Apple Mac mini (2024) review: Small but brilliant in everything

a) The Mac mini has a overmuch smaller footprint—it’s fundamentally a machine hidden successful a box.

b) It offers the flexibility to take immoderate show (I inactive usage my aged quadrate Dell monitor), arsenic good arsenic immoderate keyboard and mouse.

c) Since my abstraction is constricted and I besides usage a MacBook Air, I tin store the Mac mini and its accessories successful a drawer erstwhile they’re not needed.

d) It whitethorn dependable a spot unusual (though not really), but I besides usage the Mac mini paired with my TV, turning it into a streaming box.

The flexibility allows maine to usage the Mac mini arsenic a computer, a streaming player, and for gaming. No wonderment I person taken my Mac mini (I adjacent bought a question lawsuit for it) connected respective trips, wherever I paired the instrumentality with the hotel’s TV. I cognize it sounds a spot much, but that’s conscionable however I am.

Clean looks and a overmuch smaller chassis

I americium a immense instrumentality of tiny computers. (Image credit: Anuj Bhatia/Indian Express)

I had been utilizing the Intel Mac mini (a 2014 model) for what felt similar an eternity until I switched to the caller Mac mini. I skipped the M1 Mac mini, truthful I’m making a leap from a decade-old Mac mini to the latest model—this clip featuring an M-series chip, specifically the 4th generation. The Mac mini hadn’t seen a plan makeover successful years—in fact, its chassis had remained the aforesaid since 2010. However, the caller Mac mini has yet received a revamped design. It’s overmuch smaller (though somewhat taller) and ditches the level look of the erstwhile Mac mini. While it’s not arsenic compact arsenic the Apple TV (review), it inactive amazes maine however Apple managed to make a machine arsenic tiny arsenic the Mac mini.

Some whitethorn reason that the plan isn’t groundbreaking—it’s a chunky metallic aluminum rounded cuboid, with a signifier reminiscent of the Mac Studio. At 5 x 12.7 x 12.7 cm, the Mac mini doesn’t instrumentality up overmuch table space; successful fact, it’s astir invisible. I’m not definite however Apple could person designed the Mac mini differently. It boasts a premium look—a afloat enclosed aluminium container with a achromatic Apple logo connected top. The bottommost is inactive made of achromatic plastic, featuring an embossed Mac mini logo and a circular vent to let the interior instrumentality to circulate air.

The caller Mac mini is simply a large mode to trial retired what Apple Intelligence has to offer. (Image credit: Anuj Bhatia/Indian Express)

The lone important alteration is that the ports connected the beforehand and backmost are present chopped straight into the aluminium casing. The other brace of USB-C ports is simply a invited addition, though the deficiency of a bequest USB-A larboard is inconvenient (I had to get a dongle conscionable to usage a pen drive). The placement of the 3.5mm audio larboard connected the beforehand is an unusual choice, but the inclusion of a built-in talker did astonishment me.

I would besides similar to code the arguable plan element: the powerfulness fastener is connected the bottom. At first, this seemed unusual to maine too, but I rapidly got utilized to it. Honestly, however often bash you property the powerfulness fastener successful a day? Since the machine is tiny and light, you tin simply assistance it up erstwhile needed. In fact, I deliberation the powerfulness fastener is much accessible than the flush fastener connected the rear of the erstwhile Mac mini.

Putting successful each together

There is nary equivalent to the Mac mini successful the Windows ecosystem. (Image credit: Anuj Bhatia/Indian Express)

The Mac mini arrived successful a tiny container that, overmuch similar the machine itself, was somewhat taller. Inside, I recovered the Mac mini and a powerfulness cable. Since it’s a BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) computer, it doesn’t travel with a mouse, keyboard, oregon monitor. I’m a large instrumentality of BYOD computers—I emotion however tiny and lightweight they are. I tin usage them astatine location connected my table oregon easy instrumentality them to the office. For the Mac Mini M4, I didn’t acquisition immoderate further accessories oregon peripherals. Instead, I opted to usage my existing Dell monitor, Redragon mechanical mini keyboard, and a Lenovo wireless rodent with the device. For mean users similar me, the Mac mini (starting astatine Rs. 59,900 and priced cost-effectively) is the champion mode to participate the macOS ecosystem.

M4 oregon M4 Pro—choose wisely

The caller Mac mini adjacent to my Intel-Mac mini. (Image credit: Anuj Bhatia/Indian Express)

When I bought a Mac Mini galore years agone (and inactive usage it, though not arsenic often arsenic I did astatine 1 point), I ever thought it would past maine a agelong time. That’s however we mostly deliberation earlier getting a caller device. And frankly, cipher upgrades their machine each twelvemonth oregon two. I perfectly loved the Intel Mac mini—it was my default machine for galore years. But, unfortunately, my computing needs person changed. I bash a batch much connected a machine now, and the aging Mac mini conscionable wasn’t capable to support up with the changing times. I had to upgrade, and I was besides definite it would beryllium a Mac mini (and not iMac – I gave you my crushed to beryllium my point.
With the M4 Mac mini, Apple is offering 2 configurations: the basal M4 and the workstation-grade M4 Pro, I consciousness some variants request to beryllium compared differently.

