An M1 Mac is about 5 years old at this point and can be had for far less than a grand.
A brand new Mac Mini M4 is only $499.
Ah, I was focusing on the laptops, my bad. But still its more than $499. Just looked on the Apple store website, Mac Mini M4 starting at $599 (not $499), with only 256GB of storage.
https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/mac-mini/m4
microcenter routinely sells that system for $450.
https://www.microcenter.com/product/688173/Mac_mini_MU9D3LL-...
Ah, I was focusing on the laptops, my bad. But still its more than $499. Just looked on the Apple store website, Mac Mini M4 starting at $599 (not $499), with only 256GB of storage.
https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/mac-mini/m4
microcenter routinely sells that system for $450.
https://www.microcenter.com/product/688173/Mac_mini_MU9D3LL-...