M2 Pro Mac mini Base Model - DON'T BE FOOLED!
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- čas přidán 26. 01. 2023
- For the first time, Apple is now putting its pro level M2 chip inside of the body of a Mac mini and now you can finally live the dream of buying a $1299 Mac that promises to carry with pro level performance. This mid-level desktop Mac has eluded us for years and years, so can the M2 Pro Mac mini finally live up to its promise, or did Apple cut too many corners?
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Hi Greg,
How does the Base M2 Pro handle 4k ProRes RAW HQ video in fcpx?
Thanks!
That link is for intel 2020...
@@nordfilmcompany I haven't tested that exact footage. But it handles Pro Res extremely well, and even handles compressed codecs like h.264, h.265 like butter.
@@GregsGadgets Thank you very much!
Thank You.
I got the pro with 512 and 16 gig. Bought a 2tb ext ssd. I do music production. The thing flies, 0 issues, and running everything.
Very nice comparison, it is hard to find comparison between the 10 core and 12 core M2 Pro chip, and it is very helpful to see your tests that show the difference in performance between this two configurations.
Thanks for benchmarking the binned M2 Pro chip. Everyone has been benchmarking the non-binned
on the m2 mini now and loving it, taking it back and getting the m2 pro version though as im convinced this is better than just a stopgap to the m2 studio i was waiting for
.
Thank you so much for your great content on the M2 Macs. I’m in the market for a new Mac For intensive audio production (many virtual instruments and Sample libraries) and your content has been extremely helpful. Many thanks and please keep them coming!
Also do the slower 512 GB hard drive speeds only affect the base model M2s and Also, would you say that generally the M2 Mac mini pros run quieter and cooler than the equivalent MacBook Pros? Thanks again!
Get the 1TB version. For music production, you won't regret it.
Good video. Could you test M2 Pro mac mini vs Mac Studio for Photoediting apps like PS and LR
Very well done and SPOT ON!
Thank U!👍
Great video! Still stuck between picking up the new M2 Pro Mini or the Mac Studio. Any recommendations?
Thanks, all ways learning some thing new .When I finally decide to get mew all this imf will help
Great video but I’m a little confused regarding your benchmarks while running Final Cut. At around the 11:30’s are the visual graphics lining up with the M2 versions you’re speaking of? It sounded like you were saying M2 verse M2pro but showing the M2 16 & M219 core on the graphics. I could be misunderstanding since the different versions seem to get very confusing😏. The longer I wait to order, the more $$$ I seem to be adding to my wish list…
This was a great review, thanks you sir
Thx Greg
This was really what I was looking for in a Mac Mini review. The base pro with the faster ssd on board looks like the best deal to me.
I'm holding out for an M2 generation of Mac Studio. The M2 Mac Mini Pro does sound like a good deal, though. Nice review!
I have the feeling a new M2 Mac Studio will go a bit up in entry price :(
Or else the top specced M2 Pro Mac Mini would have no sense...
In around 1988 I bought a Schneider PC/AT 10 MHz for around £700. It had a none standard slower 20 Mb hard disk which is why it was so cheap. It had on board EGA graphics. It revolutionised my gaming and word processing. It wasn't a proprietary system such as the Amiga where the base system was cheap but every upgrade cost a fortune. Over the next three years I upgraded to a 50 Mb hard disk, bought a VGA card and monitor and a bought a higher capacity floppy disk drive.
Modern Macs are even more restrictive than Amiga's were in 1988. You cant upgrade your storage for any money no matter how much you pay. A Mac Studio with a single plug in 512 Gb flash module cannot have a second one fitted even though this would be a simple plug in option. Linus Tech bought two 512 Gb Mac Studios but found that something in the firmware stopped the 512 Gb flash module from one being used to upgrade the other. Apple's only upgrade path is to buy a completely new system. The cost of extra flash or RAM chips in one of these "upgraded" systems costs around ten times the cost of the chips themselves.
Hopefully, someone jumps into PC market with a RISC chip and overthrow all those power consuming x86s.
Since China is getting sanctioned and trying their own platform. I think it will happen there rather than in any western hemisphere.
Would the m2 mac mini 16gb be ok for obs streaming with a camera while bringing up videos and web pages without glitching?
Really appreciate the video and comparison, but had to ask if most of those base M2 comparisons/charts is with a similar 16GB of RAM and 512 SSD spec to match a base M2 Pro? Or were the comparisons to the base M2 using only 8GB of RAM and 256 GB SSD as the "base M2" is marketed and sold for $599 USD? Appreciate the clarification!
