🛠️ How to Install Linux Mint on a T2 Mac Mini (2018) – Full Guide & Wi-Fi Fix

Aug 2, 2025 · 33m 38s · 10798 views

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In this video, I take you through every step of installing Linux Mint on a 2018 Mac Mini with the Apple T2 Security Chip — arguably one of the trickiest Macs to work with due to Apple’s tight hardware lockdowns. But don’t worry — thanks to the amazing community over at T2Linux.org, there’s a way to bring these machines back to life with Linux!

🔧 Why do this?
macOS updates (like Sequoia and soon Tahoe) are leaving Intel Macs behind. The 2018 Mac Mini — especially the base model with an i3 CPU, 8GB RAM, and 128GB SSD — is still solid hardware, but it’s increasingly unsupported. Instead of letting it sit idle, we’ll convert it into a fast, stable, and fully featured Linux desktop.

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💻 What You’ll Learn in This Video:

✅ Why the T2 chip makes Linux installs so frustrating
✅ How to download the special T2-patched Linux Mint ISO
✅ How to make the ISO executable and fetch it via terminal
✅ How to use Balena Etcher to burn the ISO to a USB
✅ How to disable T2 security settings in macOS recovery
✅ Step-by-step boot instructions (wired keyboard & mouse needed)
✅ Full install walkthrough of Linux Mint Cinnamon
✅ How to install Broadcom Wi-Fi drivers for the T2 chip using a script
✅ Setting up OBS Studio with hardware encoding (Intel QSV H264)
✅ Installing and running Steam, including gameplay of Dredge

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🧠 Why Linux Mint?

I tried other distros like Ubuntu, Fedora, CachyOS and Pop!_OS — and while some of them worked with tweaks, Linux Mint stood out for being:
– User-friendly (especially for Mac and Windows users)
– Lightweight and fast on older hardware
– Actively maintained with great driver support
– Compatible with Intel’s Quick Sync (hardware encoding)
– A fantastic balance between polish and power

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📂 Useful Tools & Links:

🔗 T2 Linux Project → https://t2linux.org
🔗 Linux Mint ISOs with T2 Support → https://github.com/t2linux
🔗 Balena Etcher (USB burning tool) → https://etcher.io
🔗 Rufus (Windows USB ISO creator) → https://rufus.ie
🔗 AnyBurn (ISO manipulation) → https://www.anyburn.com

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⚙️ Hardware Used in This Video:

– Mac Mini (2018)
– Intel i3 CPU
– 8GB RAM
– 128GB SSD
– Apple T2 Chip
– Wired Apple USB Keyboard + Mouse
– Wired Ethernet Connection (Wi-Fi added post-install)

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🔍 Extra Tips:

🛑 Do not insert the USB until after booting into recovery
🔐 Disable Secure Boot and external boot security in macOS Recovery
🖧 Use a wired network connection during install — Wi-Fi drivers are added later
⌨️ Always use a wired keyboard and mouse for boot selections and setup
📥 If you get stuck at “missing startup disk” errors, let macOS update it during recovery before retrying

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🎮 Gaming & Media Use Cases:

While this Mac Mini isn’t a gaming powerhouse, it’s still very capable:
– OBS Studio runs with hardware-accelerated encoding (great for streaming or capture)
– Steam works with Proton (I played Dredge at around 30–36 FPS at 1080p)
– Thunderbolt 3 eGPU support available for heavier graphics work
– Perfect base for a Plex Media Server or home streaming box (Plex install coming soon!)

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🧪 Next Videos in the Series:

🔧 Turning this Mac Mini into a Plex Media Server
🧱 Repurposing old MacBooks with Linux Mint
🚀 Creating a Universal Linux & Windows Install USB with Ventoy, Rufus & AnyBurn
🕹️ Installing SteamOS / Bazzite on unsupported Intel Macs
📦 Using Linux Mint as a daily driver on aging Apple laptops

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🙌 Thanks to the Community

Huge shoutout to the amazing developers and contributors behind the T2 Linux Project. Their work has opened up possibilities for thousands of users to breathe new life into abandoned Intel Macs.

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✅ If this video helped you:

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