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Is the best MacBook Pro 13" (2020) more powerful than the best Mac Mini (2020)?

I would like to buy the best and fastest performing computer to use for work. I'm debating between the newest MacBook Pro vs. the newest Mac Mini. The obvious advantage of the MBP would be its portability. During the day, I would plug the MBP to a 34" monitor.


[1] 13-inch MacBook Pro 2020

  • 2.3GHz quad-core 10th-generation Intel Core i7 processor, Turbo Boost up to 4.1GHz
  • 16GB 3733MHz LPDDR4X memory
  • 512GB SSD storage
  • CPU: is it this one i7-1068NG7?


[2] Mac Mini 2020

  • 3.2GHz 6‑core 8th‑generation Intel Core i7 (Turbo Boost up to 4.6GHz)
  • 16GB 2666MHz DDR4
  • 512GB SSD storage
  • CPU: is it this one: i7-8700B?


According to my reserach, it seems that the i7-8700B has a better benchmark compared to the i7-1068NG7. Would it be fair to say that the Mac Mini 2020 would perform better than the MBP?


Thank you!

Posted on May 6, 2020 10:51 AM

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Posted on May 6, 2020 1:29 PM

Well, I can't really tell you what to choose. That has to be your decision. If you have lots of open windows, then either the MBP or Mini would be suitable. The MBP would provide the added feature of having two displays, whereas, there would be only one display with the Mini. The Mini has a 6-core i7 vs the MBPs 4-core i5 at a lower clock speed. The MBP does add the feature of portability which the Mini does not. They both have only modestly different integral GPUs. The Mini should outperform the MBP. Personally, I don't consider either to be true desktop replacements, but many, many users do treat their laptops as desktops. So, who am I to argue. Not my cup of coffee but that's just me. The new Mini does have desktop-like specs.


You pretty much have all the specs to compare with your needs. Make a pros and cons evaluation sheet for each to help identify which seems better suited to your wants and needs.

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

May 6, 2020 1:29 PM in response to Qilitsunami

Well, I can't really tell you what to choose. That has to be your decision. If you have lots of open windows, then either the MBP or Mini would be suitable. The MBP would provide the added feature of having two displays, whereas, there would be only one display with the Mini. The Mini has a 6-core i7 vs the MBPs 4-core i5 at a lower clock speed. The MBP does add the feature of portability which the Mini does not. They both have only modestly different integral GPUs. The Mini should outperform the MBP. Personally, I don't consider either to be true desktop replacements, but many, many users do treat their laptops as desktops. So, who am I to argue. Not my cup of coffee but that's just me. The new Mini does have desktop-like specs.


You pretty much have all the specs to compare with your needs. Make a pros and cons evaluation sheet for each to help identify which seems better suited to your wants and needs.

May 6, 2020 12:33 PM in response to Qilitsunami

The MBA uses a 10th generation Intel processor which may be faster than the 8th generation process, ceteris paribus. The MBP has faster RAM than the Mini. The Mini has a nearly 50% faster clock speed than the MBP. I'm guessing but the Mini probably outperforms the MBP in terms of raw processor speed. But we don't know what sort of work you do or how suited either of these models would be for your work. Do you need CPU speed, graphics speed?


The Mini is not portable. If you are going for a Desktop model, then skip over the Mini and go directly to the iMac.

May 6, 2020 12:40 PM in response to Kappy

Hi Kappy! Thanks so much for your input, and thank you for recommending the iMac! The iMac does look great, but I'm ruling it out because I would like to use my own monitor.


In terms of the sort of work I do: it's mostly multitasking with many many windows open. Excel, Word, Scanner software, Chrome (with 50+ tabs), spotify, VLC... I would say the most important is having 50-100+ chrome tabs open.


Given these needs, would you recommend Mac Mini or Macbook Pro? I'm leaning towards the MBP, especially because it's portable and almost as light as the new Macbook Air... However, I do have qualms about using a notebook as a desktop replacement...

Is the best MacBook Pro 13" (2020) more powerful than the best Mac Mini (2020)?

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