Enthusiast rebuilds M4 Mac Mini into a 3D-printed handheld with a 7-inch 120Hz screen, keyboard and battery

Shing Solutions stripped the Mac Mini down to its motherboard and cooling system before rebuilding it inside the new enclosure, TechRadar reported, crediting Yanko Design. The resulting device retains full macOS functionality while replacing the desk-bound form factor with something designed to be held in two hands.

Rather than swapping Apple's heatsink and blower fan for smaller cooling hardware to save internal space, the build keeps both, allowing the M4 processor to run with its factory thermal arrangement even though the motherboard has moved into a completely different shell.

Inside the new chassis the computer module sits on rails and can slide out without disturbing the screen, keyboard or controllers. That arrangement means the core hardware could in theory be removed for servicing, or replaced, while the surrounding handheld stays assembled.

The main display is a 7-inch touchscreen with a 120Hz refresh rate, which the report says gives the portable machine a smoother interface and gaming experience. A compact QWERTY keyboard sits beneath the display, with an integrated touchpad providing cursor control. The keyboard originally worked wirelessly, but its battery was removed and it was rewired to draw power directly over USB, cutting the number of rechargeable components inside the device.

Gaming controls use circuit boards taken from Nintendo Joy-Con charging grips and mounted inside both sides of the enclosure. They are wired directly into the Mac rather than connecting over Bluetooth, but macOS does not natively support wired Joy-Con controllers, so the build relies on Steam and its controller mapping system to translate their input for compatible games.

Fitting the keyboard, controllers, touchscreen and other peripherals into the compact case created a USB bottleneck. Shing Solutions addressed the problem by combining two miniature USB splitter boards into a custom three-port hub.

Power comes from rechargeable cells connected to a custom power delivery system, allowing the device to run without staying plugged into an outlet. The enclosure also incorporates handles, giving the device a grip that accommodates its components. Unlike a conventional Mac Mini, the Mac Nano therefore pairs desktop Apple silicon with the parts needed for genuinely untethered operation.