Mike Wuerthele
Recent reports have suggested that one of the M4 Macs will get a redesign soon, and a new rumor has identified which model will get it — the Mac mini.
The fact that a M4 Mac mini is approaching is clear. What hasn't been clear before Thursday's report is a form factor change.
The new rumor suggests that the device will be far smaller than the existing form factor, which has been around for more than 15 years. A report by Bloomberg on Thursday claims that the device will be close to the size of the Apple TV set-top box.
Given the report's discussion of the Apple TV sizing, though, it's not clear where the direction is for the redesign, flatter or taller like the Apple TV. Apple Silicon Macs don't have expandable RAM or storage, so that's not a consideration for enclosure size anymore, where it was in the Intel version of the Mac mini.
Three USB-C ports of some flavor are rumored for the device, plus space for the power cable, and a HDMI port. Both models in testing are said to be codenamed "J773."
As far as timetable of release goes, Apple suppliers are said to be planning for shipping the core M4 Mac mini to Apple later in August, for a release to consumers later in 2024. A M4 Pro variant is said to ship in October.
The rumor makes a great deal of sense. The existing Apple Silicon Mac mini form factor is mostly empty, and was designed to be thermally robust enough for the notoriously hot Intel processors that used to live in the unit. That thermal demand is no longer the case.
What's less clear is the specific form that the unit will take. A previous rumor had a squat, all-aluminum design.
The rumors at the time discussed a possibility for the "M1X" Mac mini that moved the power supply to the outside of the unit, reusing the iMac power plug. This is illustrated in renders we made about a rumored M2 Mac mini above.
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63 Comments
I wish it was taller and smaller foot print.
In the "unintended consequences" territory, there is the issue that since the current form factor has been used for 15 years, the racks, mounts, and cabling systems are then all rended obsolete. If Apple really presses this, are we looking at an iMac killer? A Thunderbolt dongle sized thingy that attaches to a monitor? Choices are good; I'm curious about this.
Mac Mini is supposed to fill the "desktop consumer level" niche. How about a "whole home Mac" that replaces the AppleTV, sits on the home network and cabled to the TV, but is available for any monitor, any where on that network? IOW, the CPU is home network based, not a box sitting next to the monitor (which is exactly what an iMac is for one screen.) Nifty idea, but of course, making a product that reduces the need for consumers to buy your other products isn't...insanely great.
Edit: and...and...and...make that cabled box a new wifi Airport base station. Yeah, I know...and a unicorn pony as well.
What would be the 24" - 27" monitor of choice to pair this with these days? Anything out there remotely as good as an iMac display but less expensive than a Studio monitor?