What I Wish I Knew Before Buying an M4 Mac Mini

[@DonavanAja]

I bought a Mac mini M4 as well and I also wish I knew these exact same things before I bought it !

[@Gogo8mkd]

You spoke very little about things that you wish you knew, and why you wish you knew them before buying. I clicked on the video just for that, and it was just the same as all the other people speaking about this product. Please do better.

[@Trabaegocer]

@@Gogo8mkd agreed

[@PT-668]

Same here.

[@ArianvanPutten]

what I wish I knew before clicking on this video

[@GPDF]

@Gogo8mkd - The majority of KZbinrs will be using click bait for their videos. There are a very, very few exceptions.

[@ananasstudio6221]

it’s a known click bait tittle they use for engagement

[@waisinglee1509]

Let's try 200 Chrome tabs. A lot of them are placeholders for future books to read.

[@cabowabo5557]

I'm at 919 Firefox tabs

[@Smithbriart]

the colorful apple logo needs comeback....how did you get it?

[@ItsCaputo]

I make them! We ship globally and it can be ordered here: geni.us/retroapple

[@afarangi4839]

Misleading title, clickbait

[@lgude]

Got the top spec M4 Pro with 24 Gb Ram and 1 tb SSD. I do photo editing and some video editing. So far it does typical super resolution runs in Pixelmator in less than 2 seconds, maybe 1! My M1 mini takes 10-15 seconds. My 2017 I5 mini with only Intel graphics 2 minutes plus. Side note: I paid more for the 2017 Mini. Happy, heck yeah.

[@briancollier5145]

replacing my intel macbook with the m4 Pro Mac Mini, 24 GB RAM, with 1TB storage. Thanks for this!

[@jimtipton8888]

I have a 16" M4 Pro MBP in that configuration. I 100% promise you're going to love it!

[@dhellis19498]

I didn't really get a choice, my kids all chipped in to get me the Mac Mini M4 base model with 16G Ram and 256G SSD. If I had ordered it myself I probably would just opted for the 512GB. I am going to order a Thunderbolt 4 ssd case and 1 TB NVmE SSD and move my home directory to the external disk.

[@ItsCaputo]

It’s a great gift. You’re going to love it! Just be mindful that you’ll lose access to the Apple intelligence features.

[@axoplanet6081]

I ordered today the Mac Mini M4 Pro / 1 tb / 64gb ram with the 14 core cpu. First I wanted the 48gb but it was just 200€ more to upgrade to 64gb so I did it. Came from the M1 / 16gb / 512 ram. I make music and I think this is a killer upgrade for music production.

[@ItsCaputo]

Making music is one of the things I want to get into in 2024. What apps/tools are you using?

[@axoplanet6081]

@ I use an Universal Audio Apollo x6 audio interface and Steinberg Cubase Pro, a Novation SL3 keyboard, Neumann KH310 speakers with a Neumann KH710 dsp subwoofer and a lot of software synthesizers and effects.

[@pantelistsiolas580]

I got the base M4 with 16GB/ 2TB but thinking of returning it for probably 24 or 32 GB Ram (no video work but run VMs i.e windows 11 as my company does not support Mac OS ) and 1TB with 2TB external (Samsung T7)

[@ItsCaputo]

I think 24 GB of RAM is a good option given likely it is that apps will likely get larger in the next 2-3 years.

[@wealleuropean]

use your usb also is an great $ option

[@alanchrishughes]

Weird question, I've been an iMac user for over 10 years, if I get a Mini and a non-Apple display, is there a way to program the keyboard's brightness keys to work with the monitor? Is there anything specific I need to look for while shopping for monitors? Or would it require special software or a hack to get this working? Thanks 🙏

[@ItsCaputo]

Yes, you can download the BetterDisplay, which allows you to change the brightness using on 3rd party monitors using the keyboard function keys.

[@ItsCaputo]

Here's the link: github.com/waydabber/BetterDisplay

[@alanchrishughes]

@@ItsCaputo thank you 🙌

[@greghudson9717]

You could also use an existing Mac display if you haven’t already sold it.

