On the eve of Apple's latest quarterly earnings report, Apple CEO Tim Cook said that the new Mac product line performed well and made him "couldn't be happier", but this is not good news for consumers who plan to buy a Mac mini. In an interview with CNBC, Cook said that Apple currently has the "most advanced Mac product lineup in history" and emphasized that the new entry-level MacBook Neo has inspired unprecedented market enthusiasm and brought a large number of first-time Mac users.
The MacBook Neo, launched in early March, is Apple’s most affordable MacBook model, starting at $599.
Although the outside world has criticized the A18 Pro "mobile chip" it is equipped with, the actual sales performance proves that the market demand for such products is very clear.
Cook revealed that thanks to the MacBook Neo, Mac has had its “best launch week” ever for new users, and this “little steel gun” laptop has made a huge contribution to attracting first-time purchasers.
However, soaring demand also brings a flip side: severely tight supply.
On some models, "selling too well" has turned from a positive factor into an actual supply pressure, especially the M4 chip version of the Mac mini.
Reports indicate that demand for the M4 Mac mini has reached "all-time highs" and is so high that consumers can barely buy it in stock.
When it comes to the Mac mini, Cook bluntly said that this is a "huge demand" that is too big for Apple to fully meet. It has been affected by supply constraints throughout the quarter, and this situation will continue in the coming months.
The key reason for the long-term shortage of Mac mini is that this small desktop computer has become the "best choice" for running local AI models and tools.
Not only are Apple’s official channels experiencing tension, but third-party dealers are also finding it difficult to stabilize supply. Many users can only turn to platforms such as eBay to purchase models that have significantly increased prices.
Supply issues also affect some Mac Studio models.
The report pointed out that some models are currently completely out of stock; a few "low-end" versions are still available for order, but the lead time may be as long as 12 weeks, while high-end versions are directly marked as "unavailable."
Overall, the performance of the Mac business in this quarter can be described as strong, not only successfully attracting a large number of new users, but also showing the effect of Apple's combination of products in all price ranges from entry to high-end.
However, in the context of the local AI wave driving up hardware demand, constraints on chip and machine production capacity are emerging, which also makes the market generally expect that the tight supply and demand situation for Mac mini and Mac Studio will be difficult to completely alleviate in the next few months.