Apple’s compact Mac Mini desktop could be about to get a major boost.
The tech giant’s portable PC will get a refresh with two different versions featuring Apple’s highly efficient “M” family of chips, according to a report from 9to5Mac on Wednesday, March 9.
Citing unnamed sources with knowledge of the matter, the Mac specialist said the lower-priced Mac Mini will feature Apple’s upcoming M2 chip, while the higher-end device will use a more powerful M2 Pro chip.
While some observers thought Apple might announce the M2 at its Peek Performance event earlier this week, its absence suggests the tech giant will showcase the new chip in the fall, probably along with the new Mac Mini.
We don’t yet know a great deal about the M2, though the usually reliable Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman has said the new chip will likely have eight CPU cores offering higher performance than the eight cores found on Apple’s first M chip, the M1, which launched in 2020 and is found in the current Mac Mini.
Gurman also says that while the M1 launched with either seven or eight GPU cores, he thinks the M2 will sport nine or 10, adding even more power to the machine.
As for the M2 Pro, 9to5Mac describes it as “a variant with eight performance cores and four efficiency cores, totaling a 12-core CPU versus the 10-core CPU of the current M1 Pro.”
On Tuesday, Apple unveiled the Mac Studio, described by some as a souped-up Mac Mini that customers can configure with either the M1 Max chip (starting at $2,000) or the more advanced M1 Ultra (from $4,000).
While those prices will be out of reach for many interested customers, a refreshed Mac Mini with the new M2 chip could be a much more attractive proposition, with pricing for the M2 Mac Mini expected to start at around $700, which is what Apple’s most basic M1 model currently costs.
Apple’s first M chip, the M1, has been praised for its impressive performance and efficiency. It’s used by the current Mac Mini, the 24-inch iMac, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, and some iPads. The M2 will likely to find its way into future models before too long.
Here’s more on what to expect with the Mac Mini 2022.
