Owner of the entire range of APPLE ECO SYSTEM devices, it is the most value for money product the company has ever launched, which has nothing to do with the overpriced systems it has always launched on the market. It is a completely silent machine that I plugged in on the first day and will be permanently in sleep mode for the next few years and I will never shut it down. It boots up in just 3 seconds. It is amazing for demanding professional use, they have fixed all the bugs of 2020 (sleep mode monitor crash, limited variable refresh rate output, HDR, bluetooth disconnections, etc). I discovered that it also has speakers that work satisfactorily. This particular model has 16GB RAM/1TB and I won't need anything else for several years.

A note: the MAC MINI M1 is designed to work perfectly only with 5K monitors (LG ULTRAGEAR 5K / APPLE STUDIO DISPLAY) because only with 5K can you achieve 218 PPI in HIDPI.

Specifically, Apple has blocked HIDPI on 1440p monitors, which do recognize 144Hz (HDMI) & 244Hz (Display USB C Port), but the fonts are not crispy and are blurry to an annoying degree.

However, there are tools to solve this to some extent so that you can at least work on 1440p monitors (but with some searching in the display settings).

1/ You should buy the BETTERDISPLAY application, which permanently creates a dummy 5K monitor and makes the Mac think that the external monitor is 5K, scaling it to 50% in 1440p, where the result is relatively satisfactory for simple tasks (it is not related to the levels of 5K Retina Native Displays).

2/ At the same time, you will need to set the font smoothing intensity from the terminal (preferably 2) and then reboot.

defaults write com.apple.Terminal AppleFontSmoothing -int 0

defaults write com.apple.Terminal AppleFontSmoothing -int 1

defaults write com.apple.Terminal AppleFontSmoothing -int 2

3/ It would help even more for 1440p/HDIPI Mode to purchase the SWITCHRES application for slightly better results.

All programs will run permanently in the background and will be stored in memory even after each reboot (at first they had a problem with sleep mode, but they fixed it with a recent update).

Otherwise, you will have to buy the Apple Studio Retina Display for 1800 Euros for ultimate compatibility with the MAC MINI M1 (as far as professional use is concerned, it is the only way) but it is the perfect Desk Setup (Mac Mini M1 + Apple Studio Display) that enhances the experience

In January 2005, Steve Jobs announced the first Mac mini and said that it is BYODKM (Bring Your Own Display, Keyboard and Mouse), meaning you get the computer from Apple and you provide the rest. I don't know to what extent this applies to the M1 Mac Mini. Initially, I used it with a relatively old but good Samsung monitor. I quickly noticed that there were vertical and horizontal lines visible on the entire screen, even from a distance. At first, I thought the Mac was defective. On the third day, the machine completely burned out. After two weeks, they replaced it for me. The problem with the screen still existed. When I tried the same monitor with an Intel MacBook Pro, it worked flawlessly. That's when I discovered that this is an issue with M1 devices and certain monitor models. So, I decided to buy a new LG monitor. The problem with the lines was gone. However, when the Mac was in sleep mode and I woke it up, the screen would show snow like old analog TVs while the computer was on and producing sound through the speakers. The solution was to restart the monitor. Sometimes, the screen wouldn't show anything at all, and the only solution was to restart the Mac, and of course, without any image, the only way was to hold down the button for a long time, which is dangerous. Other users also have this problem, and no matter what I tried, I couldn't find a solution. As for the keyboard and mouse, I didn't have any issues because I used Apple's, but many users have reported problems due to the device's weak Bluetooth.

Recently became a Mac mini owner and new to MacOS.

I purchased it for three reasons: 1) as an owner of an iPhone & Watch, I considered it the logical choice to complete the ecosystem since these devices work seamlessly together, 2) I wanted a modern machine for image (Lightroom) & video (Premiere Pro) editing, and 3) I was simply tired of Windows (subjective, of course).

I will focus on 2) because I find it the most interesting compared to everything else, and comparing the Mac mini M1 with 8GB RAM directly to a laptop with an 8th generation i5 at 3.9GHz, 16GB RAM, NVMe2 disk, and Nvidia 1050 2GB RAM, while performing the same heavy tasks using the same programs:

Regarding Lightroom, which is optimized for the M1, there is ABSOLUTELY NO COMPARISON. It loads in half the time (or even less), navigating through the tool tabs is instantaneous, editing is the same, the library of 2,500+ edited .raw photos loads instantly, and scrolling is smooth. Exporting an image takes about a second. IT'S A WHOLE NEW WORLD.

As for Premiere Pro, which is NOT optimized and runs through Rosetta 2, opening takes more time, exporting is the same as on the PC (a Full HD video at 60 FPS with color grading, effects, graphics, and .wav music in H.264 takes about 4 minutes), BUT during program usage, everything is faster. It's like playing an FPS game at 45 frames and now at 120!

Beyond that, I don't miss anything. I have Office 365, OneDrive, all the apps I used to use, including more specialized ones like Elgato Control, OBS, etc.

I unlock it with my Watch, no longer need my iPhone while I'm at the office, I play sound through the HomePod mini (BTW, it's amazing), I have 15+ heavy pages open in Safari (e.g., YouTube), open social apps (e.g., Signal, WhatsApp), Outlook, and the processor is idle (useless) at 94%!

