TL;DR:

Our Order Fulfilment Schedule for March 2025:

March Week 1 (9 Mar 2025): Dispatched orders up to #2885
March Week 2 (16 Mar 2025): Dispatch orders up to #3158
March Week 3 (23 Mar 2025): Dispatch orders up to #3604
March Week 4 (30 Mar 2025): Dispatch orders up to #4011

This schedule is our realistic estimate but remains subject to change. We hope to exceed these targets, and we promise weekly updates to keep you informed transparently about our progress.

 

Why the Delay?

As we previously shared, our main challenge has been ensuring the quality of our NAND chips. Despite extensive quality control measures and rigorous in-factory testing, some of our early customers still encountered faulty units. We sincerely apologise again to those affected, and we greatly appreciate your patience and cooperation in returning defective units for detailed analysis. Your feedback has been invaluable, significantly enhancing our quality control procedures.

Our priority is crystal clear: every single SSD module we ship must function flawlessly from day one. One key difficulty we face is the minor variations in the Mac mini M4 units shipped by Apple across different regions and factory batches. While it’s impossible for us (or indeed anyone but Apple) to test our SSD modules against every possible Mac mini M4 variant, we’ve committed ourselves to the next best thing: 100% in-house verification. Previously, we randomly tested about 30% of units received from the factory. We now test every single unit individually before dispatch.

Each SSD undergoes the exact DFU restoration process that you would perform upon receipt, followed by initial macOS setup. We then run detailed disk I/O benchmarks and S.M.A.R.T status checks to ensure speed and thermal performance meet our stringent standards. Completing this thorough verification for each SSD takes about ONE HOUR. Although we’ve scaled our testing capacity to handle 50–80 units daily with our current array of Mac mini M4s, we understand this remains insufficient.

To accelerate this process, we’re adding additional Mac mini M4 units to our testing facility and automating key software processes wherever possible. Rest assured, we’re not compromising any of the robust factory testing that already takes place. We are dedicated to delivering reliability and quality above all else.

We completely understand your frustration — frankly, the waiting time has been excessive, and we’re deeply sorry. However, we are fully committed to resolving these challenges swiftly and transparently, ensuring your patience and trust are rewarded with a product that lives up to our promise.

 

For Prospective Customers:

Due to the backlog, new orders currently carry a lead time of up to 30 days. We expect this timeframe to decrease steadily as our verification process becomes more efficient. Ordering now secures your position in the queue and locks in your price—an advantage given the highly volatile NAND market. Please note that NAND prices can fluctuate, typically upwards, without notice.

 

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Initially, our goal was simply to create a helpful product for a small number of people. However, this vision unexpectedly evolved into a larger business operation with mass production and comprehensive quality control requirements. Scaling from a small initiative to an operation at this scale has presented significant challenges, and we are actively learning and adapting at every step. It’s not as straightforward as we originally anticipated, but we are determined and confident in overcoming these hurdles.

Thank you for your understanding, your support, and most importantly, your trust. We’re committed to earning it every step of the way.

 

 

Best
Alpha, Archie and the rest of the Expand Mac mini Team