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Why is Linux Mint better than macOS?
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this post was submitted on 20 Dec 2025
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It runs on generic hardware so you don't have to pay the Apple tax.
Fair point, but also, the M4 Mac mini is $500 for a pretty competitive chip, 16GB RAM, and 256GB on-chip SSD. You can beat that with a PC (and probably get a bit bigger drive, like 500GB, and you'd be able to upgrade), but you wouldn't save that much money. The Windows license puts it over; of course, the idea is you get someone to sell you one without a Windows license and install Linux. But if they aren't including Windows, they aren't selling in enough bulk to get the price down. There are a bunch of little computers from China that are competitive, but do you trust them? Up to you, I guess.
The other option, I went over in my top-level comment, is to find a gently used office PC that can't be upgraded to Windows 11, like a 7th gen i5. It's not gonna be competitive, performance wise, against that M4 Mac mini, though, but you might get it for like $100 from eBay or something, so maybe it's fine.
To add to your point, not only does it run on "generic" hardware, it runs on "whatever" hardware.
Well, if you have an old Mac (like Intel era), I think Linux would be a good target if your Mac isn't supported anymore. I'm not sure what Linux distros run on Apple Silicon. Linux being a bit lighter weight would mitigate some of the issues Mac guys have with certain Intel Macs (overheating). And certainly breathe new life into the machine.
I'm not quite sold on Mac Studio. For high end, I don't want something that's all on one chip and can't be upgraded. But that's what Apple Silicon is all about. Just seems like someone who needs that much computer would be better served by a different kind of machine. For cheap consumer grade computers, Macs are kinda hard to beat, but at every price point, there are other options. Hard to say what the best is. It would depend on the user.
I'm a recovering Apple user, and the Apple tax is absolutely a thing.
Yeah, the hardware lasts. In my little office I currently have a 2011 MacBook Pro running Arch(btw), a 2014 Mac mini running Mint, an M1 mini, and an M2 Air. That '11 Pro refuses to die. However I'm under absolutely 0 illusions that I'll get the same lifespan from the M1 and M2. The hardware may well last as long, but them being effectively locked down right to macOS means that when Apple decide they're done, they're done. I could run Asahi on them, but that comes with a bunch of annoying compromises that aren't the fault of the Asahi devs, but are as a result of Apple trying to lock down the Mac platform in the same way they have iOS.
And sure, the entry level hardware can be cheap. The M4 mini is an astonishing deal. But they're betting on locking you in with iCloud Drive subscriptions, and the like. Then, after a few years, when your Mini goes obsolete, you'll either upgrade to a new one or have to spend a bunch of time trying to work out how to shift your online storage to another provider.
And not to mention things that they've branded that are commonly available for free elsewhere. "Buy into the Apple ecosystem to get Universal Control!" or just install Deskflow on the shitty old ThinkPad you already have, because the function of the software is exactly the same. "Apple's Continuity stuff is super neat!" Aye, and so is KDE Connect. Which is free and runs on any device this side of Charles Babbage's Difference Engine.
You pay a lot for Apple hardware, and yeah, that money gets you great hardware, but the value proposition is getting slimmer every year.