Tried a 2018 i5 Mini for 2 weeks and it's going back !!

[Ethosik]

No one is scaring off buyers.

But Tom is right. I’ve used a 2011 Mac mini with the same pair of displays for 7 years upgrading all the way to High Sierra eventually...but there is something fundamentally differnent about the rendering of the 2018 mini.

Something more than just the fonts. Something to do with the contrast I think.

Unfortunately, I am unable to install Mojave on the 2011 mini, so it is impossible for me to test if it is Mojave or a 2011/2018 mini difference. But I am almost certain that there is a (subtle) difference.

Actually, this whole “horrible display” with the mini is putting me off getting one. Is it that bad where I cannot do my work? I’m not going to get a Mini if I need $1,000+ for new monitors too.

So yes, this is scaring me off buying one

 

[Ploki]

Actually, this whole “horrible display” with the mini is putting me off getting one. Is it that bad where I cannot do my work? I’m not going to get a Mini if I need $1,000+ for new monitors too.

So yes, this is scaring me off buying one

it's a Mojave issue, and it can be mitigated via terminal command that changes font rendering.
Fwiw, i didn't find it any more horrible than my previous laptop on a non retina screen...

What OP said is largely false.

What kind of work do you do? Do you have a spare drive on which you can install Mojave to test it out on your current machine?

 

[Spectrum]

Actually, this whole “horrible display” with the mini is putting me off getting one. Is it that bad where I cannot do my work? I’m not going to get a Mini if I need $1,000+ for new monitors too.

So yes, this is scaring me off buying one

If you are already running Mojave, then there is absolutely no reason not to get a 2018 mini.
If you are not yet running Mojave...then as Ploki says, try before you buy!

 

[jackerin]

Actually, this whole “horrible display” with the mini is putting me off getting one. Is it that bad where I cannot do my work? I’m not going to get a Mini if I need $1,000+ for new monitors too

I had prepared myself for the worst with getting the new mini (audio problems, wi-fi problems, display problems..) but mostly it has been a surprisingly trouble-free upgrade considering I was running El Capitan before. The one thing I had to fix (that I suspect OP was also having problems with) was the monitor EDID mismatch, and that was a very visible issue. There are instructions around the internet how it's fixed and having done that and the terminal command to lessen the font issue it's been smooth sailing.

 

[Ethosik]

I had prepared myself for the worst with getting the new mini (audio problems, wi-fi problems, display problems..) but mostly it has been a surprisingly trouble-free upgrade considering I was running El Capitan before. The one thing I had to fix (that I suspect OP was also having problems with) was the monitor EDID mismatch, and that was a very visible issue. There are instructions around the internet how it's fixed and having done that and the terminal command to lessen the font issue it's been smooth sailing.

I would rather not have to force myself to enter commands for every future purchase I make or upgrade the OS. If this is truly as horrible as people say, this is the end for Macs for me. I cannot stand all-in-ones.
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If you are already running Mojave, then there is absolutely no reason not to get a 2018 mini.
If you are not yet running Mojave...then as Ploki says, try before you buy!

I’m running it on my iMac which is retina so the issue doesn’t show up correct?

 

[Ploki]

I would rather not have to force myself to enter commands for every future purchase I make or upgrade the OS. If this is truly as horrible as people say, this is the end for Macs for me. I cannot stand all-in-ones.
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I’m running it on my iMac which is retina so the issue doesn’t show up correct?

1) if you have iMac retina, any non hidpi monitor will look terrible regardless of OS.
2) what new monitors then if you have an imac ?!
3) you can get HiDPI screens for 300ish.

to me it looks like you're looking issues that arent there

 

[jdiamond]

right below "Radeon Pro 555" it says "Intel HD 630".

I said:
- When i was running the i9 that I returned on either Radeon 560X or Intel UHD630, image quality didn't change in any form whatsoever.
If your claims of changing image quality were correct, i surely would have observed this on the 2018 15" i had because it has both GPUs that you speak of: The (U)HD630 of the Mini and Radeon Pro.

So apparently, the (U)HD 630 is completely capable of running the internal 2880*1800 display, and you are the only person ever that has claimed that GPU has "sharpness issues".

