Political Bloviation

I got my new 1GB stick of DDR today. Time to void my Mac Mini warranty

Beware: Proceed at your own risk. Don’t e-mail me if you turn your Mac into a paperweight.
Why would you want to upgrade a new Mac yourself and void the warranty? Money. The Tampa Apple Store wanted $300 for the same upgrade. I spent $104 (shipping included) for the same spec 1GB PC2700 DDR RAM, plus $4 to buy a 1 1/4″ flexible blade putty knife. I didn’t think it’s was worth the $192 difference to have the store do it.

Supplies:

Note that you don’t even need a screw driver to swap the 256MB stick for 1024MB. I purchased the chip and used the video demonstration at Macsales.com
Lay the Mini upside down on the towel to protect it while you work. Make sure the ports on the rear of the Mini are facing you and slide the blade into the crack between the bottom and side of the case. Gently pry until you hear the clips pop loose inside. I had visions of little bit of plastic everywhere and a permanently open case, but it went well. Pry the opposite side of the case the same way, it will be more difficult this time.

Once you have the case open all you need to do is release the 256MB stick from the standard DDR socket using the latches on each end and pop in the replacement. Make sure the key slot on the connector edge of the memory stick is properly aligned and evenly press the chip into it’s new home. The latches should lock the chip down as it seats.

Next set the top back on. It will go much easier if you seat the side of the case with the connectors first. You may need to push the clips into the case a bit to get it seated, be gentle. Make sure all the clip are inside the edge of the top and press down to seat the clips. It powered up with no problem and booted normally.

My wife reports the Mini is now faster than the Athlon 1800+ with the same amount of memory it replaced. She’s happy and as all married men can tell you, if she ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy!

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