[@Joe-p8f2y]

just bought my first Mac Mini M4. I'm not a "gamer", and am torn between the LG LG UltraGear 27" OLED QHD 240Hz 0.03ms FreeSync and NVIDIA G-SYNC Compatible Gaming Monitor with HDR400 - Black Model:27GS95QE-B. or BenQ BenQ - AQCOLOR PD2725U Designer 27" IPS LED 4K HDR 60Hz Mac Compatible Monitor (HDMI/DP/Thunderbolt 3 65W) - Metallic Gray. BenQ - AQCOLOR PD2725U Designer 27" IPS LED 4K HDR 60Hz Mac Compatible Monitor (HDMI/DP/Thunderbolt 3 65W) - Metallic Gray. Would appreciate your opinion on LG or BenQ...for everyday use, not gaming, if you have one to offer!! Thanks

[@kericwilson4228]

Picked up standard M4 and upgraded ram and storage a bit!

[@HoundDogMech]

Been Editing since 1982 started with Switcher/Titler and VSH VCR's last 4 years went from Premier to Davinci Studio. No fancy Edits Just Titles Cuts, Dissolves, And Fades to & From Black. Tried a Very Complex 10 minute Timeline with RED and a wkol bunch of Video types I no nothingabout. My ASUS 7 year old Laptop Really Struggled . CPU/GPU temps runing 95c to 98c .. and 2 days to render it said. M4 Mac Mini 24 Minutes and Fan never turned on. Only problem I have is the Samsung 990 EVO and the 40GB/s Enclosure gets HOT. But if need be I can place it between two bags of Frozen peas. It says it water & dust Proof.

[@gercarey3261]

How does your Mac Mini have the rainbow logo? They are all black in Ireland? Thanks.

[@ItsCaputo]

I sell stickers for all of your favorite apple devices! www.michaelcaputo.com/stickers

[@Gcnm05]

how much ram would I need to run smoothly for programming? Gaming specifically (unreal engine 5)?

[@ItsCaputo]

RAM is more efficiently assigned to processes on the M3 and M4 chips and older recommendations for programming using the unreal engine were either 32 or 64. That said, I'd say 24 at the minimum, 32 is probably a safe bet, and 48 is likely overkill. It also depends on how long you'll keep the computer and if you foresee taking on programming in other languages in the near future. Does this help?

[@Gcnm05]

@ thanks for the reply! i appreciate it

[@greghudson9717]

My biggest mistake ordering the base model M4 was not optioning the 10Gbps Ethernet port. I'm not going to make that mistake EVER again !

[@ItsCaputo]

You should be able to exchange it depending on where you purchased it at. Check your receipt.

[@jakeoo7tupperware]

I come from total PC background. I am a Data Engineer and have multiple work/personal windows laptops. I didn't want to buy one more laptop or desktop and it's own accessories due to space constraints. But if I buy Mac Mini, I want to also use it for work or my personal learning projects in Data Engineering. I want to use Parallels or VMWare to have Windows 11 installed as a virtual machine. I wonder how much memory/storage is recommended for that. Most reviews mention about creative work but not much about Virtual Machine or doing LLM work.

[@domlabr]

I am still using my 27” iMac from 2019 with i9 processor and 40GB of RAM. I am strongly considering replacing it with a M4 Pro Mac mini. I use the computer largely for photography (Capture One and Photoshop) as well as graphic design work using Adobe InDesign, Illustrator and Photoshop. Right now I am often using all my RAM and thinking that 64GB might be the way to go. However all the reviews I’m reading tell me that it would be overkill. I edit 50MP-150MP 16bit files and when I have both Capture One and Photoshop open at the same time my RAM is essentially maxed out. Do you think that 64GB of RAM would be overkill?

[@julienkayzo]

Hi Michael. I use Excel for Macro VBA a lot via Parrallels Desktop and Windows 11. Which configuration do you recommend? I'm planning to go for the M4 with 32GB.

