The Mac Mini M4 Pro is a powerful compact desktop, ideal for content creators, especially video editors, thanks to impressive performance and efficiency. However, the entry-level model at $599 offers the best value, while the Pro version's upgrades are pricey and unnecessary for most users.
The Good
- Excellent Performance: Great single-core and multi-core performance, especially in video editing and rendering.
- Compact & Efficient: Smaller footprint compared to Mac Studio, freeing up desk space.
- Quiet & Cool: Runs efficiently with minimal heat and silent fan operation.
- Front-Facing Ports: Convenient USB-C and headphone jack placement.
- Great for Video Editing: Faster rendering and exporting times compared to M1 Max Mac Studio.
- Three External Display Support: Versatile connectivity for multiple monitors.
- Cloud Gaming Ready: Works well for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and native gaming is improving.
The Bad
- ❌ Expensive Upgrades: Storage and RAM upgrades are costly with no aftermarket options.
- ❌ No SD Card Reader: Missing a front SD card slot, unlike Mac Studio.
- ❌ Limited Thunderbolt Ports: Fewer ports compared to previous Pro models.
- ❌ Gaming Limitations: Not the best option for gaming compared to Windows alternatives.
The Mac Mini M4 Pro costs $1,399 the higher-end or the entry-level of the higher-end 24GB of unified memory and 512GB SSD storage. I think most people don’t need this; they can go with the entry-level model, get some external storage and save a lot of money. That comes in at $599 and I wouldn’t go for the upgrades because those are very expensive from Apple. So get an external drive like the Samsung T9.
One of the biggest improvements I’ve seen so far with this Mac Mini is video editing. One of the reasons I chose this was to see if it could replace my Mac Studio with the M1 Max. That of course came out a couple of years ago but it has a few more GPU cores and eight more GPU cores than the one I have.
The biggest surprises to me was how much better this was in terms of rendering and exporting an 18-minute 4K video in Final Cut Pro. This was a pretty big deal to me because it saved me almost half the time to render and export that video compared to my Mac Studio with the M1 Max.
Gaming is not what you’re going to buy this for, but I was able to connect my Xbox controller via Bluetooth. I can do some cloud gaming with Game Pass from Xbox. I have the Ultimate plan, so you get a lot of titles to choose from, just make sure you have a good internet connection.
You do sacrifice a few things with the Mac Mini compared to the Mac Studio. One of them is losing the SD card reader. Maybe it’s not a big deal but I liked having it on the front. Here, you don’t get one you’ll have to use a dongle or an adapter, so that’s one little negative. There are a couple of other things, but the form factor is basically a shrunken-down Mac Studio. It’s a big difference in terms of the footprint, it takes up less space on your desk, giving you more room for other things and a cleaner look.
So let’s get into why I think the Mac Mini M4 Pro is great for those who want to get work done without taking up a lot of space on their desk.
Design and Ports
I have the Mac Mini with the M4 Pro and gives you those Thunderbolt 5 ports. This has a little bit of heft, so it doesn’t feel cheap in any way. In fact, it feels like a very miniaturized version of the Mac Studio. It feels dense and I think because it’s going to the smaller form factor, the smaller footprint, you’re going to get a more densely feeling device.
Everybody’s all up in arms over the power button being on the bottom of the unit. But this is the air intake system, so it’s where it’s going to draw the air to cool the system down.
On the front you have the two USB-C ports. They’re standard USB-C and a headphone jack. On the back are the three Thunderbolt 5 ports. Right there, you also get your HDMI, your gigabit. I didn’t go for the enhanced gigabit or whatever they’re offering. I think that’s extra money if I’m not mistaken I don’t know but we’ll look into that. And then your power port.
Performance and Benchmarks
| Devices | Single-Core | Multi-Core |
|---|---|---|
| MacBook Pro 14 M4 Pro | 3,215 | 22,476 |
| Mac Mini M4 | 3,889 | 14,915 |
| Mac Mini M4 Pro | 4,005 | 23,045 |
| Mac Studio M1 Max | 1,784 | 12,665 |
| Mac Studio M2 Max | 2,419 | 12,630 |
| Mac Studio M2 Ultra | 2,777 | 21,357 |
Whether you go with the entry-level M4 or the M4 Pro like I did, you’re going to get excellent single-core and multi-core performance. Case in point check out the Geekbench 6 results, Single-core on the Mac Mini M4: 3,889, and on the M4 Pro: 4,405. Where you’re going to see the benefit of those extra cores is in multi-core performance. The M4 scores 14,914, but then you bump up to 23,045 on the M4 Pro a big gain. That’s one of the reasons I chose the M4 Pro but I think most people don’t need to do that. They will be perfectly fine with the entry-level model.
| Devices | Single-Core | Multi-Core |
|---|---|---|
| MacBook Pro 14 M4 Pro | 173 | 1,740 |
| Mac Mini M4 | 161 | 833 |
| Mac Mini M4 Pro | 166 | 1,622 |
| Mac Studio M1 Max | 112 | 796 |
| Mac Studio M2 Max | 121 | 1,025 |
| Mac Studio M2 Ultra | 126 | 1,918 |
The Cinebench 2024 results excellent single and multi-core performance. The Mac Mini M4 scores 161, which is excellent and the M4 Pro 166. But the big difference is in multi-core: 833 versus 1,622, so pretty much double the performance. That’s going to be good for things like rendering video and other multi-core intensive tasks.
