So I have the 512GB new iMac. It’s great, but I’d prefer more SSD space. Can I now swap out the internal SSD for a 2TB one?
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Sadly it is not a removable set of Flash chips (aka NAND) which are soldered directly on the logic board, there is no true SSD as that would imply a complete drive controller with the Flash chips.
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Thank you, @Dan - I suppose as it's Apple, we already knew the answer, but I'm grateful for your amazingly prompt response.
Has someone already opened it? I could not find one tear down of the new iMac m4 so far. Maybe it changed inside like the Mac mini m4
@andreasmaikisch - If you check EveryMac you'll see they also state the Flash is soldered "The storage is soldered onboard. Internal upgrades are not possible"
For Apple to produce such a thin system there just is not enough room on the very small logic board to even mount a module. If you review the older model Teardown you can see this is almost a throw away system! With very few parts (assemblies)
Hi Dan,
thanks for your replay but is the iMac M4 the same removable SSD without controller as on the new Mac Mini which would be great or is it still soldered direct onto the Motherboard as in the iMac M3. So far I saw no pictures of the inside of the new M4 iMac.
@andreasmaikisch - Sorry no room the flash is soldered to the main logic board. I'm hearing hints of a new iMac maybe coming Monday at WWDC conference.
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Many brands as Satechi are selling hub where you can connect a nvme ssd and your Mac can start on it, the same for Mac mini also .....nice solution for poor users
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In the past customers could buy lower spec iMacs and laptops and then upgrade them by changing ram and hard drives (I used to do this myself). Apple wizened up and now everything is hard wired to the double sided mlb. The only way to upgrade mem and SSD's is to buy and install a higher rated board period.
You can replace the mlb yourself, the board itself is about 2 and 1/2 playing cards long and wide, double sided. Antistatic precautions are a must! All it takes is to carefully remove the screen, disconnect it, and set it aside. (You have to be careful about antistatic and get new gaskets for the screen). You will need a 4mm Torx (the only bit you will need) screwdriver (the excellent iFixit toolset is well worth investing in) I'm sure ifixit has already posted instructions on how to replace the mlb's in these..
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Replacing the Flash chips is not really practical on the logic board, and just replacing the PCB for one that has 2TB of storage would be quite expensive.
Apples design architecture is sound when you really understand the whys. Both RAM & Storage went under massive change maximizing performance over easy replacement.
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