I think I will wait for the Mac Studio upgrade , hopefully this year . :)) I need a Mac Mini M2 pro with 32 Gb of Ram and 2 Tb ....Then I realize the price is too close to the Mac Studio , therefore I rather wait for the Mac Studio upgrade hopefully this year .
Any way you can compare the M2 Pro’s to the M1 max’s? The reason I ask is there are quite a few Mac studios and MacBook pros that are close in price to the m2 pro Mac mini and it’s making the decision hard but I can’t really find a good comparison
What about the m2 pro mac mini vs macbook pro 13”? Because the price range is almost similar. So in that value, which one to choose? Or the ‘pro’ tag justifies better?
I went for the pro but added a 1tb ssd! Going great so far
Thanks a lot for the review. What SSD size should one buy in order to have the best SSD R/W performance. If a 512gb has 2 NAND chips and reaches 3000, would 1tb give 6000?
Is there anyone there who owns a MM M2 Pro with 1tb to test the speed ?
How silent is the M2 Pro Mac Mini? Can you capture the fan noise with a microphone?
These new Mac Minis definitively are a game changer. Creatives have the freedom to buy a machine that offers the level of performance they need, instead of having to choose between a cheap low performance Mac or an expensive overkill one, there are these new middle grounds.
Does the base 512GB M2 Pro Mini only come with 1 NAND chip? Does it suffer from the slower SSD speeds?
I agree with you in general, but I'd get the base model with a 1TB SSD as the only upgrade. I've lived with 256 and 512 SSDs. Never again. Especially when they are slower. A lot slower.
What about if I use a external SSD? Would you recommend ?
@@rogerdatfilms I use a SanDisk as my local TimeMachine backup disk. I think you could load it in a sling shot and shoot it across the yard and it would be okay. Really rugged.
I plug it in over night.Eject it the next morning. I don't work off an external SSD so probably someone that does could provide better input.
How do you know that, are they any facts? I‘ve ordered the 2 tb version.
Also the PRO seems more noisy
If you gonna do that then just go with the Mac Studio lol Whats the point with the Mac mini.
Good content, Greg; thanks for your always-relevant and comprehensive reviews. I do agree with other comments that the only upgrade I will add to the base M2 Pro is a 1TB SSD. I am replacing my i7 Mac Mini so looking forward to better performance with Lightroom. Now… all we need is an affordable Studio Display!
Agreed
There's the LG version of the same monitor. Same panel, same webcam, speakers aren't half as good though. There are a lot of other good options if you're willing to step down frok 5K to 4K, like Asus ProArt.
do..this M2 pro or a base Mac studio M1 max for about $300 more? Is the M2 a lot better than the original M1? for video editing with Premiere in 2023? thanks
I want to know the performance of the M2 Neural Engines. Since there are no utilities (that I'm aware of) that measure the NE speed, we have to measure it using an app. Fortunately, MacOS has the Shortcuts App which has an action that lets you do an OCR of the display, which no doubt uses the Neural Engine. By doing this in a loop, you can count the number of full screen decodes per second. On my M1 Mac Mini it takes 41 seconds to perform a loop of ten 4K display screen reads. How? Just create a Shortcut that has two actions (in a repeated loop, 10x): The first action is Take Full Screen Screen; the second action is Extract Text from screenshot. Is that clear? Can you test this on an M2 Mini and an M2 Pro Mini? It should take less than a minute to create this macro and run it. Thanks.
Hook is an under appreciated film!
Thanks a bunch for your great video!😀 I was really a bit confused if I should buy the 10-core or the 12-core-version. The last one's a crucial amount of money too expensive for me. I mostly need it for better DAW-performance (Logic Pro X, of course😊). Now I'll buy the version with 10 core, 32GB RAM and 1TB SSD 🖥
But wouldn't that upgrade bring the price close to a M1max Studio? May I know why this would be more suitable for your use case than M1max? TIA :)
@@ongjanette Good Question💭I assume the M2 gets longer support. Besides: In my area, germany, the M1 pro is a bit more expensive with the same specs (means also with 1TB SSD). Its around 220$ more expensive than a MacMini M2 pro.
That's gonna be a beast for audio production! 💪
The m2pro with 1TB and 32GB and 16 gpu cores is what i bought, i have it since friday
@@pin13689 Great choice! Have fun with it 👍
M2 pro mini vs M1 Max ultra (base model) would be interesting .. are the extra 1k euros worth it?
Hi
Can i connect 3 monitors with mac mini m2 or i ho with pro version
I love it! ❤❤❤❤
Make a video of a specd out mac mini pro vs mac studio! Same price, same performance?
