2018 Mini CPU Fiasco

[tehStickMan]

Let me give you a brief history if you're unawares.

In 2012, Mac mini was beloved. There were two notable models:

Base model - i5 CPU - dual-core, with four logical threads due to HyperThreading.
Server model - i7 CPU - quad-core, with 8 threads due to HT.


[HyperThreading, in heavily threaded tasks which don't max out the cores, provide roughly 40-50% of the benefit of a real core.]


Now, the 2018 Mini. "Base model comes with quad-core CPU". THE CROWDS GO WILD. ... But hold on one second, lets check it out.


Base model - i3 quad-core
Intel® Core™ i3-8100 Processor

HALLOWEEN SURPRISE boys & girls! HyperThreading on new Intel chips is rare! Base model is now a quad-core, 4-thread chip (HT not available).

Mid-tier i5 upgrade:
Intel® Core™ i5-8500B Processor
6-core, 6-thread chip

Top end i7:
Intel® Core™ i7-8700B Processor
THIS is where the party begins. This is a full-fledged, six-core 12-thread monster. Comes at a price though.


But StickMan like surely the base model 2018 trounces the server edition quad core beast from 2012!

Geekbench scores
2012 4C8T: Single core - 3750. Multicore - 12700
2018 4C4T: Single core - 4379. Multicore - 12524

Can I get a B-A-R-E-L-Y?



tl;dr don't believe the marketing, check for yourself. If you were expecting a typical 4-core chip with HyperThreading, you're mistaken.

 

[twennywonn]

So your point is the lowest end 2018 i3 CPU is only a little bit faster than the 2012 high-end i7 CPU?

https://cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-Core-i7-3615QM-vs-Intel-Core-i3-8100/m806vs3942

Also, you know how I know the i3 and i5 don't have hyperthreading? No one said it did nor do the specs say it has it.

I shouldn't be feeding you...

 

[Hater]

So what you're saying is that if you're only doing basic tasks (the reason you buy a base mini), the top tier 2012 model will more than suffice.

Everyone already knows that. People still do basic stuff with C2D Minis.

 

[drew keys]

I'm still using a 2012 quad core with 16gb of RAM to run a recording studio, with zero issues.

 

[tehStickMan]

Also, you know how I know the i3 and i5 don't have hyperthreading? No one said it did nor do the specs say it has it.

MBP models have HT and yet it's not mentioned on Apple website specs anywhere. Same with iMacs.



And yeah what I'm saying is that a "quad core" from 2018 barely matches (but beats in single) a "quad core" from 2012. Since Apple marketing is good and their specs give zero info, this is important for users to know.

 

[Miat]

But StickMan like surely the base model 2018 trounces the server edition quad core beast from 2012!

Geekbench scores
2012 4C8T: Single core - 3750. Multicore - 12700
2018 4C4T: Single core - 4379. Multicore - 12524

Can I get a B-A-R-E-L-Y?

1. Not sure where you got that 2012 multi-core number from. When I look at the Geekbench aggregate multi-core score for the previous top rating Mini (2.6GHz, quad i7 2012), it is 11479.

Furthermore, that is the full machine figure, not the processor only figure (which is 10520), which is the relevant comparison for now, until we get results for the full 2018 i3 machine.

2. Even if it is B-A-R-E-L-Y, the 2018 base i3 non-hyperthreading Mini is still directly competitive with the previous most powerful Mini ever, the 2.6GHz i7 hyperthreading. And the 2018 i3 has updated iGPU, etc. How is that a bad thing?

Also see edit to my previous comment on another thread.

 

[archer75]

B processors are mobile. The mini CPU's are not mobile processors.

 

[now i see it]

Those who are unaware of this don't care. And those who read specs will get the CPU they want/need.

 

[StellarVixen]

B processors are mobile. The mini CPU's are not mobile processors.

B processors are just BGA versions of the same desktop processors. There is no difference between i-8700 and i7-8700B other than one is LGA and other is BGA.

 

[archer75]

B processors are just BGA versions of the same desktop processors. There is no difference between i-8700 and i7-8700B other than one is LGA and other is BGA.

On intel's site they list the B version as Mobile. And the 8700 non B as desktop. So i'm going by what Intel said.

 

[pl1984]

If your goal is to run Geekbench scores then your comparison may have some merit. If your goal is to do work then there are many other factors to consider than just Geekbench scores.

I really wish people would stop using Geekbench as any form of valid measure of a systems capability.

 

[StellarVixen]

On intel's site they list the B version as Mobile. And the 8700 non B as desktop. So i'm going by what Intel said.

Labeled mobile only because it is BGA.

 

[thisismyusername]

If you were expecting a typical 4-core chip with HyperThreading, you're mistaken.

Those who know what HyperThreading means and if they need it (i.e. a very small percentage of people who will be buying a mini) will not be mistaken. Not sure why you're making a big deal out of this. I'd never assume an i3 or even an i5 has HT because it's something very few have a need for.

 

[Mr. Retrofire]

All tasks which require 100 % of all CPU resources run much faster on the newer processors, because they generate less heat (better architecture) and finish tasks faster than previous processors. Hyperthreading (HT) is not useful if you compress / encode data for example. It can improve speeds up to 30 percent, as tests show, but that isn't really an improvement, if you compare a quad core vs. a hexa core processor, which has 2 additional real cores. Turbo Boost speed for the quad core and hexa core CPUs and the active and passive cooling is much more important than HT, IMHO.

 

[cornerexit]

No fiasco to me. I'm typing and running on a quad core mini now where I upgraded myself to SSD and 16gb (Crucial on both). When this thing is no longer supported or can't run the latest OS (I just put Mojave on it last night) I'll upgrade to this new 6 core, lowest storage (256gb) option and upgrade the RAM myself to either 32gb or 64gb (when price comes down on RAM). $1099 for this model is fine. I don't see any fiasco or anything but good news that Apple continued to the mini line and updated it. Thank God they made it where we can update the RAM ourselves. Big savings and will last many years. Being able to push a 5k or multiple 4k displays is all I could ask for.

 

[mathpunk]

Base model - i3 quad-core
Intel® Core™ i3-8100 Processor

I don't believe that the i3 quad-core processor in the new Mac Mini is the i3-8100 above. That processor uses DDR4-2400 memory rather than DDR4-2666. Apple sometimes uses custom Intel processors that are variants of the "off-the-shelf" processors listed on ark.intel.com. My guess would be that they are using an overclocked desktop version of the i3-8100H.