Mini M4 Pro vs Studio M2 Max?

[atonaldenim]

Want to buy my M1 Ultra Mac Studio? Half-joking, but no seriously I would look at a used M1 Ultra or M2-M3 Max. Already depreciated and still really powerful.

That should tide you over until the M4 Mac Studio!

 

[Black Diesel]

I don’t think you’ll go wrong with either for your use case, a MacBook Air can handle 4k footage so the studio and mini will easily best them!

I have a Mac Studio M2 and love it but I’m a bit of a poser and don’t use it like i intended.

I’d be tempted with the M4 pro though and new thunderbolt for faster speeds. Having said that, I’d be keeping an eye out for a m2 studio deal as well.. maybe on refurbished store….

What external storage do you use?

I have tons of Sandisk 4TB Extreme portable SSD's. I know they have a bad reputation, but I haven't had any issues with mine and I have 14 of them which all get a lot of use.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1769364-REG/sandisk_sdssde61_4t00_g25m_4tb_extreme_portable_ssd.html

 

[Black Diesel]

1) Apps handling imagery like RAM. Forget the MBA, it is not for your usages for multiple reasons, starting with inadequate RAM.
2) IMO you should literally plan around the RAM, because it affects your other choices. IMO 64 GB minimum, which today puts you in a] a Mac mini, Pro chip or b] an M2 Studio with Max chip or c] an M3/M4 MBP with Max chip.
3) Wait and see the M4 MBPs later this week.
4) It is fine to save money by limiting internal SSD capacity because external SSDs are so easy and cheap.
5) It is not OK to save money on RAM, because RAM is not upgradeable and RAM needs are always increasing. Of course the Mac OS will force lesser RAM amounts to work, but sub-optimally. Why buy a pricey new Mac and force it to compute sub-optimally? We buy these things to compute with.

I went through a similar upgrade analysis two years ago (before the M2 Studios were released) and ended up with an M2 MBP, 96 GB RAM. A basic 2024 images workflow fits fine in 64 GB RAM; I bought 96 GB for future proofing, because I have rammed-out on every computer I have ever owned, staring with the 128k Mac. I keep my Macs 5-7 years.

Okay, sounds like RAM is key for me then. I'll wait for benchmarks on Mini M4 and new M4 MBP's and compare with M2 Max Studio with 96gb of RAM. I believe a Studio 96gb M2 Max should be on sale in the high 2K range soon (1TB version), which might be the best option for me after seeing the benchmarks. I'll circle back in a couple weeks.

 

[john1970]

If you can wait until 2025 I would go with a new M4 Studio.

 

[dawnrazor]

Hey all, a max'd out Mini M4 Pro is $2499 and an M2 Max Studio with similar RAM and HD is $2599. Which is the better buy for video editing in Resolve for someone who's going to learn? I'm a photographer who edits still in Lightroom but I want to learn how to edit all my 4k footage Iv'e been racking up. Do we know which machine will be faster or do we have to wait for benchmarks? I'm not too worried about TB5 as long as I can drive two studio displays with the M2 Max Studio.

Your feedback is appreciated.

Either will work just fine without any issue for playback…

You need to think about storage and render speeds if you‘re serious about creating content with 4K or 8K sources, regardless of what you are creating…

I’d be looking at the M4 Pro Mac Mini and the TB5… that will give loads of head room for 8K files throughput if you have some super fast SSD off board storage… meaning playback and render speeds will be blistering… Depending on what codec your 8K RAW files are of course…

You may want to also consider upgrading the internal HDD on the Mac Mini to at least 1TB, as coupled with external storage would mean you can render your outputs to the internal hard drive which would be the fastest option…

 

[Black Diesel]

Either will work just fine without any issue for playback…

You need to think about storage and render speeds if you‘re serious about creating content with 4K or 8K sources, regardless of what you are creating…

I’d be looking at the M4 Pro Mac Mini and the TB5… that will give loads of head room for 8K files throughput if you have some super fast SSD off board storage… meaning playback and render speeds will be blistering… Depending on what codec your 8K RAW files are of course…

You may want to also consider upgrading the internal HDD on the Mac Mini to at least 1TB, as coupled with external storage would mean you can render your outputs to the internal hard drive which would be the fastest option…

Great feedback and something to think about. I haven't even researched TB5 storage yet. Is there anything available that's not super expensive?