Which is why i suspect that what you are experiencing is either a malfunctioning unit, or user error.

what exactly it is is hard to discern from very scarce information you provided (no adapter unit models, no cable version, not even monitor type)

FWIW, I believe the Mac Mini only has a 620. Apple *really* wanted to make sure anyone who needed any graphics capabilities at all got an eGPU. For example, with Geekbench compute, I've occasionally seen 25,000 on the Mini, but just as often see the high teens. In comparison, my 2015 MBP gets ~40K. Your point about image quality between discrete and integrated graphics is great - you just didn't phrase it that well the first time and it did sound quite incorrect.
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Well said. Apple really really needs to sort out its cooling. It's a huge problem, considering some simple tasks turn MBPs into a bonfire.
I love my mini so far. The only small 'issue' I have is wanting to get a second monitor and being worried in the iGPU can handle it. I do no GPU intensive work, so spending £500 on an eGPU just to drive 2 4K screens is a bit crazy.

I'm using my Mac Mini with one 2,560 display and a second 4K display with no issues. Of course, do anything intensive and the fan's on, but simple GUI displays on two monitors doesn't set it off.

 

[Ploki]

FWIW, I believe the Mac Mini only has a 620. Apple *really* wanted to make sure anyone who needed any graphics capabilities at all got an eGPU. For example, with Geekbench compute, I've occasionally seen 25,000 on the Mini, but just as often see the high teens. In comparison, my 2015 MBP gets ~40K. Your point about image quality between discrete and integrated graphics is great - you just didn't phrase it that well the first time and it did sound quite incorrect.
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630*

there's no intel CPUs in the same performance/tdp bracket with better graphic chip tho.

yeah, uhd630 is not great.

 

[jclardy]

There is definitely another confounding factor. MacOS doesn’t render anything differently on different GPUs. The entire point of the iGPU in laptops is to save battery - the computer is constantly swapping between the iGPU end discrete GPU without any change in visual fidelity (To the OS - if you are playing a game or anything there will be a difference.)

Most likely you have something like night shift, or True Tone, or some other display app that is affecting the MBP that isn’t turned on with the Mini. Or different OS versions.

 

[Ethosik]

1) if you have iMac retina, any non hidpi monitor will look terrible regardless of OS.
2) what new monitors then if you have an imac ?!
3) you can get HiDPI screens for 300ish.

to me it looks like you're looking issues that arent there

I need 27” or bigger for my two/three screen setup. I don’t see many “good” 27” monitors at $300 let alone HiDPI.

For my iMac, I just use the iMac screen. My other monitors are pretty much un-moveable. I’m well aware of the difference between the 5K iMac and my 2560x1440 27” displays. Those do not look horrible though.

It just seems people are saying Mojave is basically useless unless you play with settings and perform a terminal command. Since this will likely continue to further OSes, and don’t want to spend $1,000+ for Apple’s future display, I guess I will not purchase the Mac Mini or the updated Mac Pro when it comes out.

 

[JTBing]

I need 27” or bigger for my two/three screen setup. I don’t see many “good” 27” monitors at $300 let alone HiDPI.

For my iMac, I just use the iMac screen. My other monitors are pretty much un-moveable. I’m well aware of the difference between the 5K iMac and my 2560x1440 27” displays. Those do not look horrible though.

It just seems people are saying Mojave is basically useless unless you play with settings and perform a terminal command. Since this will likely continue to further OSes, and don’t want to spend $1,000+ for Apple’s future display, I guess I will not purchase the Mac Mini or the updated Mac Pro when it comes out.

That’s not what is happening. Some people are bothered by the different font rendering effect on certain external monitors. I’ve been running Mojave since launch and not had an issue. It’s definitely not a blanket thing where everyone is saying Mojave won’t work for you unless you enter this terminal command...which should be obvious.

 

[Ploki]

I need 27” or bigger for my two/three screen setup. I don’t see many “good” 27” monitors at $300 let alone HiDPI.

For my iMac, I just use the iMac screen. My other monitors are pretty much un-moveable. I’m well aware of the difference between the 5K iMac and my 2560x1440 27” displays. Those do not look horrible though.

It just seems people are saying Mojave is basically useless unless you play with settings and perform a terminal command. Since this will likely continue to further OSes, and don’t want to spend $1,000+ for Apple’s future display, I guess I will not purchase the Mac Mini or the updated Mac Pro when it comes out.

https://www.newegg.com/global/si-en...on=4k monitor&bop=And&Order=PRICE&PageSize=36
plenty of 300$ 27" 4K monitors.

