M4 Mac mini unveiled with stunningly compact design — release date, price and full specs

News
By published

The first major redesign in over a decade

Mac mini M4 in hand
(Image credit: Apple)

Apple’s week of Mac announcements continues today with the news that the Mac mini is getting a complete redesign along with an M4 or M4 Pro chip — set to release on November 8.

Despite its even tinier size at just five by five-inches, the new Mac mini M4 delivers up to 1.8x faster CPU performance and 2.2x faster GPU performance over the Mac mini M1, according  to Apple. This new smaller Mac is also built from the ground up for Apple Intelligence.

At the same time, the Mac mini M4 is Apple’s first carbon neutral Mac with a more than 80% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions across its material, manufacturing, transportation and customer use.

The rear ports of the Mac mini M4

(Image credit: Apple)

Besides the redesign and the addition of M4 or M4 Pro chips, the biggest difference with this new Mac mini is with its ports. As was rumored back in September, the Mac mini M4 now has both front and back ports and instead of USB-A ports like on the Mac mini M2, they’ve now all been replaced with  Thunderbolt ones. However, while the standard Mac mini M4 comes equipped with Thunderbolt 4 ports, the Mac mini M4 Pro is the first Mac ever to have Thunderbolt 5 onboard.

Swipe to scroll horizontally
Header Cell - Column 0 Mac mini M4Mac mini M4 Pro
Price$599 to start$1,399 to start
CPUM4 (10-core CPU, 10-core GPU)M4 (12-core CPU, 16-core GPU)
RAM16-32GB 24-64GB
Storage256GB-2TB 512-8TB
Ports5x Thunderbolt4/USB 4, HDMI, 2x USB-A, Ethernet (up to 10GB), 3.5mm headphone jack5x Thunderbolt5/USB 4, HDMI, 2x USB-A, Ethernet (up to 10GB), 3.5mm headphone jack
ConnectivityWi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3
Dimensions5 x 5 x 2 inches5 x 5 x 2 inches
Weight1.5 pounds1.6 pounds

On the front of the Mac mini M4, you’ll find two Thunderbolt ports as well as a headphone jack and around back, there are three Thunderbolt ports along with an HDMI port, an Ethernet jack and an AC port. These extra USB-C ports make a lot of sense though as Apple has updated its Magic Keyboard, Magic Mouse, Magic Trackpad and other accessories with them as well.

The Mac mini M4 starts at $599 while the Mac mini M4 Pro starts at $1,399. Both of these new Macs are available for preorder today in the Apple Store app in 28 countries and regions. These new Mac minis will begin shipping on Friday, November 8.

More from Tom's Guide

TOPICS
Anthony Spadafora
Anthony Spadafora
Managing Editor Security and Home Office

Anthony Spadafora is the managing editor for security and home office furniture at Tom’s Guide where he covers everything from data breaches to password managers and the best way to cover your whole home or business with Wi-Fi. He also reviews standing desks, office chairs and other home office accessories with a penchant for building desk setups. Before joining the team, Anthony wrote for ITProPortal while living in Korea and later for TechRadar Pro after moving back to the US. Based in Houston, Texas, when he’s not writing Anthony can be found tinkering with PCs and game consoles, managing cables and upgrading his smart home.