[@ItsCaputo]

hey there! That's more than powerful enough for your use case

[@mocaxu]

i wonder if m4 pro mac mini is able to run the upcoming cyberpunk 2077 for mac, at max graphics with raytracing. or should i wait for a m4 ultra mac next year?

[@ItsCaputo]

When does the game get released for Mac?

[@mocaxu]

@@ItsCaputo CDPR says early 2025

[@krisscott6727]

Thanks Mike, would appreciate any opinions on the following: In the UK, an M1 Studio with 32g RAM is selling used for the same price as a new base M4 with 24g RAM, an M1 with 64gb RAM is selling used at the same price as a new M4 Pro. So either an M1 with more RAM still rivals an M4 or people just haven't caught up! Forgive the naivity, I struggle to understand the argument between RAM and processor speed. I produce music primarily and my 2012 machine is grinding to a halt! And the bottom line is, what would you choose? Thanks!!

[@ItsCaputo]

hey! You should see better performance out of the M4 Mac mini with 24GB of RAM compared to the 32GB of RAM on the M1 or M2 machine for GPU related tasks. Starting with the M3, Apple is using a technology called dynamic caching that can rightsizes the amount of RAM needed for graphic intensive tasks which wasn't possible in earlier models. So, the performance will largely depend on what you are using the computer for. I don't produce music outside of using Logic to edit my talk track, so this is a little outside my wheelhouse. What I can tell you is that the benefits between the M1 Pro Mac Studio and the M4 Pro Mac mini come down to 1) port selection 2) cooling/thermals and 3) the number of GPU cores. Can you share a link to the specific Mac Studio you're considering and tell me a bit more about your production workflow? Do you use logic, protools, or something different?

[@krisscott6727]

@@ItsCaputo ​ @ItsCaputo Thanks so much for the advice, I did end up going for the m4 pro with standard 24 ram. I watched a video of a guy maxing out various macs by adding more and more audio tracks. The M4 pro with 24G way outdid the M1 with 64g. (plus its new with warranty) Clearly there must be a speed/ram trade off. Basically I know it's more than I need, music production and basic video, but I detest changing computers - and no doubt in 10 years time, everything will be greedier so as much future proofing as possible! Thanks again

[@ItsCaputo]

@@krisscott6727 glad it worked out. Happy creating!

[@a7ewald]

I just got a Mac Mini M4 (512). ---- My question: Where did you get this rainbow Apple sticker? TY

[@ItsCaputo]

It’s the first link in the video description 🤜🏼💥🤛🏼

[@a7ewald]

@@ItsCaputo Sorry, I checked all your links here, but I didn't find anything about the sticker.

[@ItsCaputo]

@@a7ewald Weird. Well, here you go! Buy the Retro Apple Sticker for the Mac mini: geni.us/retroapple

[@thevagabondonwheels4918]

Jumped on the $1199 Microcenter deal for the M4 pro baseline (512GB/24GB RAM). I was going to upgrade the base M4 to 512 anyway and figured it was worth the extra dough to future-proof the device a little more.

[@ItsCaputo]

I miss having a local micro center store in my area! Good thing they just opened up one here in Miami.

[@generic_official]

Have you tried this with Topaz Labs Video AI or Photo AI?

[@dekar5]

Thinking about "upgrading" from a mbpro from 2018.. even if its no pro and just base.. it still would be an upgrade right? Mbpro was also base.. thanks

[@markslima1557]

The upgrade will blow you away, the M4 is much, much faster and zippier than the 2018 MacBook

[@jimtipton8888]

You will be 🤯!

[@wealleuropean]

just 599 you should to it make create more efficient. btw my 2017 soviet in ventura(13) so like chatgpt app just can't use

[@dekar5]

Awesome thanks for the reconfirmation, i am hyped 🤩

[@freecourseplatformenglish2829]

Why don't they give sticker in the box

[@ItsCaputo]

Well, you can get the retro rainbow sticker by checking out the first link in the video description.

[@towerrunner4675]

Exactly. The box is so minimalist that it really needs a gimmick.

