Thought I'd put together a separate post for the 2018 Mac Mini, since I know a few people were showing interest in this machine. Comments here are based on the mid-range 3.0Ghz Core i5 model with BTO, 512GB SSD and 16GB RAM, and Gbit Ethernet, that I purchased ($1,879.00 Cdn, before 12% GST+PST and environmental fees = $2107Cdn). For my use this seemed like a good combination of CPU power, storage and RAM, which I can upgrade later. We already have keyboards, mice, 1440p monitors etc, so an iMac just doesn't make sense. I wish Apple would offer a dedicated or hybrid GPU like the Macbook Pro though. Didn't opt for Applecare, haven't needed it for a desktop for a long time.
Impressions are based on use against my most recent machines; 2012 Mac Mini, 2.5Ghz Core i5 (dual core) 256GB Samsung 850 Pro /1TB WD Blue SSD with 8GB of RAM, and 2011 iMac (retired former work machine, specter and meltdown patches killed this machine for work, way too slow)2.7Ghz Core i5, 16GB RAM , 480GB Sandisk SSD + 1TB WD Black HDD, and finally a 2016 self built custom Windows 10 PC, 6600k 3.5Ghz Core i5 (overclocked and water cooled), 32GB RAM, EVGA GTX 1080 FTW2, 256GB Samsung EVO, 500GB Samsung EVOx2 and 3x3TB HDD.
Vs the windows tower, it's not really comparable, since the machines are used for different activities (PC used for video editing in Resolve, Photo editing in LR/PS and some gaming), it's not really a contest, thanks mostly to the dedicated GPU. In terms of raw CPU power the Mac Mini has more compute power thanks to the two extra cores, but I haven't put it to the test just yet. I suspect thermal throttling and the weak Intel IGP will hold the Mini back compared to the tower PC. Still worth having both, since I still want to have a real Mac around, rather than a hack one.
The new Mini is faster than both the 2012 Mac Mini and 2011 iMac. In terms of boot time the two Minis are about the same though, even with it being a SATA SSD vs PCI-E SSD. The 2011 iMac is slower than both in boot times. Program launches, particularly larger ones, is where the 2018 Mini shines, and having double the RAM helps a lot. Not really a big deal since the Mini will mostly be used for media and editing work training videos (iMovie level stuff) for new employees that are come on this year. Might even classify it as overkill, but it should last a long time for these tasks, which the 2012 Mac Mini couldn't really handle anymore (the video editing).
I don't have any USB-C gear and only TB Gen.1 stuff, so I am not able to test USB-C or TB3 aspects at this time. I will post more once I've had time to do some work with the new machine.
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