Mac Mini Teardown Provides Real-World Look at M1 Chip on Smaller Logic Board

A teardown of the new Mac mini has surfaced on the forum eGPU.io (via Reddit), providing us with a real-world look at Apple's new M1 chip, which is soldered onto a much smaller logic board than the one found in the 2018 model of the computer.

m1 mac mini teardown 1
The M1 is the silver chip labeled with APL1102, housing the 8-core CPU, 8-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine, I/O controllers, and more all in one. The unified system memory is also visible on the right side of the chip, and takes up far less space than the standalone RAM modules used in the previous Mac mini, contributing to the smaller logic board.


As expected, the switch to unified system memory also means that there is no user-upgradeable RAM, as there was with the previous Mac mini, so choose wisely between 8GB or 16GB of memory when configuring the Mac mini on Apple's online store. The SSD also remains soldered to the logic board, so there is no user-upgradeable storage either.

A video teardown of the new Mac mini has also surfaced, revealing that the overall disassembly process is similar to the 2018 model:


There's also a video teardown of the new MacBook Air, providing a peek inside the notebook, although many components are covered with shielding. We'll have to wait on iFixit for its more in-depth teardowns of the new Macs for a closer look.

Related Roundup: Mac mini
Buyer's Guide: Mac Mini (Neutral)
Related Forum: Mac mini

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Next Month With These 12 New Features

Tuesday August 5, 2025 6:25 am PDT by
The calendar has turned to August, and that means the iPhone 17 series is just one month away. Apple has yet to officially announce an event, but it has been rumored that the devices will be announced on Tuesday, September 9. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below is the August 2025 edition of our iPhone 17 Pro rumor recap, for an up-to-date overview of what to...

AirPods Pro 3 Could Be Just Weeks Away – Here's What We Know

Tuesday August 5, 2025 2:03 am PDT by
Despite being over two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. Rumors suggest AirPods Pro 3 could arrive as soon as September 2025 alongside the iPhone 17 lineup, giving prospective AirPods...

20 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Friday August 8, 2025 4:40 am PDT by
The iPhone 17 series is now just weeks away. Apple's iPhone 17 event this year is rumored to be scheduled for Tuesday, September 9. If Apple follows the traditional pattern, iPhone 17 pre-orders would begin on the Friday, September 12. The new devices would then likely reach customers and retail stores the following Friday, September 19. If you're in the market for a new iPhone this year, or ...

iOS 26 Beta Reveals Apple Watch Ultra 3 Display Size

Tuesday August 5, 2025 11:21 am PDT by
The latest iOS 26 beta includes imagery that confirms Apple's work on a new version of the Apple Watch Ultra, which is set to come out this fall. MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris found an Apple Watch image with a resolution that does not correspond to any current Apple Watch models. The image suggests that the upcoming Apple Watch Ultra 3 could have a slightly larger display size, with a...

Apple Watch Series 11 Launching Next Month With These New Features

Friday August 8, 2025 3:09 pm PDT by
There's just about a month to go until Apple unveils the Apple Watch Series 11 models at its September event. Last year we got display upgrades, and this year, there could be new health features. We've recapped all of the current Apple Watch Series 11 rumors for a quick preview of what might be coming. Faster Chip Apple is likely planning to introduce an updated S11 chip that offers a more...

New Apple TV Still Launching This Year

Tuesday August 5, 2025 4:14 am PDT by
Apple is still on track to release a new Apple TV model later this year, according to a reliable source speaking to MacRumors. According to a source familiar with the company's plans, Apple is highly likely to replace the current Apple TV 4K with a new model later this year. The current model will be discontinued. Today's Apple TV 4K came out in 2022, featuring the A15 Bionic chip,...

iOS 26: 7 New AirPods Features

Friday August 8, 2025 12:31 pm PDT by
With iOS 26, Apple is bringing several new features to the AirPods, making them more useful than before. The added functionality will be available this fall when Apple releases iOS 26 and updated AirPods firmware, but you can test everything new right now. Camera Remote The AirPods can be used as a camera remote for the Camera app or third-party iOS camera apps. You'll need to enable the...

Apple Upgrades AirPods Charging in iOS 26

Wednesday August 6, 2025 1:10 pm PDT by
In the fifth beta of iOS 26, Apple appears to have subtly upgraded AirPods charging. Code in iOS 26 says that the AirPods Charging case "now more clearly indicates charging status," and that the AirPods will remind you when it's time to charge. A screenshot shared on social media shows an AirPods splash screen with the same wording and an image of what the light on the AirPods charging case...

Top Rated Comments

62 months ago

They couldn't make a smaller enclosure for this? Really?
Why? Then they’d have to make it bigger next year when/if they put more stuff in it.

I think the number of people in the “the Mini would be nice but it won’t fit my available space” crowd isn’t much of a crowd.
Score: 30 Votes (Like | Disagree)
62 months ago

I think the number of people in the “the Mini would be nice but it won’t fit my available space” crowd isn’t much of a crowd.
I don't know, man, I think some people find it a tight fit.



Score: 29 Votes (Like | Disagree)
62 months ago

They couldn't make a smaller enclosure for this? Really?
Why do multiple engineering challenges at a time when you don't have to?

Odds are the Air and mini will both receive a redesign in the next two or so years.

Both the 68k-to-PowerPC nor the PowerPC-to-Intel transitions came with mostly identical cases:


* the 6100 was the same cases as the 660AV
* the 8100 as the 840AV
* the 7100 was a little different to the 650, I believe
* the MacBook Pro was virtually identical to the PowerBook G4 except for things like adding a webcam
* the (Intel) iMac looked just like the iMac G5
* the Mac mini was identical
* the MacBook that came after a few months was a noticeable change from its preceding iBook

So, we might see a model or two next year that looks noticeably (but not drastically) different. The iMac would be one obvious choice.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
62 months ago
I wonder where they took inspiration from...

Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
62 months ago
I am so excited to see what is inside my new Apple Silicon Mac mini! I am especially happy to learn that the M1 Mac mini has 2 Thunderbolt 3 controller chips (one for each Thunderbolt/USB4 port) so they do not need to share bandwidth, nor reduce device speed, between the 2 Thunderbolt 3 40Gbps ports.

I just received my custom order M1 Mac mini yesterday with 16GB RAM and 1 TB SSD Flash drive. I love it! Although 8GB RAM seems to be fine for most people, I chose to go 16GB because of Final Cut Pro video editing. From everything I see the M1 Mac mini works great for video editing (even 8GB RAM). See The Everyday Dad video about Mac mini M1 video editing:

Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
62 months ago
They couldn't make a smaller enclosure for this? Really?
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)