I did this today, and this guide was perfect. Thank you! I think I had everything taken apart and back together in about 20min. The SSD makes it SO much faster.
Just perform something I've never thought I could do, I had cloned my HDD to SSD, and booted it up with SSD. Just under one hour, I followed your video. And behold, not a screw left over. In the end you said, you should have 6 screws left. My heart dropped for a second! Now I have a "new" Mac mini!! Thanks for such a great video. Bless!! 🙏
When you unplug the IR remote cable, be extremely careful because it breaks of the board very easely. (if it breaks it is not a disaster, the remote and power light wil not work anymore) BUT THE FAN CABLE!! Don't unplug it. You can remove the main board with the fan unplugging. This fancable plug also breaks off the board like it is made of paper. If I would do it again, I would even tape it securely. Please give this reaction some thumbs up. Not for my ego, but to get it higher in the listing to help new fixers.
It's fine if you lift it straight up. I figured you need the fan housing out of the way to get to the other connectors. But I guess if you can leave it on, that's best. This thing really need to be handled with kid gloves and lots of time, all of those board connectors are crazy small.
Did this tonight. Took about an hour with being really careful. Most times he says "use your fingers", better use a prying tool instead or a mini screw driver. This was actually doable. The things that actually slowed me down were snapping back the power port and reattaching the antenna.
I agree: One of the BEST tech vids on TH-cam. Very clear video. Good caution statements where needed. I'm still cautious to try to upgrade my late 2014 Mac-mini to a 4TB SSD by Micron. But you made a fine DIY video. Thanks.
Wow, great tutorial! Thank You!!! Really valued the putting it all back together. The tutorial from the site I purchased the SSD from just ended with, " now just reverse all the steps".
Big thank you for this tutorial. Used it all the way, paused and did exactly as you said. Turned out perfectly! Switched the standard 1TB 5400rpm HDD to a 240GB Crucial BX500 on a Mac Mini late 2014 (2,6ghz and 8gb ram) and the results are astonishing. It's like a new computer now. Once again thank you very very much for the best tutorial on youtube! :D :D :D
I'm showing up a little late to the party... A huge thank you for doing this. You are a great communicator. If you aren't an educator in one field or another.... you may have missed your calling!
WOW + WARNING TIP! Followed step by step and went through until I realized that I ripped off the hard drive power connector. You mentioned that you were able to get it with your nails but I took it off from the wrong side. What I suggest is to unfold a paper clip and gently slide it under the HDD cable branch to lift it carefully. The cable should come out pretty easily. If you happen to rip it off like I did, don’t worry, it’s a very common mistake and an electronic shop doing micro solder should be able to fix it. Other than that, the explanations were exceptionally good!
Thank you so much for this. I’m winning a 1TB SSD on eBay and I’ll be doing this if I win that drive. Awesome tutorial. I know this wasn’t part of the tutorial but I’m going to clone the drive first through disk utility before I swap 👍🏽👍🏽
Hey, I can’t thank you enough for putting up this video. I’d looked at several others for this upgrade and yours was by far the best: sharp presentation, straightforward steps for disassembly/reassembly. I was kind of nervous about taking apart my Mini, but you made it really easy. Thanks again! 👍
Hi Scott, im also thinking about to upgrade my mac mini with a ssd drive, but is there really a big difference? Im running big sure on my mac, ok it isnt very fast anymore but it works... is it running much smoother with the ssd?
Works perfectly as many others have discovered following your video. Great simple explanation and step by step with the hints and tips on what to watch out for is excellent. Many thanks
Thank you for this tutorial, just done ssd replacement using this video as guide. I don't have long small screw for pushing the logic board, so I just carefully push it from the end of the board where hard drive sit. Also for removing the drive, in my case it was using T8 not T7.
Just ordered the same SSD for my 2014 mini today, got it for less than $100. Very excited to have it installed! My mini is unusably slow and the SSD should help tremendously!
