Bad news for OpenClaw stans: Apple’s Mac Mini now starts at $799
Apple has increased the starting price of the Mac Mini to $799 by discontinuing the $599 256 GB model, making it no longer the company's most affordable computer. The price hike is attributed to rising memory costs driven by high demand for AI infrastructure. The $599 MacBook Neo now holds the title of Apple's most budget-friendly Mac.
- ▪Apple discontinued the 256 GB Mac Mini priced at $599, raising the starting price to $799 for a 512 GB model.
- ▪The MacBook Neo, priced at $599, is now Apple's most affordable Mac.
- ▪Rising DRAM and flash storage prices, fueled by demand for AI infrastructure, are impacting Apple's product pricing.
- ▪AI systems require large amounts of memory, with GPU servers using over 2 TB of HBM and 4 TB of DDR5.
- ▪CEO Tim Cook cited rising memory costs as a negative factor for Apple's business during a recent investor call.
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Personal Tech Bad news for OpenClaw stans: Apple’s Mac Mini now starts at $799 The tiny desktop is no longer Apple's most affordable computer Tobias Mann Mon 4 May 2026 // 21:46 UTC The Mac Mini is the latest victim of the AI-fueled RAM-pocalypse. Last week, Apple discontinued the 256 GB version of the system, which cost $599. To get in now, you'll need to drop at least $799 on a 512 GB version. The price hike makes the Mac Mini Apple's most affordable Mac no longer. That distinction now goes to the $599 MacBook Neo, unveiled back in March. The decision comes a day after soon-retiring CEO Tim Cook told investors that rising memory prices were negatively impacting the iGiant's business.
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