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In a surprise move, the M4 Mac mini includes a removable, swappable SSD. Apple really should give customers the option to buy high-capacity versions of these as storage upgrades for the tiny desktop. It would be a win for both the Mac-maker and its customers.
The option would be welcome addition even if the SSDs only came from Apple at fairly high prices.
Mac mini SSD storage upgrade: It is possible!
There was a time when storage upgrades for Mac were fairly routine. Even MacBooks could be upgraded. But that stopped years and years ago… exactly when varies by model. Suffice to say that today no Mac running an M-series processor can get a storage upgrade.
However, the newly launched M4 Mac mini is an exception. A teardown of the computer by iFixit found that a larger SSD can be installed in the tiny desktop fairly easily. If any are available, that is.
Apple, do it for your customers
Image: Piñata Farms
Apple made absolutely no mention of swappable storage when it unveiled the latest Mac mini in late October. That doesn’t bode well for it selling SSD upgrades someday.
But the company really should. The $599 base model has to be one of the most popular options but it comes with a modest 256GB SSD. That’s a decent amount of storage for someone’s first computer but it’s also an amount that’s easy to outgrow.
In a few years, while the speedy M4 processor and 16GB of RAM can still do everything they need, the SSD is likely to be jammed full. The option to swap in a 1TB drive would give that computer new life.
Of course, an external SSD is always an option, but people prefer built-in storage. If that weren’t true, there’d be absolutely no market for Macs with anything but the minimal capacity — we’d all plug in external SSDs because they’re cheaper. As it turns out, though, additional drives bring additional hassle. We want built-in storage.
Apple, do it for the money
Apple charges an additional $400 to configure a new Mac mini with a 1 TB drive. Charging that much to upgrade an existing unit to that capacity seems reasonable. It’s still a considerable savings over a new mini.
And most of that money would go straight to Cupertino because the SSD upgrade would surely require a trip to an Apple store or at least an authorized repair shop. That’s the only option to buy the special drive needed.
And find the expertise, too. Swapping out a computer’s only SSD isn’t a trivial process — especially when it’s a Mac. Everything on the old drive must be copied to the new one, including the operating system, which is somewhat challenging because the old drive must be removed from the computer before inserting the new one. And specialized software must be used to get the Mac to recognize the new drive.
None of this is rocket science but it also might be beyond the skills of complete newbies. You know, the exact sort of people who buy the base model Mac mini.
Bottom line: offering storage upgrades on Apple’s tiny desktop would bring in money for the Mac-maker.
Do it before regulators force you
It’s easy to argue that Apple doesn’t let people upgrade their older Macs because the practice forces consumers to pay even more for new Macs. While true, that’s exactly the sort of thing that EU regulators are starting to crack down on. Computers made to be deliberately non-upgradable end up as completely unnecessary e-waste.
And even the United States, which has done little to regulate Big Tech, is starting to see Right To Repair laws passed by individual states. These laws force companies to make components needed to make repairs — like SSDs — available to the public.
With that coming down the pike, it would look better for Apple if it started offering Mac mini SSD storage upgrades voluntarily before it gets forced to by legislation and regulators.
And while we’re on the topic, the SSD upgrade program should include the Mac Studio, too. Like the mini, the SSD in the Studio can be swapped out by an expert, but there are no replacement drives available. The option to expand the storage capacity in this powerful desktop would be also be welcome.