Can a 2020 i5 Mac Mini drive a 3440x1440 display?

[shenfrey]

I know it is supported, but I am worried with that awful GPU that even simple tasks like browsing the web, or flicking between apps, is going to feel like a laggy sluggish mess.

I will not be using this machine for gaming or editing, but I would at least like to know I am going to get 60fps when using the operating system to open and close apps, edit word documents, access mission control and full screen apps etc.

Anyone have any experience in this?

 

[Cookie18]

With enough RAM you certainly can. I use my i5 Mac mini with a 4k Display and I had problems with it on 8GB of RAM. Since upgrading the RAM to 16GB it has been buttery smooth, no issues in the slightest and I love it. The weak graphics utilise RAM to power the displays so if you have the RAM you will be fine.

 

[djc6]

There are many threads on this topic, but its hard to dig through them all for info. I have two 4K displays on my mac mini, both running at scaled resolutions. I don't experience any lag, but I also don't play games on my mac. Browsers, youtube, productivity apps, dev apps - it all works great! This is what I know:

1. If you run at native 4K resolution, you'll have the best performance - but its hard to read on anything smaller than 32" screen IMHO.
2. You can run scaled resolutions so you can read the screen - but its best to go into Accessibility options and disable transparency and reduce motion. These unnecessary macOS "effects" are very taxing on CPU when running scaled resolutions.
3. You need 16GB or more system memory. The RAM is shared with GPU, there are many forum threads with anecdotal evidence that 8GB total system RAM is laggy, 16GB or more runs best.

I ordered my system with 16GB RAM, so I can't really speak to what 8GB RAM experience is like, but there are many threads where people reported much better experience with more RAM. And I've turned off transparency/motion settings since I got it, in the Fall 2018 when these first came out that was the first thing suggested when people were trying to debug this issue.

 

[shenfrey]

Shoot I only ordered 8GB. Going to cancel my order. Even with 16 aGb I’m still a little dubious. Maybe a mini isn’t such a good idea.

 

[Madmic23]

Shoot I only ordered 8GB. Going to cancel my order. Even with 16 aGb I’m still a little dubious. Maybe a mini isn’t such a good idea.

I’m using a 2018 Mac Mini with 8GB of RAM hooked up to a 27” 4K display now and it runs fine. I was watching 4K YouTube videos and Apple TV shows with no issues.

My resolution is set to “Looks like 1080” which makes everything look super sharp and readable. If I set it to true 4K the text is way too small. I thought about setting it to one of the in between scaled resolutions, but the system warns you of performance issues, so I decided against it.

Editing a 30 second video in Adobe After Effects was super laggy (I had to run that for a quick work thing, I wouldn’t normally try that).

I think I’m going to do an after market RAM upgrade, either 16or 32GB to see if that will help out a bit. But with usual ever day browser stuff, mine is running fine with 8GB.

 

[Cookie18]

Shoot I only ordered 8GB. Going to cancel my order. Even with 16 aGb I’m still a little dubious. Maybe a mini isn’t such a good idea.

You can very easily upgrade the RAM yourself, I did it with my Mini just last week. It took me around 30 minutes and it was my first time doing it.

 

[djc6]

My resolution is set to “Looks like 1080”

This resolution is easy on the GPU since it just has to multiply each pixel 4x.. Its all the in between resolutions between 1080p and native 4K that the GPU has a lot of work to do. For me, I think 1080p is too large on my 27" monitor, but it is nice and crisp. Its a goldilocks thing - I prefer looks like 2560x1440 or looks like 3008x1692 which is where things get hard on the GPU.

 

[frou]

It doesn't duplicate a pixel 4x. Each and every pixel in the HiDPI framebuffer is a unique citizen.

What using a divides-by-2 "Looks Like" setting means is that a final step before sending the image to the display can be skipped. That step being conceptually like resizing a full-size image to be smaller before sending it by email.

e.g. a 5120x2880 pixel framebuffer (aka 2560x1440 HiDPI) isn't going to fit on a 3840x2160 pixel display, so it needs to be resized smaller just before sending it over the wire. Which is an extra piece of work the GPU has to do.

 

[shenfrey]

You can very easily upgrade the RAM yourself, I did it with my Mini just last week. It took me around 30 minutes and it was my first time doing it.

I just worry about breaking it or forgetting where things went

 

[Cookie18]

I just worry about breaking it or forgetting where things went

Look up the ifixit guide for replacing the RAM on a current Mac Mini and maybe watch a video or two to see if you’re comfortable doing it. They’re super easy to follow, if you can follow a recipe you can follow one of those guides. They’re super simple.

