Upgrading M4 Mac Mini SSD: Pre-Soldered 2TB Chip Options

[ItsAShaunParty]

This question has been floating around, but I haven’t seen an updated answer in about a month.

I have an M4 Mac Mini with 32GB of RAM on the way. It comes with a 256GB SSD, but I’d like to upgrade the internal drive (not just plug in an external). I also don’t want to deal with soldering.

Is there anywhere I can buy a chip with 2TB storage already soldered and ready to install? Has anyone done this upgrade successfully?

However, did I read that people are getting external drives to run faster than internal ones and can use AI on the external? Maybe that's better... or am I making this up? I need more sleep.

 

[Jaap]

We have to wait for polysoftservices or dosdude1 or iBoff RCC or someone else to make these.
Be patient, they will come.

 

[Ray2]

Willing to invalidate a warranty for what?

 

[turbineseaplane]

Be patient, they will come.

Will they?

I feel like we said this about Studio upgrades also ... and I don't think that ever materialized
Or did it?

 

[Kenny99]

Why not just Cancel your order and get the M4 that you want? Your plan will leave you with a more expensive system and as Ray2 said a invalidated warranty.

 

[smithrh]

I'm waaaaaay more than willing to "sacrifice" a warrantee that's almost certainly never going to be used to save hundreds of dollars.

Hopefully this thread can serve as a placeholder for progress on the SSD cards.

 

[turbineseaplane]

I would just get a thunderbolt enclosure and a good Gen4 NVME stick and be done with it

 

[X86refugee]

Seen dosdude and that is cool, however I fail to see why so many are finding it a problem putting a potentially faster, monsterously cheaper replace/ugradeable external on the back.
Don't even need an expensive dock.

 

[Chancha]

Already being sold in China Taobao:

商品详情

item.taobao.com

It will make its way overseas, probably within one month.

 

[TechnoMonk]

I use an external drive with thunderbolt with my 256 GB mac mini. If you want internal drive cancel and order storage you need. Voiding warranty right after buying doesn’t make sense.

 

[AlaskaMoose]

If I were to have the extra "cash" plus not caring about the warranty, I would have a technician replace the SSD.

The reality of it is that $600.00 should not be a great sum of money these days. If this was the case (the having the extra cash), I would just buy the base Mini with the smallest SSD, and spend the money on at least 32GB RAM since it is non-replaceable. By the time such a non-Apple SSD arrives, the original warranty is going to be over with, so for the time being I can get-by with a fast 2TB SSD that's much cheaper than the Apple's $800.00 SSD.

By the time one upgrades the base Mini with Apple RAM, the 2TB SSD, and the Ethernet port, the cost will probably be twice as high than the purchase of two base M4 Mini's. The 90-day (or 1-year?) warranty may be great, but...

32GB RAM..............$400.00
2TB SSD.................$800.00
10 Gigabit Ethernet..$100.00

We become tempted (exited) about the wondrous M4 Chip inside the Mini and forgets that it only is a great deal if you can afford upgrading it to the max, plus if already having (at hand) a good monitor, keyboard, mouse, etc., for it. If one were to buy one of the best monitors in the market, keyboard, mouse, and so on, then the $600.00 Mini would cost four-five times more.

 

[Lounge vibes 05]

I would not make your purchasing decision on what third-party warranty voiding Modules may or may not be available sometime in the completely unspecified future.
Get an external.
If you want to use Apple Intelligence, keep the basic operating system and default applications on the internal, and use the external for everything else.

 

[Fishrrman]

Fishrrman fearless prediction:

If and when upgradeable storage for the Mini ever becomes available, it will not be worth the price for most users...

The BEST advice has already been given by others in the thread to the OP:
Return the Mini that's coming to you now, and order one with more storage "out of the box".

 

[okkibs]

I feel like we said this about Studio upgrades also ... and I don't think that ever materialized
Or did it?

Yes, there is a french repair business that manufactures them and they are set to release in the next couple weeks actually.

 

[Lounge vibes 05]

Yes, there is a french repair business that manufactures them and they are set to release in the next couple weeks actually.

If and when that happens, it might be a smart alternative. Maybe.
Until then, though, that is not a logical solution.
Plus, always keep in mind Apple could shut that down via software if they really wanted to. I would never recommend running your machine in such a way where a particularly petty macOS update could render your machine completely useless at any time.
It’s kind of like using a jailbroken phone as your main device, just not a good idea. As an experiment or as a secondary machine that can go offline without any major disruptions, sure go ahead and do all the third-party updates you want.
But for your main machine, it’s really not the smartest of ideas.
Either using an external or returning the Mini for one with more storage is just less of a risk, you don’t really have to worry about anything going wrong or not working or being a scam and leaving you with a broken computer that Apple’s warranty refuses to fix.

 

[lixuelai]

Here is a preview of what's to come. Video is in Chinese but if they can do limited production run at 799 CNY (~$110) for 2TB the prices will likely be even less going forward. These modules have no controller so the prices should be cheaper than regular SSDs. From what I gather the manufacturer of the replacement modules managed to shrink the PCB from 10 to 4 layers. Will need to see how reliable it is but considering that it is just NAND it looks very promising.

