Apple's most powerful compact desktop. 20-core GPU, 128GB unified memory, and multi-GPU-like performance for demanding local AI workloads. Run Llama 3.1 70B with extended context windows.
Price
From $1,999
CPU
Apple M4 Max (12-core CPU)
GPU
Apple M4 Max (20-core GPU)
Neural Engine
16-core Neural Engine
Unified Memory
36GB / 64GB / 128GB
Storage
512GB / 1TB / 2TB / 8TB SSD
TDP
~70W (efficient)
Noise Level
Silent (fanless design)
Token generation speed (tok/s) at batch size 1.
| System | Llama 3.1 70B Q4 | Llama 3.1 70B Q2 | Llama 3.1 8B Q4 | Codestral 22B Q4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mac Mini M4 Max (128GB) | ~22 tok/s | ~35 tok/s | ~180 tok/s | ~55 tok/s |
| Mac Mini M4 Max (64GB) | ~18 tok/s | ~28 tok/s | ~160 tok/s | ~45 tok/s |
| RTX 4090 (24GB) | ~35 tok/s | ~50 tok/s | ~400 tok/s | ~75 tok/s |
| Model | Quantization | Memory Required | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Llama 3.1 70B | Q4_0, Q5_1, Q2_K | 36GB minimum | Excellent |
| Llama 3.1 405B | Q4_0, Q5_1 | 128GB recommended | Works (quantized) |
| Llama 3.2 1B/3B | Q4_0 | 36GB minimum | Excellent |
| Mistral 7B | Q4_0 - Q8_0 | 36GB minimum | Excellent |
| Mixtral 8x22B | Q4_0, Q5_1 | 64GB+ recommended | Works great |
| Codestral 22B | Q4_0, Q5_1 | 36GB minimum | Excellent |
| Gemma 2 27B | Q4_0 | 64GB+ recommended | Works great |
| Qwen 2.5 72B | Q4_0, Q5_1 | 64GB+ recommended | Works great |
| Model | Max Context | Recommended RAM | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| Llama 3.1 70B | 64K-128K | 64GB+ | Excellent for RAG |
| Qwen 2.5 72B | 128K | 64GB+ | Strong reasoning |
| Mistral Large 2 | 128K | 64GB+ | Multilingual |
| Category | Mac Mini M4 Max | NVIDIA RTX 4090 | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price (complete system) | $1,999+ (all-in-one) | $2,500-3,500 (GPU + PC build) | Mac Mini |
| Memory bandwidth | 546GB/s (max config) | 1TB/s (RTX 4090) | NVIDIA |
| Noise | Silent (passive cooling) | 35-45dB (fans) | Mac Mini |
| 70B model support | Q4 quantization (64GB+) | Q4/Q5 (24GB VRAM) | NVIDIA (full precision) |
| Power consumption | ~70W max | 450W | Mac Mini |
| 128GB+ memory option | Yes (up to 128GB) | No (24GB VRAM max) | Mac Mini |
Choose Mac Mini M4 Max if: You need a silent, compact workstation with massive unified memory for RAG and long context.
Choose RTX 4090 if: You need maximum throughput for fine-tuning or running unquantized 70B+ models.
The Mac Mini M4 Max (64GB) offers the best balance for most power users.