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2012 Mini died 😢 — stick with 2018 i3 or upgrade to M4 (or consider M2)?

surfnode

surfnode

macrumors regular
Original poster
Hi all,

Bit of a sad day—my trusty Mid 2012 Mac mini (quad-core i7, 16GB RAM) suddenly powered off (during basic web browsing) and won’t come back to life. Looks like it’s finally given up after a solid 12+ years.

I do have a spare 2018 Mac mini (i3, currently with 30GB RAM installed), but I’ve always found it a bit underwhelming compared to what I expected—even though on paper it should outperform the 2012.

I’m now debating what to do next:
  • Stick with the 2018 i3 (already owned, 30GB RAM)
  • Sell it (~£250–£300?) and put that + £100 savings towards a base M4 Mac mini (~£495 refurb)
  • Or consider an M2 Mac mini if I can find a decent deal
Usage:
  • General daily use (web, Office, etc.)
  • Some light dev / tinkering
  • Photoshop
  • Logic Pro
  • Occasional media/server-type tasks
  • I tend to keep machines for a long time (as the 2012 proves…)
Main concerns:
  • Should I try replacing the PSU in my 2012 Mini first?
  • Is the M2 worth considering at all now, or better to go straight to M4 for longevity?
Would really appreciate any advice—especially from anyone who’s been in the same or similar situation!

Thanks!
 
If you know it is the PSU there are businesses that service PSU's. I would send Louis Rossman an email, he has a YT channel. His guys can either fix it for you since they do component level repairs or they could suggest a repair partner.

I would keep it because it can also run Linux. The same for the 2018 Mini. I still have my 2012 Mini and it is on the latest version of Ubuntu and I will switch my 2018 Mini to Ubuntu as well when it is no longer supported by Apple.
 
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Just for longevity of support the M4 has to be the one to get but I'd wait a few days to make sure there's no M5 model coming imminently thanks to the 50th anniversary. All signs point to an imminent refresh of M4 to M5 Macs mainly due to launch of the MacBook Neo whose single core benchmarks rival the M4.

Even without the extra long support a refurb M4 should have better specs than an M2 and comes with 16Gb of RAM whereas for an M2 model you have to go looking for 16Gb models which cost extra. The 'new' form factor of the M4 should also have more support from accessory makers if you think you're going to build on it.

Personally, it's my theory that the M5 refresh - if it comes soon - might have more storage for minimal extra money if that would help. The example here is the MacBook Pro M5 models which saw a 100 USD increase for a doubling of the base SSD from 512Gb to 1Tb.
 
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Heat_Fan89 said:
If you know it is the PSU there are businesses that service PSU's. I would send Louis Rossman an email, he has a YT channel. His guys can either fix it for you since they do component level repairs or they could suggest a repair partner.

I would keep it because it can also run Linux. The same for the 2018 Mini. I still have my 2012 Mini and it is on the latest version of Ubuntu and I will switch my 2018 Mini to Ubuntu as well when it is no longer supported by Apple.
Click to expand...
You can not install linux on the 2018 due to the t2 chip.
 
Heat_Fan89 said:
If you know it is the PSU there are businesses that service PSU's. I would send Louis Rossman an email, he has a YT channel. His guys can either fix it for you since they do component level repairs or they could suggest a repair partner.

I would keep it because it can also run Linux. The same for the 2018 Mini. I still have my 2012 Mini and it is on the latest version of Ubuntu and I will switch my 2018 Mini to Ubuntu as well when it is no longer supported by Apple.
Click to expand...
2018 is almost 8 years old. It should no longer be supported. 7 years is the limit.
 
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It has been my experience that Apple provides OS upgrades for 6-7 years from when a model is first introduced.

2010 Mac Mini released in 2010 - last OS upgrade to High Sierra in 2017 - 7 years
2018 Mac mini released in 2018 - last OS upgrade to Sequoia in 2024 - 6 years
2018 iPad Pro 11" released in 2018 - last OS upgrade to iPadOS26 in 2025 - 7 years

There will always be exceptions to the 5-7 years for OS upgrades and they will usually get security updates for 2-3 after that.

