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Apple’s M4 chip, the latest in its Silicon series, has garnered attention for its impressive performance and energy efficiency. However, when it comes to cryptocurrency mining—a process that demands substantial computational power—the M4’s capabilities present a mixed picture.

Performance Metrics

The M4 chip features a 10-core CPU, comprising 4 performance cores and 6 efficiency cores, along with a 10-core GPU. This configuration delivers significant improvements over its predecessors, with single-core performance gains of approximately 25% and multi-core enhancements around 30%.

MacRumors

In practical mining scenarios, users have reported varying hash rates. For instance, an M4 Mac mini achieved a hash rate of approximately 4 kilohashes per second (KH/s) when mining Monero using XMRig. In contrast, a 16-inch MacBook Pro equipped ip, featuring a 16-core CPU and 40-core GPU, reached hash rates up to 8.4 KH/s under similar conditions.

Energy Efficiency

One of the standout chip is its energy efficiency. Testing on the M4 Mac mini revealed a performance of 6.74 gigaflops per watt (Gflops/W) on the High-Performance Linpack (HPL) benchmark, with the system consuming approximately 42 watts to deliver 283 Gflops. This efficiency is notable, especially when mining rigs that often consume significantly more power.

Comparative Analysis

While the M4’s performance and efficiency are commendable for general computing tasks, they fall short in the context of cryptocurrency mining. Dedicated mining hardware, such as ASICs and high-end GPUs, offer hash rates orders of magnitude higher than those achievable with the M4 chip. For example, high-performance GPUs can achieve hash rates in the megahash per second (MH/s) range, far surpassing the kilohash per second rates observed with the M4.

Economic Considerations

The profitability of mining with the M4 chip is limited. Given the modest hash rates and the current difficulty levels of most cryptocurrencies, the potential earnings are minimal. Additionally, the energy costs, although lower due to the M4’s efficiency, still contribute to operating expenses that can outweigh the limited mining revenue.

Conclusion

The Apple M4 chip excels in delivering high performance and energy efficiency for everyday computing tasks. However, its capabilities in cryptocurrency mining are constrained by relatively low hash rates and limited profitability. For individuals interested in mining as a casual or educational endeavor, the M4 provides an accessible platform. Yet, for those seeking substantial mining returns, dedicated hardware remains the more viable option.

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nicehash-main

Testing the updated Nicehash miner V1.6.1.4

If you’ve not used the Nicehash miner before I’ll quickly explain how it works, because it’s a little different to other mining software. Nicehash is not just a miner, it connects to a market of buyers and sellers of hashing power and so when you mine using the Nicehash miner it will mine the most profitable coin with your hardware and then sell this on the open market in exchange for Bitcoins. So you can be mining Ethereum but you’ll actually be paid in Bitcoin.

Download Link – Nicehash Miner V1.6.1.4

Once you have downloaded and extracted the zip file to a folder of your choice, click the NiceHashMiner.exe to get started.

nicehash-folder

In the main window you’ll need to add your own bitcoin address and worker name as reference you can use to see your stats online. Then you want to click the Benchmark button.

nicehash-main

The benchmarking process tests your computers hardware to see how it perform when mining different coins and this data can then be used by Nicehash to decide which coins to mine and when for the best overall profitability.

Here’s the benchmark results from my two R7 370’s and you can see the coin algorithms in the center and hash speed on the right. The bench mark can take sometime to complete, a few minutes for each algorithm.

nicehash-benchmark

Once the bench is complete you can close the window and return to the main miner window.

Select the hardware you wish you use and then click the Start button. The miner will choose which mining algorithm is the most profitable and then start up the mining software for that coin. In my case Ethereum (DaggerHashimoto) is selected and the mining begins.

nicehash-mining-ethereum

After a short period of time you’ll see the earning summary being update and this confirms your hashrate and expected daily earnings and also your bitcoin balance at Nicehash. (payouts are done 3-4 times a day).

In testing I did notice that mining Ethereum using Nicehash the hash rate was 27.25 Mh/s and this is a little slower than the 28.08 Mh/s when using Claymore’s Dual Eth miner in Eth only mode. However the difference is a minor consideration when compared with the benefit of auto exchanging for Bitcoin.

Overall the miner performs well and should provide decent profits to miners without the hassle of switching mining software to match the days most profitable coin.