
Note: The Samsung X5 drive has TRIM support when used with macOS. This allowed macOS to operate a maximum speed, while there was sight drop in speed when accessing user files. The Mac was configured so macOS resided on the internal drive while the each user's home folder resided on the Samsung X5 drive. I quickly learned this was not enough storage. I am using a 2018 Mac mini with a 256 GB internal SSD. So storage can be expanded by adding an external Samsung X5 drive, albeit at a 18% drop in speed.

Samsung specifications state the X5 Thunderbolt 3 SSD has speeds up to 2.8 GB/s. Apple specifications state the internal drive has speeds up to 3.4 GB/s.

Storage can be expanded by adding an external drive. While tricky, it is also possible to upgrade the RAM on Intel-based Macs.Both the memory and the SDD are not upgradable. The company only allows users to upgrade the RAM on the iMac, iMac Pro, and Mac Pro. The upgrade to 1TB storage will cost you $400 and a whopping $800 for 2TB.Īpple soldered the RAM and storage on its Intel-based Macs as well, which meant that upgrading their RAM and storage after purchasing them was not possible.

However, the company charges quite a lot of money for such simple upgrades, with the bump in RAM from 8GB to 16GB costing $200. It also goes without saying that doing any such modification on your M1 Mac will void its warranty for good.Īpple offers customers the option to increase the RAM and storage on their M1 Macs while buying it. Apple solders the RAM and storage on the M1 Macs, which means the procedure is extremely risky and there’s a high risk of failure.

2Fyf8AZfJRĪ number of M1 Mac owners in China have been able to upgrade the RAM and storage on their machines. The 8GB memory has been expanded to 16GB, and the 256GB hard drive has been expanded to 1TB. The process is applicable for all M1 Macs, including the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, and the Mac mini.Ĭhinese maintenance engineers can already expand the capacity of the Apple M1. The upgraded modules will also be identified by macOS without any issues. Technicians in Guangzhou, China have discovered that it is possible to remove the RAM and SSD from the M1 chip and replace them with a larger capacity module. However, it looks like technicians in China have managed to find a workaround for this limitation as well. One of the limitations of Apple’s M1 Macs is that they do not come with user-upgradeable RAM or storage.