The only thing I miss is an SD card slot.

Bonus: the most aesthetically pleasing mini computer.

Whatever someone says, it's not enough. The M1 replaces a 2013 iMac with an SSD and 16 GB of memory. Whatever I say about this iMac is not enough. It's an incredible machine with thousands of hours of work and entertainment at home. It's so good that I decided not to sell it and let my son use it as his main machine. Now let's talk about the M1. Amazing, incredibly fast, quiet, and ultimately versatile. Its speed for everyday tasks is hard to perceive. The iMac boots in 40 seconds... the M1 in 7. Pages open in milliseconds, it can stream 4K on YouTube, and can perform dozens of other tasks simultaneously. It truly is something very different from what we are used to. I have a comparison with a Lenovo i5 all-in-one 24-inch that we recently bought for our younger son for remote learning with the same amount of money, and the difference is chaotic.

Now let's move on to the negatives... It's not actually cheap... And I'll start:

32-inch 4K USB-C monitor... 400 euros
External USB-C SSD 1TB... 140 euros for something fast
Keyboard and mouse are mine, but if I needed them, Apple originals would cost 200 euros just for fun
1080 camera, 50 euros; VESA mount to attach it to the back of the monitor, 39 euros; cable management, 20 euros
Thunderbolt 3 to USB-C cable... for the monitor (to use the monitor as a USB hub), 40 euros

So... if you want it complete, it can easily reach 1700 euros, although for a user who just wants to get their work done with whatever is around, the cost can be half of that.

Is it worth it? With a thousand times, the answer is yes, even at 1700 euros. The reasons are:

There is no 32-inch iMac.
The performance is better than the latest i7 2020 27-inch iMac, which costs about 3,000 euros (https://youtu.be/Mf7WY4UkFV4?t=772). Although I have to admit, after 16 years of working only on iMacs, I find the heterogeneous setup unpleasant.

Realistically, if you don't have them, you need a 32-inch 4K monitor, a camera, a decent mouse and keyboard, an HDMI cable, and an external SSD. All of these add up to around 1500 euros, and I think it would be difficult to match this price with a PC. It's worth mentioning here that the system comes complete with powerful office suite, video and photo editing, 5 GB of iCloud storage, and support for at least 8 years.

I have had the Mac Mini M1 for 2 months now. As I mentioned before, if you work with FCPX, then buying it is a one-way street. It performs very well! Just be careful with plugins... Most of them do not run on the M1.

However, what I have noticed is that when I start doing a really "heavy" task, the M1 doesn't handle it well... I'm referring to Lightroom, Photoshop, and other 3rd party programs. My old MacBook Pro 15" 2017 performed much better.

FIRST THOUGHTS:
I bought it 2 weeks ago, after giving away my MacBook Pro 15" 2017. Working exclusively on video and photo editing, I can say that I am divided about the purchase.

Specifically, in Lightroom, I can say that it is considerably slower than the MacBook Pro I was using until recently... I should note that I have the M1 version of Adobe... I was really disappointed with this... Presumably, it worked very well on the MacBook due to the second card.

In Final Cut, IT DOES NOT EXIST. It's amazing... stabilization, export, effects... I can't believe how fast it is, guys...

Considering the recent increase in computer prices, it offers value for money.
Different culture for different things.
It gives you access to folders you need, if you are a power user and do many program installations like an engineering student, then it doesn't work...
If you are into video and photography, then this is the place for you.
Still, the chip and the OS are in their early stages, but soon everyone will synchronize with it.
Note: it's not my main computer and I got it to learn something new for myself.
The environment looks like a big mobile.
3 cables in total in the office... 1 power for the Mac, 1 power for the monitor, and 1 HDMI between them!

AFTER 2 WEEKS OF USE
I have installed the 30-day trial versions of Premiere, Photoshop, DaVinci, etc. to test their capabilities, and they work perfectly for home use. I want to test the functionality of Adobe Premiere until they release the update for Big Sur and M1 before purchasing it.
Instead of MS Office, it has the free Apple alternative, which is great!

The most value for money to performance ratio choice for a new small computer running MAC OS.

It does not have boot camp and does not run Windows virtualization. It also does not support an external graphics card via Thunderbolt. Additionally, it has 2 fewer thunderbolt/USB 4 ports. It also supports up to 2 external monitors, 1 via HDMI and 1 via USB4/Thunderbolt up to 6k, and the second one via HDMI up to 4k. This means you cannot connect 3 1080p monitors.

If you want a third monitor, it supports SIDE CAR, meaning you can use an iPad as the third monitor.

Now, some iPhone apps from the Mac App Store do not open, but they will fix this.

Minimal thermal throttling, low temperatures no matter what you do.

If you run Microsoft Office with large files because it has not been optimized yet (it will be at some point), it is translated through Roseta 2 and sometimes freezes in complex functions and especially in SUM IF.

For photos, videos, etc., for simple use, especially if you don't use Google Chrome, which has not been optimized and freezes, it is perfect - ideal - value for money.

Most of the problems I mentioned will be fixed gradually.