@@yusufhanyorulmaz5709 I would recommend instead of changing the 2.5" HDD for a SATA SSD it is better to just add a NVME SSD it is much easier to install and it is also a faster drive. That way you will have two hard drives, then all you have to do is install the latest OS X on the SSD and migrate you data from the HDD to the SSD when you first start your mac from the new SSD. I did this a couple of weeks ago and went from read/write speeds below 100 MB/s to above 700 MB/s.
Thank you SO much! I had actually spent €1200 on a new (2018 version) Mac Mini because mine was so slow, it would take maybe a full 2 minutes to open Safari and even longer for bigger programs like iMovie. The new Mac Mini wouldn’t stay connected to the keyboard and trackpad, just would disconnect and reconnect over and over again, sidecar would connect either. Even after upgrading to a 2nd gen keyboard & Magic Trackpad (total now at €1500, it still continued with the same problem. I really didn’t know what to do. This video really saved me and now my old mini works like a Ferrari. Thank you!
I was considering going with an NVMe SSD for a fusion drive, but honestly with the price of a 500GB SSD now and that requiring no additional parts purchase I'll likely just go that route via the tutorial above. Thanks!
The question no one can answer is can you do both! They have adapters for the fusion housing for traditional ssd cards. Why can’t we do both methods and walk out with dual ssds?
Ive been repairing Macs for years but never repaired a Mac mini which is a testament to reliability. my 2012 Wass much easier than this to upgrade. Ive just got 2014 to upgrade hd. Couldn't believe how hard it was, even had to buy new screwdriver (t6 security) used a tiny screw driver ( from xmas cracker!)in the logic board each side a little bit at a time.
@@ezraross5194 I would recommend instead of changing the 2.5" HDD for a SATA SSD it is better to just add a NVME SSD it is much easier to install and it is also a faster drive. That way you will have two hard drives, then all you have to do is install the latest OS X on the SSD and migrate you data from the HDD to the SSD when you first start your mac from the new SSD. I did this a couple of weeks ago and went from read/write speeds below 100 MB/s to above 700 MB/s.
I want to reiterate my gratitude for this tutorial! After loading the OS and setting the computer back up, it's, literally, like a new computer. I bought this computer to be used as a media computer, new, in 2018 but because we moved into a new home, it wasn't even taken out of the box for 11 months. The hard drive had errors from initial setup and between the errors and the overall "slowness" of the drive, it was torturous to use. I've built PC's before but Apple's proprietary nature made the prospect of replacing the hard drive seem to be above my pay grade, so to speak. Following his tutorial made the entire installation really easy and I'm super-grateful to have stumbled upon it. My only additional request would be for a tutorial on how to install the OS using Apple's Internet Recovery...with a Windows keyboard🤔. This was certainly a multistep prospect. Thank you, again.
Excllent video I have a late 2014, so would i have to save all my data on a dvd or flash drive, install the SanDisk SSD PLUS 2.5 2TB and then transfer the data? Thanks alot for your detailed work cheers!
Correct. Or upload everything to the icloud and and then you can put everything back. You just buy the storage you need for a month then get rid of it. That would be the cheapest and easiest way. I do this all the time very easy
I knew you can’t upgrade memory but assumed the sod would be a fairly easy swap...... as much as your video was great I could just see too many opportunities for my fat fingers breaking some thing , losing patience and smashing something up. Might have to sell on and buy an ssd machine 😩
Man, you are awesome! Thank yo so much. Jamas hubiese podido hacerlo sin tu ayuda. No soy nada tecnico pero con tu ayuda logre actualizar el SSD de mi Mac Mini. Mil gracias desde Puerto Rico.
Great tutorial...thank you! Does anyone know of a good tutorial for software migration...the step before this one? I need to do this but I'm more familiar with Windows and don’t have a clue about how to do this on a Mac.
