Owc chris s the fusion drive option for the 2012 mac minis can cause some severe data loss if. Dec 21, 2017 id like to get an opinion on whether adding an external ssd to my late 2012 mac mini would show a great improvement in speed. Welcome to our pick of the best external hard drives for macs and pcs. Depending on the size of your drive bay, you may need to use a spacer to make your ssd fit properly. So lately, ive been thinking about installing a ssd as the primary boot drive into my mac mini. Storage apple mac hard drives, ssds ssd for imac late. Mac mini late 2012 hard drivessd installation video. However, this port does support mini displayport for video output, so you can use a mini displayport cable to connect a mini displayport display. Installing mac mini late 2012 dual hard drive kit ifixit. Crucial memory and ssd upgrades 100% compatibility guaranteed for apple mac mini late 2012 free us delivery.
The installation of the new ssd drive is taking the same steps in this. I have a 2012 mac mini with a 500gb ssd in one drive slot and the stock 1tb hd in the second. As youve a fusion drive your mini already has 2 drives in it 1tb spinning hard drive and 8gb ssd. Use this guide to completely replace your mini s hard drive. In this video, i swap the hard drive out in a late 2012 mac mini. Use our site to identify your mac from its serial number, or follow our guides to doing so via its attributes, to find guaranteed compatible upgrades. Owc 500gb electra 6g ssd diy upgrade bundle for 2011, 2012 mac mini, includes data doubler, 5piece installation toolkit 4.
Mac mini unibody ssd upgrade bundle 1 250 gb ssd 1 500 gb ssd 1 1 tb ssd 1 500 gb ssd hybrid 2. Ssd for mac mini 2012 need second opinion ask different. Technical specifications for the mac mini core i7 2. As many of you probably know, apple decided to put 5400rpm drives in new mac models. The tools worked to take everything apart and get access to the bracket to install my ssd in the upper position. Installation and 2tb crucial ssd for mac mini 2009 to 2012. Out of curiosity i loaded up the free black magic speed test and did some testing of all of my external drives as well as the internal ssd in my mini and the results surprised me. Once connected, open up disk utility located in the utilities folder within the applications folder. Additionally, the late 2012 models support much faster. Apr 10, 2018 if your mac is more than a few years old, you can almost certainly upgrade the hard drive.
The 2012 mac mini uses 1600mhz ddr3 sodimm modules and can accept up to 16gb across two slots. So the best you can do is grab a 16gb kit made up of a pair of 8gb sticks. I have established the ssd as the startup drive mac mini 2012 and it works effectively much faster. Drives have progressed above the sata3 specification these days so pretty much any drive is going to be fine. Use this guide to install ifixits dual hard drive kit in your late 2012 mac mini.
Find up to 16gb ram memory and 2tb ssd storage for your mac mini. Thunderbolt and thunderbolt 2 are not the same as mini displayport. Drive thats on the top when the mini is turned upside down to open it. Oct 29, 2012 i removed the original 1tb hard drive from a new midrange 2012 mac mini and added two 256gb samsung 830 drives. Il case utilizzato in mac mini 2012 e lo stesso di. The four thunderbolt 3 usbc ports support external devices using displayport, thunderbolt up to 40 gbps, and usb 3. Pull the hard drive away from the front edge of the mini and remove it from the outer case. The 840 is now being phased out, but the streak of great drives continues.
The price on ssd drives have also become quite affordable. I used an internal mini sas connector with a sata fan out for 4 additional drives. Mar 21, 2020 having the best external hard drive or ssd for your mac or pc is essential if you have lots of creative work to store. Transcend 512gb thunderbolt solid state drive storejet 500. The 8 best external hard drives and ssds for mac and pc. Replace your mac mini late 2012s hard drive for more storage space and an increase in speed. After formatting the drive your time machine back ups should be onscreen. Replacement ssd for mac mini late 2012 macrumors forums. The mac mini stylized with a lowercase mini is a desktop computer made by apple inc. I was struggling to get the drive pegs into the grommet, and the usual turn it upside down and giggle it around trick just wasnt working for me. Find our vast collection of 2012 catalina available for buying today.
Some drive bays have a height of 7 mm, while others have a height of 9. Mac mini late 2012 hard drive replacement replace your mac minis hard drive. Select the external drive in the lefthand column, right click, and select erase. Theres no obvious reason that your wd blue ssd wouldnt work. The 2014 model also had a sata option, please see our notes on upgrading. For the first time since 2014, apple has introduced a new mac mini. By contrast, the late 2012 mac mini models have dual core core i5 or even quad core core i7 ivy bridge processors the mid2011 server configuration has a quad core processor, but the late 2012 mac mini line is the first time a nonserver mac mini has packed a quad core chip. Owcs stepbystep video of how to install a hard drive in the apple mac mini 2012 with model id. The holes have rubber grommets around them, so it may be difficult to tell when you have seated the hard drive correctly.
