This week, Apple introduced a range of new Mac models equipped with M5 chips, leading to an interesting trend: increased base memory, accompanied by slight price hikes. These changes have affected MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models. Currently, the M4 versions of Mac mini, Mac Studio, and iMac maintain their old pricing structures, but this is expected to change with the M5 series.
Redaksiya reports that on the M5 MacBook Air model, Apple has increased the base memory from 256 GB to 512 GB, while simultaneously raising the price by $100. This is advantageous for many users, as previously, an additional $200 was required for this amount of storage. In fact, for those who would have paid extra for 512 GB of storage, the MacBook Air has become more cost-effective. A similar price adjustment occurred on the base model of the 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M5 chip: the price increased by $100, but it now comes standard with 1 TB of storage. Although more expensive than the previous base price, this change is more favorable if you were previously paying for 1 TB of storage. For MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, the situation is slightly different. These models come standard with 1 TB of storage, but the price increase is $200. Thus, you are effectively paying for additional storage without real added value.
Apple's desktop computer line has not yet changed, but it is expected that we will see similar adjustments in future models. It is somewhat surprising that these changes have not yet been made, but they are expected to occur soon. Similar price adjustments are anticipated for the next versions of Mac mini, iMac, and Mac Studio:
iMac: $1299 → $1399 (with new standard 512 GB storage)
Mac mini: $599 → $699 (with new standard 512 GB storage)
Mac Studio: $1999 → at least $2199 (with new standard 1 TB storage)
I have no serious concerns about the price adjustment for the Mac mini and iMac. 256 GB of storage is indeed very little in 2026. If you were already paying for more storage, this change becomes more beneficial for you. On the other hand, I would not want consumers to pay a bit more upfront for 512 GB storage, use a Mac with 256 GB that runs slowly due to full storage, or have to upgrade soon because their needs change. The Mac Studio is in a slightly different situation. On the M5 Max MacBook Pro model, Apple started offering 2 TB of storage as standard, and consequently, the price of the M5 Max increased compared to the M4 Max. For this reason, the price of the next-generation Mac Studio could be even higher than $2199.