The new Mac mini is almost certainly coming

[sublunar]

Yes, the theory is that 4 GB chips at high memory speeds aren't really worth manufacturing at such high volume anymore. If you want near-LPDDR5X class speeds, the sweet spot is 6 GB and up. The new Macs will be running these speeds, likely at least 7500 MT/s.

LPDDR5 is 6400 MT/s. LPDDR5X is 8533 MT/s. However, the iPad Pro M4 runs at 7500 MT/s, and the Switch 2 is also rumoured to run at 7500 MT/s, both with 2 x 6 GB chips. I expect the M4 Macs to do the same.

If Nintendo are placing orders for the same RAM chips then it stands to reason they'll do so for years because that's what they'll do for their console. In that respect Nintendo are just making sure that Micron don't suddenly decide that 4Gb chips are no longer economical and then stop making them. Or maybe the likes of Apple and Nintendo have been told that 4Gb chips may not be priced so competitively or might even get discontinued in the next couple of years?

Apple being on the same boat as Nintendo could potentially make 12Gb the new 8Gb on Macs at least.

AI needs 8 GB RAM. AI predictive code completion in Xcode needs 16 GB RAM, but we won't know until 12 GB Macs arrive if it would also run on 12 GB RAM Macs. But like I said, the higher end Pro models would come with 16-18 GB anyway.

Well, it'd be 12Gb vs 18Gb from my reading of the situation now - slightly out of date with M3 stuff since I'm not in the market for one. It's better than 12Gb vs 16Gb I guess. 24Gb as a starting mark for M4 Pro would be luxurious by Apple standards

Does make you wonder if Apple will leave an M2 mini 8/256 at cut price at the bottom of the range though, especially if they have any intention of unlocking 4 Thunderbolt ports for M4 mini.

 

[weaztek]

The purpose of the 8 GB model is to make the buyer buy a more expensive Mac a year later.

I don't disagree with that.

But Apple also wants to avoid bad press, and that's a specific aspect of their company which warrants some bad press.

 

[MBAir2010]

i think every year I seem to post
"as Nicholas Bradford would say in 1976, 8 is e'nuff!"
on this thread.

 

[smulji]

24Gb as a starting mark for M4 Pro would be luxurious by Apple standards

IF the M4 Macs do come with 12GB RAM on the base models, then it stands to reason that M4 Pro should start at 24GB RAM

 

[EugW]

IF the M4 Macs do come with 12GB RAM on the base models, then it stands to reason that M4 Pro should start at 24GB RAM

18 GB

 

[sublunar]

IF the M4 Macs do come with 12GB RAM on the base models, then it stands to reason that M4 Pro should start at 24GB RAM

Optics suggest double the RAM looks better for the upsell.

18 GB

18Gb would be the minimum for me, 16Gb would not be enough but the M3 Pro comes with 18Gb minimum so I guess that's the new floor amount for M4 Pro. Not ideal but 24Gb would have been incredibly generous of Apple.

 

[Chuckeee]

The issue with 8GB is not on the manufacturing side. It is all about sales and greed. And the huge profit Apple can rack in by overcharging for upgraded RAM. As long as 8GB will work well enough, Apple will keep it as a baseline. Apple is already making noises like “Apple AI only requires 8GB to run”, not that it runs well just that it’s sufficient. What has been observed with the MacOS Sequoia beta is that it will “run” with 8GB, while not optimum there is enough capability for Apple to claim 8GB is sufficient. The only things will make Apple upgrade the baseline are:

• Basic software won’t run.
• People stop buying new 8GB hardware.

So I would predict the lowest cost Mini (along with iMac, MacBook Air and MacBook Pro) that come with the lowest end M4 chips (possibly binned M4) will still be offered with 8GB. This is so Apple can make huge margins on selling other configurations with more RAM. It has nothing to do with what is best for the consumer or the cost of materials, it is solely based on Apple maximizing profit from RAM upgrades. Although Apple may offer additional prepackaged configurations with upgraded RAM.

[I admit I have a glass half empty perspective]

 

[Tanax]

The problem isn't that the base model has 8GB. The problem is the prices they charge for upgrading it.
If they include 12 or 16GB as base model in the future, that's great. But what I would like to see is rather that they have more realistic upgrade prices of RAM and SSD.

 

[salz4life]

The problem isn't that the base model has 8GB. The problem is the prices they charge for upgrading it.
If they include 12 or 16GB as base model in the future, that's great. But what I would like to see is rather that they have more realistic upgrade prices of RAM and SSD.

Bingo.... I don't mind paying an upgrade for more RAM, but the prices Apple charge are ridiculous, IMO. I'm holding out for the new M4 and will get 16GB to future proof.

 

[bice]

... The only things will make Apple upgrade the baseline are:

• Basic software won’t run.
• People stop buying new 8GB hardware.

...

As long as they buy something else Apple I don't think purchasing patterns will affect the baseline at all. In fact, Apple would be super happy if everyone skipped the baseline model and went for somthing more expensive. It is a model that mostly exists to motivate the sales of other models.

The problem isn't that the base model has 8GB. The problem is the prices they charge for upgrading it.
If they include 12 or 16GB as base model in the future, that's great. But what I would like to see is rather that they have more realistic upgrade prices of RAM and SSD.

Partly agree, but there is one other important aspect of the base model. It is the one that is stocked everywhere. Availability at many outlets is important for a healthy competition. Availability also plays a big role in purchaing choices. People tends to buy the computer they can get today.

