New Mac Mini Has Modular Storage, 256GB Model Will Have Faster SSD (macrumors.com)
- Reference: 0175436409
- News link: https://hardware.slashdot.org/story/24/11/08/2240254/new-mac-mini-has-modular-storage-256gb-model-will-have-faster-ssd
- Source link: https://www.macrumors.com/2024/11/08/m4-mac-mini-modular-storage/
> The criticism surrounding Apple's decision to use a single 256GB chip in some base-model Macs a few years ago primarily came from a vocal contingent of tech enthusiasts, and the average customer is unlikely to even notice the slower speeds in common day-to-day tasks. Nevertheless, it appears that customers who do want the fastest SSD speeds do not need to worry about which storage capacity they choose when ordering the new Mac mini.
[1] https://x.com/ohgkg/status/1854859167213011199
[2] https://www.macrumors.com/2024/11/08/m4-mac-mini-modular-storage/
[3] https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2022/03/explaining-the-mac-studios-removable-ssds-and-why-you-cant-just-swap-them-out/
How are the two chips organized... (Score:2)
It's great that the capacity is reached by using two chips, but do we KNOW the storage is faster than single-chip storage?
Also, as a pre-release model (right?), we have no guarantee that production models will have the exact same configuration.
Re: (Score:1)
> but do we KNOW the storage is faster than single-chip storage?
you may want to consider reading the article to answer this and other questions you might have.
DFU restores are interesting... (Score:2)
Since the last rev of the Intel Mac Pro... no, not the trashcan, but the one after that with the cheese grater case and the wheels, Apple has used a configuration with the SSD controller on the motherboard and the NAND chips separate. This works with Apple Silicon, and has helped as a relatively fast way to evacuate RAM pages to disk.
You could replace the SSDs on the cheese grater Mac Pro, but it took a DFU restore to do so. Mainly because the SepOS Secure Enclave is a part of the SSD controller, and repl
Re: (Score:2)
The problem with modular upgrades was when the iMac used them the first time around (Intel era) - after a year or two, Apple started getting support calls because people were replacing the SSD modules. Problem was, they lost all their data because when you re-initialize the SSD, you regenerate the encryption keys which mean now your old module with all your data on it is gone.
So far too many people kept asking how to recover their data and they couldn't because the encryption key was lost. So it kind of for
Wow it's quiet in here. (Score:2)
It's almost like no-one cares.
Re: (Score:2)
True.
Running diskmgmt.msc I see that I have 8+ drives in my home workstation; the bulk being NVMe drives ranging from 512 GB to 4 TB with a few being M.2.
It is almost as if 256 GB is a joke amongst us developers; these machines are aimed at casual users. :-)
Re: (Score:2)
> these machines are aimed at casual users. :-)
Of course. "Mini" is right in the name.
A Mac Mini is a laptop squeezed into a little box with no display or keyboard.
I have one from 2018, and I love it. It does what it's designed to do.
But it's not for power users.
Opening with a spudger (Score:3, Insightful)
Any computer/laptop that must be opened with spudger is hard pass for me. I open my computer at least twice a year to clean the dust out. Even in the cleanest of environments computers accumulate dust from sucking air.
I also open all laptops in the household once a year to clean out the hair and dust from them. Make computers last so much longer.
Apple products are not designed to be serviced. Or usable for that matter, like a mouse with the charging port on the bottom. Or making a touch function key line. A dumb trend that unfortunately getting picked up by some PC manufacturers.
Re: (Score:3)
A phone is *almost* excusable to be assembled this way, but not a desktop.
Re:Opening with a spudger (Score:4, Funny)
Maybe Elon can get the Trump Administration to enact laws to force Apple to make repairable/serviceable computers? Similar to how the EU forced Apple into dropping Lightning for USB-C. Just a thought. Something like, "Any non-phone, non-notebook PC, must be able to opened with a Phillips-head screwdriver, and have user-removable storage, and if there is discrete RAM, that must also be user-removable". It's *probably* OK for a SoC CPU+RAM combo to be soldered on, but I would personally prefer a BGA package. But I'll leave that one up to Elon.
We definitely need to reduce e-waste by forcing manufacturers back to more modular and serviceable designs. But then again on the other hand, fuck Apple.
Re: (Score:2)
You actually think Elon wants right to repair? The guy who owns Tesla?