You can upgrade storage in the new M4 Mac mini - but you'll need to be brave

Apple has made it nearly impossible for owners of most of its devices to carry out storage and RAM upgrades, opting to solder everything directly to the logic board. However, a recent teardown of the new M4-powered Mac mini revealed that the storage chip is located on a separate and removable NAND module PCB, much like the setup in the Mac Studio. This discovery has paved the way for potential storage upgrades.

Also: Apple's new M4 Mac Mini is powerhouse PC - but I love it for two reasons beyond that

Enter YouTuber dosdude1, who seized the opportunity to explore this newfound possibility.

This process is not for the faint of heart. Upgrading the Mac mini requires a delicate touch and a meticulous approach, and any misstep could lead to disaster. 

First, the device must be completely disassembled to access the storage PCB. Once exposed, the storage chip must be carefully removed using a hot air gun. After that, all the old solder must be removed with a soldering iron and desoldering wick. The new storage chip then requires reballing with solder before being soldered back onto the PCB before the Mac mini is reassembled, completing the operation.

Also: I replaced my M1 MacBook Pro with a base model M4 - and it blew my $3,000 system away

Wreck that little PCB and it's game over.

As you can see in the video, dosdude1 had to run the process twice because of a problem with the storage chips he'd used for the upgrade. 

Also: This Mac model is the computer most people should buy (and it's not a MacBook or Mini)

But, perseverance won and, in the end, he got the M4 Mac mini working with the upgraded storage. 

Now, I'm here to tell you this is an advanced upgrade. I've done something similar and there's a skill to removing a chip without burning the board or removing a bunch of components you didn't want to remove. 

Also: 4 reasons why a maxed-out M4 Mac Mini can't replace my Mac Studio

Reballing chips, meanwhile, requires specific metal masks, which are thin metal sheets with tiny holes in them, without getting solder paste everywhere, and that skill only comes from practice -- and you don't want to be practicing on parts from inside your new Mac mini.

I wonder if some enterprising third party will create an upgrade solution that involves swapping out the storage board. That approach would be a lot easier.