My late 2012 model Mac Mini died on me a couple of years ago because something weird happened while updating it. LUCKILY, I have a complete Time Machine backup but here's what I want to know:

The mini has a 1TB SATA internal drive + 128GB SSD = Fusion Drive. Can I swap out the 1TB SATA with a 1TB (or larger) internal SSD BY MYSELF? I don't have the money to pay anyone to do it but I remember some of you saying it was relatively easy to do because of the year/model (late 2012). I'm asking because it had gotten SO slow that it was almost unusable. So I am hoping swapping the fusion drive for a 100% SSD might speed things up? It has 16MB RAM installed. Not sure if that can be increased as well?

thanks!!!

EDIT: I'm asking because it had gotten SO slow that it was almost unusable. So I am hoping swapping the fusion drive for a 100% SSD might speed things up? It has 16MB RAM installed. Not sure if that can be increased as well?

---

Master Tinkerer Jerry®
My Amazon WISH List updated Jan 2025

[www.gofundme.com]
Help me MacResource users, you're my only hope!




Edited 5 time(s). Last edit at 11/19/2023 04:08PM by Jerry®.

I also have a 2012, it is the Server QUAD core i7 at 2.3 GHz.

It is slow compared to today's machines.

Still OK to do some browsing and even youtube, but not for professional work by any stretch of the imagination.

I'd say save your $$ spent on SSD and get a well used/refurbished macMini M1 ($$$)

EDIT: if you have 16 MB RAM, that is your problem. Most of us run 16 GB RAM these days,

yes, I know it's a typo. You have 16 GB and that is the maximum you can put in those machines.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/19/2023 04:07PM by gadje.

Quote
gadje
I also have a 2012, it is the Server QUAD core i7 at 2.3 GHz.

It is slow compared to today's machines.

Still OK to do some browsing and even youtube, but not for professional work by any stretch of the imagination.

I'd say save your $$ spent on SSD and get a well used/refurbished macMini M1 ($$$)

EDIT: if you have 16 MB RAM, that is your problem. Most of us run 16 GB RAM these days,

yes, I know it's a typo. You have 16 GB and that is the maximum you can put in those machines.

ahhh ok. But, can I game on an M1 Mac Mini? I mean I don't play a lot of game just World of Warcraft.

---

Master Tinkerer Jerry®
My Amazon WISH List updated Jan 2025

[www.gofundme.com]
Help me MacResource users, you're my only hope!

SSD will do wonders for drive speed, but will do nothing for other slownesses like video rendering. It probably won't help with your gaming, but it certainly won't hurt.

Quote
Jerry®
ahhh ok. But, can I game on an M1 Mac Mini? I mean I don't play a lot of game just World of Warcraft.

Of course. I would think the bigger issue is transitioning from whatever OS you current mini is running to any M1 chipped mac.

IMHO spending another penny on it is just throwing good money away. Will an SSD speed it up... of course. But its still a 10 year old mac.

1TB 2.5" SSDs are under $50.

---

Edited 999 time(s). Last edit at 12:08PM by jdc.

Also for those old machines and OSes you need to look into whether you drive needs TRIM or not.

I'd say try to find a USED SSD for like $10-20 and put it in an external case and give it a try.

If it works, then mount it inside and limp along for another 1-2 years but you better start saving for a used M1 mini during this time.

Quote
jdc

Quote
Jerry®
ahhh ok. But, can I game on an M1 Mac Mini? I mean I don't play a lot of game just World of Warcraft.

Of course. I would think the bigger issue is transitioning from whatever OS you current mini is running to any M1 chipped mac.

IMHO spending another penny on it is just throwing good money away. Will an SSD speed it up... of course. But its still a 10 year old mac.

1TB 2.5" SSDs are under $50.

I can't remember exactly but my 2012 late-model Mac Mini had the last macOS on it that that it could support. But like I said it, I only have a Time Machine backup of it so yeah, how do I make the transition from the 2012 mini to the m1 mini??? I'm so confused

---

Master Tinkerer Jerry®
My Amazon WISH List updated Jan 2025

[www.gofundme.com]
Help me MacResource users, you're my only hope!

