This week, Apple introduced new Macs featuring the M5 chip, marking a shift in its pricing strategy with increased base storage across several models. For example, the MacBook Air now offers 512GB of storage as standard, accompanied by a price hike of $100. Previously, users had to pay $200 extra for this storage capacity, making the new pricing structure beneficial for those needing more storage.
Similar adjustments were noted in the 14-inch MacBook Pro, which also saw a $100 increase while upgrading to 1TB of base storage. However, the M5 Pro and M5 Max versions come with a $200 price increase despite offering the same 1TB storage, indicating that the higher cost mainly reflects the increased storage.
Apple's desktop models, including the Mac mini, iMac, and Mac Studio, have yet to receive these pricing adjustments. Anticipated changes may see the iMac's price rise from $1299 to $1399 with 512GB, while the Mac mini could go from $599 to $699. The Mac Studio is expected to increase from $1999 to at least $2199 with 1TB of storage as standard.