Mac mini late 2012 hard drivessd installation video youtube. I dont see the need for separate system and audio drives as well when it comes to ssds which have very quick access times and throughput. Dollar for dollar, its not on par with the spinning disk option, but definitely in the price. If after reading the points above you have decided that its worth the money to buy a ssd for your mac, feel free to check out the drives below so that you wont have to spend lots of time hunting. Besides adding an ssd, the next best thing to do to give your old mac mini some additional legs for presentday computing is to add more ram.
All speeds are in mbs using the 5gb stress setting in black magic. How to give your 2012 or 2014 mac mini a performance boost. How to upgrade your mac mini with an ssd 2019 updated. Guida allacquisto sempre aggiornata per aiutarti a scegliere il miglio mac mini ssd sul mercato quella piu adatta ai tuoi bisogni e budget. Unfortunately, if youve got a newer model, youre probably out of luck. The 2018 mac mini comes with quad and 6core processors, up to 64gb in memory, and allflash storage. If you are going to put an ssd drive into a mac mini server or any other mac with dual drives. Dollar for dollar, its not on par with the spinning disk option, but definitely in the price range for the average consumer. The practical effect was always hotly contested but it doesnt really matter since trim for 3rd party drives is supported in sierra.
The hard drive or ssd is one component that you often can replace yourself, especially in older macs. Impressive multicore performance from apples most affordable mac apples smallest mac is a mighty mite of a machine. The speed boost an ssd provides over a hard drive is certainly. Mac mini 2012 second drive gets slow macrumors forums.
How to add a fast new ssd to your old mac or macbook for only. Nov 21, 2018 how to instructions and videos to upgrade the storage, hard drive, hard drives, or ssds, in the aluminum mac mini. Switching to an ssd could give a mac mini a new lease of life, but at. Attach the enclosure or cableconnected ssd to the mac mini, via usb. How to speed up your mac with a solid state ssd drive. Mac mini late 2012 hard drive replacement ifixit repair guide. It is one of four desktop computers in the current macintosh lineup, serving as an alternative to the allinone imac, and sits below the performance range imac pro and mac pro the mac mini is apples only consumer desktop computer since 1998 to ship without a display, keyboard, or mouse. Ive done about a dozen mac mini to ssd upgrades over the past few years but ive only owned a logic board removal tool. Jun 06, 2017 the ultimate guide to apples proprietary ssds remember the good ol days of carrying a spare battery, upgrading your own ram, maybe even adding a second hard drive. I removed the original 1tb hard drive from a new midrange 2012 mac mini and added two 256gb samsung 830 drives. How to give your 2012 or 2014 mac mini a performance boost by.
However, it always is best to buy from a trusted company with mac knowledge for the most troublefree experience. High performance line of ssds excellent for everyday use, and up to 89x faster than your original drive. Works great to add a secondary drive to a mac mini. May 03, 20 upgrade the 2012 base model mac mini with 16gb ram and 120gb sata ii ssd. The ultimate guide to apples proprietary solid state drives. Late 2012 mac mini ssd hard drive upgrade how to rickmakes. Crucial 16gb kit 2 x 8gb ddr3l1600 sodimm memory for mac. I understand that this can play a big part in which ssd i get for my mac mini. The t2 security chip consolidates several controllers into one, and includes a secure enclave coprocessor that provides the foundation for encrypted storage and secure boot capabilities. Aug 10, 2015 when i wrote a series of howto guides showing how easy it was to swap old mac hard disks for new solid state drives ssds, i focused on raw upgrades slow mechanical drives for fast chip. They have the same shape, but use different symbols on the cable and port.
Owc chris s the fusion drive option for the 2012 mac minis can cause some severe data loss if youre not careful. Im not sure as of this writing if minis even have ssd drives or if they. Andrew optimus goldheart mac mini late 2012 hard drive replacement guide id. Transcend 1tb thunderbolt solid state drive storejet 500. Ive done about a dozen mac mini to ssd upgrades over the past few years but ive only owned a logic board removal tool for my latest upgrade. Feb 29, 2020 besides adding an ssd, the next best thing to do to give your old mac mini some additional legs for presentday computing is to add more ram.