Great video
I want to know if they have solved the problems with 3th party monitors.
Where would you draw the line between a high level mini or a base level studio? What would the benefits of each be?
Depends what you do. M2 Pro Mini has a stronger CPU but base M1 Max Studio has a stronger GPU. Mini has better HDMI/Wifi/Blutooth, but the Studio has more ports and an SD card...
Also you save 700$ on a bass Mini Pro. That’s a significant amount of software and gear.
Which specs and model would you recommend for someone who mainly uses apps like adobe illustrator?
The only 2 upgrades I’d want on it would be a 1TB hard drive and 32 gigs of RAM. I think the biggest comparison most prosumers would like to see would be how the M2 Pro holds up Vs an OG M1 with 16 gigs of ram will do as I can only imagine most of us early adopters wouldn’t upgrade to just a regular M2.
I went with the base model. Have no issues what so ever.
Mine is currently "Out for Delivery"! It's weird that I bought my first Mac Plus exactly 34 years ago (8Mhhz CPU, 256K RAM, Floppy only) for the exact same price - $1,299. Such a deal.
Your dollars were worth a lot more back then though
I see a lot of review mention the gpu power but no one showing some games on the m2. Maybe you can do a video.
Does the fan switch off on the mini pro when idle?
I got mine in yesterday but I don’t have a keyboard yet. It was a nice paper weight at least.
was there any issues with the keyboard and Bluetooth ?
Great review, Greg. I’m sending my son-in-law your video. He does high-end graphics animation.
Does the office productivity, web browsing and consumer photo and video editing software take advantage of the multiple cores now? Are the extra cores only for the highest users and benchmark testing?
For those light usage, a base model with any cheaper external drive would do fine.
But how long will it last? I would say 2 years at max.
Can M2Pro passthrough Dolby Atmos to AV Receiver?
The ONLY video I could find that compares M2 PRO cpu and gpu versions.
This is good news. But I'm afraid it could not handle Davinci with some more demanding plugins (like Noise removal, Dehancer, deflicker or all of them together) with its 16GB of RAM.
And getting additional 16GB bumps the prices by 33% in Poland, and it's not worth it anymore. The problem with apple silicon is you are not able to upgrade later (memory or SSD).
Get a Mac Studio for $1799 with 32gb ram
@@techsteveo7913 Unfortunately in Poland the cheapest Studio config costs $2150 without tax (I can write off the tax) so it's the end price for me.
But at the same time RTX 4090 is $1730, so I can get it as upgrade to my existing x86 workstation. So still undecided which one to choose :(.
@@JoATTech Why not get Mac Studio Max? Wouldn’t that be a much better deal and it comes with 32GB Ram?
Hello! In your opinion for user capture one and photoshop, is a Mac mini M2 (base chip) with 24GB RAM and 512 SSD or a Mac mini M2 Pro with 16GB RAM and 512 SSD better?
Thanks for your comment.
I'd say go with the Pro for that extra oomph of increased CPU and GPU power. It's more efficient and versatile than just a simple RAM increase. Plus the M2Pro Mini specs shows it has a faster 200GB/s memory bandwidth against the 100GB/s of the plain M2 Mini. :)
Thanks Janette! 😊
I always have to remember this thing replaced the Intel Mac mini, lol. The GPU performance on that was something else.
At @12:01 is that 16Core M2 the Base M2 not the Pro version that took 4mins. Or is that the Pro M2 16Core model that took that long? It's hard to tell with how you worded it and also what's written on screen. Meaning only 3 more cores was able to help get that time down to 1min
How about speaking about which monitor to buy if one doesn’t want to spend $1500 and up for an Apple monitor, such as something in the $500 range. What is your recommendation
So the base M2 pro Mac mini is about 30% more powerful than the base M2 Mac mini but cost over 50% more. I think I’ll go with the base M2 with upgrading the ram to 16gb and ssd to 512gb while still $300 less than the base M2 pro.
I plan on going with the same spec.
Nice review Greg! By the way, any ideas or guesses as to why Apple’s shipping inferior ssds now even for the pro ranges???
He’s a reviewer not an Apple expert.
I can tell you why. It’s actually not a bad thing and it actually makes m1 ssd a bad deal. That is the actual issue, not the m2.
So Timmy can save $0.03 cents per unit but sabotage the computer. The upgrade SSD and memory prices are criminal.
@@Swizzenator I’m beginning to realise that the entry level model & price are actually a trap. How so very Apple 🤦♂️
Guys it’s actually not a bad thing. The m1 was actually where they tricked us
Been looking at getting the M2 Mac mini with the 16gb upgrade, to save money I think I will keep the 256gb ssd.
