I have heard of old MacBooks that still run great after 10+ years and was wondering if I should expect that from my Mac Mini?
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How long should my M4 Mac mini be good for?
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I think it depends on what you’re doing. 5 years is a given but past that it depends.
The biggest question is how long will it last for you and only you can answer that. How old is the computer that you use now? If this M4 is replacing an M2, then the answer is it’s going to last two years. There’s all kinds of possible scenarios where you can keep something running for a decade, but that may not be what you do.
This is my first Mac, I got it mid December, and I average about 30-50 minutes a day on it
They last forever. Desktops do not have the battery wear issue. I have a TiBook from 2001 that would still be ok for productivity work. My Mac Pro Classic runs Sequoia using OCLP, but it is a power hog that heats the room.
The biggest issue is macOS update support. You should get updates/security updates for 3+ years.
The biggest issue is macOS update support. You should get updates/security updates for 3+ years.
I think it could easily last 5 years but if you’re just doing light stuff closer to 10. I don’t think that’s going to be how long you’ll keep it though. Most people have a life cycle with a product and that isn’t always tied to the actual capability of the product. It’s like you can keep the same car for your entire life, but most people don’t do that. Most people want new features or something different. In five years, there’s going to be a new shiny Mac that has some capability or spec that yours doesn’t have.
Generally, you’ll get OS updates for at least eight years after purchase. I don’t expect it would be different in this case. With AI coming out an older Mac might get updates but not necessarily all new features
If it is any indication, my early 2009 Mac Mini was still chugging along after more than 12 years of being on mostly 24/7, still with the original HDD. The only times I shut it down was when required for an OS or app update, I wanted to move it, or I was going to be away for more than a week. However, by 2021 it was getting a bit slow, and outdated for some of my needs, and the HDD was getting full, so I decided it was time for an upgrade to the M1 model (with a 1 TB SSD)..... which I expect to be good until 2031 or so.
More or less all minis I had were replaced since I wanted better/faster/newer machine, not because they would not do lighter stuff easily. So it all depends on what you ask from it anytime between now and 15+ years from now. And that is impossible to gauge. And if you insist on having the latest macOS version on it, as Apple typically supports macOS on hardware for 5-8 or so years.
It is not amount of time you spend on it, it is how hard you are driving the cpu/gpu and how impatient you are to wait for apps to deliver.
It is not amount of time you spend on it, it is how hard you are driving the cpu/gpu and how impatient you are to wait for apps to deliver.