Kuo: 2023 Mac Mini to Retain Same Design as Current Model

Apple’s next-generation Mac mini will likely feature the same design as the current model, according to reputable analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

In a brief tweet, Kuo said that the refreshed ‌Mac mini‌ is likely to retain the same form factor as the current model, which is an aluminum unibody design that Apple has used for every new ‌Mac mini‌ since 2010. Earlier this week, Kuo said that the new ‌Mac mini‌ will not launch until 2023.

Kuo’s claim runs contrary to a rumor from leaker Jon Prosser, who last year said that Apple was working on a complete redesign for the small desktop computer, moving to a smaller chassis with a “plexiglass-like” top.

Apple has been believed to be working on a new Mac mini for some time. It 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. The potential of replacing this older high-end model with an Apple silicon machine was previously at the center of rumors related to new Mac minis, but now it looks like both the entry-level and the high-end model may be refreshed simultaneously.

9to5Mac recently said that Apple originally “had plans” to introduce high-end versions of the ‌Mac mini‌ with M1 Pro and M1 Max chips, but these plans were “probably scrapped” in favor of the Mac Studio. Now, Apple is believed to be working on two new ‌Mac mini‌ models, including one with the M2 chip and a higher-end model with the ‌M2‌ Pro chip.