Where to preorder the updated Mac Mini and Mac Studio
The Verge Brad Bourque ● Covered by 7 sources
Apple’s new Mac Mini and Mac Studio are up for preorder now. They start shipping Sept. 22, and the Mini now begins $300 higher than before.
Based on reporting by The Verge, Brad Bourque — read the original for the full story.
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Apple has opened preorders for updated Mac Mini and Mac Studio desktops built around two new chips: the M6 and the M5 Ultra. Most versions are set to ship starting September 22, 2026, and the timing lands a few weeks ahead of Apple’s usual annual iPhone event window.
The Mac Mini is still the smaller, cheaper desktop in the lineup, but the new starting price is $899. That’s $300 more than the M4-based entry model from 2024. Apple is also offering a version with the M5 Pro for $1,699. The previous Mini came with M4 and M4 Max options, so the new chip choices mark a clear step up for the compact machine.
Apple is leaning hard on connectivity here too. The updated Mini gets 2.5Gb Ethernet as the baseline, along with Bluetooth 6 and Wi‑Fi 7. Apple says the broader update is focused on AI performance and faster connections, while also claiming improvements over the last generation.
The Mac Studio keeps its old $2,499 starting point, but the hardware inside changes. The base model uses the M5 Max, 36GB of unified memory, and 512GB of storage. A higher-end version with the M5 Ultra, 96GB of RAM, and a 1TB SSD starts at $5,499. One more wrinkle: configurations with 512GB of RAM won’t ship until late October, and Apple hasn’t announced the price for those yet.
My take — AI-written commentary, not fact-checked reporting
This is classic Apple: call it an upgrade, hold the line on one price, and quietly move the goalposts on another. The Mini’s jump to $899 is the real story, because the tiny desktop is no longer the cheap way into macOS. For people who like open systems and sane pricing, that’s a familiar little slap from Cupertino.
Read more about this at: The Verge