| Devices | Time Taken |
|---|---|
| MacBook Pro 16 M4 MAX (14-CORE CPU, 32-CORE GPU) | 5:29 |
| MACBOOK 14 M3 MAX (14-Core CPU, 30-CORE GPU, | 14:34 |
| Mac Mini M4 Pro (12-CORE CPU, 16-CORE GPU) | 8:34 |
| Mac Studio M1 Max (10-CORE CPU, 24-CORE GPU) | 16:02 |
One of the reasons I wanted to move from the Mac Studio M1 Max to the Mac Mini M4 Pro was not only to save space due to its smaller footprint but also because of the results. 18-minute 4K video export and render in Final Cut Pro, with very complicated transitions and effects was handled impressively. The MacBook Pro 16 M4 Max did it in 5 minutes 29 seconds, which was 165% faster than my MacBook Pro with the M3 Max from last year. Mac Mini M4 Pro did in 8 minutes 34 seconds. That’s not bad at all. In comparison, my Mac Studio M1 Max, which has eight more GPU cores took 16 minutes 2 seconds almost double the time. That is a game-changer, especially for someone like me, where time is money.
Ás for DaVinci Resolve, you can see it holds its own. The overall score is 8,280, with a basic score of 7,067. When you compare it to the more powerful M4 Max on the MacBook Pro 16 I just reviewed, you can see it’s not that far off in terms of video performance. Very impressive for the Mac Mini with the M4 Pro.
Gaming
Gaming on the Mac Mini, I’m using cloud gaming with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. I think it’s $20 a month and gives you access to a fair amount of games, as long as you have a fast connection with low latency. Playing with an Xbox controller wirelessly certainly helps. I played Forza Horizon 5 going through the initial setup and it’s playable.
Native gaming on Mac is getting better, some native titles are already available like No Man’s Sky and Baldur’s Gate. They play great I haven’t tested them yet on this Mac Mini, but overall cloud gaming might be a good solution for those who want access to more popular titles.
The bottom line this is basically the best-case scenario for gaming. Upcoming titles like Cyberpunk 2077 are set to arrive natively on Mac in 2025, but gaming is probably not the main reason you’d buy this. There are better Windows alternatives that offer a wider selection of games with fewer issues and a better experience.
The Mac Mini’s speaker is surprisingly goo, louder with improved fidelity. But, of course, adding a good pair of speakers would make it even better. There’s also a headphone jack on the front and Bluetooth connectivity for more audio options.
There is a little lag, likely because I’m in my studio with less-than-ideal internet. Connecting via Ethernet would be better for lower latency and better speed. Even on Wi-Fi, it’s playable, though there are some jittery moments it’s cloud gaming so that’s expected.
One of the issues with entry-level 256GB SSDs in the past was slow read and write speeds. That’s not the case here at least with the 512GB model I have in the M4 Pro Mac Mini SSD speeds are excellent.
Surface temperatures never get overly hot stay relatively cool. Although you won’t be picking it up all that much, so it’s not a big deal. But the biggest thing here? I still haven’t heard the fans on this thing.
Conclusion
16GB of RAM you get in the $599 model, it’s an easy recommendation to anyone who wants an entry-level Mac. The impressive performance is simply off the charts relative to what you’re paying $599. And I think 99% of you, most of you, should be looking at that model. Don’t look at the Pro model that I have because it’s really overkill for a lot of you.
Apple Silicon continues to impress, whether you’re talking about the M4 or the M4 Pro. I like the fact that you’re no longer getting that paltry 8GB in the entry model. In terms of memory, it’s bumped up to 16GB and if you go with the model that I have, it’s 24GB so that’s even more impressive.
You’ve got support for three external displays on both models, no matter which one you go with. I added two via the two Thunderbolt 4 ports. I also added a Sidecar through my iPad Pro, so that added that third monitor for me. But you can add another third by plugging it into the Thunderbolt 4 or Thunderbolt 5 port, depending on which model you go with.
Having some front-mounted ports is very convenient although the one big thing missing here is the SD card reader the one that I had on the Mac Studio. That’s the one thing you lose. You also lose the USB-A ports. You get fewer Thunderbolt ports on the back of the M4 Pro model relative to the 2018 Intel or the M2 Pro Mac Mini, so just keep that in mind.
Storage and RAM options remain very costly, with no real options for an aftermarket upgrade. Although I’ve seen some teardowns, so you may want to risk it—I don’t know, maybe you can upgrade it.
High-power mode on the M4 Pro version really doesn’t do a whole lot, to be honest with you, so not sure why it’s there. But if you want to use it, you can. I didn’t see a big difference in terms of the numbers.
Power button is on the bottom many people have been clamoring about how that is a bad design choice. It didn’t bother me all that much. I don’t use it all that much. I put it to sleep and that’s pretty much been the case with my Mac Studio as well, so not a big deal that the power button is on the bottom.
Overall I think Apple has come out here, swung for the fences and hit a grand slam. I think they did a fantastic job in terms of price-to-performance ratio on that $599 model. And I like the fact that if you want to bump up to the Pro-level model, you have that option—although that remains very costly, and the upgrades are just atrocious in terms of price.
This has been fantastic and it looks like I’m going to be replacing my Mac Studio with the M1 Max here with this Mini over here. It’s going to take up less space. I do sacrifice a few things, but overall performance gains I get will outweigh any of the negatives. this has been a great choice for 2025 and I highly recommend the M4 Mac Mini for 2025.
