Tech

The $599 Mac Mini is dead. AI data centres killed it.

Apple's shift to AI-driven data centre economics has rendered its entry-level Mac Mini obsolete, as the company quietly discontinued the $599 M4 model with 16GB RAM and 256GB storage, replacing it with a pricier $799 configuration starting at 512GB storage. This move reflects a broader industry trend where cloud-based AI services are redefining the value proposition of traditional desktop hardware. The Mac Mini's price hike underscores the economic implications of this shift. AI-assisted, human-reviewed.

Noah V (AI-assisted) May 3, 2026 1 min read EN

Apple has discontinued the 256 GB Mac Mini worldwide, removing its cheapest desktop computer from sale. The M4 Mac Mini with 16 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage was available for $599 until last week. It is gone. The Mac Mini now starts at $799 with 512 GB of storage. The 256 GB configuration has not been moved to a different price point; it has been removed from Apple's configurator entirely.

The reason is a global DRAM shortage driven by AI data centre demand. DRAM contract prices surged approximately 90 percent in the first quarter of 2026 compared with the fourth quarter of 2025, according to TrendForce — the largest quarterly increase on record. PC DRAM prices rose by more than 100 percent in the same period.

The cause

Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron — the three companies that manufacture nearly all of the world's DRAM — have shifted the overwhelming majority of their production capacity toward high-bandwidth memory (HBM) for AI servers. HBM now consumes 23 percent of total DRAM wafer output, up from 19 percent in 2025. Producing a single bit of HBM requires approximately three times the wafer capacity of standard DDR5. Every additional AI server that goes online takes memory away from laptops, desktops, tablets, and smartphones.

Combined capital expenditure across the five largest hyperscalers — Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Meta, and Oracle — is on track to exceed $650 billion in 2026. Nearly all of it goes to data centres, GPUs, custom silicon, and networking infrastructure. HBM demand is projected to grow 70 percent year on year in 2026, driven by Nvidia's next-generation AI accelerators.

The impact on consumer hardware

The Mac Mini and Mac Studio began going out of stock in April, with high-RAM configurations disappearing from Apple's online store weeks before the discontinuation was made official. Apple CEO Tim Cook said during the company's most recent earnings call that both products "may take several months to reach supply demand balance." The Mac Studio's 512 GB RAM upgrade option has been removed entirely. The price of upgrading from 96 GB to 256 GB of RAM on the Mac Studio has increased from $1,600 to $2,000, a 25 percent rise.

IDC projects that PCs, tablets, and smartphones could see price increases of 10 to 20 percent by the end of 2026. TrendForce estimates that a mainstream notebook with a $900 retail price could see its cost structure increase by nearly 40 percent when accounting for both memory and CPU price increases. The PC market faces an 11.3 percent contraction

More articles like this

Tech 2 min

Getting Digital Fairness Right: EFF's Recommendations for the EU's Digital Fairness Act

The EU’s Digital Fairness Act threatens to trade one set of harms for another, swapping dark patterns and algorithmic exploitation for intrusive age-verification mandates and expanded surveillance under the guise of consumer protection. While the Commission’s “Digital Fairness Fitness Check” rightly diagnoses gaps in existing rules, its proposed fixes risk embedding corporate-friendly compliance over rights-respecting enforcement—undermining the very principles the DSA and AI Act were designed to uphold. AI-assisted, human-reviewed.

Tech 2 min

Microsoft gives CGI new AI workplace credential as Copilot demand grows - Stock Titan

As the Copilot phenomenon accelerates, Microsoft has awarded CGI a new AI workplace credential, dubbed "Stock Titan," which integrates with its Azure Machine Learning platform to streamline the development of large language models. This strategic partnership leverages CGI's expertise in human-centered design to enhance the usability and reliability of AI-powered tools. The move aims to capitalize on the surging demand for AI-driven productivity solutions. AI-assisted, human-reviewed.

Tech 2 min

Ouster’s new color lidar is coming to replace cameras

"Depth-sensing lidar technology is poised to supplant traditional camera systems in autonomous vehicles, as Ouster's forthcoming color lidar sensor promises to deliver high-resolution, simultaneous depth and image data, a long-sought "holy grail" in robotics and automotive sensing. The new sensor leverages a 128-channel time-of-flight architecture to capture detailed 3D point clouds and vibrant color imagery. This breakthrough could significantly enhance the accuracy and situational awareness of self-driving cars. AI-assisted, human-reviewed."

Tech 2 min

The West keeps asking how much China subsidises its industries. That is the wrong question.

Western policymakers' fixation on China's industrial subsidies obscures a more critical issue: the country's strategic investments in research and development, which have yielded significant advancements in clean energy technologies, such as the widespread adoption of lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles and the rapid scaling of solar panel manufacturing. By focusing on subsidies, the West overlooks China's long-term R&D strategy, which has enabled the country to leapfrog traditional industrial development stages. This oversight may prove costly for Western industries. AI-assisted, human-reviewed.

Tech 2 min

Science Has Found Even More Ways Coffee Is Good for You

Coffee’s latest health halo isn’t just caffeine hype—new research pinpoints how polyphenols in both regular and decaf brews reshape gut microbiota, lowering systemic inflammation and modulating neurotransmitter pathways linked to depression. The findings, published in *Cell*, reveal specific microbial shifts tied to chlorogenic acid metabolism, offering a mechanistic blueprint for coffee’s mood-boosting effects beyond stimulants. AI-assisted, human-reviewed.

Tech 1 min

Nvidia, Palantir, and Broadcom are sending shockwaves through Wall Street with this $4.6 billion warning - MSN

A $4.6 billion class-action lawsuit alleging widespread securities manipulation by Nvidia, Palantir, and Broadcom is sending tremors through the financial sector, threatening to upend the companies' market valuations and potentially exposing deep-seated flaws in their financial reporting practices. The lawsuit centers on allegations of inflated revenue projections and misstated accounting practices. If substantiated, the claims could have far-reaching implications for corporate governance and financial transparency. AI-assisted, human-reviewed.