I used disk cloning software. Once the hard drive was removed I used another mac computer to clone the hard drive. Once installed you just turn it on and it works. The one I used is not around anymore but Super duper is a good one .
Hi, does this mac mini model, have soldered rams, or it's easy possible to change it ?. It was one of the best tutorials for mac mini, clear and make it so simple.
@@carsandcamera I change de HD for SSD and its amazing, great and fast. I spend a lot of time changing de OS to one aproppiated for the old 2014. It work with mojave with out any problems.
Good Lord what a lot of work. Great video though! Thanks!! My 2011 Mac mini is in perfect condition, easy to upgrade, but sadly not on the list of upgradable to Big Sur.
Thanks so much for this tutorial! With the help of you and a TH-camr named luke Fugate I was able to clone my SSD and install it to the system I'm using as I type this comment. I used a 2020 SK Hynix 1Tb Gold S31 SSD. It hasn't turned my Mac Mini into my Ryzen 2700x gaming PC, but it's much faster than it was before. After I first booted up the system I noticed that my power LED had stopped working. I re-watched the video and think I followed every step correctly. Do you know what could have happened? I wonder if I may have damaged something when either removing or re-installing the power supply? Any help would be appreciated!
I managed to destroy the IR cable pin’s trying to plug it back in so no remote control use going forward (never used one anyway) and the power light no longer works but it seems to be going through the fresh install fine, only 2h 30m to go for Yosemite and then comes Monterey.
@@carsandcamera Thanks. I have a movie editing program that requires at least Intel HD Graphics 5000. My 2011 Mac Mini has 3000. How can I upgrade to the 5000?
I would recommend instead of changing the 2.5" HDD for a SATA SSD it is better to just add a NVME SSD it is much easier to install and it is also a faster drive. That way you will have two hard drives, then all you have to do is install the latest OS X on the SSD and migrate you data from the HDD to the SSD when you first start your mac from the new SSD. I did this a couple of weeks ago and went from read/write speeds below 100 MB/s to above 700 MB/s.
@@gelv How do you “migrate your data”? Will there be a prompt? I am comfortable with the physical upgrade, but I’m shaky with the software aspect of this.
@@wdmbarker After I installed OS X on the NVME SSD and booted from that new OS (in this case Big Sur) during the setup assistant there is a migration assistant where you are asked if you want to import (migrate) your data from a time machine backup, another Mac, another startup disk or a windows PC. Then I just selected the old HDD.
Thanks for the video. Yours make the process clearer to me than the others I've watched. One question - you say you need a T7 torx iFixit has a T8 torx in its kit and others say a T9 torx? Which is the right one?
@@RB-hj7qc Upgrading the drive to an SSD still would have made it faster. Also, couldn't you upgrade the RAM from 4GB to 8GB or more when doing this upgrade?
@@jamiechampion299 Memory on my model cannot be upgraded. It's soldered on to the logic board. Yes, an SSD will make it faster but the application I want to run needs more than 4GB of memory. So it will still be swapping all the time. But now that I actually think of it, this will now be much faster too. So I should see an improvement in speed. Will revisit this as my Mac is currently a paperweight and there aren't many place I can go. :-) Thanks!
That's the best tutorial I've seen for this, but I have a question, the ssd is placed without any files? do i need to do anything else to put macOS inside the SSD? I don't understand enough
I purchased mac mini around 2017-18 currently it takes very long time to initiate. Like it just keep load tab in chrome browser, takes long time to open any folder. I am very disappoint with it. Can changing the hard drive with SSD solve this problem?
I got the OWC Aura Pro ssd (still on its way) for my Mac mini 2014 w/ fusion drive. But I'm thinking about replacing the HDD as well... Wht ssd do you recommend (seagate, kingston, crucial, wd)? Coz I've heard Sandisk its not the best option for macs...
I’m looking to do this exact upgrade but I’m wondering if I should do a 2012 Mac mini instead and upgrade that. I am wanting it for editing on light room.
