new mac mini harikari! how to reconnect round metal connector?

March 27, 2009 11:11 PM

new mac mini harikari! how to reconnect round metal connector?

OK, I was all pleased with myself opening up my 1-day-old brand new mac mini to upgrade the RAM and HD.

After prying the lid open with relatively few scars, things were going great until a very tiny metal connector got pulled out by mistake.

Look at this picture of an old mac mini

halfway across and a just shy of a third of the way down, there's a brass-colored tiny round (actually cylindrical) connector with a black cable leading to the other half of the disassembled mac mini.

It seems to pop off quite easily but I can't figure out how to get it back on!

I saw another one next to it and pulled it out to see how it worked. Now I have two disconnect tiny round metal head things.

How do I get this thing back on?

thanks!

posted by metaseeker to computers & internet (4 answers total)

Looks like those are your wireless antenna cables. I've never attached them before on a Mini, but on an old PCI card I had a similar adventure with, it just took careful alignment and firm pressure.

Googling for some variant of mac mini wireless cable might help.
posted by Rendus at 11:15 PM on March 27, 2009

It just pushes back on. One's the Bluetooth and one's the 802.11 (Wi-Fi).
posted by kindall at 11:40 PM on March 27, 2009

Indeed that top one is the cable connecting the wifi antenna, and the other one you mention was probably a bluetooth antenna. I have pulled these on and off before, both on purpose and by accident.

They're held in by two clips underneath, and should "snap" back in (thought not very firmly) with straight-on firm pressure. They never do attach firmly though, since after reasassembly there're nowhere "up" left for them to pop off anyway.
posted by rokusan at 11:43 PM on March 27, 2009

It worked! Thanks!
posted by metaseeker at 11:43 PM on March 27, 2009