 

[3SQ Machine]

My Mac Mini could NOT handle 4K (i5 8gb). I didn't try to add RAM--I returned it within the 14 day period and picked up a heavily-discounted iMac instead. The RAM might do the trick, just make sure you put it through its paces during the return period. Some monitors play better than others with the Mac.

 

[Madmic23]

This resolution is easy on the GPU since it just has to multiply each pixel 4x.. Its all the in between resolutions between 1080p and native 4K that the GPU has a lot of work to do. For me, I think 1080p is too large on my 27" monitor, but it is nice and crisp. Its a goldilocks thing - I prefer looks like 2560x1440 or looks like 3008x1692 which is where things get hard on the GPU.

I almost bought a 2560x1440 monitor for that exact reason. “Looks like 1080” does feel a little big, but true 4K is too small on a 27”. A 32” might be ok.

 

[MaskedCarrot]

I am not sure about all the hate on the Intel graphics, if you are just a regular user who doesn't do video editing.

Most non gaming windows PCs and Laptops come with the same graphics chipset as the new Mini has, and I don't see a ton of windows users complaining or hating like I see on here.

If you don't do video editing or gaming, I don't see what the issue is. Maybe MacOS isn't as efficient as Windows when it comes to graphics.

Oh and as far as the monitor, I just ordered the 25" Dell UltraSharp 25 USB-C Monitor: U2520D, it won't be here until the end of the month, but I am sure the 2560x1440 will look better than my 24" 1080p Samsung I have now. And it's also on sale right now for $379.

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[Cookie18]

I am not sure about all the hate on the Intel graphics, if you are just a regular user who doesn't do video editing.

Most non gaming windows PCs and Laptops come with the same graphics chipset as the new Mini has, and I don't see a ton of windows users complaining or hating like I see on here.

If you don't do video editing or gaming, I don't see what the issue is. Maybe MacOS isn't as efficient as Windows when it comes to graphics.

Oh and as far as the monitor, I just ordered the 25" Dell UltraSharp 25 USB-C Monitor: U2520D, it won't be here until the end of the month, but I am sure the 2560x1440 will look better than my 24" 1080p Samsung I have now. And it's also on sale right now for $379.

Computer Accessories and Peripherals

Shop Dell’s high-quality computer accessories like keyboards, mice, webcams, batteries and more. Enjoy great deals and build your ideal PC setup for home or business.

www.dell.com

The integrated graphics are literally not powerful enough to smoothly run 4K displays with the standard RAM configuration. We’re not talking about people with strenuous work flows having issues, regular users who shouldn’t need dedicated graphics are having major issues.

My Mac Mini with 8GB of RAM was at times virtually unusable with nothing more than a couple of tabs and Skype being used. As soon as I added 16GB of RAM all of the problems were gone but that’s a fault with the graphics, I have never needed more than 8GB of RAM on any of my other Macs. The integrated graphics on the Mac Mini are essentially faulty.

 

[Donza]

And I've turned off transparency/motion settings since I got it, in the Fall 2018 when these first came out that was the first thing suggested when people were trying to debug this issue.

Have you tested since if the transparency/motion setting off is still needed with your 16 GB RAM? More I read about these issues more I’m convinced to wait for Mac mini with a beefier GPU (maybe they eventually get Intel Iris Pro).

 

[Cookie18]

Have you tested since if the transparency/motion setting off is still needed with your 16 GB RAM? More I read about these issues more I’m convinced to wait for Mac mini with a beefier GPU (maybe they eventually get Intel Iris Pro).

I can use any scaling mode I want with 16GB, zero issues at all. The graphics are an issue but if they just made the Mac Mini base 16GB this wouldn’t be a problem.

 

[TinHead88]

I'm using a 2018 Mac Mini with a 4k screen and it's great. I did upgrade the memory myself to 32GB and am running at full native resolution on a 43 LG monitor. As people have mentioned it's scaling that causes hiccups, and more than 8GB also really helps.

 

[shenfrey]

Thanks for the insight guys, I made the decision to cancel my purchase. Until apple decides to put some decent GPU's in their product it's hard to even think about the Mac mini. I know there is an eGPU option, but that just isn't something I want to do, both for the extra cost and also for the fact that I might as well get some kind of desktop if I am going to have something bulky sticking out of my Mac.

