Weak M4 Mac mini Wi-Fi
Hours after the new Mac mini hit customers’ desks, some users started complaining that when they hooked up a hard drive or SSD to the unit, they’d see Wi-Fi speeds drop, or be cut entirely. The reports were almost always followed up with the realization that when disconnected, the Wi-Fi speeds would go back to normal.
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The case of the M4 Mac mini is aluminum, with a plastic lower case. There are no breaks in the aluminum for the Wi-Fi antenna, so Apple has placed it underneath that very thin plastic base of the unit.
For the most part, this is fine. The desks and surfaces a Mac mini are generally placed on are wood, which has nearly no Wi-Fi attenuation.
Since that plastic is so thin on the base, things get a little dicier when the unit is placed on top of a metal-enclosure hard drive, or dock, for instance.
He also triggered the problem with RF interference from certain USB cables.
Previously:
Update (2025-03-12): Sherief, FYI:
high speed [differential] signals on a wire become indistinguishable from a radio source at points - Intel published a paper on this and a little birdie told me this was actually discovered while working on Apple hardware.
I raised my mini by placing it on a thick stone coaster. I’ll have to do some testing after work. It would explain why the mini has been the most unreliable with the Vision Pro.
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“You’re holding it wrong.”
- Apple spokesperson, maybe.
(I was more sympathetic during the iPhone 4 bruhaha, though.)
Not wi-fi and not a Mini, but the Bluetooth range on my M2 Mac Studio was atrocious until I stumbled onto a Reddit poster who said that when they placed their Mac Mini on its side, with the top of the mini (Apple logo) facing right, their Bluetooth problem went away. I tried it with the Studio, and incredibly, it worked. I have range throughout the house now, whereas the signal previously would drop if I walked into another room. Might be worth a shot for anyone who has signal range issues with the new Mini. It just works!
I had this issue too so now I put my Mac mini on its side and it seemed to fix it
Kinda ridiculous that Apple designed it to be used wrong
Great information. Which explains also why plastic smartwatches have better wireless performance than metal ones, besides being cheaper, lighter and not getting too cold or hot on the wrist. Sometimes, the best is the enemy of the good.