 

[krell100]

I know its probably 6-7 months away but I'd wait for an M4 Studio.

With a gun to my head I think TB5 would probably give the slight advantage to the Mini, just.

 

[blufrog]

Great feedback and something to think about. I haven't even researched TB5 storage yet. Is there anything available that's not super expensive?

I have been looking around, but can only find TB4/USB4 at the moment. Even then, they are only quote 2800 Mb/sec transfer, which seems a bit low.

 

[imdog]

1) Apps handling imagery like RAM. Forget the MBA, it is not for your usages for multiple reasons, starting with inadequate RAM.
2) IMO you should literally plan around the RAM, because it affects your other choices. IMO 64 GB minimum, which today puts you in a] a Mac mini, Pro chip or b] an M2 Studio with Max chip or c] an M3/M4 MBP with Max chip.
3) Wait and see the M4 MBPs later this week.
4) It is fine to save money by limiting internal SSD capacity because external SSDs are so easy and cheap.
5) It is not OK to save money on RAM, because RAM is not upgradeable and RAM needs are always increasing. Of course the Mac OS will force lesser RAM amounts to work, but sub-optimally. Why buy a pricey new Mac and force it to compute sub-optimally? We buy these things to compute with.

I went through a similar upgrade analysis two years ago (before the M2 Studios were released) and ended up with an M2 MBP, 96 GB RAM. A basic 2024 images workflow fits fine in 64 GB RAM; I bought 96 GB for future proofing, because I have rammed-out on every computer I have ever owned, staring with the 128k Mac. I keep my Macs 5-7 years.

This is ridiculously overkill

 

[Seoras]

I've just ordered a max-ed out Mac Mini M4 Pro. I'm not big on video editing but as an App developer I do want fast compile times and to be able to run Xcode and Android Studio at the same time with AI code completion, suggestions etc.
Looking at the leaked M4 Geekbench scores:
The base M4 is impressively equal with the M2 Max in the Studio M4 Mac in CPU terms. Better single core score.
That's just 10 Cores (only 4 performance cores, 6 efficiency cores) compared to 24 Cores.
That's what I care about the most. The Mini M4 Pro is almost certainly going to out perform the Max Studio for compiling perhaps even the Ultra too.

As for the GPU score the M4 is again impressive.

compared to Studio Max

That puts the base M4 at 1/2 of the GPU power of a Studio Max with only 10 GPU cores compared to the Max's 30core GPU.
If the M4 Pro doubles to 20 GPU's, like the one I've ordered, then it should be par with the Studio Max based on those figures.

So I'd buy the Mini. It'll get several years support from now. The Studio wont.

 

[ThailandToo]

Both machines I spec'd above have 64gb of RAM. The studio would get the nod for more ports and probably better cooling. Would apple dare throttle an "M4 Pro" if the mini is susceptible to overheating?

I would be afraid of the overheating and throttling. I mean Apple has done it before. There’s a reason why the Mac Studio has a massive chunk of copper to dissipate heat.

As far as the chips are concerned, if you were running them ceteris paribus (all things equal), I would take the M4 Pro. I have M2 Max in two computers and it’s very fast. I edit a lot of 4K and even some 8K video. When I started out using an M1 MBA, it throttled a lot and just couldn’t do what I wanted it to do. And, running the same software on my Mac Studio is faster than my MBP with same SoC M2 Max - both 64GB of RAM; actually did a test last week and the difference on a video output was like half as fast on an 8K video. But when using them both in 4K or 8K, I have never seen a stutter a single time.

So throttling does happen due to heat. And I fear the mini will have heat and therefore throttle. But I don’t think you will notice it if you’re using Photoshop or Final Cut. It’s more likely if you’re using Adobe software - at least that’s been my experience. I switched to Final Cut even though I pay for the Adobe suite.