 

[MBAir2010]

12 GB RAM outperforms 10GB RAM big time!
( i forgot the lower slot was 2GB and used 10 GB, then swap'd the 2 for 4, and viola!)

 

[Corefile]

Will we see an M5 Mini?

 

[EugW]

Will we see an M5 Mini?

We haven’t even gotten an M4 mini yet. However, if we do get an M4 mini, there is a good chance there will never be an M5 mini.

 

[Schnitzel1979]

i am hoping to see an M4 mini later this year, but who knows...

 

[Micky Do]

Will we see an M5 Mini?

Almost certainly, but not any time soon.

 

[Boyd01]

Since Sequoia will be compatible with my 2018 Mini, I plan to stick with it until the end. The fact that it won't be compatible with Apple Intelligence is just fine with me (actually a plus). I use Windows on Parallels as much as MacOS (if not more), so moving to Apple Silicon would be a problem for me. When the times comes, maybe I'll upgrade to the M10 Mini, or a Studio... or something else entirely?

 

[ignatius345]

Since Sequoia will be compatible with my 2018 Mini, I plan to stick with it until the end. The fact that it won't be compatible with Apple Intelligence is just fine with me (actually a plus). I use Windows on Parallels as much as MacOS (if not more), so moving to Apple Silicon would be a problem for me. When the times comes, maybe I'll upgrade to the M10 Mini, or a Studio... or something else entirely?

It can be pretty fun, in a way, to hold off on upgrades for a while and then jump up many generations at once because the differences are so dramatic. I held onto an old 11" MacBook Air for quite a few years while waiting for them to phase out the butterfly keyboard. When I got a 2020 i5 Air it felt like a massive leap forward. (The M1 Air made that one look like trash, but that's another topic).

 

[EugW]

It can be pretty fun, in a way, to hold off on upgrades for a while and then jump up many generations at once because the differences are so dramatic. I held onto an old 11" MacBook Air for quite a few years while waiting for them to phase out the butterfly keyboard. When I got a 2020 i5 Air it felt like a massive leap forward. (The M1 Air made that one look like trash, but that's another topic).

My condolences, both for having to use an 11" Air that long, and for buying a 2020 i5 just before the M1 transition.

 

[Boyd01]

It can be pretty fun, in a way, to hold off on upgrades for a while and then jump up many generations at once because the differences are so dramatic. I held onto an old 11" MacBook Air for quite a few years

Still have my 2013 11" i7 MacBook Air, it works but is pretty beat up, I don't use it anymore. Really loved that little computer in its day though! I have almost always waited until performance doubles to upgrade. That MBA was twice as fast as my 2008 MBP (actually, much more, considering the SSD vs HD). Went from the 2012 quad Mini to the 2018 hex Mini - also a 2x speed bump. But the 2018 Mini still does the same things I bought it for just fine and I can't afford upgrades I don't really need.

What concerns me now is that Apple appears to be upping the specs just to accomodate new AI features that I don't want. And (I assume) that's also dependent on Apple AI Servers. Would be interesting to see the combined energy footprint all of this vs. my old Intel Mini running on good ol' natural ignorance. 🤣

 

[EugW]

What concerns me now is that Apple appears to be upping the specs just to accomodate new AI features that I don't want. And (I assume) that's also dependent on Apple AI Servers. Would be interesting to see the combined energy footprint all of this vs. my old Intel Mini running on good ol' natural ignorance. 🤣

While I don't care much about the new AI features, I'm glad they may be upping the specs, because it's overdue.

However, I'm not convinced they may be upping the specs just for AI. I think it's just gotten to the point where it is only minimally more costly or perhaps not more costly to up the specs. Apple can't stay at 8 GB forever.

 

[Corefile]

Almost certainly, but not any time soon.

Hope with a redesign. Other small form factor PCs make the 15yo current Mini design look positively prehistoric.

 

[MBAir2010]

My condolences, both for having to use an 11" Air that long, and for buying a 2020 i5 just before the M1 transition.

This Macbook Air 2010 11" is my main internet computer
(tho the 2012 mini is streaming the Euro Cup final now)
and might get a nice OWC ssd blade this week, while the M1 air is in a box.

the main reason is i prefer the older way were i can control how my mba works.
without the added assistance like premature screen saver, auto screen dimming and other
annoyance Monterey and Sonoma use to control the newer M series macs.

 

[EugW]

This Macbook Air 2010 11" is my main internet computer
(tho the 2012 mini is streaming the Euro Cup final now)
and might get a nice OWC ssd blade this week, while the M1 air is in a box.

the main reason is i prefer the older way were i can control how my mba works.
without the added assistance like premature screen saver, auto screen dimming and other
annoyance Monterey and Sonoma use to control the newer M series macs.

You don't have to run a 2010 Mac to run other versions of macOS.

 

[MBAir2010]

You don't have to run a 2010 Mac to run other versions of macOS.

i know.
i found out using say mountain lion on a 2010 MBA or a 2012 mini works better than El Cap etc.

 

[ignatius345]

Still have my 2013 11" i7 MacBook Air, it works but is pretty beat up, I don't use it anymore. Really loved that little computer in its day though!

I had two or three of them over the years they were produced. Pretty much the best little ultraportable writing Mac you could ask for, with that awesome keyboard.

I had hoped the 12" Retina MacBook would replace it, but couldn't stomach the feel of that keyboard at all, even before they started failing left and right. Still hoping they make another super light Mac at some point.