M1 Mac mini display issue

After another week with this problem I have discovered that the issue completely resolves (for me at least) when I move the Mac Mini a meter away from all peripherals (monitor and bluetooth keyboard & mouse). Could this be a proximity interference issue? The pink artefacts at boot-up and during the login screen have completely vanished after this 'experiment'.

I have been having problems with the display as well. It seems to be resolved now. I was chatting with an Apple rep and she had me do a reinstall of Big Sur. That did not solve the problem. We did talk about some other solutions and one of them worked.The solution? Well, don't use the HDMI port. Connect your screen to the USB-C ports. I had a USB-C hub with a HDMI port on it. After I connected the screen to the HDMI port on the USB-C hub I have had no issues with the display.

This Mac Mini is less than a month old and I have not damaged it any way. Therefore, it must be a manufacturing defect or a design flaw for the problem to arise so quickly for so many users. Getting Apple to admit to this problem may be the toughest part. As for a fix, that is anybody's guess. I don't think I am going to settle with a work around as the fix for this. The screen should be connected via the HDMI port. That is where it belongs.

Version 11.2 (20D53) solved the pink squares on my Mac Mini M1 also the secondary display sleep/wake issue.

Primary monitor is connected with HDMI, secondary is connected via USB-C to USB 3.0 + HDMI hub.

Im using the latest Big Sur currently version 11.2 (20D62).

Have two monitors connected:

LG UltraWide 34UC79G-B connected with this cable:

https://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B075V27G2R/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

LG IPS235 connected to the Mini HDMI out

No pink squares after bootup which I also had before from day 1.

The whole system is a lot snappier than before, Safari doesnt freeze when scrolling like in the previous buids.

I dont think you should return your Mini because you think this is a hardware fault, because it isn't... It was clearly a software bug. So my advice is to everybody... wait for the official release of Big Sur 11.2 and when it is out do the upgrade, it should solve the pink squares problem after bootup. Im not working for Apple :)

I found the solution (or at least with me it worked out): it happens when the windows (could be safari, finder etc.) take the color from the background screen. you can disable this by going on settings -> general -> untick the "apply the desktop image colors to the windows"

This is exactly my solution also. I have a 2k monitor 144hz when I get those ugly pink squares normally after booting I switch from 144hz to 60hz then I go back again to 144hz and everything fine.

but this solution helps only if you can change the refresh rate of the monitor , some haven’t this option but their only solution is to let the Mac mini sleep for a minute or more. I hope this will help till a fix from Apple with the new update Big Sur 11.3.

I second the observation that the HDMI hardware or software is the problem. I have an ultra wide monitor and an M1and have 2 problems, the pink pixel problem and the monitor was blanking out 2 or 3 times a day for a couple seconds. Tried every fix you can image and the only solution was to use a USB-C to USB-C cable, fortunately my monitor has a USB-C input. Even tried an Apple USB-C to HDMI and that didn't work, it must still be going through the HDMI protocol/circuit. Took it to Apple and they said everything tested fine. Don't think its an M1 issue as I've seen many post about Intel mini and HDMI glitches. If you don't have a USB-C monitor, maybe you can use USB-C to DisplayPort adaptor. Maybe future Big Sur updates will fix the HDMI problem?

I do have the same problem with my M1 Mac mini from day 1, Apple support couldn't help with the issue.

• I tried many different HDMI cables that do work with my other devices but didn't fix the issue
• The same monitor works with my 2012 MBP and Blackmagic design's video switcher without any issues

• There was an audio splitter (3.5mm) connected to the audio output of the monitor and since I removed it these strange squares stopped appearing (since few days)

I will let you know if I see these strange artifacts once again.

I did successfully return to the 11.1 public release AND all the issues with my monitors are again gone. In order to do so here are the steps I followed.

1. Un-register from the Apple unreleased program. I can't use the “b*t*” word or my post will get auto deleted. To do so go to system updates. On the far left you will see a note about the computer being enrolled in the “unreleased” program. Click the link provided and it will un-enroll your mini from the program. Once done (only takes a second) you will get a message saying it is done and that you will no longer receive “unreleased” updates.
2. Go to the app store and download the latest public version of Big Sur (for me it was 11.1 I wanted to revert to as I knew it worked). Once downloaded, simply install it. The install somehow knows you have an unreleased version and just proceeds with the install letting it install the previous 11.1 replacing the installed non-public 11.2.
3. Once complete you are done! You can confirm your return to the previous version by clicking “About this computer” after clicking on the apple in the top left.

