4 ms·

One thing Apple can't (or won't) compete on is price for RAM and storage. I have 32GB of RAM and 1 TB of storage, that cost me $200 total. The CPU and barebone

One thing Apple can't (or won't) compete on is price for RAM and storage. I have 32GB of RAM and 1 TB of storage, that cost me $200 total. The CPU and barebones mini pc (5600G, ASRock DeskMini) I bought are about $200 each. So $600 total. Meanwhile I can't even buy a base model M1 or M2 mac mini with 32 GB of RAM, and 24GB of RAM is $400. 1 TB of storage is another $400. The Mac option turns out to be roughly twice as much, for a pretty comparable system (including single core speed!). Even if I want more storage, I can have it for an extra $100 or so.

bpye 4y ago
Given that a Mac Mini has USB 4 you could connect an M2 drive with an adapter and still get good perf. That still has some additional cost though, and doesn’t address RAM.
- throw3846294 4y ago
  Do you know if TRIM works over USB 4 and if MacOS supports it? Would I also need to ensure the enclosure supports it?
  - CameronNemo 4y ago
    I'm not the USB4 expert, but don't they support raw pcie? I imagine choice of enclosure is very important.
nebula8804 4y ago
I concede Apple does not sell low bandwidth spec parts. Only one bandwidth. What is the memory bandwidth of the AsRock compared to the Mac Mini? Is it a bottom binned spec? At this point it is well known that they solder the memory dies onto the chip to get a specific memory bandwidth that a slot would not be able to provide. Some of the magic of the M1 is due in part to this design. Yes for storage the M1 is more opaque. They claim this is the only way they can provide truly secure trusted boot. Its questionable but at least the theory seems to be holding up. I give them the benefit of the doubt just because the machine truly feels like it is from the future. It is like the desktop perfected. If it was anything less than the rocket it is we'd be having a different conversation and I'd give more credence to your claims. As it stands to me, the value of the platform exceeds that additional memory/storage upcharge. >>The Mac option turns out to be roughly twice as much, for a pretty comparable system (including single core speed!). Even if I want more storage, I can have it for an extra $100 or so. Are you sure about this being "comparable"? This is so much legacy in these x86/64 designs that either they are slower per given clock or they have to compensate with increased fan speeds/power consumption. The minisforum I have was a popular Ryzen 5 machine being pushed by all the youtuber people two years ago. (Minisforum DMAF5). It was slow out of the box and is now even more slow about 2 years later. Even this system being advertised here has to use a GaN Charger to cover up the fact that they are needing a more powerful wattage than the equivalent Mac would need (65w vs ~45w) That right there is more evidence that the design can't possibly be more efficient than the M1. (not to mention the PSU is integrated into the case on the Mac!) This is such a common trope with PC people, they ignore design and value it at 0.
- CameronNemo 4y ago
  Hey, looks like you got downvoted. Sorry that happened. I think you brought up some decent points about memory quality vs. quantity. To answer your question, my memory is 3200MHz with probably not great latency compared to the Apple solution. Someone else mentioned USB4 for external storage, which honestly isn't a terrible solution.
warbeforepeace 4y ago
Heres hoping one day apple makes 16gb the default in all computers.

bpye 4y ago

Given that a Mac Mini has USB 4 you could connect an M2 drive with an adapter and still get good perf. That still has some additional cost though, and doesn’t address RAM.

throw3846294 4y ago
Do you know if TRIM works over USB 4 and if MacOS supports it? Would I also need to ensure the enclosure supports it?
- CameronNemo 4y ago
  I'm not the USB4 expert, but don't they support raw pcie? I imagine choice of enclosure is very important.

nebula8804 4y ago

I concede Apple does not sell low bandwidth spec parts. Only one bandwidth. What is the memory bandwidth of the AsRock compared to the Mac Mini? Is it a bottom binned spec? At this point it is well known that they solder the memory dies onto the chip to get a specific memory bandwidth that a slot would not be able to provide. Some of the magic of the M1 is due in part to this design. Yes for storage the M1 is more opaque. They claim this is the only way they can provide truly secure trusted boot. Its questionable but at least the theory seems to be holding up. I give them the benefit of the doubt just because the machine truly feels like it is from the future. It is like the desktop perfected. If it was anything less than the rocket it is we'd be having a different conversation and I'd give more credence to your claims. As it stands to me, the value of the platform exceeds that additional memory/storage upcharge. >>The Mac option turns out to be roughly twice as much, for a pretty comparable system (including single core speed!). Even if I want more storage, I can have it for an extra $100 or so. Are you sure about this being "comparable"? This is so much legacy in these x86/64 designs that either they are slower per given clock or they have to compensate with increased fan speeds/power consumption. The minisforum I have was a popular Ryzen 5 machine being pushed by all the youtuber people two years ago. (Minisforum DMAF5). It was slow out of the box and is now even more slow about 2 years later. Even this system being advertised here has to use a GaN Charger to cover up the fact that they are needing a more powerful wattage than the equivalent Mac would need (65w vs ~45w) That right there is more evidence that the design can't possibly be more efficient than the M1. (not to mention the PSU is integrated into the case on the Mac!) This is such a common trope with PC people, they ignore design and value it at 0.

CameronNemo 4y ago
Hey, looks like you got downvoted. Sorry that happened. I think you brought up some decent points about memory quality vs. quantity. To answer your question, my memory is 3200MHz with probably not great latency compared to the Apple solution. Someone else mentioned USB4 for external storage, which honestly isn't a terrible solution.

warbeforepeace 4y ago

Heres hoping one day apple makes 16gb the default in all computers.