Apple appears to have discontinued its cheapest Mac mini

Key points

• The AI industry's demand for memory, storage and powerful chips has finally come for the Mac mini.
• Apple has stopped selling its cheapest $599 model of the Mac mini, based on changes to the company's store page spotted by MacRumors.
• Only configurations that come with at least 512GB of storage and up are available, which means the Mac mini now effectively starts at $799. The tiny desktop's popular use as a home for local AI agents likely played a part in the change.
• Engadget has contacted Apple for confirmation that it's discontinuing the entry-level Mac mini.
• We'll update this article if we hear back.