O'Grady's PowerPage

  • Some Mac mini and Mac Studio options are unavailable for order, and lengthy shipping times hint at forthcoming M5 configurations

    Some Mac mini and Mac Studio options are unavailable for order, and lengthy shipping times hint at forthcoming M5 configurations

    Apple’s Mac mini and Mac Studio desktops may be headed towards M5 chip territory in the near future.

    Per MacRumors and 9to5Mac, some Mac mini and Mac Studio configurations are now completely out of stock on Apple’s online store in the U.S. as of this writing.

    Both the Mac mini configurations with an upgrade to 32GB or 64GB of RAM and the Mac Studio configurations with an upgrade to 128GB or 256GB of RAM are listed as “currently unavailable” on the storefront. This indicates that they can no longer be ordered, while other configurations now list lengthy shipping delays, with estimated delivery times ranging from one to three months.

    Given the shipping delays, speculation has risen that Apple could be prepping Mac mini and Mac Studio configurations with M5 chips. This could also tie into the severe global memory chip shortage driven by surging demand from companies building AI servers that require large amounts of RAM. After all, the Mac mini and Mac Studio models that are “currently unavailable” are those configured with higher amounts of RAM.

    While memory chip prices are said to be starting to stablize, or slightly decrease, the prices themselves remain well above historical averages, and the shipping estimates may not meaningfully improve any time soon.

    The current guess is that Apple may announce Mac Studio models with M5 Max and M5 Ultra chips at WWDC in June and update the Mac mini with M5 and M5 Pro chips at some point in September or October this year.

    Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.

    Via MacRumors and 9to5Mac

  • Apple adds iPhone 17e, MacBook Neo, Studio Display XDR, and other products to Self Service repair program

    Apple adds iPhone 17e, MacBook Neo, Studio Display XDR, and other products to Self Service repair program

    If you’re eager to repair your MacBook Neo, iPhone 17e, Apple Studio Display XDR, or other products, Apple has added some new options for you to work with.

    On Wednesday, Apple updated its Self Service Repair Store with replacement parts for the various products the company announced in March 2026.

    This includes the iPhone 17e, MacBook Neo, M5 MacBook Air, M5 Pro and M5 Max MacBook Pro, M4 iPad Air, updated Apple Studio Display, and the Apple Studio Display XDR.

    Apple’s Self Service Repair Store and program have been available to customers in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and various European Union countries since April 2022. As of April 8, users can order replacement parts such as batteries, displays, keyboards, speakers, trackpads, and more through the storefront. Repair manuals are also available via the same website.

    The newly added repair manuals are available on the following pages:

    • iPhone 17e
    • iPad Air 11-inch (M4)
    • iPad Air 13-inch (M4)
    • MacBook Neo
    • MacBook Air (13-inch, M5)
    • MacBook Air (15-inch, M5)
    • MacBook Pro (14-inch, M5 Pro or M5 Max)
    • MacBook Pro (16-inch, M5 Pro or M5 Max)
    • Apple Studio Display (2026)
    • Apple Studio Display XDR

    Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.

    Via AppleInsider and selfservicerepair.com

  • YouTuber proves that MacBook Neo SSD can be upgraded, solders 1TB replacement into place

    YouTuber proves that MacBook Neo SSD can be upgraded, solders 1TB replacement into place

    If you’re feeling truly brave and confident in your soldering abilities, you might just be able to solder a 1TB SSD into your new MacBook Neo.

    Per Macworld, famed YouTuber dosdude1 was able to go beyond Apple’s stock 256GB and 512GB configurations and solder a 1TB NAND NVMe SSD into a MacBook Neo notebook. The upgraded drive is both larger and faster than the stock drive Apple includes, and dosdude 1 stated that “it ended up working without a hitch!” The module they bought is “commonly used” in the iPhone 16 Pro, though the module was “a good 35 percent of the cost” of the MacBook Neo.

    The YouTuber noted that the process involves disassembling the MacBook Neo, preparing the new SSD for soldering, removing the Neo’s existing drive, preparing the new SSD for soldering, soldering it in, and testing for integrity.

    Where RAM upgrades for the MacBook Neo are concerned, it’s not as simple as this, and the RAM itself is part of the logic board, alongside the CPU and GPU, so you basically need to replace the Neo’s A18 Pro chip with an A19 Pro.

    Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.

    Via Macworld and YouTube

  • Apple releases iOS 26.4.1, iPadOS 26.4.1 bug fixes

    Apple releases iOS 26.4.1, iPadOS 26.4.1 bug fixes

    They aren’t the most significant iOS or iPadOS updates in the world, but they’re bug and security fixes and they’ll probably help out.

    Apple on Wednesday released its anticipated iOS 26.4.1 and iPadOS 26.4.1 updates. The release notes state that the updates contain bug fixes.

    Incremental updates, like one changing from iOS 26.4 to iOS 26.4.1 don’t usually include any major feature updates. They instead deal with smaller changes that cannot wait for the next main update release, such as fixes and compatibility changes.

    As usual, the updates can be located, downloaded, and installed by going to Settings > General > Software Update and following the prompts from there.

    If you’ve had a chance to try the updates on either your iPhone or iPad, please let us know about your experience in the comments.

    Via AppleInsider

  • Rumor: Apple to launch second-generation iPhone Air, iPhone 18e in early 2027

    Rumor: Apple to launch second-generation iPhone Air, iPhone 18e in early 2027

    Apple may be looking to release a next-gen iPhone Air as well as an iPhone 18e early next year.

    Per Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple plans to unveil the two devices in spring 2027, alongside a standard iPhone 18. If so, Apple will likely announce the trio of devices in March or April next year. It is unclear if there will be a live-streamed event.

    The potential product releases would sync up with the release of the iPhone 16e and iPhone 17e, which were unveiled in the first quarter of 2025 and 2026, respectively. Still, the timing would be notable in that a new iPhone Air and the standard iPhone 18 will apparently be introduced at the same time.

    The current iPhone Air and the standard iPhone 17 debuted in September last year, but several reports have indicated that Apple is moving to more of a split launch going forward, with multiple iPhone models arriving in spring and fall.

    Where upgrades are concerned, it’s thought that the iPhone 18 and iPhone 18e models will receive an A20 chip and a few other modifications over the current model. The next-gen iPhone Air is thought to include an A20 chip, a second rear camera, a larger battery, and the iPhone 17 Pro’s vapor chamber cooling system.

    Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.

    Via MacRumors and Bloomberg