M1 Mac mini as a Daily Driver From a Developer’s Perspective
Was it the right choice?
This article will look at the M1 Mac Mini I chose as my daily driver for work projects over a year ago. This choice may seem unfortunate for some, but after this article, you will probably change your mind. When I bought this device, I took it as a replacement for my MacBook Pro 2017. Since I work on several different projects, I still need a device to compile/test things for macOS.
Why did I choose the Mac Mini?
I used to work with two 27" 4k monitors, so a machine that allows two monitors to be connected was a must-have. However, over time I changed my mind as it’s best for your cervical spine when you have one monitor at the right height, so I have a setup that would allow two monitors, but as a result, I don’t use this option.
As far as my work goes, I have been working full remotely for a long time and travel to clients minimally, so when I need to do a demo or meet IRL, I have a 13" MacBook Pro or a 12.9" iPad Pro with M1. In both cases, great devices have earned their way back very quickly.
I chose this mini PC because even under heavy load, this computer is quiet. I can’t say about my desktop, but there’s also the fact that the desktop has to handle much higher temperatures.
Configuration
From a developer perspective, I took the ram increase to 16GB as a must-have. From a disk capacity perspective, an essential 256GB would be fine for pure work, but I also like to do video editing/photo editing, so I opted for 512GB instead and well done.
Instead of paying Apple another $200 to expand to 1TB, I got a fast 1TB external NVME SSD for around $120, which I have connected to my Mac Mini all the time, so you could say I’m using a 1.5TB Mac Mini for data so that I can do something with that :). I also got a USB-C Hub for the Mac Mini to expand the ports, but that didn’t quite work in combination with the M1, at least for me.
Peripherals
The biggest advantage is that you can choose the peripherals that suit you, whether it is a keyboard and mouse, a choice of monitor, or in my case, a sound card, webcam etc.
As a result, I use this mini computer in combination with Logitech MX Keys and Logitech MX Master 3/3S, where the silent variant has become my new daily driver, this reminds me that I could write an article on the comparison of both versions and the same applies to the review of the new version. Since I am a more demanding user, I have a Focusrite 4i4 external sound card connected to my computer.
The reason for this solution is simple. I like to listen to quality music, mostly in a lossless format. My headphones may not be the best in terms of sound, but they have kept me company for almost four years, and their ANC has changed my life.
I used to work in an open-space office, and can you imagine the constant hustle and bustle? I don’t anymore… The sound card has another reason, though. I also use a high-quality Shure SM7B external microphone. The reason for this dynamic microphone is simple.
The microphone has a directional characteristic such that it picks up sound only from the front, not from the surroundings, as with condenser microphones. I’ll be making some videos/courses for you in the future, so this setup won’t just be me spoiling you.
Since I also record videos for clients from time to time, I have an editing card available, which I use to record the image from the Mac Mini. Then I can share it with clients. You can use pure software solutions such as Camtasia, Snagit, OBS, and the direct screenshot tool. Still, it always depends on the specific uses and whether the editing card is used or not.
As I mentioned in the previous text, I had a problem with the hub on M1 because I was using it so that it was permanently plugged into an external disk and dongles from the keyboard and mouse. It was happening that my keyboard/mouse stopped responding, and with prolonged use, it even disconnected the disk.
Only disconnecting and reconnecting the whole hub helped, so I stopped actively using it and found its place among the things I take with me when I go to clients.
Daily driver
The Mac Mini quickly became my daily driver. I always keep the Mini on the latest macOS release. I don’t use betas on it, as not everything may work. From a developer’s point of view, the attractive thing about this machine is that it is powerful and quiet. As for the downsides, you will occasionally encounter challenges due to the architecture.
After all, not every application was available for ARM in the beginning, and even now, they certainly won’t all be ARM ready. Rosetta 2 is very helpful in this regard, a great compiler that versions apps built for intel and tries to translate them for ARM. Oddly enough, it works great.
If you use, for example, docker for your work, then you need to think that ARM needs to have the right image for your platform. In my work, I often run into the performance limits of the Mac Mini, but I take this as a fact redeemed by its price, as it is affordable and gets the job done. You have to wait sometimes.
But even this is not entirely true as packages are released for ARM as time goes on. So, for example, with python, you get up to 2.5x faster speed when you choose newer packages, and with node.js, you can get an even better speedup. So if you have outdated packages, they recommend updating because it will be like replacing your M1 Mac Mini with a new version.
This machine never ceases to surprise me as time goes on. So far, it has kept up with me. In the moments when I load it more than it deserves, I don’t take it as a problem of the device but as a problem of the user because, after all, real professionals/freelancers with a sufficient budget for HW apple introduced Mac Studio which can handle more work, but you also pay for it.
If I were to buy a more expensive machine, I would consider a 16" MacBook Pro with M1 Max. Yes, the configuration is possible with the 14" version, which will certainly be more portable. Still, there is one small catch, the 16" has more robust cooling, so if you are planning a heavy workload, then it’s the obvious choice.
Why would I choose a MacBook over a Mac Studio?
The reason is pretty simple. If I’m going to pay that much, I’d rather invest the money in something I can easily carry around. After all, you’re bound to have peripherals and a monitor with the Mac Studio. The MacBook already has all of this beautifully wrapped up in one.
Yes, I’d limit myself to the M1 Max. Still, hand on heart, when the admittedly breathless mini does the job now, I don’t see the downright point in putting money into a Mac Studio with the M1 Ultra, which, while enjoyable. A brutal beast in terms of performance. I’d use that performed several times a month with my current usage. I’d need to use that performance daily to make such a machine worthwhile.
Will I be upgrading to an M2 Mac Mini?
I thought of this other question, so I’ll answer it as I see it. If I were to do a mini-for-mini upgrade, then the M2 version would only need to offer performance cores; ideally, there would be more CPU cores right off the bat.
Then that would be enough of a dealbreaker for me to say, yes, it makes sense to get a new Mini, but the moment it’s just an increase in base clock speeds, then it’s a pointless investment, as getting results a few seconds earlier won’t change the rules of the game.
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