It’s not everyday that Apple completely redesigns one of its products and manages to fix all of the shortcomings of the previous model but that’s exactly what happened with last year’s Mac mini M4.
Don’t get me wrong, the Mac mini M2 was a great computer that offered a lot of value for the price. Still, shipping the base model with just 8GB of RAM and the lack of front ports held it back significantly. At the same time, it was also quite large compared to the rest of the best mini PCs.
Fortunately, Apple addressed both of these criticisms with Mac mini M4 by making 16GB of RAM the new standard and adding two USB-C ports and a headphone jack on the front of the device. It also reduced its footprint significantly and the Mac mini M4 is 57% smaller than the Mac mini M2. Thanks to the inclusion of Apple’s M4 chips, this new Mac mini is blazing fast too.
Despite all of these improvements, I couldn’t give the Mac mini M4 a perfect score back when I reviewed it for two reasons: it lacks full-sized ports and you can’t turn on the device without lifting it off your desk to reach the power button. I know that first one is subjective but I doubt I’m the only person out there that hasn’t completely ditched USB-A in favor of USB-C.
I’ve had my eyes on it since the day it was announced and I even got to see it in person at CES but this week, I finally got to try out Satechi’s new Mac Mini M4 Stand & Hub for myself. After setting it up and adding it to my desk setup, I can easily say it’s exactly what my Mac mini was missing and if you’re in the same boat as me when it comes to ports (and storage), it could be the perfect upgrade for you too.
An essential Mac mini upgrade
If you’re unfamiliar with Satechi, they make a variety of different accessories, but their Mac ones are my favorite as the company does a great job of staying true to the look and feel of Apple’s devices. Back when I tried out the Mac mini M2 for a week before the launch of the M4 version, Satechi’s stand and hub was one of the first things I picked up.
In the picture above, you can see the previous model along with the newer one on top. This time around though, Apple did a lot of Satechi’s work for them by adding those front ports to the Mac mini M4 which is why this new hub doesn’t have nearly as many ports.
You still get two USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 ports rated at up to 10 GBps and another USB-A 2.0 port (rated at 480 MBps) for your older devices. Instead of two separate card readers, there’s now only a full size SD card reader which makes sense as microSD cards typically come with an adapter in the box.
There aren’t any additional ports on the backside of Satechi’s Mac mini M4 hub, but on the bottom there’s a USB-C cable to plug it into your Mac. It’s now a braided cable which has a more premium feel to it and at the very bottom of the hub’s base, there’s an M.2 NVMe slot for adding extra storage. I took the M.2 SSD out of my previous hub and easily swapped it into this new enclosure in less than five minutes.
And now here’s the kicker. The back left corner of the hub has a cutout which allows you to easily reach your Mac mini M4’s power button without having to lift the computer off your desk.
I remember back when it was first announced, Apple defended this strange design decision by claiming that most Mac mini users never turn off their computers. Begrudgingly, I gave this a try but after adding Satechi’s new hub to my own Mac mini, I’ve gone right back to turning it off at the end of the night and now, not only am I saving power, I also get to hear that iconic Mac startup sound a whole lot more.
A seamless fit
As I’m using the Mac mini M4 with the Apple Studio Display, I have the monitor up on a desk shelf since the model I have isn’t height adjustable. I was a bit worried the Mac mini would no longer fit underneath it but I’m happy to report that it does and there’s even enough room for airflow on this shorter desk shelf from Oakywood.
Just like with Satechi’s previous hub, this one is as plug and play as they come. You just plug in the hub’s hardwired USB-C cable to one of the Thunderbolt ports on the back of the Mac mini M4, turn your device back on and you’re ready to go. If you’re picking one up to go alongside your new Mac mini and adding an SSD for extra storage (a much cheaper option than upgrading on the Apple Store), you will have to format your new drive before using it.
Besides having full-size USB ports for the 2.4 Ghz dongles for my keyboard and trackball mouse, I love that I can just take the SD card out of my camera and pull photos from it without having to dig through my drawers for a dongle. I also like how the shape of the base of the Mac mini M4 almost gives the appearance that it’s floating on top of Satechi’s hub.
From mini PC to workstation
The Mac mini M4 is a fantastic computer in its own right and you can immediately notice the difference that extra RAM and Apple’s more powerful M4 chip makes. However, the lack of full-sized USB ports, it’s difficult to reach power button, and the fact that doubling its storage costs an extra $200 are the Mac mini's biggest downsides.
Satechi’s new hub and stand for the Mac mini M4 fixes all of those problems and looks great doing so. It’s an easy accessory to add to your desk setup and once you do, you won’t have to deal with the clutter of having dongles and extra storage all over the place.
I really like having these extra ports on the front as they do a great job of complimenting the ones that Apple added to the front of the Mac mini M4. The option to add extra storage is a nice plus too and I managed to pick up a 1TB WD Black NVMe SSD online for less than $100. Satechi’s new hub and stand will sell for $130 when it officially launches next month but right now, you can pre-order one for $99 on the company's site. Even if you end up waiting, the cost of this accessory and a much larger SSD still ends up being around the same price that you’d pay to buy a Mac mini M4 with a slightly larger 512GB SSD.
Now that Apple has given the Mac mini a major redesign, I’m curious as to what’s in store for the more powerful Mac Studio. Satechi’s previous hub and stand was compatible with both devices but only time will tell if that’s the case with this one.
Either way, it’s a fantastic addition to any Mac mini M4 setup and in my opinion, an essential accessory if you’re using Apple’s smallest computer for work.
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