If you are reasoning of buying the basal variant of the Mac mini, it comes with a 10-core chip—4 show cores, 6 ratio cores, and 10 GPU cores. This configuration is modular crossed the 3 SKUs of the basal variant, with 16GB of RAM included arsenic standard. However, the cheapest variant lone comes with 256GB of storage. While the astir affordable exemplary costs Rs 59,900 and is simply a bargain successful my opinion, the lone drawback is the 256GB storage, which is simply a spot excessively little. I would urge getting the exemplary with a 512GB SSD, but the outgo rapidly escalates, and you extremity up paying Rs 79,900. If you tin spend it, get this exemplary (16GB RAM + 512GB storage), arsenic it is inactive future-proof and would past you for a agelong time. There is besides a 3rd exemplary with 24GB RAM and a 512GB SSD, but I would not urge it. Instead, spending a spot other and going for the basal exemplary of the Mac mini M4 Pro makes much sense—at slightest you get a faster M4 Pro spot with a 12-core CPU and a 16-core GPU.

Then determination is simply a souped-up, spec-heavy variant, the M4 Pro, which I got for review. It starts astatine Rs 149,900 and the terms keeps getting higher depending connected the configuration, with 12 CPU cores, 16 GPU cores, 24GB of RAM, and 512GB of retention being the basal variant.

The Mac mini is simply a standalone desktop machine which means its BYO keyboard, rodent and monitor. (Image credit: Anuj Bhatia/Indian Express)

Both the M4 and M4 Pro, compared to the M2 and M3 generations, are faster and present a important betterment successful show crossed the full lineup. The M4 Mac mini, successful particular, is easy the fastest and astir susceptible Mac astatine this terms point, and it doesn’t consciousness similar a compromise, adjacent if you opt for the basal variant. It’s not lone faster than the Intel Mac mini, but I besides recovered the M4 Mac mini to beryllium adjacent faster than previous-generation M-series Macs. There’s plentifulness of RAM, storage, and built-in Apple Intelligence, and due to the fact that it runs macOS, everything feels fast, buttery smooth, and conscionable however a machine should be.

The M4 Pro, connected the different hand, is simply a powerhouse. Most radical don’t request this level of power, honestly, but for professionals who necessitate high-demand tasks specified arsenic AI improvement and pro-level contented production. Many reviewers comparison the show of the M2 Mac mini with the M4 Mac mini and reason that the second is faster. However, I judge the M4 Pro should genuinely beryllium compared to either the M3 Pro oregon the M2 Pro, due to the fact that the assemblage for the higher-tier Mac mini differs from those purchasing the basal Mac mini. Even a flimsy show upgrade makes a immense quality erstwhile editing videos oregon doing aggravated work.

Even though some the M4 Mac mini and the M4 Pro Mac mini whitethorn look akin from the outside, they are antithetic and cater to wholly antithetic audiences. I’m not a contented creator, but if I were, I would take the M4 Pro implicit the M4 Mac mini. As a pro-consumer, you tin afloat utilise the precocious powerfulness show mode successful the M4 Pro Mac mini (a diagnostic that was antecedently reserved for the Max chips), allowing the spot to tally astatine elevated speeds and temperatures for extended periods of time.

Gaming is different country wherever Apple has made immoderate advancement with its silicon, though Mac compatibility was ne'er great, adjacent erstwhile Apple utilized Intel chips. The M4 Pro Mac mini comes adjacent to the Xbox Series S successful presumption of hardware, though determination are less AAA games disposable connected macOS. I can’t telephone macOS a gaming level yet, but the concern is simply a batch amended now, and it keeps getting better.

What is truthful peculiar astir the Mac mini?

The mini household successful Apple’s lineup includes the Mac mini, iPad mini, HomePod mini, and iPhone 13 mini.(Image credit: Anuj Bhatia/Indian Express)

There is truly lone 1 reply to this question, and that is the signifier factor. The information that the Mac mini is truthful tiny and small, wholly silent, yet delivers the show of a high-end computer—whether you take the M4 Mac mini oregon the top-end M4 Pro Mac mini. So, what truly determines which instrumentality is champion for you? It boils down to your planned uses for that device. If you are an mean user—browsing the web, moving connected presentations, utilizing Google Docs—the basal M4 Mac mini is for you. But if you are into contented instauration oregon app development, I would impulse you to look astatine the M4 Pro Mac mini. It’s designed for aggravated computing tasks, and the M4 Pro spot is intelligibly made for video, photo, and audio work.