Apple Mac mini A1993 MRTT2LL/A, Core i5-8500B, 16GB, 512GB SSD, Space Gray

The Mac mini A1993 is a reliable, compact macOS machine with great ports, but its 2018 Intel CPU is showing serious age. At $400 refurbished, it's a decent buy for light productivity and Apple ecosystem fans. Anyone needing real performance should look at Apple Silicon or a modern Windows mini PC.

The 6-core i5-8500B sits at a 17th percentile CPU score in our database, which means it's near the bottom of the pack for modern desktops. Day-to-day stuff like web browsing, email, and light photo editing will feel fine, especially with 16GB of RAM and that fast NVMe SSD. But push it with video editing or heavy multitasking and you'll feel the age. The integrated Intel UHD 630 graphics land at a 38th percentile, which is fine for driving a 4K display but useless for anything beyond casual gaming. The 512GB SSD is about average for this class, and the port selection is solidly middle of the pack. Reliability is the one standout here, sitting at a 99th percentile, which tracks with Apple's build quality reputation.

Stacked against the Minisforum DeskMini UM880 Plus, this Mac mini gets embarrassed on raw performance. The UM880 Plus has a much newer AMD chip with far better integrated graphics, and it's in the same price ballpark. The HP OmniDesk M02-0234 and Dell Tower ECT1250 both offer more CPU headroom for similar money, though they're larger and lack Thunderbolt. The Lenovo Yoga AIO F0J20012US bundles a display, which changes the value math entirely. The CyberPowerPC Gamer Master GMA2900A is in a different league for gaming, but it's also a full tower. The Mac mini's only real advantage here is size, macOS, and that 99th percentile reliability score.

At $400 USD refurbished, this is a tricky value proposition. You're paying for the Apple ecosystem, the compact aluminum build, and that excellent reliability track record. But a $400 Windows mini PC from Minisforum or a refurbished Dell tower will absolutely crush this thing on CPU and GPU performance. If you need macOS specifically and don't want to spend Apple Silicon money, this is one of the cheaper entry points. Just know you're buying into a platform that Apple is actively phasing out.

The Mac mini A1993 is Apple's little aluminum box from 2018, and this refurbished unit packs an Intel Core i5-8500B, 16GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD. It's running macOS Sequoia, which is honestly surprising for an Intel machine this old. Apple's software support for Intel Macs is winding down, but this one still boots the latest OS.

For around $400 USD, you're getting a tiny desktop with four Thunderbolt 3 ports, two USB-A ports, HDMI, and Gigabit Ethernet. That port selection is solid for a machine this size. But the CPU is showing its age, and the integrated Intel UHD 630 graphics are not going to impress anyone.

Skip this if you need any real graphics horsepower. The gaming score of 11.4 out of 100 is a hard no for anyone who wants to play games, even casually. Also skip it if you do video editing, 3D work, or heavy multitasking, because that 17th percentile CPU will have you staring at progress bars. And if you don't specifically need macOS, a Windows mini PC at the same price will give you dramatically better performance.

This Mac mini is for someone who needs macOS on a budget and values reliability and compact size over raw performance. It's a fine machine for a home office, a media server, or a kid's first computer. If you're doing anything CPU or GPU intensive, or if you care about gaming at all, this is not your machine. The 11.4 gaming score should tell you everything you need to know.