As others have said, yes you can run Linux on a 2018 Mac with the T2 chip. Just make sure that the Distro you choose will work with the T2 chip and follow all install instructions.
 
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I've had a 2012 Mini, a 2018 Mini, and now I use a 2024 m4 Mini.

DON'T BUY a 2018 at this point, unless you are REALLY committed to older software, especially 32-bit software that will never run on Apple Silicon. I still have my 2018 Mini on the back table, running Mojave so it can still run 32-bit apps.

DO BUY an m4 Mini.
It's "the future".
All the older ones are "the past".

I would STRONGLY suggest that you buy "more than the base model".
It's not going to be "enough" in the coming years, particularly if you intend to keep it for a long time (as you've done with the 2012). Four years from now, the base model m4 Minis out there will be "struggling" to keep up.

You need AT LEAST 24gb of RAM.
32gb will be better.

You need AT LEAST a 512gb SSD.
1tb will be better.

If you're planning on buying "for 8-10 years of use", then nothing less than 32gb and 1tb.

If you can buy Apple-refurbished where you are (from the online store), do that.
I did so for my last 2 purchases, did very well.

BE AWARE that there's an m5 Mini coming.
Not sure when it will get here.
Perhaps sometime between the WWDC (June) and October...
 
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Fishrrman said:
I've had a 2012 Mini, a 2018 Mini, and now I use a 2024 m4 Mini.

DON'T BUY a 2018 at this point, unless you are REALLY committed to older software, especially 32-bit software that will never run on Apple Silicon. I still have my 2018 Mini on the back table, running Mojave so it can still run 32-bit apps.

DO BUY an m4 Mini.
It's "the future".
All the older ones are "the past".

I would STRONGLY suggest that you buy "more than the base model".
It's not going to be "enough" in the coming years, particularly if you intend to keep it for a long time (as you've done with the 2012). Four years from now, the base model m4 Minis out there will be "struggling" to keep up.

You need AT LEAST 24gb of RAM.
32gb will be better.

You need AT LEAST a 512gb SSD.
1tb will be better.

If you're planning on buying "for 8-10 years of use", then nothing less than 32gb and 1tb.

If you can buy Apple-refurbished where you are (from the online store), do that.
I did so for my last 2 purchases, did very well.

BE AWARE that there's an m5 Mini coming.
Not sure when it will get here.
Perhaps sometime between the WWDC (June) and October...
Click to expand...
It depends on what the user plans to do with it. I got along just fine with an M2 Mini with 8GB of RAM and that was right around the time where the debate was, whether 8GB of RAM was enough. I sold it to Apple just when they bumped the RAM to 16GB and the trade in value had not reflected that. If a person is a casual user then 16GB should be just fine. I always buy the base model Mini as I tend to cry less when it is no longer supported.

And don't forget, in the coming years, there will be even faster models on offer. My advice is, buy what you intend to do with the computer at the moment rather than what the future looks like.
 
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It makes no sense to buy a 2018 in 2026. Definitely keep the working Mini going and consider OCLP for a newer macOS if you haven't already and do look into fixing the 2012, but it's not worth a lot.

Value-wise the M4 (and upcoming) M5 destroy the old Intel chips for performance. Economically, just go straight to the M4, the M1 to M3 aren't discounted enough to go for them, generally.

Any Intel Mac is a dead end... it's fine for specific hobbies but it has no future at all. If you're just going to install Linux or something else on it, don't bother with a Mac, get a PC instead.
 
Hey, Surfnode –

Cheers; I bought a 2012 Mac mini a few years ago, and it's still puttering away as a server and side-project machine.

None of the three options sounds bad. The upgrade from Intel to Apple Silicon feels like a major upgrade no matter the source and destinations model; beyond that, the Intel models are all rather like each other, and the Apple Silicon models are all rather like each other. (The difference between the M2 and M4, for example, is existent but probably not something you could identify if you didn't know which you were using.) My main M1 Mac mini still feels great for audio, video, and more. The main thing that tempts me to the M4 Mac mini is the hardware itself; the prospect of having all USB-C-style ports, et cetera.
 