Quote
gadje
Also for those old machines and OSes you need to look into whether you drive needs TRIM or not.

I'd say try to find a USED SSD for like $10-20 and put it in an external case and give it a try.

If it works, then mount it inside and limp along for another 1-2 years but you better start saving for a used M1 mini during this time.

what is TRIM?

---

Master Tinkerer Jerry®
My Amazon WISH List updated Jan 2025

[www.gofundme.com]
Help me MacResource users, you're my only hope!

here are the gaming requirements for World of Warcraft on a Mac

---

Master Tinkerer Jerry®
My Amazon WISH List updated Jan 2025

[www.gofundme.com]
Help me MacResource users, you're my only hope!

is this a good price? It's refurbished on Amazon: (I don't have the money now but I am thinking of asking for this for Christmas). EDIT: Mac mini Desktop Apple M1 chip 8GB Memory 512GB SSD (Renewed)

---

Master Tinkerer Jerry®
My Amazon WISH List updated Jan 2025

[www.gofundme.com]
Help me MacResource users, you're my only hope!




Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/19/2023 04:43PM by Jerry®.

link to ifixit
Changing the hard drive on a 2012 Mac Mini is above.

I have a 2012 Mac Mini server with the i7 cpu and two SSD’s. It functions well as a home theater PC running JRiver Media Center in Windows 10.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/19/2023 05:15PM by S. Pupp.

The M1 you listed is an okay price, assuming it's from Amazon directly and not some third party selling on Amazon.

You might limp along with a 2012, but over ten years old might be a security risk if you use it for general unrestricted internet browsing.

The minimum older Mac I would recommend as a machine for 2 or 3 years in the future would need a 6th generation (or newer) Intel CPU. 6th gen added significant video compression support for modern streaming content. Unfortunately that means a late 2018 mini because Apple let the mini languish without upgrades for a couple of years.

ArsTechnica article that mentions TRIM. Being able to use it on an older generic SSD requires 10.10.4.
https: //arstechnica.com/gadgets/2015/06/latest-os-x-update-allows-you-to-enable-trim-for-third-party-ssds/

---

In tha 360. MRF User Map

From the WoW requirements you listed, no amount of updating your 2012 mini will help. It doesn’t have the cpu or video horsepower to get it done. The Amazon refurbished isn’t a bad price for its specs. Save your money for it.

Quote
Jerry®
My late 2012 model Mac Mini died on me a couple of years ago because something weird happened while updating it. LUCKILY, I have a complete Time Machine backup but here's what I want to know:

The mini has a 1TB SATA internal drive + 128GB SSD = Fusion Drive. Can I swap out the 1TB SATA with a 1TB (or larger) internal SSD BY MYSELF? I don't have the money to pay anyone to do it but I remember some of you saying it was relatively easy to do because of the year/model (late 2012). I'm asking because it had gotten SO slow that it was almost unusable. So I am hoping swapping the fusion drive for a 100% SSD might speed things up? It has 16MB RAM installed. Not sure if that can be increased as well?

thanks!!!

EDIT: I'm asking because it had gotten SO slow that it was almost unusable. So I am hoping swapping the fusion drive for a 100% SSD might speed things up? It has 16MB RAM installed. Not sure if that can be increased as well?

I just broke into my 2012 Mini recently for the first time to install an SSD. It did not go well, had trouble with ribbons, ruined the IR connectors, could not get the SSD seated properly... got it closed up and it works but I would not recommend it. I ran fine booting from an external SSD via USB3 for like 10 years, would recommend it.

Yes, you can install an SSD yourself and I don't think it's difficult in that machine.

The only problem is the 2012 mini came in a few configurations, the fastest of which is the 2.6GHz quad-core i7, but that is still shy of the 2.9GHz quad-core listed in the minimum requirements for WoW.

It's probably just me but I wouldn't buy a refurb anything from AMZ unless they're selling Apple refurbs, which have the same warranty as new kit.

They're an authorized Apple reseller, so NIB would be ok (not that one is likely to a 2012 vintage).