These were made with a plug in the logic board where you can but a $10 adapter to make it a fusion drive. Why not if the HDD is working fine just add an SSD stick and have to beat of both worlds and more memory. Better yet, replace the HDD with the SSD and find a 256 ssd for cheap and the fusion drive since you opened everything up and put even more ssd power in this? $26 gets you 1/4 tb.
Good video, very detailed but friendly suggestion, make a script next time for your voice over. You said "uhh" and "umm" very very frequently, ended up having to mute to halfway through.
I did this today, and this guide was perfect. Thank you! I think I had everything taken apart and back together in about 20min. The SSD makes it SO much faster.
I needed 30min because my dumb ass couldn’t understand why my not security torx couldn’t fit...
Just perform something I've never thought I could do, I had cloned my HDD to SSD, and booted it up with SSD.
Just under one hour, I followed your video. And behold, not a screw left over.
In the end you said, you should have 6 screws left. My heart dropped for a second!
Now I have a "new" Mac mini!!
Thanks for such a great video.
Bless!! 🙏
How did you clone it
When you unplug the IR remote cable, be extremely careful because it breaks of the board very easely. (if it breaks it is not a disaster, the remote and power light wil not work anymore) BUT THE FAN CABLE!! Don't unplug it. You can remove the main board with the fan unplugging. This fancable plug also breaks off the board like it is made of paper. If I would do it again, I would even tape it securely. Please give this reaction some thumbs up. Not for my ego, but to get it higher in the listing to help new fixers.
Very important warning!!
It's fine if you lift it straight up. I figured you need the fan housing out of the way to get to the other connectors. But I guess if you can leave it on, that's best. This thing really need to be handled with kid gloves and lots of time, all of those board connectors are crazy small.
great tutorial, It definitely shows me that I need to have a “geek” install it- well worth the cost!!
Did this tonight. Took about an hour with being really careful. Most times he says "use your fingers", better use a prying tool instead or a mini screw driver. This was actually doable. The things that actually slowed me down were snapping back the power port and reattaching the antenna.
I agree: One of the BEST tech vids on TH-cam. Very clear video. Good caution statements where needed. I'm still cautious to try to upgrade my late 2014 Mac-mini to a 4TB SSD by Micron. But you made a fine DIY video. Thanks.
Followed your tutorial for a Mac mini late 2014: the step-by-step explanation was just perfect! Thanks a lot!
I always thought the hard drive was soldered into these machines... all this time I could have upgraded this HD to SSD and didint know it!!! smh
Wow, great tutorial! Thank You!!! Really valued the putting it all back together. The tutorial from the site I purchased the SSD from just ended with, " now just reverse all the steps".
owc at its finest lmaoo
Big thank you for this tutorial. Used it all the way, paused and did exactly as you said. Turned out perfectly! Switched the standard 1TB 5400rpm HDD to a 240GB Crucial BX500 on a Mac Mini late 2014 (2,6ghz and 8gb ram) and the results are astonishing. It's like a new computer now. Once again thank you very very much for the best tutorial on youtube! :D :D :D
4 months later, still fast?????
I'm showing up a little late to the party... A huge thank you for doing this. You are a great communicator. If you aren't an educator in one field or another.... you may have missed your calling!
WOW + WARNING TIP! Followed step by step and went through until I realized that I ripped off the hard drive power connector. You mentioned that you were able to get it with your nails but I took it off from the wrong side. What I suggest is to unfold a paper clip and gently slide it under the HDD cable branch to lift it carefully. The cable should come out pretty easily. If you happen to rip it off like I did, don’t worry, it’s a very common mistake and an electronic shop doing micro solder should be able to fix it. Other than that, the explanations were exceptionally good!
That was a professional tutorial in all forms. Well done and thank you!
Thank you so much for this. I’m winning a 1TB SSD on eBay and I’ll be doing this if I win that drive. Awesome tutorial.