So, here's a video of what mine does:

It may not be overly obvious in that video but I don't boot to a login screen, I auto-login. When cold, and only cold, sometimes the pink video artefacts will be present on the desktop (only) and they come and go if you select one of the menu items or not. Thats what I try to show in the video but not desperately well. I got this machine a week after release because it was a 16GB model so I couldn't get it on release day. It's done it pretty much since day one but when the machine has warmed up it goes away so I've not really bothered too much about it.

The way things work in the UK is that once you have reported the fault inside the warranty period then if the machine fails due to that fault it's covered by warranty regardless of when it is, so I'm still debating, but I may report this issue just for the sake of getting it logged.

I'm using a Dell S2719DGF, 1440p @ 144Hz with an Xbox HDMI cable - I had issues with the screen going off which I pretty much knew would be the cable and the Xbox cable seemed to be the best one that I have. I do have a USB-C to HDMI but I can't really spare the USB-C ports for it, so I'm using HDMI (why take up a precious USB-C port when I only have 1 monitor and it's HDMI?)

Personally, given it goes away when the machine has warmed up and been running a while I fail to see how this can be anything other than hardware. But that's just my amateur diagnosis. I mean, if we were talking back in the days of through hole soldering then I'd be taking it apart and looking for a dry joint, but those days are long behind us.

[Link Edited by Moderator]

I received my M1 Mac mini 4th of December 2020 and after my first restart I noticed the same issue “pink squares” on screen that you enter your user password. After some restarts the “pink squares” appears general anywhere. I try everything such as: deferent cables, tv and monitors and fresh installation of the software Big Sur and the problem was the same. And expect from this I couldn’t create user to log in. I send it back to istorm shop in Greece and they try again fresh installation with the same issues to continue. I send it back second time and I insist for the same issues and they communicate with apple and recognize the issues. So the shop give me the option to buy something else or the same product if I want. I order the intel i5 version Mac mini 2020 which is more expensive to be sure that I won’t have hardware issues again. If it was a software problem I believe they would not take it back. So I think you should try the same. Send it back and buy something else. M1 processor is very new technology with hardware and software issues and that’s why they sell it cheaper. They want to try it and fix in the future the issues in a new processor M2 or what ever. After 2-3 years maybe the will solve the hardware and software problems. For now it is not very good choice to buy m1 chip. If you want more information for what I try before I return it back I can answer here!

Hi there,

I've just bought a new usb-c display, and my pink squares has gone. I hope forever. Earlier I tried on 3 different monitors with 2 different HDMI cable, and I saw the pink squares everywhere. Update to 11.1 and then 11.2 haven't solved the problem.

Now almost everything is fine with LG UltraFine Display Ergo 31,5" 4K monitor. I tried both with USB-C and HDMI (the same as earlier) cables and no pink squares at all.

I still have some small issue. Sometimes after restarting my mac mini (using the USB-C cable) the monitor doesn't show anything, even if I switch back and forth between the inputs in the menu. It decides it wants work only with HDMI cable. After some unplugging/plugging the USB-C cable (also you can switch the two ports on the mini) the problem has gone.

So, still not perfect, but much better.

Best,

fabee

Is the HDMI cable you're using an HDMI 1.4 ? I'm wondering if there isn't a compatibility problem with their HDMI port on the Mac mini M1, because, just like you, I had tons of issues with my monitor until I bought a new (2.0 or 2.1 I'm not sure) and high quality HDMI cable. It is significantly better now (it just acts weird at boot, but never during use). The other cable I was using had no problem and worked fine on any other computer/monitor/even TV, but it was old. So I guess it may be the 1.4 to 2.0/2.1 compatibility that fails, but I can be wrong.

Not sure if that will help many of you, but until Apple will come up with fix to this problem, here my solution that works every time...

I’m getting dreaded “pink squares” every time I’m installing software update to any of my apps, but sometimes is just totally random.

it alway happens after fresh booting.

The immediate solution in my setup to get rid of pesky little squares, is to go to system preferences, display properties and temporary switch from default settings - 60hz to scaled 75hz and back again.

In my situation, problem solved immediately 😁

Kirtashan, I am the one who posted above that once I switched to USB-C (aka display port through USB-C) all my problems are gone. The M1 Mini is awesome and I highly recommend it to anyone as long as you stay away from HDMI. There are certain combinations that will work with HDMI but it's so frustrating trying to figure out what works. The HDMI problems seem to be on all Minis not just the M1, although the pink pixel on HDMI problem seems unique to M1. Also, you mentioned Bluetooth issues. I think all Apples in general sometimes have connectivity issues with certain non-Apple bluetooth devices. I have a jelly comb BT mouse and it gives me several frustrating problems, so I'm current back to my non-BT wireless mouse. I've never had a genuine Apple Magic Mouse so I can't comment on that. Don't let that discourage you, compared to a Windows machine, Macs have far less frustrating issues.