Good luck.

 

[dawnrazor]

Great feedback and something to think about. I haven't even researched TB5 storage yet. Is there anything available that's not super expensive?

I'd be looking at that from a future proof point of view rather than something for right now...

All that said if you move yourself into the sphere of a M4 Pro Mac mini.... then you got to be thinking about other options in that space... do you wait for a M4 Max Ultra for instance... or just get a M4 Pro MBP...

I'd at least wait for the rest of the announcements this week...

Here's the thing even a M1 MacBook Air will playback 8K Pro Res RAW without any issue... so there are no wrong answers here... but there are clever choices that will mean you maximise the longevity of your purchase...

 

[rukind2]

1) Apps handling imagery like RAM. Forget the MBA, it is not for your usages for multiple reasons, starting with inadequate RAM.
2) IMO you should literally plan around the RAM, because it affects your other choices. IMO 64 GB minimum, which today puts you in a] a Mac mini, Pro chip or b] an M2 Studio with Max chip or c] an M3/M4 MBP with Max chip.
3) Wait and see the M4 MBPs later this week.
4) It is fine to save money by limiting internal SSD capacity because external SSDs are so easy and cheap.
5) It is not OK to save money on RAM, because RAM is not upgradeable and RAM needs are always increasing. Of course the Mac OS will force lesser RAM amounts to work, but sub-optimally. Why buy a pricey new Mac and force it to compute sub-optimally? We buy these things to compute with.

I went through a similar upgrade analysis two years ago (before the M2 Studios were released) and ended up with an M2 MBP, 96 GB RAM. A basic 2024 images workflow fits fine in 64 GB RAM; I bought 96 GB for future proofing, because I have rammed-out on every computer I have ever owned, staring with the 128k Mac. I keep my Macs 5-7 years.

Recently, I ordered the M2 Max/96GB Ram/4TB and it has not shipped. Comments regarding the M4 Pro chip has me doing a bit of second guessing. Looking forward to user reports....

 

[B.A.T]

If you're going to do video a Mac Studio is going to be a lot faster. Go watch Art is Right on YouTube. He reviews Macs from a photography and video perspective and he has a lot of good insights.

 

[Return Zero]

Hey all, a max'd out Mini M4 Pro is $2499 and an M2 Max Studio with similar RAM and HD is $2599. Which is the better buy for video editing in Resolve for someone who's going to learn? I'm a photographer who edits still in Lightroom but I want to learn how to edit all my 4k footage Iv'e been racking up. Do we know which machine will be faster or do we have to wait for benchmarks? I'm not too worried about TB5 as long as I can drive two studio displays with the M2 Max Studio.

Your feedback is appreciated.

I’d go mini, but wait until review embargo lifts and see if it has any thermal issues with the Pro chip first.

 

[NewOldStock]

I am sure Apple engineers know all about heat loads.

 

[Rychiar]

Gotta say, this is the first product with M4 that has given me the desire twinge. But honestly, my darling M1 Max/64GB/4TB MacBook Pro is STILL more computer than I need, which after 30 years of being a nerd is the first time I was ever able to say that. It waits for me more than I wait for it lol.

Anyway this M4 mini is compelling, that memory bandwidth and Thunderbolt 5… and finally 10GigE at a - well, not reasonable upgrade price but not as offensively gouge-y as the storage, as ever (but as has been pointed out, on a desktop machine with these specs there’s almost no tradeoff using external) I know it’s apples to spanners but I am curious how the GPU on, say, a maxed out M4 Pro compares to - or if it can compare to - discrete cards on the PC side. I suppose benchmarks?

I think it’s a bit confusing if they’re going to keep the M2 Studio around until sometime next year? I mean most people looking at these hi end machines probably won’t be confused, but definitely the rich people who buy the top spec for writing emails on will just be lost!

It’s not really any difference than the last time when you could get an M2 Mac mini Pro and all you had was an M1 studio for a good six months or so

 

[tothemoonsands]

I ordered what I can only refer to as the “Pro Max” Mac Mini basically loaded except for just 1 TB SSD.

