Mac mini 2018: what we want to see

It’s been years since we’ve seen a new Mac Mini. And, while you’d be forgiven for thinking that Apple’s silence serves as a death knell for the tiniest Mac, we’re still optimistic that might actually get a Mac Mini 2018.

Sure, we didn’t get a Mac Mini in 2017, but Apple CEO Tim Cook himself reassured fans that Apple would still support the Mac Mini, so we might actually see it this year.

This is why we were all shocked when Apple didn’t have any hardware to show off at WWDC 2018. All hope’s not lost, though – famed Apple analyst Ming Chi Kuo recently predicted that the rumored new Mac Mini could be releasing later this year, alongside a wave of other Macs. So, maybe the new Mac Mini will show up soon – which seems likely, given how Apple handled the MacBook Pro 2018 release.

We don’t have much concrete information beyond this speculation, so keep this page bookmarked, and we’ll update it just as soon as we hear any new rumors or information.

Cut to the chase

• What is it? A new version of Apple’s compact Mac
• When is it out?  Maybe November 2018? 
• What will it cost? Hopefully around the price of previous models

Mac mini 2018 release date

Just like other Apple products, we haven’t got a solid release date for the Mac Mini 2018. Rumors have been scarce, too, so we’re going to have to do a bit of speculation, but now that Apple has become the world’s first trillion dollar company, we expect it’ll celebrate with new products soon.

The previous Mac mini was released way back on October 16, 2014, so could we witness an October launch for the new Mac mini? 

Well, the latest speculation makes that October release date actually seem pretty likely. There’s a rumor floating around that Apple is going to be refreshing several Macs, including the Mac Mini 2018 this fall. That rumor, in addition to the complete lack of hardware at WWDC 2018 and another rumor that Apple is working on five MacBooks bodes well for the Mac Mini coming out in the near future.

These are both admittedly shaky ideas, but Apple has kept a tight lid on when and if the Mac Mini will be announced. Either way, we’ll keep an eye on any rumors and update this article as soon as any new information comes our way.

Mac mini 2018 price

Again, we haven’t heard much about the potential price of the Mac mini 2018 just yet, but that’s to be expected, as pricing rumors usually begin to circulate closer to the release date.

But, could the price of previous Mac minis give us a clue to what the price of any new Mac minis would be?

The lowest spec Mac mini cost $499 (£399, around AU$650) when it launched in 2014, with the middle Mac mini costing cost $699 (£569, around AU$900) and the top-of-the range Mac mini came with a $999 (£569, around AU$1,300) price tag.

Either way, you should be prepared to pay a bit more for the new Mac Mini whenever it does get revealed, as computing components have gone up in price considerably since 2014.

 What we want to see in Mac mini 2018 

While we don’t know a lot about the Mac mini 2018 at the moment, we certainly know what we want to see from a refreshed Mac mini. 

1. An attractive new design

Honestly, there’s nothing particularly wrong with the current Mac Mini’s design, but if we’re going to get the first major refresh in nearly four years, we’d love to see a nice makeover as well. Thinner, smaller and quieter – is that too much to ask? We don’t think so.

An old rumor from early 2017 suggested that the high-end Mac mini ‘won’t be so mini anymore’ which led people to assume more powerful components will be added, requiring more room for better cooling.

However, this rumor is quite vague, so we’d urge caution when taking this completely at face value.

Of course, powerful components will mean more heat produced, so a redesigned Mac mini isn’t out of the question, but as Apple has shown with the iMac and iMac Pro, it’s a dab hand at putting powerful components into svelte devices and keep them cool.

2. A power boost

One of the things we'd most like to see from a Mac mini 2018 is an upgrade to its components, which would make it a formidable mini machine to compete with other small form factor PCs like the Asus VivoMini and Intel NUC, which have been upgraded to 7th- and 8th-generation Intel Core processors, respectively. 

For starters, the new Mac Mini straight up needs a newer CPU than the 4th-generation silicon sitting in the current model. Refreshing the silicon will open the new Mac Mini to a whole world of possibilities like Thunderbolt 3, DisplayPort 1.2 and 4K video and would give the Mac Mini a considerable power boost over the old version.

Apple is reportedly planning on releasing three Macs in 2018 with custom co-processors, though we doubt the Mac mini, even if it does come out, would be included.

RAM-wise, the previous Mac mini came with 4GB, and while that could remain, we’d like to see a base 8GB of RAM, as with the MacBook Air.

2. Mouse and keyboard included

While the Mac mini has a reputation for being the most compact and economical Apple computer around, it’s also known for its lack of included (yet essential) accessories. The Magic Mouse 2 and Magic Keyboard can only be purchased separately from the Mac mini itself. That means you’ll have to shell out an additional cost for parts that are required to use it.

A recent patent filed by Apple suggests that the company is interested in bringing spill-free and crumb-resistant keyboards to its MacBooks. We would argue that this guard structure technology, designed to “keep contaminants from reaching the innards of the machine” would be a useful addition to the Mac mini as well.

3.  4K support 

Wouldn’t it be great if the Mac mini 2018 could also act as an alternative to the Apple TV? For that to happen, the Mac mini 2018 would need to be a capable 4K machine – something previous models were decidedly not.

Thankfully, as we mentioned earlier, if the new Mac mini is going to feature recent Intel processors, then the integrated graphics should give it enough graphical power to handle 4K.

Earlier iteration of the Mac Mini aren’t quite capable of handling 4K content. This was of course due to hardware limitations of the time, coupled with Apple’s desire to keep the Mac Mini as an entry-level device, price-wise.

However, in 2018 even budget processors come with integrated graphics that are powerful enough to render 4K interfaces and play ultra high definition content from Netflix and iTunes, so we want to see Apple make use of this technology in any new Mac mini that it produces. 

4.  For it to actually exist 

We can speculate all day about what the Mac Mini 2018 might look like, and what it’s capable of, but none of that matters if it doesn’t exist in the first place. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen an update to the Mac Mini, and Apple has a lot to gain from a market where they’re starting to see more competition than ever before. 

If Apple can put out a Mac Mini that improves and innovates on its design, they might end up with one of the best multimedia PCs on the market. So, let’s just hope that Tim Cook’s stated support of the Mac mini means that the Cupertino behemoth has something up its sleeves. 

• These are the best Macs that 2018 has to offer so far

Gabe Carey has also contributed to this report