I know this wasn’t part of the tutorial but I’m going to clone the drive first through disk utility before I swap 👍🏽👍🏽
Hey, I can’t thank you enough for putting up this video. I’d looked at several others for this upgrade and yours was by far the best: sharp presentation, straightforward steps for disassembly/reassembly.
I was kind of nervous about taking apart my Mini, but you made it really easy. Thanks again! 👍
Hello from germany. Thank you for this video! I will try it next weekend on my mini late 2014.
One of the best TH-cam Tutorials I have seen in a loooooong time! Just the right speed and great camera work! :)
Thank you!
Hi Scott, im also thinking about to upgrade my mac mini with a ssd drive, but is there really a big difference? Im running big sure on my mac, ok it isnt very fast anymore but it works... is it running much smoother with the ssd?
I got excited for a second I thought this was for the 2018 lol I was ready to buy a SSD. Great and detailed video. Thanks for the upload
I love this tutorial. My Mac mini late 2014 just started running slow and this helped me step by step. Thank you.
Works perfectly as many others have discovered following your video. Great simple explanation and step by step with the hints and tips on what to watch out for is excellent. Many thanks
One of the best tutorials I have ever seen, great job and THANK YOU!
Thank you for this tutorial, just done ssd replacement using this video as guide. I don't have long small screw for pushing the logic board, so I just carefully push it from the end of the board where hard drive sit. Also for removing the drive, in my case it was using T8 not T7.
Just ordered the same SSD for my 2014 mini today, got it for less than $100. Very excited to have it installed! My mini is unusably slow and the SSD should help tremendously!
@@yusufhanyorulmaz5709 I would recommend instead of changing the 2.5" HDD for a SATA SSD it is better to just add a NVME SSD it is much easier to install and it is also a faster drive. That way you will have two hard drives, then all you have to do is install the latest OS X on the SSD and migrate you data from the HDD to the SSD when you first start your mac from the new SSD. I did this a couple of weeks ago and went from read/write speeds below 100 MB/s to above 700 MB/s.
Can you do both.
Thank you SO much! I had actually spent €1200 on a new (2018 version) Mac Mini because mine was so slow, it would take maybe a full 2 minutes to open Safari and even longer for bigger programs like iMovie. The new Mac Mini wouldn’t stay connected to the keyboard and trackpad, just would disconnect and reconnect over and over again, sidecar would connect either. Even after upgrading to a 2nd gen keyboard & Magic Trackpad (total now at €1500, it still continued with the same problem. I really didn’t know what to do. This video really saved me and now my old mini works like a Ferrari. Thank you!
Your welcome. I’m happy it worked out for you!
Great tutorial! Swapped out the original hard drive for a 2TB San disk ultra on my late 2014. It is SOOOOOOOOOO much faster now.
Thank u!
Finally a real tutorial that is well explained! It is absolutely the best. Thank you !!
I was considering going with an NVMe SSD for a fusion drive, but honestly with the price of a 500GB SSD now and that requiring no additional parts purchase I'll likely just go that route via the tutorial above. Thanks!
The question no one can answer is can you do both! They have adapters for the fusion housing for traditional ssd cards.
Why can’t we do both methods and walk out with dual ssds?
Ive been repairing Macs for years but never repaired a Mac mini which is a testament to reliability. my 2012 Wass much easier than this to upgrade. Ive just got 2014 to upgrade hd. Couldn't believe how hard it was, even had to buy new screwdriver (t6 security) used a tiny screw driver ( from xmas cracker!)in the logic board each side a little bit at a time.
What steps do I have to take to get the Mac OS To run normally once the replacement is done ? Great tutorial by the way . Thank you
U ever figure it out ?
Thank you my man! Nice tutorial now I have a “new” Mac mini!!!!! Thank you for this “for dummies” tutorial
very nice tutorial. I took apart and put it back in 30 mins.
