I was thinking of the M2 mini, but you're right, I may just suck it up and wait for a potential M2 Pro version for the extra ports. Especially as the limit on two monitors remains.
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The new Mac mini is almost certainly coming
- Thread starter GabrieleR
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it just seems more likely to me that the Mini gets M2 and calls it a day in October. Apole will be able to see how the Mac Studio, which would be the natural upsell from the mini, sells.
M2 getting the media engines from the M1 pro seems like a big boost to me and M2 pro/max sounds more like an iMac Pro 27 spec to me.
There is one way that Apple could do 4 usb-c ports on the back of an upper SKU mini.
The iMac 24 currently has no 10 gig ethernet option and the Ethernet that is available goes through the power brick. The upper SKU iMacs have four usb-c ports, with 2 of them being usb4/thunderbolt 3 and the other 2 being usb-c 10gb/s ports.
if Apple were to copy the iMac config they could do 2 USB4/thunderbolt ports, 2 usb-a, and 2 usb-c ports (all 4 at 5gb/s). The available extra bandwidth would therefore be split between 4 ports, not 2.
I think that would satisfy the bandwidth limitations while anyone wanting 10 gig Ethernet would have to buy a thunderbolt to 10 gig dongle or buy the Mac studio where it comes as standard.
thinking this through a bit, there might be enough bandwidth to justify an upgrade to 2.5 gig Ethernet as standard with no further upgrade to 10 gig because there is no more bandwidth left, and the Mac studio is an option.
Whether or not it’s a viable spec is up to Apple But it certainly would make an M2 Mini more popular as a genuine Enthusiast rig I guess.
This thread is like the camp song “this is the song that never ends ..”
If they keep the M1 Mini around at the same price, I’ll legit be pissed off.
I suspect it might be the only way to keep an entry level Mac at $699 when the next Mini comes out.
Also, let’s not forget what happened with the MacBook Air. It would be strange of Apple to then replace the mini with a new design, new chip and same price. Sadly…
Two entirely different products. Nobody really cares about a new design for the Mac Mini the same way they do for a MacBook which comes with larger screen and more ports.
Never in my life have I ever heard of a desktop computer getting a price hike due to a updated design. That’s just not something people generally care about.
Then again, this is Apple so absolutely nothing they do surprises me.
Isn’t the M1 iMac more expensive than the outgoing model? I know the screen is a couple of inches larger, but it’s also losing out on some I/O…
Apple would have to replace their brains with rocks to think a price hike just due to an updated design was a good idea. Heck, the Macintosh Classic II / Performa 200 (US$1,900) was a redesign of the Macintosh SE/30 (US$4,369) a substantial price reduction even if you ignore inflation.
Considering the base M1 iMac only had Two Thunderbolt / USB 4 ports (left) and you had to upgrade to get two more ports, admittedly USB 3, (right) I don't see how one could loose anymore I/O.
Nope. M1 iMac is the same starting price ($1499) as the entry-level i3 intel model from 2019 that is replaced.
This despite a significantly larger screen, way faster processor, faster SSD, faster RAM, and a total redesign.
Actually that $1499 is if you want four ports (Two Thunderbolt / USB 4 ports and Two USB 3 ports), a 8-Core CPU 8-Core GPU, Gigabit Ethernet, and a magic touch keyboard. The lower end model (Two Thunderbolt / USB 4 ports with 8-Core CPU 7-Core GPU with regular keyboard) is $1299.
Sketchy leak from a couple of weeks ago, but I'll post it anyway:
www.imore.com
Mac14,5
Mac14,6
Mac14,8
For reference:
M1 Max Mac Studio is Mac13,1 and M1 Ultra Mac Studio is M13,2
M2 MacBook Pro is Mac14,7
M2 MacBook Air is Mac14,2
So what does this tell us? Not much really, except that likely new M2 series machines (M2 and/or M2 Pro and up) are coming in next while, which of course is a surprise to nobody. It doesn't actually tell us what machines are coming though, because Apple has gone to a much more vague naming system. I wonder if Apple did this partially to prevent future premature hardware leaks.
Mountain of new Apple products leaked in software code, but are they real?
An Apple user on Twitter claims to have found references to a multitude of unreleased Apple products in publicly available software, including the iPhone 14, new iPads, Apple Watch models, and more.
www.imore.com
Mac14,5
Mac14,6
Mac14,8
For reference:
M1 Max Mac Studio is Mac13,1 and M1 Ultra Mac Studio is M13,2
M2 MacBook Pro is Mac14,7
M2 MacBook Air is Mac14,2
So what does this tell us? Not much really, except that likely new M2 series machines (M2 and/or M2 Pro and up) are coming in next while, which of course is a surprise to nobody. It doesn't actually tell us what machines are coming though, because Apple has gone to a much more vague naming system. I wonder if Apple did this partially to prevent future premature hardware leaks.
Very handy if Apple want to introduce a completely new model line - Mac Studio - or perhaps Mac Nano?Sketchy leak from a couple of weeks ago, but I'll post it anyway:
Mountain of new Apple products leaked in software code, but are they real?
An Apple user on Twitter claims to have found references to a multitude of unreleased Apple products in publicly available software, including the iPhone 14, new iPads, Apple Watch models, and more.
