Even knockoffs are coming out now.

[Siliconguy]

Dual NVMe slots on the Beelink
Be still my heart 🥰

And LOOK at the ports!

Audio jacks and USB-C and USB-A on both the front and the back!??
wow

This is what a computer should look like

Let's see, according to the website the SER 8 with a Ryzen 8745HS and 24 GB/ 1 TB is $500.

According to the PassMark benchmark site the 8745HS tests at 30,555, the M4 10 core is 24,550, and the M4 Pro 14 core is 38,470. For power consumption the Ryzen is 45 W, the M4 10 core is 22 W, the M4 Pro is not given.

The Beelink has two NVME slots, and two slots of upgradable RAM. Macs have Thunderbolt. Beeline has a power brick, which offends some people, but others like as the heat source is away from the CPU.

I'm not sure of this chip but other Ryzens are made with the 5nm process the M2 is using. It is certainly a worthy competitor to Apple Silicon. As the Red Queen said, "You have to run as fast as you can to keep up" or something like that.

 

[PsykX]

To be fair, it's not the same size. The Microsoft product is only 1-inch tall, fanless, and $349.

Still. The thinnest iPhone would have the power to do that. Remove the screen and add an HDMI port and it's done. I really think Apple's ahead of the game in the hardware department. I haven't thought that... ever before really.

 

[Cape Dave]

I am testing the SER9 now. Nice little machine so far. I love the ports and the lack of noise. Although not fully tested with that, yet. Really well designed and put together and great specs. 1TB and 32GB. I think the logo is fine!

 

[jwhazel]

That is not the same. The other one looked very similar.

The ”other one” came out half a year before the M4 mini https://www.notebookcheck.net/Beeli...a-quiet-design-and-eGPU-support.830500.0.html

 

[Siliconguy]

Still. The thinnest iPhone would have the power to do that. Remove the screen and add an HDMI port and it's done. I really think Apple's ahead of the game in the hardware department. I haven't thought that... ever before really.

Apple is well ahead on laptops, and mobile in general. They better be, that's their target market. On the other side, where power consumption is irrelevant;

 

[Macalway]

Beware of imitations, or just any of these in this thread.

 

[TechnoMonk]

My NUC experiment 3-4 years ago with great specs ended rather quickly because of throttling heat and noise. I really loved the upgradability, but it was too good to be true. I am very skeptical about the spec drooling on paper.

 

[yabeweb]

Still. The thinnest iPhone would have the power to do that. Remove the screen and add an HDMI port and it's done. I really think Apple's ahead of the game in the hardware department. I haven't thought that... ever before really.

That can be said for about any smartphone today.

 

[Chancha]

Well, the sub 2-litre small form factor PC idea was kind of pioneered by the original Mac mini. Then the mini 2010 further squeeze the volume down to 1L, which became the foundation of this sort of chassis on the PC side since it fits into a 1U rack shelf.

The problem is Apple intentionally stuck with this form factor until this last month. In the decade or so, many makers and even DIYs have experimented with more compact footprint to varying results. Even the M4's stacked board idea is also already done by others. I wouldn't necessary say the M4 mini is knocking off anyone, but it surely is in agreement with the direction the rest of the market is going.

So no, no body has knocked off the M4 mini (yet). And it is fair to say the M4 mini is knocking off someone else, of which those designed were inspired by knock offs from the previous mini a decade ago.