I might either hang on until Apple maybe improves their Mini with better GPU, maybe Iris graphics found in Air/Pro? Alternatively, it might be easier to just pick up an iMac.

 

[TinHead88]

Well, that was a bit of a silly original post then. Many people have now answered that a Mac mini most certainly can do what you described as your "needs", and now you turn around and change the goal posts.

 

[shenfrey]

Well, that was a bit of a silly original post then. Many people have now answered that a Mac mini most certainly can do what you described as your "needs", and now you turn around and change the goal posts.

At extra cost, I need to upgrade to 16GB of ram which will mean getting a pair of tools out and doing it myself. I am sure I could do it, but it's something I necessarily don't want to risk just incase it does somehow go wrong and I can't do anything to repair it/return it.

I will see if I can find an affordable 2018 16GB model on eBay, that would be a win win then.

 

[Cookie18]

At extra cost, I need to upgrade to 16GB of ram which will mean getting a pair of tools out and doing it myself. I am sure I could do it, but it's something I necessarily don't want to risk just incase it does somehow go wrong and I can't do anything to repair it/return it.

I will see if I can find an affordable 2018 16GB model on eBay, that would be a win win then.

Check the Apple refurb store for ones that have 16GB of RAM, you’d probably pay less than if you bought an 8GB one brand new. They update the stock everyday.

 

[djc6]

Have you tested since if the transparency/motion setting off is still needed with your 16 GB RAM? More I read about these issues more I’m convinced to wait for Mac mini with a beefier GPU (maybe they eventually get Intel Iris Pro).

Various things like opening/minimizing windows and moving them around are smoother with these settings off, even with 16GB - I don't notice the absence of these special effects.

 

[shenfrey]

Various things like opening/minimizing windows and moving them around are smoother with these settings off, even with 16GB - I don't notice the absence of these special effects.

So are you saying even with 16GB it’s still laggy and you actually had to disable certain effects to have the actual OS run smooth?

 

[djc6]

So are you saying even with 16GB it’s still laggy and you actually had to disable certain effects to have the actual OS run smooth?

Yes, I have 16GB RAM and turned those off. Its hard to tell what those settings did because I honestly don't notice a difference. I only have to do this when I run my 4K display at looks like 2560x1440 or looks like 3008x1692 - which OS warns you will hurt performance, but I need resolution that low for me to read it with 27" 4K display at arm's length.

If you run it at native resolution or 1080p it will perform better (there are no warnings). 1080p is opposite issue for me, too large on a 27" display.

Bottom line - everything is great w/16GB and effects turned off. I really enjoy using my mac mini. If I played games, I would get an eGPU.

 

[Boyd01]

Most non gaming windows PCs and Laptops come with the same graphics chipset as the new Mini has

I was looking at small Windows machines recently to replace my old HP desktop Windows 7 box. And I agree, many of them also have the UHD630 graphics chip. But the difference is, most had the option to upgrade to a discreet GPU at additional cost. I just wish Apple had that option.

Have been considering a maxxed-out 2018 mini, and am still on the fence as to whether the UHD 630 graphics would be good enough. I would probably get just one 32" 1440p monitor and run it at native resolution, which would give me text about the same size as the ancient 23" Apple Cinema Display I use with my 2012 quad. The UHD630 would certainly be a big upgrade from the HD4000.

Have been developing a site with webGL to display 3d terrain created from LIDAR data. This link takes about 10 seconds to open on my 2012 Mini. A friend has a Dell 6-core 3.7ghz i7 PC with 16gb RAM and the UHD630, and it only takes 5 seconds to open for him (even though my internet connection is faster). Another friend with an AMD Ryzen-7 system and Nvidia GT 1030 says it opens in 4 seconds, and his internet connection is much slower.

Hard to say how much of that is the graphics chip and how much is the CPU, I think the most time-consuming part of the code is creating the 3d mesh. Once the site opens, there are no problems manipulating it in realtime on my 2012 Mini, but the fans kick into high gear right away and Safari gives me a warning that I'm using "significant memory".

https://lidar.boydsmaps.com/#x110y055/shader/75/310/220/-95/-4/-152/39/353/-1137/56/2.5/3d

But I don't really need a faster Mini to work on this site - I want it to be compatible with older computers, so the HD4000 is a pretty good "lowest common denominator". I also work with video and CAD, and am now thinking of running my Windows GIS software on a Mac instead of replacing my old PC. So a better GPU might help with these, but I suppose that could be added externally later on, if needed.