Nice and clear install video. Very helpful.
This is the most finest and detailed video on this particular topic on TH-cam thank you very much
I literally JUST did this. Thank you for this step by step tutorial‼️ 👍🏽👍🏽 just upped the speed of my Mac mini by swapping to a solid state.
Fantastic!
Fantastic walk through! Completed the upgrade myself today! Thanks!
I was beginning to think that mine was going to become a frisbee this summer, but this tutorial might save it from Sheep Meadow in Central Park
TR8 for the hdd screws
Nice explained step by step tutorial, do you have the drives cloning process in another video? At what point happened?
Did you ever find it out,
@@ezraross5194 I would recommend instead of changing the 2.5" HDD for a SATA SSD it is better to just add a NVME SSD it is much easier to install and it is also a faster drive. That way you will have two hard drives, then all you have to do is install the latest OS X on the SSD and migrate you data from the HDD to the SSD when you first start your mac from the new SSD. I did this a couple of weeks ago and went from read/write speeds below 100 MB/s to above 700 MB/s.
Awesome tutorial! Your tutorial made this far-less daunting than I had originally thought it would be. Thank you very much!!!
I want to reiterate my gratitude for this tutorial! After loading the OS and setting the computer back up, it's, literally, like a new computer. I bought this computer to be used as a media computer, new, in 2018 but because we moved into a new home, it wasn't even taken out of the box for 11 months. The hard drive had errors from initial setup and between the errors and the overall "slowness" of the drive, it was torturous to use. I've built PC's before but Apple's proprietary nature made the prospect of replacing the hard drive seem to be above my pay grade, so to speak. Following his tutorial made the entire installation really easy and I'm super-grateful to have stumbled upon it. My only additional request would be for a tutorial on how to install the OS using Apple's Internet Recovery...with a Windows keyboard🤔. This was certainly a multistep prospect. Thank you, again.
this was an epic video bruh!!!. I am gonna try this this week
Excllent video I have a late 2014, so would i have to save all my data on a dvd or flash drive, install the SanDisk SSD PLUS 2.5 2TB and then transfer the data? Thanks alot for your detailed work cheers!
Correct. Or upload everything to the icloud and and then you can put everything back. You just buy the storage you need for a month then get rid of it. That would be the cheapest and easiest way. I do this all the time very easy
just got this from my parents after they stopped using. waht a pain in the butt but may have to upgrade. haven't checked if it has the SSD or not
Best quality video I’ve seen for this upgrade. Really great job. Thanks for posting!
I knew you can’t upgrade memory but assumed the sod would be a fairly easy swap...... as much as your video was great I could just see too many opportunities for my fat fingers breaking some thing , losing patience and smashing something up. Might have to sell on and buy an ssd machine 😩
awsome tutorial, thank you so much. super clear and right to the point. made my ssd install super quick and easy in my mac mini
Man, you are awesome! Thank yo so much. Jamas hubiese podido hacerlo sin tu ayuda. No soy nada tecnico pero con tu ayuda logre actualizar el SSD de mi Mac Mini. Mil gracias desde Puerto Rico.
Apple just makes HD and ram replacement so difficult and now they even make it harder if not impossible.
Great tutorial...thank you! Does anyone know of a good tutorial for software migration...the step before this one? I need to do this but I'm more familiar with Windows and don’t have a clue about how to do this on a Mac.
Great vid, thanks. How did you transfer all the data on the HD to the SSD?
I used disk cloning software. Once the hard drive was removed I used another mac computer to clone the hard drive. Once installed you just turn it on and it works. The one I used is not around anymore but Super duper is a good one .
The reassembly part is key. I may actually try this...
Gracias amigo, esto es increíble 🤯, casi compro una compu nueva, pues la mia ya está muy lenta. Esto cambia todo.¡Dios te bendiga!
Great Tutorial, after this upgrade do I need to upload the operating system?
