M4 Pro chip boosts CPU and GPU performance, up to 64 GB RAM and Thunderbolt 5 support

The just-announced Mac mini includes the unveiling of the M4 Pro chip for the first time. The new upscale chip features 14-CPU cores (10 performance and 4 high-efficiency), up to 20 core GPU, and support for up to 64 GB RAM.

Like the M4 iMac, both the M4 and the M4 Pro configurations of Mac mini also start at 16 GB RAM as the new baseline. And the M4 Pro chip brings Thunderbolt 5 for the fastest I/O yet on the Mac.

The highest-spec M4 Pro in the Mac mini features 10 performance and 4 efficiency CPU cores, compared to 6 performance and 6 efficiency cores in its predecessor M3 Pro. As well as each core likely being about ~10% faster, there are significantly more performance cores with this generation, which should result in a disproportionate speed boost under heavy load.

Note the base model M4 Pro Mac mini features a binned M4 Pro wchip with 12-core CPU and 16-core GPU. For a $200 upgrade, you can get the full 14-core GPU and 20-core GPU version.

With Thunderbolt 5, you can now get up to 120 Gbps data transfer speeds using the new Thunderbolt 5 cable on the Mac mini. That’s up from the theoretical maximum 40 Gbps speeds of Thunderbolt 4.

The Thunderbolt 5 ports are exclusive to the M4 Pro Mac mini models, as it requires the extra bandwidth provided by the Pro chip. Mac mini with M4 Pro features three Thunderbolt 5 ports on the back of the chassis, alongside two standard USB 3 speed USB-C ports on the front.

The M4 Pro chip offers up to 273 GB/s of memory bandwidth across the system-on-a-chip, with a maximum of 64 GB RAM. This is an 80% increase in bandwidth compared to the ‘measly’ 150 GB/s speed of M3 Pro, and is close to the 300 GB/s benchmark set by the lower-end M3 Max.

Apple will almost certainly announce the next beefiest version of the M4 tomorrow, the M4 Max, alongside the announcement of new MacBook Pros. You can expect commensurate increases in CPU performance, GPU performance, and memory bandwidth.