Someone turned Apple’s M4 Mac Mini into a bizarre handheld Mac with a touchscreen, keyboard, controls, and batteries | Daily Reports Online
- A M4 Mac Mini has been rebuilt into a battery-powered handheld computer
- The custom handheld keeps Apple’s desktop motherboard and original cooling system intact
- A removable Mac module sits inside the custom 3D-printed handheld enclosure
Apple’s M4 Mac Mini has been transformed into a handheld Mac with a 7-inch 120Hz touchscreen, physical controls, keyboard, and battery.
Shing Solutions stripped the desktop computer down to its motherboard and cooling system before rebuilding it inside a custom 3D-printed enclosure.
The resulting device, dubbed Mac Nano, keeps the full macOS functionality while replacing the desk-bound form factor with something designed for use in two hands.
Latest Videos FromTechRadar
The Mac Mini becomes a removable computing core
The project retains Apple’s original heatsink and blower fan instead of replacing them with smaller cooling hardware to save internal space.
That decision allows the M4 processor to retain its factory thermal arrangement while the motherboard moves into a completely different enclosure.
Inside the new chassis, the computer module sits on rails, allowing it to slide out without disturbing the screen, keyboard, or controllers.
The arrangement means the central hardware can theoretically be removed for servicing or replaced while the surrounding handheld computer remains assembled.
A 7-inch touchscreen provides the main display, with its 120Hz refresh rate giving the portable machine a smoother interface and gaming experience.
It is also equipped with a compact QWERTY keyboard sitting beneath the display, with an integrated touchpad providing cursor control.
The keyboard originally worked wirelessly, but its battery was removed, and the keyboard was rewired to draw power directly through USB.
This modification reduces the number of rechargeable components while allowing the keyboard to receive power directly from the handheld computer.
The internal layout therefore combines Apple’s desktop motherboard with controls and display hardware that were never designed specifically for this computer.
Nintendo controls and batteries complete the handheld device
The Mac Nano also includes physical gaming controls, using circuit boards taken from Nintendo Joy-Con charging grips and mounted inside both sides of the enclosure.
Those controls are wired directly into the Mac instead of using Bluetooth, but macOS does not natively support wired Joy Con controllers.
To make the controls usable, the project relies on Steam, whose controller mapping system can translate their input for compatible games.
Connecting the keyboard, controllers, touchscreen, and other peripherals also created a USB bottleneck inside the compact enclosure.
Shing Solutions addressed that problem by combining two miniature USB splitter boards into a custom three-port hub.
The Mac Nano is powered by rechargeable cells connected to a custom power delivery system, allowing it to run without staying plugged into an outlet.
The enclosure also incorporates handles, giving the device a grip that accommodates all its components.
Unlike a conventional Mac Mini, the Mac Nano therefore combines desktop Apple silicon with the components needed for genuinely untethered operation.
Via Yanko Design
Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds.
