Apple customer service responds to Mac mini shipment delay: Price increase will be shipped at original price

[ Gearbest Technology News]Recently, Apple's Mac mini and Mac Studio series products have experienced varying degrees of shipping delays around the world. The official website of some high-configuration models shows that the expected delivery time is as long as 4 to 5 months.

Some media called Apple's order service staff for consultation on this matter. The other party responded that the delivery time of different models will be adjusted at any time according to the order situation of factories and warehouses. It is not yet clear the specific reason for the delay in shipment of Mac mini and Mac Studio. Under normal circumstances, stocking up will take at least one to two months.

In response to the price change issue that consumers are concerned about, the customer service said: If the price of the product is reduced during the waiting period, the user can cancel the order at any time and place a new order at the new price, but the delivery time will be re-queued according to the new order; if the product price increases, Apple will still ship at the original price when the order was placed.

This price processing mechanism means that if users who have waited for a long time encounter a price reduction, they need to sacrifice their queuing progress to enjoy a lower price; if they encounter a price increase, Apple will bear the price difference.

According to the information on the official website, taking the Mac mini equipped with M4 Pro chip and 64GB memory as an example, the estimated delivery cycle is 16 to 18 weeks. There's also a delay of about a month on the base model. The situation is similar on Apple’s official US website.

Industry analysts pointed out that the main reason for this delay is the continued global shortage of memory chips. As the artificial intelligence craze has driven a surge in demand for high-performance storage, manufacturers such as Samsung and SK Hynix have shifted their production capacity towards AI memory, and the supply of consumer-grade memory has tightened. It is reported that Apple is purchasing mobile DRAM chips on the market at higher prices to ensure production.

In addition, an AI application called OpenClaw has unexpectedly become popular recently. The Mac mini equipped with an M4 chip is used by some developers and enthusiasts for local deployment due to its high cost performance, further boosting demand.