The Mac mini is set to get a significant overhaul, introducing the first major redesign to the popular desktop computer in almost 12 years. To form the new design, Apple appears to be looking to the first-generation Apple TV and the 24-inch iMac.
Apple has been believed to be working on a new Mac mini for some time. Apple updated the entry-level Mac mini with the M1 chip in November 2020, but the high-end offering is still the Space Gray model with an Intel processor from 2018. It is this high-end model that is expected to be replaced with an Apple silicon model that features the first redesign since 2010.
According to leaker Jon Prosser, who shared renders of the new Mac mini's alleged design last year, the new Mac mini will retain a similar form factor to the current Mac mini, but with an overall reduction in size. The rear of the device is said to feature the same ports that are currently available with the high-end Intel-based Mac mini, including four Thunderbolt ports, two USB-A ports, one Ethernet port, and one HDMI port.
Jon Prosser's Mac mini render, purportedly based on leaked information.The design itself is said to be moving away from the unibody aluminum enclosure that Apple has offered with the third, fourth, and fifth-generation Mac mini. The new design is purported to feature a "plexiglass-like" top, sitting above an aluminum frame.
This new design appears to be strongly evocative of the first-generation Apple TV, which the company went on to abandon in 2010 with the second-generation Apple TV, which moved to the black plastic enclosure that has remained through to the current version of the device.
The first-generation Apple TV, announced in 2006.The new Mac mini is also professed to be taking several design cues from the 24-inch iMac. Not only is Apple rumored to be testing iMac-like two-tone color options for the new Mac mini, but the device is also said to feature the same magnetic power connector that debuted on the Mac mini's all-in-one sibling.
The 24-inch iMac with magnetic power connector and two-tone color, announced in 2021.Rumors and filings in the Eurasian Economic Commission's database suggested that Apple would launch its new Mac mini in the spring, but the machine did not emerge at Apple's March "Peek Performance" event.
Now, the high-end Mac mini is expected to arrive in 2023. The new device is expected to feature the M1 Pro and M1 Max chips from the MacBook Pro, as well as up to 64GB of memory. For more information about what to expect from the high-end Mac mini, see our detailed guide.
