The SSD in the newly launched M4 Mac mini can be removed, but that doesn’t automatically mean it’s upgradable. At this point, it’s unlikely there’ll be an option to drop additional storage to the Mac mini.
Here’s why.
UPDATE: Further testing of the M4 Mac mini finds that the storage SSD can be swapped, unlike Mac Studio. But that still doesn’t mean upgrades are possible at this point.
Don’t remove M4 Mac mini removable storage
The M4 Mac mini started arriving on doorsteps Friday, and of course, some people immediately began poking around inside to see what they could find. One of these is KianWee Lim, who posted in the iFixit forums that the SSD in the new Mac mini is not soldered in. They posted a picture of the inside of a new Mac mini with the storage removed.
This might come as a surprise, as Apple said nothing about the storage in its tiny new desktop being upgradable when it unveiled the product in late October.
But removable doesn’t always mean upgradable … unfortunately. At least not for average users.
Same as the Mac Studio
The source for pessimism about upgrading M4 Mac mini storage results from experience with the Mac Studio from 2022. The professional-grade macOS desktop also includes removable storage, but the proprietary NVMe SSD cannot be replaced by one with more capacity.
Back then, YouTuber Luke Miani tried the most basic option: swapping SSDs between two Mac Studio units. His experiment revealed that the desktop simply wouldn’t boot when using the SSD from another unit. Clearly, there’s some kind of software lock to prevent putting in a new SSD.
Despite removable storage, Mac mini and Mac Studio can’t get an upgrade
Miani’s comment on this failure applies just as well to the M4 Mac mini as it does to the larger model. “What we’ve seen here today is that Apple is intentionally, deliberately restricting your access to your own device,” Miani said.
By not soldering the SSD to the Mac, Apple retains the option to replace a faulty drive. The company surely utilizes proprietary software to make the computer recognize a new SSD.
That makes a Mac mini storage upgrade theoretically possible. But we can’t expect a third-party company to start selling 4-terabyte SSDs that can be easily inserted into a Mac mini. Apple made that impossible by keeping the software needed for the swap a secret.
So don’t muck with the M4 Mac mini SSD. There’s no point.
