(2025 Edition) 2018 Intel Mac Mini - How much longer left before upgrade is a must ?

[bzgnyc2]

I personally try not to use Safari anymore and use Mozilla's Firefox instead. I too use Mojave on my 5,1 and feel no need to upgrade up with any dosdude type mod, since it runs fine with what programs I use. Seeing what type of extra items are added to the higher OS, like Monterey on my previous used 2014 mini, made me just want to stay put.

I've also left Safari on all systems now. I don't need a browser locked to the OS.

On the systems where I run Mojave and Catalina, I use Orion and Firefox. Unfortunately Firefox's support for Mojave is coming to an end while Orion doesn't support WebP pre-Big Sur, which is annoying. Brave was quick and supported WebP on those systems but they've now left both those behinds. I liked Mojave but 3rd-party support for it continues to dwindle (with more and more vendors gonig all the way to adopting Apple's N-2 support model).

Haven't decided what I'll switch to once Mojave, etc become unworkable for my needs. Neither Sequoia+ nor Windows 11, etc all that appealing.

 

[rezwits]

I've also left Safari on all systems now. I don't need a browser locked to the OS.

On the systems where I run Mojave and Catalina, I use Orion and Firefox. Unfortunately Firefox's support for Mojave is coming to an end while Orion doesn't support WebP pre-Big Sur, which is annoying. Brave was quick and supported WebP on those systems but they've now left both those behinds. I liked Mojave but 3rd-party support for it continues to dwindle (with more and more vendors gonig all the way to adopting Apple's N-2 support model).

Haven't decided what I'll switch to once Mojave, etc become unworkable for my needs. Neither Sequoia+ nor Windows 11, etc all that appealing.

I replied ANGRY, because I gotta go and do a damn browser scrape session for all my macs again to make sure they all have good lasting versions, for specific macOSes, getting ***** SICK OF THIS...

 

[Homme]

If Apple drops intel for macOS 16 its likely that it will be the 2017 iMac Pro and the 2018 Mac mini/Macbook Pro Models.

I do think though that macOS 16 will be the last update for whatever Intel devices left to support. iMac 2019 is lucky to get Sequoia considering it’s the only Sequoia device to not get iPhone Mirroring.

 

[bzgnyc2]

If Apple drops intel for macOS 16 its likely that it will be the 2017 iMac Pro and the 2018 Mac mini/Macbook Pro Models.

I do think though that macOS 16 will be the last update for whatever Intel devices left to support. iMac 2019 is lucky to get Sequoia considering it’s the only Sequoia device to not get iPhone Mirroring.

I was going to say it would be odd if Apple drops T2-based Macs like the 2018 Mac Mini while keeping the odd-for-its-time non-T2 iMac 2019 but then they already did that when they dropped the 2018 and 2019 MacBook Air...

This parlor game of guessing when Apple will drop support for old Macs is a bit odd. Their decisions don't seem predictable from either model year or (visible) technical specs/capabilities so we all spend a lot of time speculating.

It will be interesting if Apple drops support for say the MacBook Air M1 (discontinue date June 2022) before the 2019 Mac Pro (discontinue date June 2023).

 

[philipma1957]

I decided to get a m4 with 16gb ram and a tb internal. it is replacing my 2018 intel mini as the mini was doing too much beach ball action.

 

[carylee2002]

Perhaps convert the 2018 mac mini into a pc using bootcamp and just readjust the mac partition to about 20gb after you get all the upgrades done on the windows side.

 

[Mity]

Woot is selling brand new ones with 32GB RAM 128GB SSD for $300: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DBK18MDW

Not sure if it's worth buying as a memento. What can they be used for? They can run an eGPU I suppose.

 

[bzgnyc2]

Woot is selling brand new ones with 32GB RAM 128GB SSD for $300: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DBK18MDW

That's not bad for a Mac w 32GB...I'd think about it if I needed yet another computer...

Not sure if it's worth buying as a memento. What can they be used for?

They are still spunky little things. I've heard of people mounting Mac Mini in their cars and using as an iTunes jukebox, etc.

They can run an eGPU I suppose.

I would say that for typical desktop usage, $300 + eGPU cost on one of these is a little hard to justify versus a refurb, etc Mac Mini M2/M4 for most people given likely higher total cost but generally lower performance, possibly more complications, and more limited future software support.

Of coures if you really need 32 GB of RAM, Apple Silicon starts to get pricey and is just plain expensive for 64 GB (which this computer can be upgraded to without too much money if you can DIY).

However, lot's of fun, offbeat things can be done with a cheap computer. The question I am struggling with is whether those fun things would be just as well served with a Raspberry Pi, etc. I feel like there is a niche for something like this but my brain is stuck in a narrow mode of thought to see it right now...

 

[LionTeeth]

I bought my 2018 Mini shortly after it was released and was worried about OS upgrades after Sequoia so I went ahead and bought a new M4 mini. I'm glad I went ahead and upgraded since there is such a big difference in performance between the two. Both have 512GB drives. The M4 has 24GM of memory.

I did upgrade the 2018 to the maximum 64GB of memory which helped speed things up. But it still gets pretty warm, where as the M4 stays cool under the same load.

I decided to get a multi bay direct attached storage case so I can turn the 2018 into a dedicated file server. I also installed VMware Fusion and am currently y running the latest version of Lubuntu in a virtual machine. Though it isn't under much of a load running HamClock and a couple of other amateur radio programs.

It’s funny how functional the old gear suddenly gets when you get a new one.