There's absolutely no way I'm using a gas guzzling 2018 intel clunker with unsupported software issues. Maybe if i need the box to double as a space heater.

Basline mac mini is $800 and gets you into the M4 tier chips. Overkill for web dev and iOS apps. Enough power to carry you for 10+ years of dev work before your next upgrade. I'm still on the M1 mini and plan upgrade at the 10 year mark (2031) or if I need more power sooner (unlikey).

I feel the mini's are price competitive. They say "apple tax" but go on to some linux machine provider, select similar stats, and see the price tag rocket past the mini.