M4 vs Pro: Let's talk about cores

[m0nkeyb0y]

Here's my situation. I do almost 0 in the way of gaming, audio, photo, or video processing, AI/LLMs, etc. I don't need a massive GPU or P cores. (I do run one program several hours a day that draws on the GPU.)

BUT, my understanding is that in talking about p vs. e cores, it's not that p-cores can't do what e-cores do, just that they're much less efficient at it. So instead of me looking at the calculus of p. vs e cores for my needs, doesn't it make more sense to just think of the total core count? If that's the case, then doesn't a 12-core CPU with 16-core GPU still just a better all-around computer than a 10/10 core?

I can do a Mini Pro, 24GB Ram, 2Tb for $1619 vs a 32Gb RAM 2Tb for $1839. So, less RAM, significantly more cores of CPU/GPU and save $200, or more RAM, but less chip and pay $200 more?

 

[PeteBurgh]

I feel like you might have gone down a bit of a rabbit hole over-thinking things like core counts. I'm not sure it's helpful to try to figure out abstractly what is "just a better all-around computer" - that could be lots of things depending on how you define it. Instead, I think it helps to focus on how you actually intend to use the machine.

Are you running into a bottleneck with your current hardware? Would being able to complete a certain task faster allow you to make more money, or significantly enhance your enjoyment of computer? If yes, go for it! Or if you just enjoy the idea of having a high specced computer, go nuts! Life is for living.

For actual practical advantages however, I suspect that it's one of these things where 'if you know, you know'. That is, those that need the higher specced configurations to compile software, do renders, export video, etc know what their bottlenecks are. If you have to ask, the chances are that the practical differences between these different configurations will be marginal at best.

 

[BigBlur]

Yeah, this can definitely be a rabbit hole. It really depends on what you use your computer for. If you mostly do light work, then having one with more E-cores may be better, as then you're not hogging the P-cores from other tasks that need them. On the flip side, if you do more heavy computing, then you'd probably want one with more P-cores. This is also a bit more relevant when talking about MacBooks that run on battery power. If all you do is browse the web, email, word processing, etc., then a MacBook with more E-cores would last longer than one with less E-cores.

I'd just be honest with yourself and ask what you really need vs. what looks better on paper. Given what you said here, I feel like the M4 and 24GB of RAM ($1,439) would be sufficient for your needs and should consider that option as well. I guess if you were considering 24GB of RAM with the M4 Pro, why did you feel the need to bump the RAM to 32GB for the M4 (and/or not bump up the RAM for the M4 Pro too)?

 

[Populus]

Yeah, this can definitely be a rabbit hole. It really depends on what you use your computer for. If you mostly do light work, then having one with more E-cores may be better, as then you're not hogging the P-cores from other tasks that need them. On the flip side, if you do more heavy computing, then you'd probably want one with more P-cores. This is also a bit more relevant when talking about MacBooks that run on battery power. If all you do is browse the web, email, word processing, etc., then a MacBook with more E-cores would last longer than one with less E-cores.

I'd just be honest with yourself and ask what you really need vs. what looks better on paper. Given what you said here, I feel like the M4 and 24GB of RAM ($1,439) would be sufficient for your needs and should consider that option as well. I guess if you were considering 24GB of RAM with the M4 Pro, why did you feel the need to bump the RAM to 32GB for the M4 (and/or not bump up the RAM for the M4 Pro too)?

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I guess many of us contemplate going as far as 32GB on the cheaper M4, but refuse to pay $400/460€ extra to jump from 24GB to 48GB on the already more expensive M4 Pro.

I wanted to purchase the M4 Pro Mac mini, but seeing how I could get the M4 1TB/32GB for virtually the same price as the M4 Pro with 512GB/24GB, I m seriously considering the upgraded M4 Mac mini, even if I miss out on DisplayPort 2.1 (the regular M4 comes with DP 1.4). The HDMI seems to be 2.1 on both but I’m not sure.

All in all, I think I’ll just get the M4 mini, which is already plenty powerful.

 

[MrGimper]

I guess many of us contemplate going as far as 32GB on the cheaper M4, but refuse to pay $400/460€ extra to jump from 24GB to 48GB on the already more expensive M4 Pro.

I wanted to purchase the M4 Pro Mac mini, but seeing how I could get the M4 1TB/32GB for virtually the same price as the M4 Pro with 512GB/24GB, I m seriously considering the upgraded M4 Mac mini, even if I miss out on DisplayPort 2.1 (the regular M4 comes with DP 1.4). The HDMI seems to be 2.1 on both but I’m not sure.

All in all, I think I’ll just get the M4 mini, which is already plenty powerful.

I wanted a mini to replace my ancient 2014 iMac i7 which sits in my office. It has 32GB and 1TB SSD.

For heavy lifting I have my 16" M3 Max unbinned with 64GB and 2TB.

I ordered the M4 with upgrade to 32GB RAM and 1TB storage.

When I got that to £1400 I then started considering the M4 Pro for the same price, but then I was "Can I drop to 24GB" (yes easily I'd imagine), and "Can I drop to 512GB" (at a push, but I don't wan't to have to worry).

Both of those upgrades make me feel "safer" than having the Pro SoC. Had I bought that, then it's £1600 for 24GB/1TB and no option the 32GB RAM. That price rises too much for an "Office" computer when I have the MBP 16"

 

[Populus]

I wanted a mini to replace my ancient 2014 iMac i7 which sits in my office. It has 32GB and 1TB SSD.

For heavy lifting I have my 16" M3 Max unbinned with 64GB and 2TB.

I ordered the M4 with upgrade to 32GB RAM and 1TB storage.

When I got that to £1400 I then started considering the M4 Pro for the same price, but then I was "Can I drop to 24GB" (yes easily I'd imagine), and "Can I drop to 512GB" (at a push, but I don't wan't to have to worry).

Both of those upgrades make me feel "safer" than having the Pro SoC. Had I bought that, then it's £1600 for 24GB/1TB and no option the 32GB RAM. That price rises too much for an "Office" computer when I have the MBP 16"

Honestly, I want it to be more than an “office” computer, but honestly, I have no experience yet on video editing so, if I do something, it will probably be light-medium resource demanding.

As for the Handbrake compression/transcoding, which is the only CPU intensive task I plan to do more often, well, I guess it will just be a bit slower on the 6e/4p core CPU than on the 4e/8p core Pro CPU… but as you said, it gives me more peace of mind to get the M4 with more storage and RAM.

Unless someone tells me that Handbrake will benefit from the 16core Pro GPU vs the 10core GPU… But again, I wouldn’t like to be constrained by the 24GB of RAM

What I’ll probably do, is get the base M4 Pro with just 24GB of RAM and see how often it goes into the yellow zone. But honestly, I’d like to future-proof it a bit. If 24GB is a bit tight maybe in 4-5 years it will be short.