Yes
Hi, does this mac mini model, have soldered rams, or it's easy possible to change it ?. It was one of the best tutorials for mac mini, clear and make it so simple.
Hi Thank you for the kind words. Yes, the ram is soldered in and cannot be upgraded.
@@carsandcamera I change de HD for SSD and its amazing, great and fast. I spend a lot of time changing de OS to one aproppiated for the old 2014. It work with mojave with out any problems.
Excellent tutorial and video, I really needed this thank you for sharing. 👍👍👍👍👍
Good Lord what a lot of work. Great video though! Thanks!! My 2011 Mac mini is in perfect condition, easy to upgrade, but sadly not on the list of upgradable to Big Sur.
Thanks so much for this tutorial! With the help of you and a TH-camr named luke Fugate I was able to clone my SSD and install it to the system I'm using as I type this comment. I used a 2020 SK Hynix 1Tb Gold S31 SSD. It hasn't turned my Mac Mini into my Ryzen 2700x gaming PC, but it's much faster than it was before.
After I first booted up the system I noticed that my power LED had stopped working. I re-watched the video and think I followed every step correctly. Do you know what could have happened? I wonder if I may have damaged something when either removing or re-installing the power supply? Any help would be appreciated!
I managed to destroy the IR cable pin’s trying to plug it back in so no remote control use going forward (never used one anyway) and the power light no longer works but it seems to be going through the fresh install fine, only 2h 30m to go for Yosemite and then comes Monterey.
Awesome, worked like a charm, stoked!
Hello. Thanks for the video. Does that upgrade include the graphics as well?
No, this upgrade does not upgrade the graphics.
@@carsandcamera Thanks. I have a movie editing program that requires at least Intel HD Graphics 5000. My 2011 Mac Mini has 3000. How can I upgrade to the 5000?
There is no software migration mentioned. I wish you can show us how to do that before changing the drive, right?
Thank you so much for this excellent guide, I have just completed the process and installing a fresh OS. :)
Very fine. Nice job. 👏🏼 Finished perfectly here.
Thank you so much for this tutorial! I noticed you didn't put back the clip under the power supply
You need to watch that again because he specifically shows you and and tells you how it slides back in with him doing it
Best video ever. Thanks a lot. Love my 2014
Very good video, easy to follow. Thanks!
Great, great tutorial. Thank you so much.
Great vid . this is something i was looing for :). How about the system ?how do you install it on new SSD drive?
I would recommend instead of changing the 2.5" HDD for a SATA SSD it is better to just add a NVME SSD it is much easier to install and it is also a faster drive. That way you will have two hard drives, then all you have to do is install the latest OS X on the SSD and migrate you data from the HDD to the SSD when you first start your mac from the new SSD. I did this a couple of weeks ago and went from read/write speeds below 100 MB/s to above 700 MB/s.
@@gelv How do you “migrate your data”? Will there be a prompt? I am comfortable with the physical upgrade, but I’m shaky with the software aspect of this.
@@wdmbarker After I installed OS X on the NVME SSD and booted from that new OS (in this case Big Sur) during the setup assistant there is a migration assistant where you are asked if you want to import (migrate) your data from a time machine backup, another Mac, another startup disk or a windows PC. Then I just selected the old HDD.
Just put a PCIe ssd in it. Get the cable kit and you don't have to
pull all that stuff off.
Thanks for posting. Followed this and it worked like a charm
Thanks a lot for your perfect tutorial video!!!! My mini late 2014 is installing the mac os at this moment! Vielen Dank Dude!
Thanks for the video. Yours make the process clearer to me than the others I've watched. One question - you say you need a T7 torx iFixit has a T8 torx in its kit and others say a T9 torx? Which is the right one?
Rajesh M did you get the right kit?
@@dazmawilliams9609 My Mac Mini has only 4MB of memory. So upgrading to a SSD wouldn't have made it fast. So I decided not to do the upgrade.
