If you have a Mac mini, you are probably wondering if it is compatible, or not, with the expansion of RAM memory . In the field of computers, Apple has a somewhat strange policy: some models yes, others no; one year yes, the next no, but then yes… And in the end, it is not usually clear if it is the user who can expand the RAM, if you have to go through a technical service or, directly, you cannot.
If you have these Mac mini you won’t be able to do anything
If you have one of these Mac mini models, we’re sorry, but you won’t be able to upgrade the RAM. Neither by yourself, nor through a technical service (official or authorized). Of course, keep in mind that there are two different circumstances, for what refers to these models. So, let’s see what happens in the 2020 and 2022 Mac mini.
The last two Mac mini models no longer allow memory expansion because they incorporate Apple Silicon chips. And it is that, despite the great advantages of the M1 and M2 chips , they have the disadvantage that they cannot be expanded or modified. The entire system is integrated in one place. That is why both models already have unified RAM inside the chip.
Now, what about the other Mac mini? There is another model, from 2014 , which cannot be updated either. In this case, the 2014 model does not have Apple Silicon, but Intel. However, RAM memory is soldered together with the computer’s motherboard. This Mac mini model brought controversy at the time. Before, Mac minis could be upgraded after the fact, and Apple didn’t usually add “removable” components to the computer’s motherboard. So if you have this model, you won’t be able to expand it either.
These models can be expanded
In the 2014 model the RAM could not be expanded. But yes, it was possible in the model that was launched in 2018 . Four years later, Apple presented a renewed Mac mini that no longer had the RAM soldered to the motherboard and therefore could be changed. But this change has a very big “but”.
Despite the fact that the RAM memories are not soldered, if we have a 2018 Mac mini, we will not be able to expand the RAM ourselves. We will have to go to the official Apple technical service, or go to a center authorized by Apple. Because yes, in the 2018 model, as Apple itself indicates, “the 2018 Mac mini does not allow the user to install RAM . The RAM memory is not accessible by the user”. So, it will be time to checkout.
Now, the previous models of 2014 already have “another song”. The models that correspond to 2010, 2011 and 2012, not only allow upgrading the RAM, but also allow the user to expand it. And through a process as simple as removing the bottom cover and replacing the memory. Of course, for this, you have to buy compatible RAM memories, but the process is immediate and does not require that we take it to the technical service. In previous models, specifically the original model (launched in 2005) up to the 2009 model, Apple specifies that “to remove or expand memory you must go to an Apple Authorized Service Provider”, without giving much more explanation than this sentence, and the technical specifications of the models.