I’m thinking about buying a Mac Studio, but I can’t wait until next year for the M4 because my current computer gets super loud whenever I open VMware. So, I’m considering the Mac Mini M4 Pro base model instead, though I’m not sure if the specs would be enough for what I need. I use Photoshop for heavy retouching and VMware for Kali Linux with pentesting. I don’t run multiple VMs—just one. Photoshop and VMware never run together since one is for work and the other’s a hobby. I don’t do gaming or video editing, so I’m wondering if the Mac Mini will get the fan going loud with what I plan to use it for. I’ve seen that fan noise is a big concern for current users and prospective buyers, so I’d appreciate any advice
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Mac Mini M4 Pro: Enough for Photoshop & VMware?
- Thread starter MacSoljah
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Cannot speak for VMware, but as a design professional, I've had the base Mac Mini M4 Pro for a week now, used most of Creative Suite all week and have never heard the fans once. CS is snappy and loads a lot faster than my i7 Mac mini which this replaced - sounds like you are not running PS an VMs at the same time, so you should be fine with this machine.
Before my new mac mini M4 Pro I used the base mac mini M2 and had no problems using Photoshop and the beta with the AI tools. M4 Pro will breeze through photoshop for most (unless yer weird and have hundreds of photos or more open at once) ;p ... no idea about vmware, most likely no problem but depends on how many vm's you run at once.
I've never had VMs running make the fan come on with my M1 Pro or M4 Max 14" machines using them for "general stuff".
I believe you'll be fine with the Mini; it probably has better cooling than the MacBooks.