The Mac Mini is still mighty, just not as cheap

There are lots of compact desktop computers out there, but none match the Mac Mini’s small size and big power. 2024’s redesign reduced the Mini to 0.82L, a chassis so minimal you can easily mount it behind a monitor or under a desk. I’ve used gaming laptop charging bricks that are nearly as large and definitely heavier than this whole computer. But despite being tiny, the Mini maintains a bunch of speedy ports — even a front-facing headphone jack. The 2026 Mini is the first Mac to get Apple’s new M6 chip, with more cores — and more kinds of cores — than the outgoing M4 model. Along with that comes another beefier version, replacing the M4 Pro model with an M5 Pro. It’s a chip bump year, and that’s just fine. But it’s also a price bump year: while the M4 Mac Mini started at $599, the new model starts at $899. In spite of that, the Mac Mini remains the best value in the Mac lineup, because just about everything costs more…