Apple refreshed the Mac mini back in November, adding M4 chips and increasing the base memory. We did a hands-on impressions video at the time, but we

Review: Apple's M4 Mac Mini is the Best Desktop Mac

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2025-01-05 11:30:17

Apple refreshed the Mac mini back in November, adding M4 chips and increasing the base memory. We did a hands-on impressions video at the time, but we thought we'd follow that up with a more in-depth review now that we've had more time to spend with Apple's cheapest desktop machine.

Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Priced starting at $599, the ‌Mac mini‌ offers the most affordable way to get access to Apple's new M4 chip, plus the machine got a design overhaul with the 2024 refresh. The ‌Mac mini‌ now measures in at 5 inches by 5 inches, and it's more than two inches smaller than the prior-generation model. It takes up much less space on a desk, and while it isn't quite as small as the Apple TV, it offers impressive performance in a super compact package.

With Apple Intelligence and the M4 chip, Apple stopped using 8GB as the base amount of memory that Macs ship with, and upped it to 16GB. The $599 ‌Mac mini‌ has an M4 chip and 16GB of RAM as a result, and it is an excellent deal for a desktop machine. Of course, you're going to need to supply your own display, keyboard, and mouse, but it's so small that you can easily move it between desktop setups at home and work.