What is notable, though, is the impact that semiconductors have on a computer’s climate impact. Semiconductor manufacturing is energy intensive and uses chemicals that have significantly higher global warming potential than carbon dioxide. Making and shipping the base model Mac Mini, which has 16GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, generates 32 kg of carbon pollution, even after Apple accounts for its low-carbon power investments. The top spec version includes far more chips inside, providing 64GB of RAM and 8TB of storage, and that nearly quadruples the carbon footprint to 121 kg.