Apple's M4 Mac Mini: Unleashing AI Power in a Compact Design

Following yesterday’s reveal of the M4 iMac, Apple has now unveiled the new Mac mini with M4 and M4 Pro chips. The new mini desktop packs impressive performance upgrades and expanded connectivity within a compact, eco-friendly design.

The M4 Mac mini includes a choice of M4 or M4 Pro chips and is packaged in a smaller, 5×5-inch design. These new models offer faster performance across the board while marking an environmental milestone as Apple’s first carbon-neutral Mac.

With a 10-core CPU and 10-core GPU, the standard M4-powered Mac mini, now starting with 16 GB of memory, is built for everyday productivity and creativity. Compared to its M1 predecessor, Apple promises CPU performance over 1.5 times faster and GPU performance over 2 times faster.

For those with more demanding needs, the M4 Pro version includes up to 14 CPU cores and a 20-core GPU, making it Apple’s most powerful mini desktop yet; the company says it’s twice as powerful as the GPU in the M4. It also supports advanced tasks like hardware-accelerated ray tracing and high-speed AI processes that push performance up to 26 times faster in specific tasks compared to previous Intel models.

The new Mac mini has front-facing USB-C ports and a headphone jack, plus rear ports for Thunderbolt, Ethernet, and HDMI. The M4 model includes three Thunderbolt 4 ports and supports up to two 6K displays, while the M4 Pro adds Thunderbolt 5 ports and supports up to three 6K displays.

The M4 Mac Mini ships with Apple Intelligence. Some of its features include Writing Tools that can proofread, write, and summarize. Siri is now easier to talk to, with Apple explaining that you can “move fluidly between spoken and typed requests to accelerate tasks.” According to the press release, new Apple Intelligence features will drop before the end of the year, including a contextually-aware Siri and ChatGPT integration.

Beyond performance and features, Apple has taken steps toward sustainability with this launch. The Mac mini is made with over 50 percent recycled materials, including 100 percent recycled aluminum in the enclosure. Apple has also shifted to renewable energy for manufacturing and packaging and uses ocean freight to reduce carbon emissions.

The M4 Mac mini starts at $599 and the M4 Pro model is $1,399. They will be available on November 8, with pre-orders open today.