Mac mini M4 (2024): docks, stands and other accessories

[EugW]

One thing to look for is whether USB4 SSDs (same as TB4 for most practical purposes) start displacing the current crop of USB3.2 ones at comparable prices. There are a couple - but they seem to be going at a premium over 3.2, although it is tricky to compare since you need a fairly high-end SSD in there for the difference to matter. Then we've got TB5/USB4v2 which should be a huge difference for PCIe-based devices.

My point is that macOS treats USB 4 drives fundamentally differently than USB 3 drives. An NVMe SSD in a USB 4 enclosure is seen as an NVMe drive. In contrast, the same drive in a USB 3 enclosure is seen as a USB drive, and the behaviour in some situations is different, less reliable for USB 3.

 

[A_W]

I just received the Raycue 40Gb Mac mini dock with the CFExpress slot. It is the one with external power supply. It is speedy, but it has a loud fan that runs all the time, except when I shut down. Even with the fan it runs hot when it has other devices attached. I am curious if others have received this model and have the same experience?

 

[weckart]

I just received the Raycue 40Gb Mac mini dock with the CFExpress slot. It is the one with external power supply. It is speedy, but it has a loud fan that runs all the time, except when I shut down. Even with the fan it runs hot when it has other devices attached. I am curious if others have received this model and have the same experience?

I read reviews on this. I was more interested in the other 40Gbps dock. Heat seems to be a recurrent issue with their docks and customer service is non-existent. RayCue does not seem to respond to complaints or queries. The other stable gripe was that the sound port at the back stopped working after a few days. It put me off them but other docks also seem to have similar issues. The form factor does not lend itself to adequate cooling for internal NVMe drives, making the docks a toasty beer mat for the Mac Mini's air intake to sit on.