Image: Apple

Apple has announced a new Mac Mini, which introduces a new design for the desktop computer featuring two front-facing 10Gbps USB-C ports and a headphone jack. Also new is the M4 Pro, a more powerful version of Apple's latest chip, though you can also get the Mac Mini with a regular M4 as well.

Apple says the new case for the Mac Mini is just 12.7cm wide, 12.7cm deep, and 5 cm tall (5" x 5" x 2"). The previous M2 model was 19.70 cm x 19.70 cm x 3.58 cm (7.75" x 7.75" x 1.41").

Another big change from the previous model is the lack of USB-A ports. On the back are three Thunderbolt ports – which generation depends on your choice of chip – an HDMI port, and Ethernet port, which is Gigabit by default but can be optioned to support 10Gbps. The computer also supports Wi-Fi 6E – not Wi-Fi 7 – and Bluetooth 5.3.

Image: Apple

Back to the ports on the rear: The ones on the regular M4 Mac Mini are the standard 40Gbps Thunderbolt 4 ports that have been on Apple's computers for a while now. However, if you get the M4 Pro model, you'll also get the first Mac with Thunderbolt 5, which can support data transfers at up to 120Gbps.

The M4 Pro, which is only available on the highest-end Mac Mini, starts with 8 'performance' CPU cores, 4 'efficiency' CPU cores and a 16-core GPU; there's also a model with two more performance cores and four more GPU cores. It also has over double the memory bandwidth of the regular M4, and can be configured with up to 64GB of RAM, versus the 32GB that the regular M4 appears to top out at.

The Mac Mini starts at $599, with the entry-level model sporting a 10-core CPU and GPU M4, 16GB of RAM, and a 256GB SSD. The M4 Pro model is much pricier at $1,399, though it starts with 24GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD. If you're budgeting for the computer, though, do keep in mind that it doesn't include a keyboard, mouse, or monitor.

The computer is the second Mac Apple's announced this week, after the iMac. On Monday, the company promised it would be making three announcements.

This story is developing and will be updated.