Apple’s price hike now means that just for a storage upgrade, moving from a 2TB SSD to an 8TB one on the company’s latest M5 Max MacBook Pro models will cost you a whopping $3,000. Fortunately, while the AI boom may have caused a real problem with storage and memory shortage, that doesn’t mean everyone has to accept these insane cost bumps.
Those proficient in micro-soldering can definitely take advantage of the skill, with one individual upgrading his MacBook Pro SSD to a whopping 8TB. However, as you’ll soon find out, it’s quite an expensive undertaking, and even then, there’s no guarantee for success, with a massive probability that you’ll render your machine useless.
Modder doesn’t recommend anyone performing this MacBook Pro SSD upgrade without having at least 2-3 years of experience, as it took him 12 hours to complete the process
After a long, arduous job, Redditor “arduinoRPi4” says he successfully transplanted 8TB of high-speed NAND flash to his M4 Max MacBook Pro. However, this isn’t a task for the faint-hearted, as one of the biggest obstacles is sourcing the correct storage chips, with only specific ones compatible with these portable Macs. Also, acquiring these NANDs isn’t cheap, as the Redditor says that the 8TB SSD pack set him back $800.
However, the purchase sure beats Apple’s $3,000 premium, but after hearing about the entire procedure, it’s likely that the majority of buyers will end up forking over the extra premium instead of attempting the soldering job. The modder also gives the following warning to anyone who has the desire to upgrade the SSD on their Macs.
“I would NOT recommend anyone without at least maybe 2-3 years of electronics experience. This took around 12 hours and had to use a hot air rework station, microscope soldering, and BGA stencil/reballing. If its just upgrading to 2TB then maybe you can get away with practicing a few throwaway packages since it's just the NAND chips you are soldering (which are the relatively easy ones). The power components really get you, they are TINY and theres like 50 of them that you need to get right.
Not to mention sourcing the proper components (datasheets and schematics are hard to find for the power components), so you end up having to reverse engineer a lot on your own, prob alone another few years of experience to do this. Maybe you learn quickly and can pick up all this in a few months or so, but still definitely not for beginners who’ve only (or never) picked up a soldering iron.”
It’s also worth mentioning that while upgrading the SSD to 2TB is a straightforward process, gravitating to 8TB requires a ton of reverse-engineering, as the components surrounding the NAND flash also need to be tinkered with so that macOS recognizes the storage as a factory configuration rather than an aftermarket upgrade.
According to the electrical engineer, the most difficult part of this mod was adding the power components, but in the end, he saved a large chunk of change. For anyone bold enough to try this upgrade on their MacBook Pro, we sincerely advise you to find someone as skilled as arduinoRPi4, or you may end up bricking your expensive belonging. What’s worse is that the machine might be covered under AppleCare+ if something goes wrong.
News Source: Reddit
About the author: Omar Sohail is a reporter and analyst for Wccftech's mobile section, specializing in the technology and business of the mobile industry. His expertise lies in the intricate hardware supply chain, covering developments in semiconductor manufacturing, chip lithography, and camera sensor technology.
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