Mac14,5
Mac14,6
Mac14,8
For reference:
M1 Max Mac Studio is Mac13,1 and M1 Ultra Mac Studio is M13,2
M2 MacBook Pro is Mac14,7
M2 MacBook Air is Mac14,2
So what does this tell us? Not much really, except that likely new M2 series machines (M2 and/or M2 Pro and up) are coming in next while, which of course is a surprise to nobody. It doesn't actually tell us what machines are coming though, because Apple has gone to a much more vague naming system. I wonder if Apple did this partially to prevent future premature hardware leaks.
the leak has not been corroborated by any of the usual sources so a pinch of salt might be needed.
An updated design would usually come with other tangible benefits, USB-C and subsequently thunderbolt and mini LED pro motions displays in the 11 inch and 12.9“ later generation ipad Pro for example.
CPU bump is usually the bare minimum and wouldn’t ordinarily warrant the price increase Or form factor change.
I would also like to point out the trash can pro 2013 and subsequent 2019 Mac Pro as examples where the retail price went up.
only now do we get a reasonably priced Mac Studio which is cheaper than the trashcan pro started at.
An M2 mini in the current case would need a base storage or RAM increase to hide a de facto price increase in my opinion. 512gb ssd would make the recent controversy over single SSD moot, while 16Gb RAM would allow Apple to price it up as an upper SKU while leaving the M1 model on sale.
Why so facetious? The almost certain coming of the new Mac Mini is a super serious matter.
I was in the beginning of this year obsessed on waiting for M2 MacBook Air but at the same time I needed new laptop and went with a PC laptop running Linux. Looking back, I am happy with my decision but it shifted my interest on new M2 Mac Mini as my current Mac mini Late 2014 I fall back on when I need MacOS, got long in the tooth and is slow.
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The M2 mini should have a 24 GB option and an M2 Pro mini should support three displays and have a lot more compute. In tech, there's no harm in waiting.
I think one factor that will make the Air line quite interesting is the fact that Apple are still selling the M1 variant.
Far from decrying the move as Apple profiteering because they haven't cut the price, the upshot for people who already own it or were thinking of buying it new, refurbished, or used is that it'll probably continue to get MacOS updates for some time and might even get a future price cut if it lingers around for any length of time (beyond a further year or generation perhaps?).
If this thinking was applied to the Mini, the M1 model could linger around following an M2 refresh - which doesn't necessarily need to appear with base specs.
The classic 2012 MacBook Pro (and Mac mini 2012) was supported right up until October 2019's Catalina which will be receiving its final security updates this year. Yes, it sucks for people who bought the laptop in early 2016 that they only got 3 official MacOS versions but the hardware itself was very long in the tooth.
In a way, the odd models in Apple's lineup have been getting some love - the 2014 Mac mini was kept going until 2018 and therefore is still supported by Monterey even through the similar specified MacBook Pro from 2013 and 2014 were replaced within a year and ineligible.
The big shock has come with MacOS Ventura which cut a massive swathe through later Intel models, the next big model cuts will come in 2025 when non T2 CPU models will be cut I fear.
I've been considering an M1 Mini for some time to replace my 2012 model but now despite an expected price rise in the UK my thinking is that an M2 Mini would obviously receive more official MacOS versions for longer. Any MacOS updates beyond year 5 is down to Apple and it does look like they might be generous with buyers of their first ARM iterations.
In fact, even though the M1 MacBook Pro looks like it's been fully discontinued by Apple I would suppose that they would just keep supporting as long as M1 remained relevant to them in general.
That's if Apple release an M2 Pro mini - it wouldn't come this year while the MacBook Pro 14 and 16 are still on M1 Pro. 24Gb as an option in the M2 helps paper over the Pro sized gap in the line-up.
If Apple were ever to release an M2 Pro mini it would surely be the sweet spot for many and could steal sales off the Mac Studio.
A Mac Studio would be overkill for me. What I need is a Mini with 16-24 GB of RAM, and support for three displays. The M1 comes close enough for now and maybe into the future. There are a lot of people who don't even need the M1 Pro but would like more displays and RAM but at least an M2 Pro would be close to their needs than the Studio. I think that the Mac Studio is overkill for 90-95% of computer users.
And that's how Apple will upsell people into the Mac Studio. Or, if you don't need M1 Max, a MacBook Pro 14" M1 would get you there at a similar price.
16/512 M2 Pro in a headless Mac mini case with 3 Thunderbolt 4 ports would cannibalise the Mac Studio at an expected price of $1499 to $1599 in my opinion.
Just a side comment on the matter though, the product range is becoming too busy - I wonder what Steve Jobs would have made of so many products filling every single price bracket possible as there is such a thing as indecision due to to much choice!
It does look like Apple has borrowed strategies from PC OEMs that have many product lines. Some for example, for some models will only spec up some components only if you also spec up from non-touch IPS to touch-screen or OLED screen raising price much further than if you could only spec up internals.
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When Steve Jobs took over from Scully, he went in a different direction and that was to simplify the product line. He preferred to sell products with different configs and not multiple models of certain products like we see today with the iPhone, Mac and Apple TV models.
The problem with having a bloated product line is it makes the customer question if they are making the correct decision at the risk of not buying anything. I know it has happened to me where I began to crunch the numbers and compare products and I got more confused and basically said F it and bought nothing.