OP had 1080p 27" screen which has significantly less resolution...
and in my opinion, 27" 2560*1440 does look horrible. but hey.

As i said, with about 30 minutes of time wasted you can install mojave yourself and try how it looks on your current machine

 

[Ethosik]

https://www.newegg.com/global/si-en/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&IsNodeId=1&Description=4k monitor&bop=And&Order=PRICE&PageSize=36
plenty of 300$ 27" 4K monitors.

OP had 1080p 27" screen which has significantly less resolution...
and in my opinion, 27" 2560*1440 does look horrible. but hey.

As i said, with about 30 minutes of time wasted you can install mojave yourself and try how it looks on your current machine

The only 4K monitors I see on that page are refurbished ones. Due to my history with refurbished items, I never buy them anymore.

Besides, 27” 4K causes the UI to be too small for me since I will need to swap to Windows for some things (Mac Mini was going to share my three monitor setup with my Windows PC). I prefer 2560x1440. And even still, $300 x 3 monitors with shipping and tax will be about $1,000 JUST to fix a Mojave issue.

As I said, I cannot move my existing monitors. The only thing I could do is move my iMac but that’s a big hassle too. Do you know if Apple will change it back to the way it was? My concern is having to run the command every time I reinstall or upgrade the OS.

 

[saytheenay]

It's a Mojave vs Sierra issue. I have a 2015 13" MBP connected to a non-hi-dpi monitor.

Mojave (running from a USB flash drive) looks much worse on the same hardware.

 

[crazeazn]

Anecdotal/Tangential evidence here:

I own a 2012 Mac Mini and its gone through each iteration from Mountain Lion to Mojave. I've also used the same monitors (2x Dell U2412M (1920x1200) since then as well. Mojave is the first OS where I felt like something was slightly off with the display. I still cant figure out what it is even while playing with the settings.

 

[Ploki]

The only 4K monitors I see on that page are refurbished ones. Due to my history with refurbished items, I never buy them anymore.

Besides, 27” 4K causes the UI to be too small for me since I will need to swap to Windows for some things (Mac Mini was going to share my three monitor setup with my Windows PC). I prefer 2560x1440. And even still, $300 x 3 monitors with shipping and tax will be about $1,000 JUST to fix a Mojave issue.

As I said, I cannot move my existing monitors. The only thing I could do is move my iMac but that’s a big hassle too. Do you know if Apple will change it back to the way it was? My concern is having to run the command every time I reinstall or upgrade the OS.

it's not to fix a mojave issue, it's to get higher DPI monitors.
still, no, i doubt apple will change it back, so running that one single command everytime you do a major update (once every two years, probably 3 4 times altogether) shouldn't be a problem.
i think the command since being a preference survives minor updates.

 

[Ethosik]

it's not to fix a mojave issue, it's to get higher DPI monitors.
still, no, i doubt apple will change it back, so running that one single command everytime you do a major update (once every two years, probably 3 4 times altogether) shouldn't be a problem.
i think the command since being a preference survives minor updates.

But this wasn’t an issue with High Sierra or earlier. So this is a Mojave issue.

I am really not a fan of HiDPI displays. I need to use Windows 10 a lot and they always cause issues with Windows horrible UI scaling. My eyes are not that good so 2560x1440 is the largest resolution before things get bad for me.

If I absolutely need to get one, how does this one look?

LG 27UD68-W 27-Inch 4K UHD IPS Monitor with FreeSync (2017) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01C3BZIIC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_KixzCbZ3ETE33

 

[Ploki]

But this wasn’t an issue with High Sierra or earlier. So this is a Mojave issue.

I am really not a fan of HiDPI displays. I need to use Windows 10 a lot and they always cause issues with Windows horrible UI scaling. My eyes are not that good so 2560x1440 is the largest resolution before things get bad for me.

If I absolutely need to get one, how does this one look?

LG 27UD68-W 27-Inch 4K UHD IPS Monitor with FreeSync (2017) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01C3BZIIC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_KixzCbZ3ETE33

looks fine.

Why don't you try Mojave? It takes so little time to install mojave and see for yourself.