Mac mini features the apple t2 security chip secondgeneration custom mac silicon designed by apple to make mac mini even more secure. During reassembly, there are two pins on the inside edge of the hard drive that fit into the case. How to give your 2012 or 2014 mac mini a performance boost by replacing the hard drive with an ssd. I have a mac mini with one large enough and fast ssd think 1 tb samsung 840pro on my shopping list as well. How to upgrade the 2012 mac mini for use in 2020 imore. Before doing anything you need to be sure exactly what model mac you have. Oem apple sata hard drive cable 82100698a for macbook pro. Transcend 1tb thunderbolt solid state drive storejet 500 for mac ts1tsjm500. In theory, just about any hard drive or ssd that meets the minimum requirements should work in the mac mini. Therefore, if you own one of them, this article is for you.
So theres obviously a problem to get good performance with software samplers. Mac mini late 2012 hard drive replacement replace your mac mini s hard drive. Lets look at how to find out if you can replace yours. I began using it mainly as a media centerserver but find im often also using it as a real computer. The restoring process will take hours, but youll come back to a fresh macos. After resetting the pram the new configuration worked fine. Personally, im looking at the samsung 840 evo 250gb 2.
If you really want an ultimate setup, a 2012 mac mini can handle a 1tb ssd and a 2tb hdd together. We agree with wirecutter that the samsung 850 evo is the best ssd available for the mac mini. Some lessons on mac minis and ssd options mac mini hosting. The ultimate guide to help you upgrade your mac mini with an ssd, now 2019 updated and still free. Mac mini late 2012 ssd dual drive installation crucial. Dates sold, processor type, memory info, hard drive details, price and more. How to upgrade aluminum mac mini hard drives or ssds. The 840 is now being phased out, but the streak of great drives continues with the 850. Set aside a couple of hours, and youll be able to bring your old mac back to life. Following an installation procedure similar to ifixit s for adding a second drive i had only one issue very slow boot. How to speed up your mac with a solid state ssd drive hardware, advanced, macbook, performance, ssd, trim add comments this article was originally written in 2015 but it is still relevant. I thought about replacing 1gb internal drive with two 750gb 7200rpm drives. Ive been doing some research into the process and for the most part, it doesnt seem too difficult with installing an ssd as a 2nd drive into the mac mini thanks to the thousands of youtube videos.
Get everything you need to upgrade your 2012 mac mini ssd for a total system performance and capacity boost. Macs have a reputation for being hard to upgrade or repair, but that isnt always true. If youre an apple user, those luxuries may be behind us, but upgrading your own solid state drive is still a privilege the apple overlords allow us to have, for now that is. Once disconnected, carefully slide the logic board assembly out of the mac minis rear. We also offer fitting services both at our workshop, and onsite in the cambridge and north london area. Replacing a single drive isnt too bad as long as you have the right tools, a reasonable amount of dexterity, and are good at. It was much faster than my older usb 3 solid state drive but did not approach what i thought should be its speed based on the thunderbolt standards.
In my case it was a mac mini late 2012 model, with the original drive being in the lower position ie. Jan 17, 2019 about the sd and sdxc card slot on your mac some mac computers feature an sd secure digital or sdxc secure digital extended capacity card slot that lets your mac read and write data to sd media, such as digital camera memory cards. Use this guide to completely replace your minis hard drive. Differences between mid2011 and late 2012 mac mini models. The 8 best external hard drives and ssds for mac and pc users. Upgrade your mac mini to up to 8x more capacity and 92x faster speeds than with the apple factory drive.
Swap your imac, mac mini or macbook cddvd drive for. Lift the ear of the fan nearest the ram up off the standoff secured to the outer case. So if youre looking to breath life into a mac mini, and ssd upgrade is not too hard and not too. Aug 11, 2012 a look at how to remove your current hard drive from the mac mini, the easy way, without having to remove the motherboard. After years of neglecting the mac mini, apple gave its compact desktop a powerful upgrade to intels 8thgeneration processors and ample of. The 8 best external hard drives and ssds for mac and pc users in 2020. Mac mini late 2012 hard drive replacement ifixit repair. A fusion drive is a bit trickier as you have to completely disassemble the mac mini to install two drives in it. Black magic speed test and did some testing of all of my external drives as well as the internal ssd in my mini and the results surprised me. Replacing a macs 500gb or 1tb hard drive with a samesized ssd required at least. Thanks to the solid state drive that resides in this external hard drive, its a lot faster than external drives that use traditional spinning hard drives so youre getting great transfer speeds as well as rugged protection.