M4 Pro model starts at £1399.
