Apple unveils the new Mac mini M2 and M2 Pro
The Mac mini M2 update is finally here! This new update brings a reported CPU performance increase of 20% compared to the M1 version. Let’s take a closer look at what it has to offer.
The Mac mini has been the preferred choice of home studio users for years. Its slim, compact form factor combined with excellent performance, connectivity options, and affordability make it a great choice for music and many other creative media disciplines.
The Mac mini M2 update
With the new M2 chip, the Mac mini can support up to 24 GB of unified memory with 100GB/s memory bandwidth. Meanwhile, the even faster M2 Pro allows up to 32 GB of unified memory with 200GB/s memory bandwidth.
Apart from that, the M2 Pro also allows faster graphics processing, with up to a 19-core GPU.
Compared to the Intel Mac mini, reported speed tests revealed that the M2 provided up to 3.5x faster filter and function performance in Photoshop, while the M2 Pro was up to 4.7x faster.
In addition, the M2 Mac mini provided up to 9.8x faster complex timeline render performance in Final Cut Pro while the M2 Pro was up to 18.8x faster.
While these tests are inconclusive when it comes to DAW performance, they should give us some idea of the difference from the previous generation.
If you are looking to upgrade your studio, however, make sure you do your research to ensure that your DAW and plug-in library are optimized and compatible with this new platform.
Pricing and availability:
The Mac mini M2 is currently available from the Apple store in three configurations.
- M2 8-Core CPU, 10-Core GPU, 8GB unified memory, 256GB SSD starting at $599
- M2 8-Core CPU, 10-Core GPU, 8GB unified memory, 512GB SSD starting at $799
- M2 Pro 10-Core CPU, 16-Core GPU, 16GB unified memory, 512GB SSD starting at $1299
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