LIKE LIKE LIKE! I want one badly!
They should have differentiated it by making Space Grey option and better speakers since it's 'Pro'.
Imac pro incoming?
All the different SSD speeds for 256, 512, 1 TB and 2 TB makes it really complicated.
For the gaming benchmark stuff, you might want to consider switching over to Resident Evil Village. Its native apple silicon and supports a bunch of Metal 3 features.
Any suggestions on what would be a good 24 or 27" monitor to pair with this to replace my 27" 5k iMac? I've read there are resolution issues to worry about. Thanks.
Answer I found seems to be none. :(
@@epcalderhead Thanks. Yeah, I ended up buying a reburbished 24" iMac with 16GB and a 1TB drive off the Apple web site. :)
The Mac Studio it’s at $1699 at Costco today. Excellent offer. So with that said. Which one you buy?
The info is fast and furious, but I do appreciate not only your info but your personal delivery style. I would like you to consider when making your chart graphs comparing the different models you add the price for easier following what you are talking about. The different versions to me are the $599, $1299, and $1599 versions. The the hypothetical future versions can be a slight different color to show they don't really exist. Following the fast pace here I have to pause, flip to apple's web site to see which is which. Adding the price in parentheses will make you different and more understood. I love watching your videos now, big thumbs up 👍👍👍
I really wanted a Mac mini M1 Pro last year, obviously went with the base model Mac Studio instead. But yeah, spec’ing out a comparable m2 pro would put that in the studio price range. I wonder if and/or when apple releases an m2 based studio if they’ll drop the base model studio at that 1999 price.
Likely to happen this year with the base Mac Studio featuring the 12 CPU and 30 GPU SOC
I’m waiting for the M3 Pro 👍
To test game performance you should use Resident Evil Village which is optimized for Apple Silicon and Metal.
Love the reviews. Now I'm planning on getting a Mac mini I never planned to get :(
How would EVE Online go in the new Mac Mini?
Man I’m really tempted to upgrade from my space gray Mac mini. Fans blast from having two web pages open lol
I am still trying to work out whether I should get the base M2 Pro Mac mini, or the M2 Mac mini with upgraded RAM to 16gb and SSD to 512gb - I will be using this as a workhorse computer. Running Windows VM as a silo when I WFH, lots of photo editing with Affinity Photo (bracketing, HDR, and Panoramas - as well as a lot of astrophotography stacks. Not a huge amount of video editing - this is something I am new to and still learning but I can see myself doing a lot more 4k editing if it isn't as painful as it currently is on my 2017 macbook pro. Really struggling to work out what is the better value proposition for the work that I do.
What did you buy
@@GODOFBodybuilding upgrade M2 pro Mac mini - 16gb RAM, 512gb storage.
I got the base M1 Air and then started doing video after that. Big mistake 🤣. Considering the Mini M2 Pro, but kind of want to wait to see if Apple announces an M3 Mini in October. Thanks for the video!
I bought the cheapest m2 Mac mini. I will be returning it and getting more ram. 8gb isn’t enough, after logon without opening anything I would only have approx. 2Gb of free ram. I Didn’t really notice or have issues with the slower ssd. The m2 chip is nice, but I’m coming from 2013 MacBook Pro, so anything new is going to feel fast to me. Great Video.
I am torn between the Studio Max base model and the M2 Pro and from what I having being reading, most say the Studio is still going to do better with FCPX and video editing in general with out the new HDMI or wifi which does not matter to me. I do not care about HDMI nor wifi as I would use the 10 gig ethernet ... Opinions?
Honestly I have the M2 Pro Mini base model and it’s amazing. If you already are a professional who has tons of clients and a really demanding workflow, get a Studio. But you can save 700$ and put that towards software and gear if you get the M2 Pro. It’s actually faster than the M1 Studio Max in some ways, and it’s smaller and cheaper.
Basically if you already know you need more Ram or you need to run a professional business that you already have heavy demand for, get the Studio. For basically semi professional to talented hobbyists, the M2 Pro is amazing and the best price ever.
I just bought the base M2 Pro from Best Buy for $1199 due to price matching. B&H had it for $1199 and Best Buy price matched it. I'm giving my Intel MM i7/64GB/512GB and Blackmagic eGPU Pro to my son and replaced it with the M2 Pro. So far I'm very impressed with its performance though I'm a casual user. I chose the M2 Pro to future proof my purchase and for the two extra Thunderbolt 4 ports.
My Mac mini M2 Pro 1TB SSD Disk Speed in Black Magic Disk Speed Test = 6332,9 MB/s Write & 5146,6 MB/s Read !
