OWC has a Mac Mini installation service. It costs $99. Check it out.
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/OWC/MINIINSTALLOWC/
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Installing an SSD while keeping Applecare
- Thread starter mentaluproar
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OWC has a Mac Mini installation service. It costs $99. Check it out.
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/OWC/MINIINSTALLOWC/
I don't think they offer BTO processors. I couldn't find a 2.6GHz on their website, or I would have bought from them.
First off, Apple will not install an SSD into your machine aftermarket. Not even if it's their own drive. They don't do this. They REALLY should, but they don't.
Secondly, forget what you know about disk defragmentation; you either want a drive that either has built-in "TRIM" or you want to download the TRIM enabler, that will allow you to not have to worry about garbage collection on your drive.
No, this cannot happen.
They can only order replacement parts for machines that originally had those parts in them. They can't just order an SSD for a machine that didn't come with one.
My advice to you is to sell your Mac mini (you can still make back most of the money you spent on it) and buy a newer one that has either a Fusion Drive or an SSD installed. The only way in which I might not do that is if you had the higher-end 2011 Mac mini with the AMD Radeon HD 6630 as that is still superior to the Intel HD 4000 graphics that are standard on the 2012 minis.
According to OWC:
"Does upgrading my machine with a new hard drive (HD) or solid state drive (SSD) void the original manufacturer warranty?
Answer
The short answer is, No, not in the United States and not for products sold by a US Manufacturer. The US Federal Trade Commission has very specific consumer protection laws, as outlined by the FTC's Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act of 1975.
This act outlines several key points, including the basic consumer protection that a manufacturers cannot void the warranty on components that are not directly effected by the placement of after-market upgrade components, i.e. if you upgrade your HD with another HD or SSD and 3 months later your screen fritzes out, they cannot refuse to honor the warranty on the screen, if within the warranty period and originally covered by the warranty.
Reasonably speaking, if you install the proper HD or SSD upgrade (easily found by using the My OWC Upgrade Center here: http://eshop.macsales.com/MyOWC/) and you follow OWC's very simple installation video (any type of HS or SSD upgrade can be found here: http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/internal_storage/hard_drives_and_SSD), nothing being performed should void your warranty entirely. "
http://eshop.macsales.com/Search/displayFAQDetails.cfm?ID=657
TRIM/garbage collection is a completely separate issue from fragmentation.
Secondly, you need a disk which supports TRIM in order to use the TRIM enabler, all the enabler does is allow it to work on non-Apple-installed disks. A disk without TRIM will not be helped by the TRIM enabler.
A friend of mine had this same dilemma. His case was a MBP though.
He finally brought it to an official retailer (not an Apple Store) and got them put an SSD into it.
His line of thinking was: If they f-ck up they'll cover the expenses as I'm covered by the law. If they don't f-ck up then I'll have my SSD installed and working and if I never need to use my Applecare I'll bring it back to the retailer in order to put original drive back in.
That being said, I'd do it myself though. Apple can't know you opened the machine if you leave everything as it was.
He finally brought it to an official retailer (not an Apple Store) and got them put an SSD into it.
His line of thinking was: If they f-ck up they'll cover the expenses as I'm covered by the law. If they don't f-ck up then I'll have my SSD installed and working and if I never need to use my Applecare I'll bring it back to the retailer in order to put original drive back in.
That being said, I'd do it myself though. Apple can't know you opened the machine if you leave everything as it was.
I won't mess up a simple drive installation. I'm just being cautious.
What drives do you guys like best? I'm still gunshy of the sandforce drives because of the stability issues many people have experienced.
What drives do you guys like best? I'm still gunshy of the sandforce drives because of the stability issues many people have experienced.
Not going to work for OP:
USB 3 enclosures seem the best bang for buck from cost perspective as TB enclosures are still pricey.