Is it easier to sell a M2 Mac mini or a Mac Mini M2 Pro? Will the M4 Pro loose more value even short term when it comes time to sell? The reason why I ask as it seems very difficult to sell used gaming pcs that are of higher spec and value.
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What will lose more value?
- Thread starter waloshin
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Might be easier to sell the M2 Mac Mini... I think the people who buy it would just want a solid device at a good price, while the people who get the M2 Pro Mac Mini are probably more picky about getting good specs, and it'd be more of a challenge to price that appropriately. 🤔
Cheaper stuff means more customers have the ability to buy it. Translates to being easier to sell.
Don't hem and haw (about purchasing a Mini) over what "the resale value" might be.
Buy it for what you need...
Pick the one that will satisfy your needs.
Buy it for what you need...
Pick the one that will satisfy your needs.
In a few years, both will be useable. The Pro will be faster, but compared to contemporary models, it likely won't be much faster than the base model. So they will likely sell for something similar, and given the large difference in price from new, the base model will hold its value the best.
Maxed Out M4 Pro here $2000 in 5 years maybe I’ll get $300 for it.
The top models always lose more value than the base models. Part of it is Apple's huge markups not translating to what it's actually worth, and part of it is people who want high-end machines (rather than the bare minimum at a good price) already set on going for the latest and greatest.
Absolute $ value will be a bit higher still on the M4 Pro but far less % of the value retained compared to the M4 (meaning they'll be much closer in price).
Absolute $ value will be a bit higher still on the M4 Pro but far less % of the value retained compared to the M4 (meaning they'll be much closer in price).
Gaming PCs are best stripped and sold for individual parts to maximise returns.
Base model macs depreciate less (both in value and percentage) overall I find.
The higher the ceiling the more the wiggle room.
M1 Mac minis with 16GB RAM still go for $350+. Those computers are 4+ years old at this point.
M1 Mac minis with 16GB RAM still go for $350+. Those computers are 4+ years old at this point.
Useless conversation IMO. Tech evolves rapidly and you are debating Apple's lowest end boxes years down the line. The dollar value deltas will be small and everyone is just guessing. So who cares?
Note also that pricing deltas among Mac Minis [Apple's lowest end] can not be compared to custom built high spec gaming PCs [the PC world's high end] because the folks who want to buy high spec gaming PCs want to buy high spec gaming PCs, not old now-low-spec gaming PCs from years ago. The folks who buy used low end Macs expect old now-low-spec Macs, and there are a lot of folks in that pool of buyers.
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The finest advice I've ever read on MacRumors.
Resale values change based on a host of factors you can't predict. Resale value when? Sold where? For what specs? How many others are currently on sale? How long are you willing to wait to find a buyer? Are you willing to negotiate? And on and on and on.
Buy what you need now. (And if you can't separate need from want, then you shouldn't be buying anything.) When it comes time to replace it because it no longer fulfills your needs as a tool, evaluate the re-sale market, the trade-in market, your time, and act accordingly then.
More of a signal to those considering purchasing past generation Macs I`d argue. Makes sense to discuss the relatively high valuation of the old ones taking into account spec and remaining life expectancy when the Mac is receiving updates.
The base M1 Studio was within reach the 1st year as 2nd hand, (entry M2 Studio is now abt 40-50% more due to currency and so on). Although it is still attractive, it no longer makes sense (to me), as you`d pay 60-70% more for it when long in the tooth compared with a M4 Mini which is competitive for a number of performance parameters, having a way better longevity.
So, yes, it make sense to look at it for a rational ownership. Personally, I look at probable annual cost of ownership, which I believe is very very good for both base M4 and base Studio, given that it is passed on when it is wise to do so. If specced up, the story is different.
I did this with my Ipad Pro 12.9 4G (bought new from a renown dealership), kept it for as long as I planned, and abt 14 months of ownership cost me zero. I tossed in the cover for free, and got exactly what I paid for iPad and pen.
It`s just about being pragmatic about it.