[@carlosring]

Sticker Upgrade: +100 bucks 😅

[@freecourseplatformenglish2829]

@@carlosring

[@ItsCaputo]

@@carlosring the sticker adds more CPUs cores and unicorn tears 🤣

[@kamaboko1]

Been on the fence for a while now. I do a lot of dev work (e.g., NodeJS, React, Mongo, etc.) and my M1 mini with 16GB RAM handles it well. Everyone wants something shinny and new, but I don't think I'd experience an "OMG" moment with the M4. Things may appear a bit faster, but a two or three second load time difference? It's hard to justify the added expense of a new M4. Anyone else in the same boat?

[@50450720]

If your a heavy user, with loads of apps running and tabs open etc, its actually cheaper to buy 2 base mac minis than to upgrade to the pro. If you can get education discount you can add 2 external ssd's and still be better off.

[@ItsCaputo]

I understand the math, but then I need to purchase two monitors, keyboards, mice which makes zero sense because most people don't have that lying around. Plus it adds unnecessary complexity and to what end?

[@TheOfficialDuBsTeC]

Where to get that oldschool fitting Apple logo sticker?

[@ItsCaputo]

I make these stickers for your favorite devices! Check out www.michaelcaputo.com/stickers

[@TheOfficialDuBsTeC]

@@ItsCaputo thanks! is there a recommendation on how to get it "straight" on and align it right?

[@LuisJimenez-rq6wk]

Hi Michael! Mi plan es un Mac Mini M4 Pro. Pero no estoy muy seguro de si conseguir una actualización de la CPU y la GPU o conseguirlo con más RAM. Mis trabajos incluyen tanto tareas de oficina, retoque y diseño gráfico, algo de edición 4K. Me gustaría que este nuevo equipo me durara unos cuantos años. Ahora tengo un Intel i7 con 32Gb de RAM. Esta nueva configuración se combinará con un BENQ PD3205OU. What do you think? Thank you very much!

[@ItsCaputo]

hola hola! En mi opinión, empezar con el nivel básico M4 y actualizar la RAM a 24 GB es una opción sólida. Hay varias ventajas clave en comparación con el I7, pero la más importante es la eficiencia. La CPU y la GPU son mucho más eficientes en las tareas cotidianas, pero también lo es la forma en que se asigna la RAM para las tareas gráficas intensivas. Esto significa que deberías ver un rendimiento muy bueno para las tareas relacionadas con los gráficos. ¡Espero que esto te ayude!

[@xenon6947]

Why does size matter when you could do same with m1 or m2 macs? I don’t understand the gimmick of size.

[@coxyjmz]

Nobody mentions if it’s worth buying if you already have a high end gaming pc and how diff the operating systems are? All I wanna know if it’s worth buying in comparison to what I already have.

[@MrEiniweini]

The simple answer to that is no. Mac will not run as a gaming PC. I have an M1 MacBook Pro and a windows desktop. The M series Macs are fantastic if you have an iPhone and want the simplicity of the ecosystem, but they will not run high end games as none are written to the OS. It seems to be a security issue. Apple will not allow programs to write to the OS, while installing a high end game in windows asks the user if it will allow the program to make changes to the OS.

[@ItsCaputo]

So I do talk about the gaming use case, and I don't think you'll be satisfied with the catalog selection.

[@smgumbycat]

The additional Unified Memory (24GB on M4 Pro Mac mini vs 16GB on M2 Pro Mac mini) was worth it for me to upgrade to the M4 Pro Mac mini. But in reality, I gave my wife the M2 Pro Mac mini to replace her 2020 Intel i5 Mac mini.

[@AAstebs]

I got about 2075 USD in Apple gift Cards (after tax) and trying to decide what Mac Mini to get. I keep configuring it with the Pro or just M4 to see what gives me the best rounded machine >.< With the processor being caked in I keep leaning to the Pro and maybe 24gb of ram and 512gb SSD. But I could max out the M4 base and get 32gb of ram and a 1tb ssd and have a more rounded machine... I use mostly NAS to store my crap so SSD isnt a huge issue with me. Ram and Processor is my main focus I guess. I do mostly photo editing but I want to future proof it as much as I can.