 

[page3]

Slightly different question, but not enough to merit its own thread I think…

I currently have an M1 Max 32Gb 1T bought for work but I’ve moved on so it’s not now a work machine, just home/hobbies.

Sell for £1K (approx) and purchase entry M4 mini for £500 (education)? Worth the swap to release some funds, or a pointless exchange?

Don’t need the RAM nor disk as I manage quite happily with the wonderful M2 MacBook Air entry.

 

[MayaUser]

Since Apple kept around the same price...i would strongly recommend (if you can) for mid 2025 Max Studio
For the current price It will be the desktop mac without compromises in cpu gpu cooling I/O
If you cannot wait...buy the base m4 Pro and sell it when the studio arrives. Cooling on the M4 pro should be ok since its copper and still has a fan

 

[kingjames1970]

Funny the choices we have to make because all the M4 products wont be available at the same time. So weird that a Mac Mini will trounce a Mac Pro in single core for what, a 1/14th of the cost? Admittedly I have no patience so I’ve already decided (unless something surprising happens today) that I’ll be getting the M4 16” MBP Max with 64GB ram and 2TB. I use mostly in clamshell so it would have been nice to compare to the Studio and make my decisions purely on use case and not the lust for new tech (just being honest!).

 

[Cervisia]

Hey all, a max'd out Mini M4 Pro is $2499 and an M2 Max Studio with similar RAM and HD is $2599. Which is the better buy for video editing in Resolve for someone who's going to learn? I'm a photographer who edits still in Lightroom but I want to learn how to edit all my 4k footage Iv'e been racking up. Do we know which machine will be faster or do we have to wait for benchmarks? I'm not too worried about TB5 as long as I can drive two studio displays with the M2 Max Studio.

Your feedback is appreciated.

I'm clueless about video editing, but I'd wait for a couple weeks after the Mini actually ships to see whether the M4 Pro throttles in that small case or not.

And anyone defending Apple's release "schedule", situations like these why some of us are upset with it, not "aN m2 mAx StUdIo Is StIlL gOoD, wHy WoUlD yOu UpGrAdE".

 

[FernandoSilva]

I am currently considering buying a new Mac. I currently have an i5 MacBook Pro from 2018. My main purpose will be gaming. Even though Apple isn't known for gaming, I still prefer it. Which would you consider the best choice: a Mac Mini with the M2 Pro, 20-core GPU, and 48GB RAM, or a Mac Studio with the M2 Max, 30-core GPU, and 32GB RAM?

 

[Melbourne Park]

I guess eventually Apple will stop support for M1 processors, then M2 processors, then M3 processors, then M4 processors ... so I am guessing an M4 will last longer than an M2. Hence an M4 mini or M4 macbook seems a better bet than an M2 Studio at the moment, if one wants to keep a Mac for years (as I like to).

 

[Cervisia]

I've just ordered a max-ed out Mac Mini M4 Pro. I'm not big on video editing but as an App developer I do want fast compile times and to be able to run Xcode and Android Studio at the same time with AI code completion, suggestions etc.
Looking at the leaked M4 Geekbench scores:
The base M4 is impressively equal with the M2 Max in the Studio M4 Mac in CPU terms. Better single core score.
That's just 10 Cores (only 4 performance cores, 6 efficiency cores) compared to 24 Cores.
That's what I care about the most. The Mini M4 Pro is almost certainly going to out perform the Max Studio for compiling perhaps even the Ultra too.

I'm absolutely shocked that as an app developer you've based your choice on geekbench scores, which are absolutely useless to measure multi-core performance, since they've made the deliberate design change in version 6 to not scale well, supposedly to emulate everyday usage. It's fine to look at single core scores until better benchmarks' results show up to get a vague idea, but concluding that M4 is equal to M2 Max is... on a second thought, I'd rather not get banned.

However your maxed out M4 Pro with 10 performance cores will certainly outperform the M2 Max with 8, two-generations older cores, no benchmark needed for that...