In that case, it's always better to buy the base model as the $ loss is much smaller compared to any higher model.
Past few years, I've been trying for $100/year to offset a few wasteful past Mac purchases. I'd need to keep the 2024 mini a bit longer, since I upgraded my prior mini earlier than I thought.
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The less you pay the less you lose. You should buy based on what you need not what resale value is. Wealthy people buy stuff with intention of owning it forever. They buy a Mercedes one time and drive it for 20+ years. People that want to act wealthy buy a new Mercedes every other year and lose half each time. The Mac and all tech lose value extremely quickly. As it becomes obsolete it will lose faster. Macs are not holding their value as they used to. Probably because the changes are so drastic. I see people asking more on used forums than can buy a MBA new. People don’t realize how much these things have dropped new. And even from Apple whether you buy a 256GB iPhone Pro Max or a 1TB they give you the same trade-in value.
So quit thinking about what you can lose less on and think about what you need and buy that. Cheers.
So quit thinking about what you can lose less on and think about what you need and buy that. Cheers.
I strongly agree, except that I modify that sound advice to say buy what you expect to need over the life cycle of the purchase. So buy planning for the future; any new box is only used in the future. Some things like RAM demands increase every year.
Anyone who will "...need to keep the 2024 mini a bit longer" should consider that RAM demands by OS/apps increase inexorably every year. Buy more RAM than you needed yesterday.
Oyu might be able to lose less on a pro version, but the equation would not be right.
Factor in the purchase price and the % difference might be similar.
Buy at 200 and sell at 100 you lost 50%
Buy at 500 and sell at 250 you lost 50%
Now with the 200 model you lost 100, if you had bought the 500 one you'd have spent 300 more to begin with.
You sell for 250, you lost 250+ the difference from the base to the pro, hence you'd have lost 550 compared to saving for a base model.
Factor in the purchase price and the % difference might be similar.
Buy at 200 and sell at 100 you lost 50%
Buy at 500 and sell at 250 you lost 50%
Now with the 200 model you lost 100, if you had bought the 500 one you'd have spent 300 more to begin with.
You sell for 250, you lost 250+ the difference from the base to the pro, hence you'd have lost 550 compared to saving for a base model.
Easy mishaps. I stretched mine for too long and burned the battery while at it. Silly. Further, the base minis didn`t sit right with me - part of the reason for stretching it - but the M4 is right, and the way things (M-series) looks, I change from 2nd hand long perspective purchases to new and shorter term. Aim to swap after 2 years. Believe it would be around 100 usd/y doing that. It cover my needs, and if it don`t I swap it in a year or so and move up one or two notches. I`m probably done with 2nd hand.
Depreciation usually works in %, so a more expensive computer will lose maybe the same %, but a bigger value in absolute $.
I have an M2 Pro and I'm 100% sure I lost much more $ than if I bought an M2. But, I absolutely need this power.
You can put it another way : A computer has a base price to have its core functionality, and then a variable price for performance. The base price doesn't depreciate as fast. The core functionality for M2 Mac Mini and M2 Pro is nearly the same, but performance isn't.
Buy the base M4 Mac Mini for $500 with an education discount or at Costco. If it feels limited in RAM or storage after a few years, don’t worry, just replace it. Upgrading specs upfront costs almost as much as buying two, making it far more cost-effective to start simple. It’s a strange reality where base-level Macs are an incredible value, while upgrade costs are wildly inflated. It's like the car industry's playbook on trim levels, only with profit margins that are unprecedented. Who knows how long this will last for AAPL.
....besides, there will be more customers (and more Minis) at base level, thus the pricing will be more obvious and consistent with faster turnaround. In this marked there`s a lot of people upgrading Minis at the moment, and about a month waiting for a new one from retailers.
Believe these are doing very well, and there will be a lot of Minis under the christmas trees.
Depends on what you do with the devices. My almost 4 year old M1 Max and M1 ipad Pro made me several times the money I paid them. I don’t really care what is the resale value. If those devices aren’t really being used for something of value, usually base model sells well, but is useless for my work.