One thing I didnt get from the video is why module with Toshiba NAND costs more than Sandisk, thought they are the same.

Bit on the fence about needing a M4 else I'd try to source one and test it.

 

[HootheMac]

I saw this one in English but more expensive

 

[Lounge vibes 05]

I saw this one in English but more expensive

Yeah, pretty much proves my point right here.
For that same $350, you could upgrade the 256 GB Mac mini to a 512 GB, plus buy a 2TB external SSD for around $100-150, and not only do you end up with 2.5TB over just two, but you also don’t destroy your warranty or possibly have a destroyed computer in the future

 

[Chancha]

Yeah, pretty much proves my point right here.
For that same $350, you could upgrade the 256 GB Mac mini to a 512 GB, plus buy a 2TB external SSD for around $100-150, and not only do you end up with 2.5TB over just two, but you also don’t destroy your warranty or possibly have a destroyed computer in the future

Just doing a card swap should not void the warranty, unless you have physically broken something internal that’s beyond repair.

But yes, the overseas pricing has questionable value. But if someone is absolutely only looking at internal, it is a better deal than with Apple BTO, then that is that.

 

[ChrisA]

I have an M4 Mac Mini with 32GB of RAM on the way. It comes with a 256GB SSD, but I’d like to upgrade the internal drive (not just plug in an external). I also don’t want to deal with soldering.

I think you misunderstand the upgrade process. The SSD is a BGA (ball grid array) device. There is no such thing as "already soldered". You need to find a technician to swap out the SSD chips for you. But this is pointless. It is better to just buy the system you need from Apple. Swapping chips is a stunt to get clicks on YouTube. It would cost you WAY more than just buying the SSD from Apple.

 

[X86refugee]

This is a Perfect Storm for all the Chinese manf's with pick and place.
No R&D needed, just follow publicly available information.
Unusual customer tier for normal Chinese outlets who have bulging wallets and are yelling 'Take my money!'...
These are just a euniched NVME board, NAND and passives, so very easy to turn that into real cash compared to a lot of what they produce.
I'd wait a couple months for the hordes trying to cash in on this bait ball and see how many flame out when they realize word of mouth for lower-specced NAND, etc see their sales drop.
Prices should drop a lot, and I suspect some Chinese will realize they can still make bank and having a reputation might work out as well/better than always going for cheapest option when selling into the Apple ecosystem.

 

[Chancha]

I think you misunderstand the upgrade process. The SSD is a BGA (ball grid array) device. There is no such thing as "already soldered". You need to find a technician to swap out the SSD chips for you. But this is pointless. It is better to just buy the system you need from Apple. Swapping chips is a stunt to get clicks on YouTube. It would cost you WAY more than just buying the SSD from Apple.

Well... the BGA soldering service is offered by literally dozens of shops across China. They get piles of orders every day, you can imagine the cost must be magnitudes cheaper than Apple official BTO. But yes, the same thing is close to non-existent overseas because the unavailability of the NAND parts (the difficulty in importing them and still turn a profit).

 

[X86refugee]

I think you misunderstand the upgrade process. The SSD is a BGA (ball grid array) device. There is no such thing as "already soldered". You need to find a technician to swap out the SSD chips for you. But this is pointless. It is better to just buy the system you need from Apple. Swapping chips is a stunt to get clicks on YouTube. It would cost you WAY more than just buying the SSD from Apple.

You're mostly right, however tons of people have the skill, experience and tools to do this at home. It would be way less expensive as IIRC some people have show of bare NAND pricing.
It would be a bit of a time sink though.
Its not pointless, as pretty soon the markets will be awash in chinese picknplaced boards at a pretty fair price compare to Apples To Build pricing.
If it works, and you're looking at a MM in a month or 2, you could either save that, or redirect the savings to more RAM.

 

[ItsAShaunParty]

Thanks for the comments!

I wish I could, but I can't pay those absurd prices for SSD upgrades. I'd resent my computer. But I get what some of you said -- maybe I should pay it. But I won't.

Those prepared chips are exactly what I was looking for! That said, your comments have brought me back down to earth. I foresee all kinds of issues.

Here’s my current plan (feedback is welcome):

• I’ll start by using external storage for now.
• I heard about a script that allows Apple AI to run on external devices, so I’ll look into that.
• For internal upgrades, I’ll wait and see how things develop. When a reliable company like OWC offers a tested solution, I think I’ll feel comfortable pursuing a version of what they provide.

Thanks again for all the advice! Please continue to discuss!

4

 

[Populus]

Here is a preview of what's to come. Video is in Chinese but if they can do limited production run at 799 CNY (~$110) for 2TB the prices will likely be even less going forward. These modules have no controller so the prices should be cheaper than regular SSDs. From what I gather the manufacturer of the replacement modules managed to shrink the PCB from 10 to 4 layers. Will need to see how reliable it is but considering that it is just NAND it looks very promising.

One thing I didnt get from the video is why module with Toshiba NAND costs more than Sandisk, thought they are the same.

Bit on the fence about needing a M4 else I'd try to source one and test it.

Do we know if they are using TLC or QLC NAND chips?