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It's a big upgrade but also a somewhat lazy first-gen product. 64GB memory is gone, 10Gb Ethernet is gone, 4 TB3 ports gone. We'll have to wait for 2021 or 2022 until Apple launches a second generation of the M1 Mac mini for it to completely replace the Intel version.

But I don't think we can complain, the fact that they already updated it now is the surprise here, and they dropped the price as well (though it's still overpriced compared to the MacBook Air in my opinion). The other issues should be fixed when it gets its first update.
 
Make me feel good about my 2018 i7 32 gb 1tb storage Mac mini please D:
My main problem with this machine is that it's noisy. I have turbo boost disabled at all times becase of this
However... No space grey is kind of a deal breaker for me.
 
They didn’t kill off the Intel one for a reason. If you really want that absurd amount of RAM then get the Intel one or wait until they update the higher end one with the higher RAM options you want. It’s probably a few months off anyways. The event today was about entry level models.
 
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Comparing this Mini with BTO i5 or i7s and 64GB of RAM is pointless. This Mini is not supposed to replace those devices, hence why Apple is still selling Intel versions as well as the high-end 13" MBP.

Yesterday's devices are entry-level, consumer devices that will be the best choice for a majority of Mac users.

People with workflows that require 64GB or more of RAM would never have bought an i3 Mini or a MBA in the first place.
 
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fwiw, I'm interested in the new Mini. I have a 2011 MBP that is still functional, but with the exception of working from home, most of my time is spent on the 12.9 iPad Pro. The Mini could be perfect for me.
 
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dingclancy23 said:
I am not sure the current intel entry level Mac mini with 32/64gb of ram can do the same thing you are describing too? Or at least not in an efficient, wonky way.

I am pretty sure the machines they replaced cannot do what you just described.

That is where the higher end Arm Macs can come in.

I think people are confused what these chips can and can’t do. we will know soon enough when people get their hands on this.
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If a users work demands 32 or 64 GB of RAM then the previous Intel Macs so equipped will outperform the new M1. A fast processor will be constrained if the memory system is constantly paging memory to and from disk. While SSDs have decreased that impact RAM remains faster. The M1 ay have more compute power than the Intel processor it replaces. It may have better battery life. It may have a faster memory interface. It does not negate the need for the appropriate amount of RAM if a tasks requires it.
 
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weaztek said:
Way more powerful than what?

I'll take my intel i5 with 40GB RAM, native apps, and an external GPU any day of the week.
Click to expand...

Fair enough. But I’d guess less than 1% of Mac Mini buyers use an external GPU. The GPU alone doubles the cost and eliminates the “mini” aspect of the machine.

The 2020 Mini should be lightyears better than the one it replaced for the majority of users. And it’s more in line with what the Mini should be - a snappy, affordable, general purpose computer that allows entry into the Mac ecosystem.

There are rumours of a new Mac Pro roughly half the size (and significantly less expensive) than the current version. A machine like that would be more suitable to users like yourself.
 
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oneMadRssn said:
I think RAM might not matter as much anymore. Look at iPhones and iPads. They consistently use less RAM than Android and PC counterparts, yet perform as well if not better. The iPad Pro has only 6GB of RAM, but the Surface Pro X has 8GB or 16GB, yet the iPad Pro beats it in most tasks and nearly all benchmarks. Maybe when it's Apple's OS running on Apple's chips, having a ton of RAM is no longer needed.
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So you say, you have open 20 tabs in web browser and on Intel Mac it will eat up - let's say 3 GB of RAM, but on the Apple Silicon just 128 MB?

Or you open up a photo for editing, and on Intel Mac it will eat 1 GB on AS only a quarter? Really?
 
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Spungoflex said:
Fair enough. But I’d guess less than 1% of Mac Mini buyers use an external GPU. The GPU alone doubles the cost and eliminates the “mini” aspect of the machine.

The 2020 Mini should be lightyears better than the one it replaced for the majority of users. And it’s more in line with what the Mini should be - a snappy, affordable, general purpose computer that allows entry into the Mac ecosystem.

There are rumours of a new Mac Pro roughly half the size (and significantly less expensive) than the current version. A machine like that would be more suitable to users like yourself.
Click to expand...
That's the key, the M1 was released today with the majority of users in mind but not the 'Pro' user. They replaced the entry-level models that are good enough for the majority of Apple users. But you have to look at what they are comparing/testing when they say 3x faster CPU, 6x faster GPU. If you go to the bottom of the product pageant read that find print. The M1 Mac mini is being compared/tested to the same model with and i3 CPU and an Intel 630 GPU. The MacBook Pro is being tested/compared to the lower-end quad-core i7 CPU and the Intel his GPU. And all the models has 2TB SSD & 16GB RAM.
Apple is still selling the Mac mini 'Pro' model of 2018/2020 and the higher-end 13-inch MBP because the M1 is not meant to be better than these 'Pro" level computers are already with Intel. Apple can put pretty colors and graphics together and say things like faster and so on. But you have to read that fine print and testing. Those shows are meant to wow your average consumer who just needs a computer to do their everyday tasks or a college student. Not the 'Pro' level video editor or photo editor. Those Apple Silicon will come later, likely towards the end. Today's Mac mini was meant to restore the entry-level version they did not release in 2018 when they took the Mac mini to the 'Pro' level.
 