I'd not open any Mac when one cable to a bus powered 2-4T external gets the job done.

Now anybody really handy can do for a lot of minis, I imagine, but for me it's a no brainer.

I've had my 2012 mini since — 2012 and it's been running on a 256G SSD since about 2013-14.

When I have to boot onto the 1T HD, things are noticeably slow.

The old Power Computing ad:

You computer is one year old.
In computer years it's already dead.

Even a 2018 mini doesn't meet the minimum WoW requirements.

---

I am that Masked Man.

All you can do, is all you can do.

There’s trouble — it's time to play the sound of my people.

Your boos mean nothing to me, I've seen what you cheer for.

Insisting on your rights without acknowledging your responsibilities isn’t freedom, it’s adolescence.

I've been to the edge of the map, and there be monsters.

We are a government of laws, not men.

Everybody counts or nobody counts.

When a good man is hurt,
all who would be called good
must suffer with him.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

You and I have memories longer than the road that stretches out ahead.

There is no safety for honest men except
by believing all possible evil of evil men.

We don’t do focus groups. They just ensure that you don’t offend anyone, and produce bland inoffensive products. —Sir Jonathan Ive

An armed society is a polite society.
And hope is a lousy defense.

You make me pull, I'll put you down.

I *love* SIGs. It's Glocks I hate.

I run WoW on an M1 from 2021, upgraded from a 2013 MBPr with an SSD, and the difference was quite satisfying. For open world and 5-mans the 2013 was passable at the lowest video settings. Raids were beginning to skip frames when the battles lit up. On the M1, like butter at "high" settings. The CPU does heat up, so I run a fan-boosting app.

Quote
AllGold
Yes, you can install an SSD yourself and I don't think it's difficult in that machine.

It can be done, but after watching the OWC video a few times, I took mine to Rossman's (I wish they were still in NYC) and had them do it. Money well spent. It took them about 5 minutes.

Little fiddly bits that fall on the floor in my apartment are never seen again, and I didn't want to chance it. The internal SSD is a significant improvement, and you might find uses for the Mini other than gaming.

The M-series Macs are fast but they are also in many ways a big pain in the butt.

---

My life goes smoothly and in regular intervals

I run WOW on my M1 MBP with 32gb of ram and it runs great with all the graphics quality turned up. As others have said, it heats up so I have a cooling pad it sits on. Also have to play with it plugged in as the battery drain is crazy fast.

Maybe we need a Macresource guild!

---

Athens, OH



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/20/2023 02:18PM by archipirata.

Quote
PeterW
From the WoW requirements you listed, no amount of updating your 2012 mini will help. It doesn’t have the cpu or video horsepower to get it done. The Amazon refurbished isn’t a bad price for its specs. Save your money for it.

ah ok thank you!!!!!!!!!!!

---

Master Tinkerer Jerry®
My Amazon WISH List updated Jan 2025

[www.gofundme.com]
Help me MacResource users, you're my only hope!

It took them about 5 minutes.


And you get it back better than before.

That is money well spent.



Little fiddly bits that fall on the floor in my apartment are never seen again,


It's even worse when a spring is involved.

At my place they make themselves known when I run the Miele.

I hear them in the brush head and all the way up the tube and hose.

---

I am that Masked Man.

All you can do, is all you can do.

There’s trouble — it's time to play the sound of my people.

Your boos mean nothing to me, I've seen what you cheer for.

Insisting on your rights without acknowledging your responsibilities isn’t freedom, it’s adolescence.

I've been to the edge of the map, and there be monsters.

We are a government of laws, not men.

Everybody counts or nobody counts.

When a good man is hurt,
all who would be called good
must suffer with him.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

You and I have memories longer than the road that stretches out ahead.

There is no safety for honest men except
by believing all possible evil of evil men.

We don’t do focus groups. They just ensure that you don’t offend anyone, and produce bland inoffensive products. —Sir Jonathan Ive

An armed society is a polite society.
And hope is a lousy defense.

You make me pull, I'll put you down.

I *love* SIGs. It's Glocks I hate.