Apple is working to refresh the entire Mac lineup with chips in the M4 series, and the Mac mini could get an update as soon as late 2024. Apple is expected to skip the M3 chip, going straight from M2 to M4.
This guide highlights everything that we know about the Mac mini refresh so far.
Design
Apple hasn't changed the Mac mini design in many years, but that's set to change in 2024. Apple is going to introduce the first design change since 2010, slimming down the Mac mini.
The Mac mini is expected to be Apple's smallest ever desktop computer with a chassis that is around the size of the Apple TV. While it will have an Apple TV-like footprint, the Mac mini is expected to be slightly taller than the current Mac mini, which is 1.4 inches tall.
Apple has tested Mac mini models with at least three USB-C ports on the back, along with a power cable and an HDMI port.
M4 Chip
The Mac mini will be equipped with Apple's M4 and M4 Pro chips, with Apple skipping the M3 line entirely and going from M2 to M4.
Apple introduced the M4 chip in the iPad Pro, and the chip is built on a second-generation 3-nanometer technology. Compared to the M2 chip, the M4 chip offers 50 percent faster CPU performance and up to 4x faster rendering performance.
The M4 chip features a 10-core CPU and a 10-core GPU. There is a variant of the M4 with a 9-core CPU, but Apple is unlikely to use it in the Mac mini, instead reserving it for the iPad Pro and a future MacBook Air.
There is also a more advanced 16-core Neural Engine and the GPU supports hardware-accelerated ray tracing, a feature not available with the M2. According to Apple, the Neural Engine in the M4 chip is an "absolute powerhouse for AI."
We don't yet know details on the M4 Pro because that chip is not expected to come out until later this year.
RAM
The M4 Mac mini models could start with 16GB RAM instead of 8GB, perhaps to better support Apple Intelligence features. All of the M4 Macs that have been spotted in developer logs have either 16GB or 32GB RAM.
Release Date
According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, the Mac mini will be refreshed alongside the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models in late 2024.
The Mac mini was last refreshed in January 2023, so it will be close to two years old when it is updated. Apple often does Mac refreshes in October or November, so we could see the M4 Mac mini sometime in that timeframe.
