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Bad idea to get an intel mac mini now?
- Thread starter voodoochild16
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Unless you need to use apps that are, and only will be available on the Intel version, I see no reason not to get the M1.
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Its only for final cut pro mostly which should work I guess cus apple makes it lol thanks and your right
For personal use I’d get an M1 unless you need something that simply won’t work on it. For corporate use it’s a harder decision and depends on what OS etc is certified in your org
For your use case outlined above definitely get an M1!
For your use case outlined above definitely get an M1!
The M1 is a great machine and I think you will be thrilled with how it outperforms Intel and is silent as well.
I was using a 2014 i5 1.4 as a dedicated Zoom machine (and for reviewing documents while on Zoom calls) and it started to get laggy. I’m billable on Zoom several hours a day so I wanted to maximize productivity.
I also have a 2018 i7 with 32GB but that was overkill, so I’ll redeploy that elsewhere.
Picked up a base Mini M1 this week and it’s perfect. Fast, quiet and for $699 not a huge investment.
I also have a 2018 i7 with 32GB but that was overkill, so I’ll redeploy that elsewhere.
Picked up a base Mini M1 this week and it’s perfect. Fast, quiet and for $699 not a huge investment.
For that use case I'd definitively get the M1.
All reports indicate that FCP runs exceptionally well on the M1s.
Edit:
"You get amazing performance at a superb price point. Apple’s design towards efficient processing is certainly playing out in real-world situations. Today’s M1 Mac mini is a definite contender for general computing, design, photography, and audio. If you can stay within the Final Cut Pro and Pro Apps ecosystem - then you’ll get stunning results, even in this base model. Forget that it’s only $699, because it’s ready today if you want to do pro-level work."
https://www.fcp.co/final-cut-pro/articles/2364-apple-m1-mac-mini-review-by-oliver-peters
Apple software, Apple silicon, no question about it. Besides which, how could anyone buying an Apple computer right now resist the fascination of the new? The M1 lured me in and I didn't even need a new computer.
I’d get 16GB for FCP though for the extra $200. May not be necessary but it’s a small incremental investment.
Will echo what others have said above, get the M1 mini with 16GB Ram, it will fly with FCP X. In a number of video rendering benchmarks is quicker than the iMac Pro.
Is it a bad idea? No. Is it generally recommended? No.
As already stated, for your intended use, it's a good idea. FCP is already native for M1 and presumably optimized. Other video editing suites, they're slowly on the way.
As already stated, for your intended use, it's a good idea. FCP is already native for M1 and presumably optimized. Other video editing suites, they're slowly on the way.
Also, Rosetta 2 seems to be reliable in my experience, so even if suboptimal right now it will work.
The only way I would recommend an Intel Mini now is if you needed more than 16GB of RAM or an eGPU.
MicroCenter is selling the 2018 base I3 Mini for $399.00 (new) at the moment. Don't know how long they will last at that price.
Ed
Ed
Couldn't pay me to use an i3. No way. Don't even think about it.
i5 6-core owner. It gets warm if you put your hand close to exhaust. Not noisy. Guess they made improvents in 2020. The i7 does run hotter, no one ever said getting more work outof a core was power efficient.
I'm sure we're in-between m1 and next redesign upgrade. Maybe the new)old Mac pro "cube" will fit the bill.
I'm sure we're in-between m1 and next redesign upgrade. Maybe the new)old Mac pro "cube" will fit the bill.
I agree. In general, Rosetta 2 has shown to be an impressive transition tool. The GPU (and somewhat RAM) requirement(s) is/are something of a seesaw situation for the time being. That is, staying close to the subject of this thread, Apple has strongly optimized FCP for the M1 system. In contrast, a company such as BlackMagic (at least thus far) has an M1 native app in beta but seemingly remains to ignore some of the benefits/improvements. Specifically, DaVinci Resolve 17.1 still appears to lean strongly on traditional dedicated graphics architectures rather than Apple's AV hardware encoders/decoders and iGPU (despite it being much more capable than most competing iGPUs), which could be due to Apple's current limit on RAM size offerings -- supposedly, Resolve's minimum is 20 GB and recommended is 40 GB (VRAM included).
M1 MacBook Pro versus other Macs running DaVinci Resolve 17
real world speed test results for performance minded Macintosh users
barefeats.com
What you're really saying is that dual and quad-core CPUs are no longer sufficient?
Comparing single-core benchmarks (as the number of cores is significantly different), the 8th generation i7 in the 2018 Mac mini is ~25% better than the 8th generation i3 in the 2018 Mac mini. The 10th generation i9 in the 2020 iMac is only ~38% faster than the i3 -- by the way, the base core frequency of the i3 and i9 are the same.
Only you know what you want. If you need Intel then it’s not a bad idea to get it. If you can do without then the M1 is overall a better machine if you don’t need the extra RAM or 10gbps Ethernet.
Im on the fence as well. The new M1 makes us beta testers. I have heard the horror stories of bluetooth and WIFI issues all over the internet. Throw in the can't use boot camp with Windows 10 and a few apps not able to run properly makes for a scary situation. The Intel option has upgradeable RAM so you can save a few bucks and the hardware is battle tested. Problem is 2018 is basically 3 years of life which means 4 years of support tops for current Intel Mac minis.
Tough call. Thoughts?
Tough call. Thoughts?
It does make sense, when:
- got a lot of legacy Intel-only software (famous example - NI Massive X compatible with Intel only because of AVX).
-to keep compatibility with hardware based on drivers (I've still firewire hard drives, firewire audio interfaces, some old midi, Access Virus TI synth etc). As we know, Rosetta2 doesn't work with hardware drivers. My two firewire audio interfaces still works fine on Intel.
-VM/Windows compatibility.
- got a lot of legacy Intel-only software (famous example - NI Massive X compatible with Intel only because of AVX).
-to keep compatibility with hardware based on drivers (I've still firewire hard drives, firewire audio interfaces, some old midi, Access Virus TI synth etc). As we know, Rosetta2 doesn't work with hardware drivers. My two firewire audio interfaces still works fine on Intel.
-VM/Windows compatibility.
Check this very forum and you’ll find multiple threads about WiFi and Bluetooth issues with the Intel Mini. I know because I’ve experienced them.
It was reported that these will be fixed in an upcoming update. I have a MacBook Pro that’s intel so I may take the plunge on M1.
I'd rather grab the last and greatest Intel mac mini ever, and then in a couple years when M1 has matured a bit, pick up one of those as well.
M1 is great, but M1 Mac mini still have few disadvantage.
First: max 16GB RAM. The 2018 Intel Mac is capable to house 64GB RAM. My 2018 Core i5 Mac mini has 32GB RAM and my Hackintosh has 64GB RAM.
Second: M1 is first generation Apple chip. The whole ecosystem is still being built. Intel Mac is more mature, more natively supported software.
Third and most importantly: Alternative OS are available for Intel Mac. Windows 10, Linux or whatever. M1 Mac, not so much. Alternative OS support is curial for lots of people.