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M1 Mini ...?

Needs 4 USB4 ports, not 2. Big omission.
Needs a 32gb RAM option, at least (though I'm happy enough with 16).
Maybe 2 HDMI 2.0 ports, as well.

I'll keep my 2018 i7, thank you very much.
 
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opeter said:
So you say, you have open 20 tabs in web browser and on Intel Mac it will eat up - let's say 3 GB of RAM, but on the Apple Silicon just 128 MB?

Or you open up a photo for editing, and on Intel Mac it will eat 1 GB on AS only a quarter? Really?
Click to expand...

No, not at all.

Say you have 20 tabs open, on Intel you need all 20 tabs to be loaded into RAM because switching tabs from one to another will be too slow otherwise. On Apple's chips and Apple's OS, it can load data from storage to RAM to processor so fast that you don't need all 20 tabs to be sitting in RAM to begin with.
 
oneMadRssn said:
No, not at all.

Say you have 20 tabs open, on Intel you need all 20 tabs to be loaded into RAM because switching tabs from one to another will be too slow otherwise. On Apple's chips and Apple's OS, it can load data from storage to RAM to processor so fast that you don't need all 20 tabs to be sitting in RAM to begin with.
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It this true or you are just joking?
 
oneMadRssn said:
No, not at all.

Say you have 20 tabs open, on Intel you need all 20 tabs to be loaded into RAM because switching tabs from one to another will be too slow otherwise. On Apple's chips and Apple's OS, it can load data from storage to RAM to processor so fast that you don't need all 20 tabs to be sitting in RAM to begin with.
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On what basis do you make this claim? Operating system memory management systems will page out unnecessary parts of an application to secondary storage. In this example if the memory system cannot accommodate 20 tabs pages of those 20 tabs will be paged out to secondary storage. A switch to a new tab may or may not require the memory system to recover pages from secondary storage. It depends on whether the OS paged the necessary pages out to disk. This process is independent of the processor (aside from the processor defining the page size). Conceptually the M1 processor is no different than Intel, implementation details may differ but not sufficiently so to support your statement.
 
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I'll wait for benchmarks and reviews and then decide if it's worth upgrading. Do you guys think it's reasonable to expect a more Pro mini in Spring 2021?
 
MartinBo said:
Do you guys think it's reasonable to expect a more Pro mini in Spring 2021?
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Not sure the Mini is really going to be a priority for them, upgrade in the future, of course, a more Pro model by Spring, highly unlikely. I would not even be sure if there will be a more Pro version. Honestly, at this stage I suspect the redesigned Mac Mini to be smaller, given the chassis is virtually empty now but it will still be the 'budget' headless device.

If the rumours are true of a new, smaller Mac Pro I think it more likely that will be the next step up. That actually makes sense for a number of reasons but mainly due to the CPUs that will be available going forward.
 
I love the idea that there are tons of know nothings in this thread (me included) making judgements about a product that has yet to be released.

How about just waiting to see what happens rather than making your calls now? We all know nothing about what is coming with this jump to Apple Silicon and only time will tell us what we don't know now.

The fact of the matter is: if you don't like it, that's fine, don't buy it. If you do like it, great, buy it.

The constant whining about a product that again, we know nothing about besides a few specs, is just old.
 
averagenerd81 said:
I love the idea that there are tons of know nothings in this thread (me included) making judgements about a product that has yet to be released.

How about just waiting to see what happens rather than making your calls now? We all know nothing about what is coming with this jump to Apple Silicon and only time will tell us what we don't know now.

The fact of the matter is: if you don't like it, that's fine, don't buy it. If you do like it, great, buy it.

The constant whining about a product that again, we know nothing about besides a few specs, is just old.
Click to expand...
Isn't speculation a fundamental part of a rumors site?
 
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vbctv said:
That's the key, the M1 was released today with the majority of users in mind but not the 'Pro' user. They replaced the entry-level models that are good enough for the majority of Apple users. But you have to look at what they are comparing/testing when they say 3x faster CPU, 6x faster GPU. If you go to the bottom of the product pageant read that find print. The M1 Mac mini is being compared/tested to the same model with and i3 CPU and an Intel 630 GPU. The MacBook Pro is being tested/compared to the lower-end quad-core i7 CPU and the Intel his GPU. And all the models has 2TB SSD & 16GB RAM.
Apple is still selling the Mac mini 'Pro' model of 2018/2020 and the higher-end 13-inch MBP because the M1 is not meant to be better than these 'Pro" level computers are already with Intel. Apple can put pretty colors and graphics together and say things like faster and so on. But you have to read that fine print and testing. Those shows are meant to wow your average consumer who just needs a computer to do their everyday tasks or a college student. Not the 'Pro' level video editor or photo editor. Those Apple Silicon will come later, likely towards the end. Today's Mac mini was meant to restore the entry-level version they did not release in 2018 when they took the Mac mini to the 'Pro' level.
Click to expand...

I doubt that given the benchmarks and we will see what the M1 can do next week. But these entry level Mac Mini can replace the higher end iMacs in performance, let alone the pro-level Mac Mini.

The way I see it they are still selling the intel Mac Mini for expandability and legacy but not because they are better.
 
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