Looks just like my 2012 MINI…even 2011…BUT WAY MORE POWERFUL!!!
Should I send my base M2 Pro Mac Mini with 512 GB of storage back to Apple and get the 1 TB version instead, or should I keep it and accept the lower SSD speeds on the base model?
IMO, get the bigger SSD and more memory if you can. More memory uses swap a lot less, and when swap does get used, it will be much faster, AND the storage will last a lot longer. Now, this won’t matter a ton if you are mostly watching CZcams and writing papers, but if you are processing a ton of vacation photos, the extra speed and capacity will be very noticeable.
Keep it and open up a Roth IRA and invest in SP500 and Tesla.
You should definitely check those slides once more my dear friend. There are some information that conflict with what you are speaking to us 😊
Mate.. bunch of things you might wanna update and correct in a pinned comment!
2:36 Nope, it's 6 high-performance cores not 4!
4:22 An SSD has no chipset and yes, the base-level 512GB M2 Pro SSD is much slower than the 1TB version of the M2 Pro which offers almost twice the speed!
11:57 Are you sure that you are comparing the 16 Core GPU with the 19 Core GPU? I don't think so!
Wish the M2 Pro came in Space Gray!
I will hold off for the M3 3nm cpu’s
My feedback. while the comparisons were very tech and jargon detailed, they get lost on simple audiences like me who just want to see what these actually mean, I think theres a lot of assumptions by tech youtubers that we know what all the acronyms mean and we dont relate what they mean in the real world, its like youtubers are performing for other youtubers who know the nerdy stuff, but Id say most of us that purchase these machines dont desire to be so techy nerdy and just want the best value machine for our needs. Towards the end there where you showed us smooth scrubbing etc etc etc, that was more valuable than benchmarks of Geekbenchm GFX all all that rubbish - I call that rubbish because it means nothing without an explanation of how that translate into the real world. I appreciate the work you put into it, I know it takes a lot of time and your production value is great, your camera presence and voice clarity is awesome and got the best value from your conclusion, all I really needed to watch was the last 2.5 minutes. If you were to create content not made for techy nerds...Id subscribe. But Im a sample of just 1 so dont change for 1 person.
5:29 - You say "full 10 core M1 Pro" chip, but the chart says "M1 Max". Which one did you mean?
Sorry both The M1 Pro and M1 Max have the same for CPU. I should have clarified this in the video.
@@GregsGadgets No worries. Thanks for replying.
Can I put 8 monitors on it?
It’s a much slower SSD- they swapped NAND’s & now have started making smaller Highways per day for their M2 machines. It would make it much slower if you actually do multiple programs at once and some browsing plus music as many of us do now a days when working. So be honest and fair - M1 max and ultra I believe are much better chips and last reasonable product Apple might produce -
For someone on a budget, m1 Studio for parts via ebay and a single board computer running Linux would be a consideration. M2 pro mini 10 years down the line, unless income improves.
What is the "bin" thing you keep referencing? What does that mean?
Basically, it refers to 1 or more cores being disabled in the SOC.
The base model M1 Pro Mini has less cores available due to this.
@@irensaga561 Thanks. But what's an SOC? Sorry but I'm not very technically savy.
@@outbackeddie SOC is System on a Chip. The answer to your first question is that a binned Mac will have less cores than a non-binned one.
@@irensaga561 Great. Thank you.
My Mac mini M2 Pro 1TB SSD 32GB RAM
Mac14,12
Geekbench 5 Score
1966 Single-Core Score
12042 Multi-Core Score
OMG - outside apple universe - you’ll got way much value for this bag of bucks. Desktop - PC forever
The MBA 15 has sharp edges when you open it and it's annoying, so I returned it.
Greg, I think the more “binned” a chip is, the fewer cores it has. I wish the Pro version with 12 cores offered 64Gs of memory. But of course, that would eat into Studio Mac sales.
All chips are the same amount of binned. It's just a question of does it go in the high quality bin or low quality bin. All chipmakers do it, for example an i3 started out life as an i9, but failed a couple quality checks.
Maybe some find it interesting but I discovered that M2 Pro sometimes is much slower than M1. Apple do not say any word about that.
Charts don’t always match your words. I think you got the names muddled a bit. A pleasant video though.
The charts are funny. 179fps is nearly double 92fps and yet it's drawn as if it's like ~40% more when it's like ~85%% more. And the M2 is more than half M2 Pro 19-core but shown as if it's a third of it. 7:30
Hmm
Surely the M1 Pro MacBook Pro 14 at $1500is the best value at this moment