Apple announces new M1 Mac Mini, starting at $699

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  Behold, the new Mac Mini. [credit: Apple ]

Apple's M1-filled announcement flurry on Tuesday included a serious surprise for Mac enthusiasts: a brand-new Mac Mini model, starting at $699. Orders begin today, with Mac Minis being available "next week."

The tiny new desktop model comes packed with an eight-core M1 chip, which Apple says will deliver three times the CPU performance compared to the prior quad-core base Mac Mini model. (How that compares to the last model's upgrade option to a 6-core processor remains to be seen.) Apple's representatives say it's one tenth the size of a comparable PC in its price range, while also running "five times faster" than the same PC in question. (What PC model or manufacturer are you talking about, Apple?)

All Mac Mini M1 models will include Wi-Fi 6, GigaBit Ethernet, an HDMI 2.0 jack, two USB Type-A ports, and two ports that double as Thunderbolt and USB Type-C 4.0 connections. You'll need the latter to max out the new Mac Mini's maximum resolution threshold of "up to two displays, including Apple’s Pro Display XDR in full 6K resolution." (Oh, and will you look at that: There's a 3.5mm headphone jack for your favorite desktop speakers.) The model's base $699 price includes 256GB of on-board SSD storage and 8GB of memory. That price jumps quite a bit when upgrading to 16GB of maximum memory (much smaller than last generation's 64GB memory maximum) or 2TB of maximum SSD storage: $1,699.

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