[@stuarthepburn6508]

I bout the base 16GB nd 256GB - I had a 2TB Gen 4 Nvme spare and a thunderbolt enclosure, boot from that, don't need Apple Intellegence, faster than the native 256GB SSD

[@ItsCaputo]

That's a good point!

[@dhellis19498]

While that is good, you might be better off just moving your home folder to the 2TB drive, thus all installed programs will be on the 2TB drive. This will allow you to have a fully functional Mac Mini M4

[@TheDanEdwards]

The M4/24/512 is a standard SKU, so places like Costco will stock it. Indeed, the Costco promo price on it is almost the same as the Apple EDU price. The 1TB storage version is not a standard SKU. To me the standard SKU seems like a better deal, I have plenty of external SSDs.

[@ItsCaputo]

So what spec Mac mini did you get?

[@PeterEmery]

I went from an M1 Mac mini with 512GB storage/16GB memory to an M4 mini with 1TB storage/24GB memory. I found I was already using over half of the M1's storage, hence the upgrade to 1TB. As for choosing 24GB memory over 16GB, because the deletion of the 8GB option by Apple was done at the same time that Apple Intelligence became available I felt that while 16GB was likely OK now, increased AI capability in the future may need more memory. I also opted for 10 Gigabit Ethernet. I don't need it yet but I can envisage a future modem/router upgrade to 2.5 Gigabit.

[@mwwhatever]

@@PeterEmery I just upgraded to the base model from a Dell Precision T1700. I probably won't notice much though since I don't do anything high-powered with a computer. Just sick of Windows

[@matt112fly]

i'm getting my base model on friday :) paid by my company - i guess u can call it a xmas gift

[@redpill7993]

Moved from M1 Mini 8gb RAM 250 NAND to M4 24 gb 512 NAND. For the M1 8gb RAM was never enough and so swap was probably hitting the 250 NAND hard, so I had "failure soon" warnings this year. So far, 24 gb is just fine, never stressed, but 18 gb would clearly not have been enough for me.

[@markslima1557]

As much as I would love the Mac MIni Pro, I think I can get by with the base Mac Mini and utilize an external hard drive. It seems that the stock M4 is a solid CPU. Currently have a MacBook Air M2 with 16GB, but the port selection is maxed out for me, too limited.

[@DavidNiedbala]

Interesting fact I discovered. If you flip the Mac mini upside, the WiFi signal gets about 20% better! I go from 200mb/s to 550mb/s!

[@ItsCaputo]

haha that's amazing!

[@thebusinessfirm9862]

Grazie per il video, amico. Molto bravo. 👌🏽

[@paulliddement]

Doesn’t everyone know Apple do speed, heat management x3, speed with their rollouts? So M4 is fast but hot, M5 will be marginally faster but less hot and so forth until M8 where we will get speed again.

[@kamertonaudiophileplayer847]

It is too powerful in the minimal configuration and too expensive in the powerful configuration.

[@rogerhuston8287]

Dell makes a 5k 40" monitor that is like the Asus and supports native resolution.

[@itsgmani]

@@rogerhuston8287 I really want that monitor but I hear it doesn’t scale correctly and the “may affect performance” would appear?

[@ItsCaputo]

Do you know which model? I see a 5k2k monitor but it's 21:9 and has a lower pixel count.

[@itsgmani]

@@ItsCaputoit’s the U4025QW

[@rogerhuston8287]

@@ItsCaputo Dell UltraSharp 40 Curved Thunderbolt™ Hub Monitor - U4025QW

[@ArunPanchal007]

more focus on affiliate links. Less focus on value delivering.

[@islanddev4893]

where to connect loudspeakers.. sorry i come from PC with lots of connectivity and upgrades possible

[@ItsCaputo]

You can use the headphone jack in the front

[@alangeorgebarstow]

@@ItsCaputo You can also use one of the USB-C ports.

