Tech stock Apple (AAPL) has a history of pushing the envelope on product design. But one product has not had the benefit of a redesign in nearly 15 years: the Mac Mini. That has changed, though, which—along with plenty of other product news—gave Apple shares a fractional boost in Tuesday afternoon’s trading.
The Mac Mini has not been redesigned since 2010, noted a CNBC report, so seeing it get such a redesign was probably overdue. Apple’s smaller version of its desktop lineup, the new Mac Mini, is even lighter and smaller than it was previously. And, of course, it had a little extra horsepower added under its hood. Now, the Mac Mini boasts an M4 processor, or in some cases, an M4 Pro, the even more powerful version.
Running just $599, it was originally designed as a way to win business away from longtime Windows platform users. With the Mac Mini, all users really needed to do was plug in a keyboard and an external display—external display not included—and off they went. It turns out these were particularly popular with iPhone app developers, which gave Apple something of a market.
AirPods for Everyone?
We know that Apple’s AirPods Pro are serving a new and largely unexpected function as hearing aids, ever since the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) signed off on the use case a while back. But a new report from Engadget suggests that this move could have an unexpected collateral effect: people wearing earbuds everywhere.
Since the hearing aid function is now “clinically validated,” the Engadget report suggests that Apple AirPods could suddenly become even more in vogue than they are now. And not just as devices for a phone or a music player, but rather as everyday tools to help with hearing.
Is Apple a Buy, Hold, or Sell?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on AAPL stock based on 23 Buys, eight Holds, and two Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 38.15% rally in its share price over the past year, the average AAPL price target of $247.32 per share implies 5.74% upside potential.
