What a surprise. Who would have thought Apple would have released it in January, right. I got the base model since you can always increase storage with an external nvme drive. Not concerned about the ram of 8gb. I think the M2 will make up for that. Apple confirmed my order and that it will be here on the 24th. I will keep you all updated on how it runs. Right now, I have an M1 MM, running 16 gb and 2 TB SSD. Very very very fast, buy I quickly realized that I could have done without such a large drive used an external instead or a hub that has an ssd and an nvme drive (like a qwiizlab one ) https://qwiizlab.net/products/usb-c-hub-with-sdd-hdd-enclosure
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ordered my M2 Mac mini today
- Thread starter DonCarlos
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I'm just curious, are you replacing your M1 with the M2? It doesn't seem like much of an upgrade or at least not one worth spending money for. Don't get me wrong, I'm thinking about buying the M2 mini but I don't have the M1.
Don't know what their needs are, but I feel that it would be a huge change to drop from 16gb to 8gb and the base doesn't have much SSD space (and perhaps a much slower SSD if we have the past to go on), so I couldn't imagine migrating what I might have on a 2TB to that. Maybe it's not to replace the M1?
Looking forward to the refresh. Looking forward to the reviews, teardowns and experiences, before I make the plunge.
Had the 2009 server, 2012 and 2018 minis.
Had the 2009 server, 2012 and 2018 minis.
I agree with you. I have a M1 16/512 mini now, and I’d really LIKE to get a M2 Pro 32/512 to replace it. But I won’t, because (a) I really don’t need it, and (b) that’s getting into the price of a Studio, so I should wait for the next Studio upgrades if I really wanted more power.
Valid question...........I will keep the M1 regardless of how the basic M2 performs. The M1 is my personal powerhouse and its TM is on an external 2 TB nvme.
The price drop for a basic M2 was too much to pass up. I will just keep it in a different room and/or set it up for the grandson (he's been using a Mac since he was 4; he's now 8).
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So basically a second computer. I will be interested to see to hear how it compares to the 16 GB/2 TB M1. Some people act like you can't open more than one tab in Safari with 8 GB of RAM. It's always nice to hear real world comparisons with real usage.
I'm kinda wanting the mini M2 Pro... The config I want is just over $2000, so that makes for an expensive mini, but would be so nice.
Trouble is, I don't really need it. I've got a 14" MBP M1 Pro that is mostly acting as a desktop anyway and it's more than fast enough.
Apple puts out too much fun stuff 🙃
Trouble is, I don't really need it. I've got a 14" MBP M1 Pro that is mostly acting as a desktop anyway and it's more than fast enough.
Apple puts out too much fun stuff 🙃
Lol. In my case, I just buy too much stuff
.....I do miss the days when you would use teeny tiny tools to upgrade the minis and when you peel open the iMac to add stuff inside. Back in those days used to yap on here much much more.........anyone remember the now deceased forum 123macmini; but I digress as old men do.Been posting here since 2009.
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'm just curious, are you replacing your M1 with the M2
I will post a follow up here okay
I upgraded my 2012 mini before I powered it up in 2014 the 2014 model was disappointing. My hands aren’t what they used to be so got a bto in 2018. Was hoping for better eGPU support in 2018. Thankfully that saved me tons of money.Lol. In my case, I just buy too much stuff
Been posting here since 2009.
Please do, report back your findings. I’m looking at a base/base/base model m2 as well. It will be my first desktop Mac since the LC series.
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I feel and am in 100% the same situation. Sounds like you spec'd out the same config as I did, and you did it from the same model of computer I have. Lol.
It just sucks because if they had released this last year, I would have gotten that Mac mini instead of this laptop. But life is good and I can't complain at all about what I already have.
Upgrading from an iMac (Retina 4K, 21.5-inch, Late 2015, 3.1 GHz i5) to a M2 Pro Mac mini with the 1TB storage option (delivery 6. Feb) and an Apple Studio Display. Last week I had ordered a refurbished M1 Mac mini (to be delivered today) that I will be returning for a refund. Looking forward to many years with this Mac mini.
I would really love to use a new m2 pro Mac mini but I think it's just too expensive for what I get. I bought an iMac 27" 2020 when it was discontinued last year for 1200€ (+80€ for 32GB RAM). Now I would have to pay for 2000€ for 32GB m2 pro Mac mini + 1750€ for a Studio Display.
If I had a ”M1 MM, running 16 gb and 2 TB SSD” I would never buy the new base model, I believe that is a downgrade, all in all.
I've got a M1 16/2tb , doubt I'd see much difference in real world in my usage
Tbh I'm leaning towards a studio now rather than the new mini , much more versatile for about the same money
Tbh I'm leaning towards a studio now rather than the new mini , much more versatile for about the same money
I had a 2018 Mini with an eGPU. It wasn’t even primarily for gaming… on my 4K monitor, I had to use the eGPU just to keep Logic Pro running smoothly. I don’t know why that app’s interface would be so GPU-dependent, but the integrated HD4000 just choked at 4K and caused audio dropouts just by resizing the window. With the eGPU running, no issues.
I sold that one and replaced with an M1 version which has been phenomenal, though it’s pretty easy to run out of memory (16GB) with a few sample libraries loaded.
I think you're confusing your Mini's... the 2012 Mini had the HD4000, the 2018 Mini has the UHD630. I have a 2018 Mini with no eGPU and have never seen any problems in Logic Pro. But I have 64gb RAM and only one 32" 2560x1440 screen, so perhaps that's the difference?
There's a massive difference in rendering 2560x1440 and 3840x2160. It's a 225% increase in pixels, so I wouldn't be surprised.
Yeah, after its release, there was a lot of discussion about the 2018 Mini struggling when using scaled resolutions on 4k screens. I believe it was OK if you chose "looks like 1920x1080" but that seems like a waste on a 4k screen, especially if it's a big one. I'll bet that running at native 3840x2160 on a 4k screen would be ok - I almost got a 40"+ screen to do that, still might do it one day. I suspect the number of pixels isn't the problem, it's scaling the image to something that isn't divisible by 2.
So, if you have a 4k screen and use a scaled 2560x1440 resolution, for example, that could be a problem with the UHD630. And that's why I got a big QHD screen that I could just run at native resolution and not tax the GPU. Two and a half years later, I am still really happy with my setup.
So, if you have a 4k screen and use a scaled 2560x1440 resolution, for example, that could be a problem with the UHD630. And that's why I got a big QHD screen that I could just run at native resolution and not tax the GPU. Two and a half years later, I am still really happy with my setup.
256GB is a bold choice as I'd bet you it's the same semi-crippled SSDs we got for the 256GB configurations of the M2 Air and 13" Pro.
I'm especially sure of this since the 256/8 M2 mini is $599 while the M1 256/8 with non-semi-crippled SSD launched at $699.
Depending on just how much slower the 256GB SSDs are for the baseline M2 mini, you might get the same overall performance from a 256/8 M1 mini but at a lower price(you already own one, I know).
I'd definitely make sure you can return it and then wait for the reviews.
You're right, it was the UHD630.
Also, I didn't originally have problems on my QHD monitor (2560x1440). But when I upgraded to my 32" screen (3840x2160) that put it over the edge.
Using the integrated GPU, some graphics-heavy plugins were completely unusable, like Moog Animoog-Z, unless I had the audio buffer set to maximum. When I hooked my eGPU back up, it was smooth... but also noisy which is why I was trying to go without the eGPU.
Mac mini M1 has no problems at all and it's dead silent. But I do still have my eGPU with RX580 sitting on a shelf (and nothing that works with it!)