M2 vs M2 Pro Mac mini… FIGHT!

The M2 Mac mini is here. But what should you go for if you’re deciding between the M2 vs M2 Pro Mac mini? There are some key differences beyond the pricing, and in this video, I’ll reveal which M2 Mac mini is right for you.

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CHAPTERS
00:00 - Intro
01:05 - Who needs a Mac mini?
02:07 - Pricing
03:52 - CPU and GPU
04:57 - Unified memory
06:52 - Storage
07:52 - Other differences
08:35 - Summary

[christianhotter]

This was the biggest update that had very little fanfare. The Mini with the Pro chip is the update that was not just an M1 to M2 incremental update like the Air and Pro MacBook updates. The M2 Mini Pro is a nice upgrade for those who have been working from the M1 Mini and are ready for more power.

[orffman]

I got the m2 with 16 ram 512 storage for the faster write speed. For Logic audio it works great! Super fast and I added an external 1 tb drive which also works great. I just added 2 hubs for extra connections and I am super happy.

[andyduffield]

Bought an M2 mini with 16gb memory and 512 inetrnal for the performance boosts, it cost £919 with student discount significantly less than a pro with the same discount.
Horses for courses but this seemed the best buy for my use.

[EjectedAlready]

The mini m2 pro - 12 core with 32gb of RAM and 1Tb of storage is actually slightly more expensive than the base model Mac Studio with 32gb of RAM and 1Tb of storage as well.. It would be nice to see a side by side performance comparison of the two.

[showbizjosh]

I ended up settling for the M2 Pro Mac Mini. For me it came down to 2 main reasons. (1) I use 3 displays for work. (2) I need the extra ports and having 4 Thunderbolt ports is perfect. I personally don't need the extra CPU power, but hey, I will take it anyways

[johnnewell]

For me, 16gb RAM and 512GB SSD is the right configuration, and the $300 upcharge for the M2 Pro (vs. the M2) gets you a lot, even if you're not editing 4K videos all day: two more TB4 ports, upgraded HDMI port, and the ability to connect a third display. I could get along with two TB4 ports but I'm pretty sure I'd buy a dock eventually, , and that alone takes a lot of the pain out of the upcharge. I think the base M2 Pro makes a lot of sense. I had ordered an M2 16/512 but will return it (unopened). I'm picking one of the M2 Pro 16/512 machines today...and then will formally retire my late 2012 quad-core Mini that was upgraded to 2TB fixed storage and 16GB RAM.

[lrvman]

Which is better for running multiple OS'es in Parallels? And gaming? I ended up buying the M2Pro for the extra IO and larger base memory. Adding a 2TB external drive with a MVNe SSD for storing game files and OS images. Did I really need it? I dunno.

[joneill]

Mark, Thank you for the breakdown as it really helped my build decision.

[gardnerunderhill]

It is the M2 Pro for me. Having 4 Thunderbolt 4 ports is the deciding factor for me. I always need the ports.

[arthurwatts]

Yes Mark - I'm going to spend 599 USD plus peripherals on an M2 mini and give it to a kid. Not sure what you are smoking, but that is typical of the throwaway attitude of virtually every creator on YT. I get that Uni students may well have a Macbook Air (more power to them) but Chromebooks and SOCs were invented for the rest.

[robwoolley]

Using the M1 Mini it definitely slows down with lots of tabs open or editing a lot of photos. Video rendering seems not too bad but the libraries can blow out your storage when rendering too.

Given that, if you do any photo and video work or use heaps of tabs I think m2 16GB and 1TB gives you headroom.

I’ve never seen a need for the extra ports and I think the m1 chip was fast enough so m2 will be a nice bonus. Shame it doesn’t have an SD card reader though.

[ZoranPopovski]

Mac mini with 8GB RAM and 512gb storage some time freezing my adobe photoshop ? how can fix the problem ?

[Ewoodster]

M2 with 16 GB and 256 GB SSD would be my weapon of choice. It is much cheaper to add external SSD capacity, but impossible to increase the RAM size. Strangely, in a mobile computer, I would go for the M2 pro MacBook Pro 14, because the total package is far superior to the M2 MacBook Air or 13 inch Pro.

[kutayfunk]

Could you please test some games and see if those extra gpu cores in M2 pro worth anything? Thank you.

[px]

To me, the cheapest option is always the best conservative choice. Unless of course you have a specific need. It is always better to buy the cheapest rather than investing for a machine that is going to be obsoleted in two years time. The only concession would be memory, but at 200 a pop, it is better to purchase an external fast 1 Tb drive for storage and leave the M2 use the internal 256 Gb for memory swapping.

[RehaAlev]

Ordered the 10 core m2 pro with 32gb and 1tb. The 32GB was the one upgrade that hurt the most and I went back and forth. I mostly edit in FinalCut, Photoshop, Lightroom, and a little Logic. I think the 32gb will be worth it in the long run. 10 vs 12 core didn’t seem to be worth it if you export in h264 or h265, which is what I do.

[jwinte]

I ordered the M2 with 8GB of RAM and upgraded to the 512 GB hard drive. I'm a relatively light user and am thinking this will be good for me. I do think with the faster Apple silicon now that RAM is less of an issue for most of us.

[sorik]

I like how you dont upsell the product cause everyone knows the more you spend, the better you get but being mindful of people’s budgets as well as reminding them to apply some common sense goes a long way into saving some serious bucks

[ahah]

with m2 mini - dont buy the base model (256/8G) it should not exist in 2023... Dont order the 256gb storage at least...because its quite crippled from the start, get 512gb.

[estebangardila]

I still think the true fight is the M2 Pro Mini against the base M1 Max is the true fight. Would you choose two more new CPU cores or six last gent GPU cores?
* M2 Pro Mini with 12c CPU, 19c GPU, 32GB RAM, 512GB SSD for $1999
* M1 Max Studio with 10c CPU, 24c GPU, 32GB RAM, 512GB SSD for same $1999 (also get SDXC + more ports)