# My 2024 M2 Mac Mini Experience: Useful for Development, Frustrating in Other Ways > The workload expectations behind my early Apple-silicon opinion video. Canonical page: https://pyrosoft.pro/blog/the-truth-about-apple-m-series-macs-overhyped-6d66af58 Published: 2026-11-04 Some links to other products on this page are affiliate links, and we may earn a commission if you buy through them. It costs you nothing extra, and it has not changed what this article says — where a competitor is the better answer, we say so. I bought an M2 Mac Mini to get an app-development job done, and it did that job. The frustration in this December 2024 video comes from what I expected to do with it afterward. ## The development need came first My older laptop was getting in the way of the publishing setup I needed, so I picked up the M2. In the video, I explain that the newer machine served that purpose. The broader claims I make about Apple's hardware and developer-tool requirements reflect that experience at the time. They are not current requirements for every developer or proof that everyone needs the newest Mac. ## Then I tried to use it for everything else I went in with high expectations for games and came away disappointed relative to what I wanted from this particular box. Video editing was a brighter spot, even with its 8GB configuration. I also talk about wishing I could change the graphics hardware or experiment with other operating systems as freely as on a familiar PC. This is a personal workload discussion, without a controlled cross-machine benchmark. ## The useful parts still matter I describe being impressed by the small power draw and interested in projects for running older games. I had not tried the M4 I mention wanting to test, so the video does not justify extending my one-M2 reaction to every later model. I later recorded a [Parallels and IdleOn setup session](), which follows one of those Mac-gaming interests in a separate video. This is an early opinion checkpoint: one machine, my expectations and the tasks I tried. The original Patreon and separate clothing-store offer are below. ## Links from the video **Affiliate disclosure:** These links may earn me a commission at no extra cost to you. - [MikeTheTech original Patreon link]() - [Geeksoutfit original clothing-store link]() **Coupon code: MTT25** — 25% off. Separate Geeksoutfit clothing-store offer in the original description, not a discount on the featured hardware. No expiry supplied; check current terms. Links and offers are from the video description. Availability, prices and offer terms may change.