If you want to take a punt on the psu, a replacement is fairly cheap on eBay these days. Taking the Mini apart isn't rocket science either. It could probably do with a dusting inside and a repasting if you can get it up and running.

I use a 2012 as a lounge browsing machine - basically a communication device with online friends of a morning. It's more than adequate for that. If you want to upgrade, the M4 Mini base model is absolutely fine. Just use a dock for added storage, although the window for doing that affordably is rapidly closing. Given what has happened to RAM recently, I wouldn't get too worked up about future proofing. Apple just brought out an 8GB notebook and is committed to making sure that works for the next few years, at least until the chip market is projected to recover to something like it was last year. That won't be for sometime yet and I would hope that developers are going to reign in their ambitions with regard to RAM usage for the foreseeable future.
 
surfnode said:
Hi all,

Bit of a sad day—my trusty Mid 2012 Mac mini (quad-core i7, 16GB RAM) suddenly powered off (during basic web browsing) and won’t come back to life. Looks like it’s finally given up after a solid 12+ years.

I do have a spare 2018 Mac mini (i3, currently with 30GB RAM installed), but I’ve always found it a bit underwhelming compared to what I expected—even though on paper it should outperform the 2012.

I’m now debating what to do next:
  • Stick with the 2018 i3 (already owned, 30GB RAM)
  • Sell it (~£250–£300?) and put that + £100 savings towards a base M4 Mac mini (~£495 refurb)
  • Or consider an M2 Mac mini if I can find a decent deal
Usage:
  • General daily use (web, Office, etc.)
  • Some light dev / tinkering
  • Photoshop
  • Logic Pro
  • Occasional media/server-type tasks
  • I tend to keep machines for a long time (as the 2012 proves…)
Main concerns:
  • Should I try replacing the PSU in my 2012 Mini first?
  • Is the M2 worth considering at all now, or better to go straight to M4 for longevity?
Would really appreciate any advice—especially from anyone who’s been in the same or similar situation!

Thanks!
Click to expand...
M2 is fine versus M4, but you should not waste effort on Intel Macs. What you need is RAM for PS and longevity. However some future AI related activity that you do not yet know what you may need could suggest a shorter life cycle.

All that said, IMO an M2 with 32 GB RAM or more is probably about optimal value for you.
 
Heat_Fan89 said:
It depends on what the user plans to do with it. I got along just fine with an M2 Mini with 8GB of RAM and that was right around the time where the debate was, whether 8GB of RAM was enough. I sold it to Apple just when they bumped the RAM to 16GB and the trade in value had not reflected that. If a person is a casual user then 16GB should be just fine. I always buy the base model Mini as I tend to cry less when it is no longer supported.

And don't forget, in the coming years, there will be even faster models on offer. My advice is, buy what you intend to do with the computer at the moment rather than what the future looks like.
Click to expand...
The OP included Photoshop in the list of apps. Your success running Office apps or whatever under 8 GB RAM is not relevant. Anyone working with images should not consider that "16GB should be just fine" when configuring a 2026 Mac.

Also note that I strongly disagree with your advice to "buy what you intend to do with the computer at the moment rather than what the future looks like." That is nuts, because one only uses a computer in the future. By the time you open the box, "at the moment" has already passed. This is tech, so apps and OS are constantly evolving. And RAM demands have increased every year since the 128k Macs.
 
Allen_Wentz said:
The OP included Photoshop in the list of apps. Your success running Office apps or whatever under 8 GB RAM is not relevant. Anyone working with images should not consider that "16GB should be just fine" when configuring a 2026 Mac.

Also note that I strongly disagree with your advice to "buy what you intend to do with the computer at the moment rather than what the future looks like." That is nuts, because one only uses a computer in the future. By the time you open the box, "at the moment" has already passed. This is tech, so apps and OS are constantly evolving. And RAM demands have increased every year since the 128k Macs.
Click to expand...
Odd that Dan posted his review of the MacBook Neo with 8GB of RAM, running multiple tabs in Chrome, Safari, Spotify and FCP and he says 8GB was fine and the Neo handled it surprisingly well. It's not my money but 16GB should be fine.

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