If you often play music on your computer’s speakers, you’ll have to invest in an external pair. Even for casual YouTube playback, I found myself casting the output to my Google Home instead of using the built-in speakers. There’s no way around it: the Mac mini’s built-in speakers are tiny, shallow, and downright embarrassing for a 2020 computer. The speakers are the second major compromise Apple made to bring down the price. So even though I like the Mac mini’s minimalistic look, I do wish Apple had fitted the audio jack and maybe an extra USB port on the front. Unfortunately, as the audio port is situated on the back, I have to run the earphones’ wire to the rear, which can often create desk clutter. I regularly plug in a wired pair of earphones while working from home because I find them the most reliable for video and voice calls. The Mac mini, as you may know, doesn’t have a microphone. My only complaint is the placement of the audio jack.
2020 mac mini review Bluetooth#
Bluetooth performance has been flawless as well and I was able to work with three Bluetooth-enabled devices (headphones, keyboard, and mouse) at the same time.
2020 mac mini review plus#
On the plus side, the M1 Mac mini’s wireless connectivity is of the highest quality, courtesy of the latest Wi-Fi 6 technology. Other than that, you’ll find a pair of USB-A ports, an HDMI input, and a 3.5mm headphone jack.įor most buyers, these changes won’t be deal-breakers but they’re still worth keeping in mind especially if you intend to use your Mac mini for the next four or five years. It’s also not configurable to 10GB Ethernet, which means network speeds will top out at 1GBps. On top of that, it supports a maximum of two external screens - the Intel Mac mini can handle three - and only one of them can be hooked via Thunderbolt. Although all of the inputs are neatly clustered at the back on a black plastic strip, as they were before, the M1 Mac mini loses a handful of ports that were available on its two-year-old Intel sibling.įor starters, the new Mac mini has just two Thunderbolt 3 USB-C slots, compared to the Intel version’s four. One of the areas where Apple cut corners to bring down the cost is the port selection. As teardowns revealed, that weight loss is the result of a more closely packed SoC, which we’ll get to in more detail later. Another minor alteration Apple made is apparent as soon as you take the new Mac mini out of its box: it’s 0.3 pounds lighter.
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