[@TheGippy30]

I didn’t see you at Loa in this video

[@ItsCaputo]

?

[@tomsun3159]

i disagree partly, if upgrading RAM and/or storage is a concern than the pro version is worth a thought, The Base chip only if the base configuration is sufficient (valid for at least of 95% of the potential buyers), if you are a professional on the other hand its worth to wait for the studio. Worth upgrading RAM yes BUT! upgrading INTERNAL storage NO!!! (at least not at current apple price policy) upgrading external storage YES! no matter at what speed (the speed correlates withs the price) if it is simply for storage a cheap USB3 solution is enough, if you need speed TB3/4 is usually enough and even a NVME GEN3 drive used is faster than the internal base 256Gb storage. (at 200 bucks you can get an TB4 enclosure plus an 2 TB NVME drive, if you use TB3 and a gen 3 drive probably downto 150 bucks)

[@DrEmmePhD]

I am looking to get a computer to work with local llms. I decided to go for the Mini, leaning on the M4 Pro base (for longevity mainly). Is this worth it or a Mini M4 with extra ram would do well too? I also have an extra question, which ssds and external enclosures would you suggest to host the home folder (not the OS) with the Mac Mini M4 family?

[@JVDuranPhotography]

Hi Michael thanks for the videos! I just bought the Mac Mini M4 Pro base. I’m a wedding photographer and I’m coming from an M1 MacBook Air. I do batch edit thousands of photos and use Lightroom, Photoshop and Aftershoot a lot. I also use Chrome a lot for my website, calendars and other daily stuff. Wondering if I should stick with the Pro version or just go with the Mac Mini. I don’t really do video work but I’m planning to do more hybrid in 2025. Thanks!

[@NetvoTV]

Hey Michael, my name is Johnny and I'm a freelance logo designer, would you love to have a logo for your tech savvy channel to have a brand image your audience can remember your contents from and also can be one of the merch print you can sell to your fans to buy and own and share the words about your channel too? Let me know if you interested and I would love to work with you to design these for you! :-)

[@lknmiramar]

its too late alrrady bought m4

[@ItsCaputo]

So what did you buy?

[@rogerhuston8287]

I'm not a Mac user, been Windows all my life, since version 1.0 when it was just a runtime. Im trying to decide between a Mac Mini, Macbook Pro or wait for M4 Studio. Lot's to learn. I have a mem intesive task converting audio to DSD where 64 is min with 256G preferred. That is a ton of money for Mac, so maybe I also build a mini PC as well. $1k for a PC is cheaper than upgrading a Mac to do it.

[@ItsCaputo]

Lots to process there. What app do you use to convert the audio on Windows and does it exist on Mac? I can try it on my m4 max

[@rogerhuston8287]

@ItsCaputo PGGB from remastero. It does work on Mac, but not natively. It uses Rosetta. When converting to DSD it asks for more RAM otherwise it swaps to disk. DSD128 CA. Be done on a Mac at 48G, but 1 channel at a time.

[@sergebureau2225]

M4 is great, but not the Mac Mini. As soon as you put options it is much too expensive. The iMac is a much better choice.

[@Blackcougar22]

Just because of that multicolor logo, they can go to hell. Sell it to we all know who

[@ItsCaputo]

Actually, that's a sticker I made

[@adrianxoxoxo]

U are a little late to the party, right?

[@hmerc2213]

clickbait title

[@ananasstudio6221]

Click bait. please do better for tittles

[@jappyMo37]

Deutscher Titel Ennglisches Video naja

[@TheOfficialDuBsTeC]

Das ist auto translate von youtube und ein feature, was es jetzt seit langem gibt.. als ob man heutzutage nicht in der Lage ist, Englisch zu verstehen wtf.. Dafür kann der Kanal aber nix, ist, wie gesagt, jetzt "neu" von KZbin.. von daher ist dein Kommentar sinnfrei und mit dem Hintergrund Wissen unangenehm.. sorry..

[@GROVERHarmon-r6c]

Reply

[@SerhanHicran]

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