Apple’s Mac Mini Gets a New Chip and a New Price
Apple updated the Mac mini on August 25, 2026, its first refresh in nearly two years. The base model now runs on the M6, a chip Apple has never put in any product before. The five-by-five-inch box looks exactly like the one Apple redesigned in October 2024. Everything else changed on the inside.
What’s Actually New Inside
The M6 is Apple’s first chip built on a 2 nanometer process. It carries a 12-core CPU, two more cores than the outgoing M4, split for the first time across three core types: super cores, performance cores, and efficiency cores. The GPU also grew to 12 cores, and every one of those cores now has its own Neural Accelerator built in for AI tasks. A dual 16-core Neural Engine, the first Apple has shipped with two engines instead of one, handles the rest of the AI workload.
Compared to the outgoing M4 Mac mini, Apple says the new model runs up to 40 percent faster on the CPU, up to 4 times faster on AI tasks, and up to twice as fast on graphics and storage.
Two Chips, Not Three
Apple usually splits its lineup into a base chip, a Pro version, and sometimes a Max. This time, Mac mini skips the “M6 Pro” step entirely. The higher configuration runs the M5 Pro instead, the same chip that shipped in this year’s MacBook Pro. It goes up to an 18-core CPU and 20-core GPU. Memory bandwidth tops out at 170GB/s on the M6 and reaches up to 307GB/s on the M5 Pro.
What It Costs Here
In the Philippines, the M6 model starts at ₱64,990, or ₱57,990 with education pricing. The M5 Pro configuration starts at ₱119,990, or ₱112,990 for education. Apple has not yet confirmed a specific release date for the Philippines. Pre-orders opened in the U.S. on August 25, with delivery and in-store availability beginning September 22.
Most everyday use fits inside what the M6 already does. The M5 Pro is built for heavier workflows, like video editing or 3D rendering, that actually need the extra cores.
