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Apple may have just accidentally leaked a new Mac Mini

Alex Blake
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This story is part of our complete Apple WWDC coverage

It was recently revealed that Apple could launch two new Macs at its upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June. Now, one of those mystery Macs might have been revealed as a new version of the Mac Mini.

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The information comes from well-known developer Steve Troughton-Smith, who tweeted that the latest firmware for Apple’s Studio Display monitor contains a reference to a hitherto-unreleased Mac, specifically one called “Macmini10,1.”

Apple Mac Mini M1 sitting on a desk.
Alex Blake/Digital Trends

The most recent Mac Mini — the M1 model launched in 2020 — comes with the model identifier “Macmini9,1.” That means the new, unreleased Mac Mini mentioned in the Studio Display firmware certainly makes sense from a naming standpoint.

As for the chip the machine will house, Troughton-Smith believes it will be Apple’s M2 instead of the M1 Pro. This has been a point of contention for a while, especially since Apple has not released a high-end version of the Mac Mini that uses an Apple Silicon chip, instead, leaving an Intel-powered model in the line-up. The M2 would be an entry-level chip, while an M1 Pro is aimed more at pro-level users.

The rumor mill is a little unclear as to what new Macs are imminent; for what it’s worth, there is one concrete clue: the shipping Studio Display firmware references one unaccounted-for mystery machine — a new model generation of Mac mini (“Macmini10,1”). My guess: M2, not M1 Pro

— Steve Troughton-Smith (@stroughtonsmith) April 12, 2022

Rumors suggest the M2 chip will be similar to the M1 but will boost the number of GPU cores to 10 from the seven or eight found in the M1 (depending on the model). As for the CPU cores, reporter Mark Gurman believes the M2 will have eight in total, just like the M1, but will weight them more toward high-performance cores. The M1’s cores are split evenly between high-performance and high-efficiency cores, but the M2 could skew that more towards the former.

As well as the M2 Mac Mini, there are claims Apple could launch an M2 Pro model alongside it, finally giving users a more powerful Mac Mini that is built on Apple Silicon. According to the rumor mill, this chip will feature a 12-core CPU (with four high-efficiency cores and eight high-performance cores). Right now, the GPU core count is unknown.

Additionally, there’s a strong chance that Apple will unveil a new MacBook Air at WWDC, which is also rumored to be outfitted with an M2 chip. Aside from the hardware, though, there are plenty more WWDC rumors swirling around what we could see. The event kicks off on June 6, so there’s plenty of time for more news to leak out ahead of the show.

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Alex Blake
Alex Blake
Computing Writer
In ancient times, people like Alex would have been shunned for their nerdy ways and strange opinions on cheese. Today, he…
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