In an internal memo this week obtained by MacRumors, Apple informed service providers that it is aware of an issue that could cause “pink squares or pixels” to appear on displays connected to an M1 Mac mini.
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This issue has been reported by users in the Apple Support communities, MacRumors forums, and Reddit since the M1 Mac mini launched in November, but the exact cause is unclear. Based on comments from concerned users, it seems that the problem is more common when connecting displays via HDMI compared to Thunderbolt.
Apple has not specified a specific timeframe for a resolution. The memo was released on February 19, more than a week after the release of macOS Big Sur 11.2.1, which doesn’t seem to fix the issue. It is possible that a fix is being prepared in time for the release of macOS Big Sur 11.3, which has been in beta testing since February 2.
In the meantime, Apple has outlined the following troubleshooting steps:
- Put the Mac mini to sleep
- Wait two minutes and wake up the Mac mini
- Disconnect the display from the Mac mini and then reconnect the display
- Adjust the display resolution in System Preferences> Displays
If the problem recurs after the Mac mini restarts, Apple says to repeat the steps above.
There have been several other external display issues with M1 Macs in recent months, ranging from USB-C connection issues to some resolutions not available when using an ultra wide or super ultra wide display.