This week, in an internal note obtained by MacRumors, Apple informed service providers that it knows and is investigating an issue that could cause “squares or pink pixels” to appear on screens connected to a Mac mini M1.
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Users in Apple’s support communities, the MacRumors forums and Reddit have been reporting this issue since the Mac mini M1 was launched in November, but the exact cause is unclear. According to comments from affected users, it seems that the problem may be more common when connecting screens via HDMI compared to Thunderbolt.
Apple did not provide a specific time period for a solution. The note was issued on February 19, more than a week after the release of macOS Big Sur 11.2.1, which does not appear to address the issue. It may be possible to prepare a fix in time for the release of macOS Big Sur 11.3, which has been in beta testing since February 2nd.
Meanwhile, Apple outlined the following troubleshooting steps:
- Put the Mac mini to sleep
- Wait two minutes and turn on your Mac mini
- Disconnect the screen from the Mac mini and reconnect it
- Adjust the screen resolution in System Preferences> Screens
If the problem recurs after restarting the Mac mini, Apple says repeat the above steps.
There have been several other external display issues with the Mac M1s in recent months, ranging from USB-C connection issues to some resolutions not being available when using an ultrawide or super-ultrawide screen.