@@RB-hj7qc Upgrading the drive to an SSD still would have made it faster. Also, couldn't you upgrade the RAM from 4GB to 8GB or more when doing this upgrade?
@@jamiechampion299 Memory on my model cannot be upgraded. It's soldered on to the logic board. Yes, an SSD will make it faster but the application I want to run needs more than 4GB of memory. So it will still be swapping all the time. But now that I actually think of it, this will now be much faster too. So I should see an improvement in speed. Will revisit this as my Mac is currently a paperweight and there aren't many place I can go. :-) Thanks!
@@RB-hj7qc Oh ok, even if you're stuck with 4GB of RAM an SSD will still help. What application are you trying to use?
Great tutorial, many thanks 👍 top TH-camr
this was an amazing well filmed educational video well done loved it
Great tutorial thanks
Ive never token apart computer. Is it risky to that myself??
I bought the base model with 4GB of ram, and installed an nvme ssd. I kept the spinning hard drive as storage.
What’s the speed you accomplish after installing that internal SanDisk ssd
Awesome! Thank you!!!
Dear .. I have a doubt , MacMini (late 2014) have PCIe slot in it. why don't you upgrade it using PCIe SSD. why did you prefer SATA SSD over PCIe?
That's the best tutorial I've seen for this, but I have a question, the ssd is placed without any files? do i need to do anything else to put macOS inside the SSD? I don't understand enough
You make a macOS USB installer before you take it apart and reinstall macOS via USB.
@@afternuwn Thanks!
CMD+ALT+R at boot loads the newest macOS available from the internet.
Why aren’t you showing the ram? Please help
You cannot upgrade the Ram on this model.
This gives me anxiety... great tutorial, it just gives me anxiety
Hi friend, no need clone hdd to ssd ? When you change to ssd , system reinstall like First time ?
Do you have a link to the tools needed?
I purchased mac mini around 2017-18 currently it takes very long time to initiate. Like it just keep load tab in chrome browser, takes long time to open any folder. I am very disappoint with it. Can changing the hard drive with SSD solve this problem?
Mac mini 2014 have mechanical hard Drive or ssd? There are two types?
Mechanical
Thanks so much. This is excellent.
I got the OWC Aura Pro ssd (still on its way) for my Mac mini 2014 w/ fusion drive. But I'm thinking about replacing the HDD as well... Wht ssd do you recommend (seagate, kingston, crucial, wd)? Coz I've heard Sandisk its not the best option for macs...
What’s the smaller cable do? Not the bigger data cable but the one you talked about removing with a screw driver?
On the drive? The SATA power and data cables are combined into one connector.
Perfect !! Thank you very much!
I’m looking to do this exact upgrade but I’m wondering if I should do a 2012 Mac mini instead and upgrade that. I am wanting it for editing on light room.
You could use a 2012 Mac Mini but its not compatible with Big Sur the latest operating system and the 2014 model is compatible
These were made with a plug in the logic board where you can but a $10 adapter to make it a fusion drive. Why not if the HDD is working fine just add an SSD stick and have to beat of both worlds and more memory. Better yet, replace the HDD with the SSD and find a 256 ssd for cheap and the fusion drive since you opened everything up and put even more ssd power in this? $26 gets you 1/4 tb.
When this video was made those were not available. But if I was doing it now I would still upgrade both drives as it’s so easy
very comprehensive!
Wow. Apple really made it so that this would be a piece of cake. Sheesh
Thanks for the video!
From Guatemala 🇬🇹, thanks a lot
Where's your blade? Fusion the two SSD's together and Make Mac Insanely Fast Again.
Very helpful. Thanks
Good video, very detailed but friendly suggestion, make a script next time for your voice over. You said "uhh" and "umm" very very frequently, ended up having to mute to halfway through.
Very helpful sir
God I wish Apple made this easier to upgrade like the 2011 model