Apple Unveils Upgraded Mac Mini with M6 and M5 Pro Chips, but at a Premium Price

New Generation Mac Mini Announced by Apple

Apple has unveiled the latest iteration of the Mac Mini, introducing two models that cater to different user needs. The new lineup includes a version powered by the new M6 chip and a higher-end model equipped with the M5 Pro chip, which is also featured in this year’s MacBook Pro. Despite the enhanced performance and upgraded internals, the new Mac Minis retain the compact design and footprint of the 2024 M4 / M4 Pro models. Additionally, they come with faster performance and speedier ethernet ports.

Pricing and Availability

The M6 Mac Mini is priced starting at $899, while the M5 Pro model starts at $1,699. Both models are $100 more expensive than their M4 predecessors. Preorders for the new Mac Minis are now open, with shipping scheduled to commence on September 22nd. Apple aims to avoid inventory shortages this time, as seen with the previous generation due to high demand for AI applications.

Hardware and Features

The entry-level M6 Mac Mini comes with 16GB of unified memory and 256GB of storage, while the M5 Pro model offers a 24GB / 512GB configuration. Both models feature storage that is now twice as fast as before, in line with the recent MacBook Air and Pro releases. Additionally, the M6 and M5 Pro Mac Minis now boast 2.5 gigabit ethernet ports, with an optional upgrade to 10 gigabit, and are equipped with Apple’s N1 chip for Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 support.

Performance Improvements

The M6 Mac Mini features a 12-core CPU and 12-core GPU, offering 170GBps of memory bandwidth compared to the M4’s 10-core / 10-core setup with 120GBps of memory bandwidth. With a mix of super cores, performance cores, and efficiency cores, the M6 chip marks Apple’s first foray into 2nm processing. Apple claims a 40% increase in CPU performance over the M4 generation, with the new 12-core GPU delivering up to twice the graphics rendering speed for ray tracing in certain games.

Advanced Configurability

The M5 Pro Mac Mini offers extensive configurability options, allowing for up to 18 CPU cores and 20 GPU cores, along with 307GBps of memory bandwidth. Apple touts significant gains in AI compute and graphics performance over the previous M4 Pro model, thanks to the neural accelerator in each GPU core. This enhancement enables the handling of more demanding AI workloads, such as photo and video upscaling and larger diffusion models.

Connectivity and Software

Both Mac Mini models retain the same set of ports as their predecessors, apart from the upgraded ethernet options. The M6 Mini features two front-facing 10Gbps USB-C ports, with the M5 Pro equipped with faster Thunderbolt 5 ports at the rear. Both models come preloaded with macOS 27 Golden Gate, ensuring compatibility with Apple’s latest Siri AI and Apple Intelligence features.

Future Updates

While the official release date for macOS 27 is yet to be announced, Apple’s latest Mac Mini releases suggest that the new operating system should be available by the September 22nd shipping date. Customers can look forward to the enhanced performance and features offered by the new Mac Mini models.