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86 Comments
- actorboy, on 10/12/2007, -11/+36To fix something.
- Kerr, on 10/12/2007, -6/+27I agree with the article in that Apple will release Firmware updates without actually saying what the upgrade fixes. What the hell is the point of doing that?
- wwwluckyro, on 10/12/2007, -1/+20The important thing is that it's not hot and it doesn't whine anymore. The solution exists.
- Norf, on 10/12/2007, -6/+23I'm not quite sure how a firmware update will help the huge quantity's of thermal paste
- kevin.gc, on 10/12/2007, -1/+16It sacrifices some energy to run the fans more often. It's just another way to get the temperature down.
- mpancha, on 10/12/2007, -8/+22Its a shame Apple won't admit to their mistake with the thermal paste, which led to the annoying whining noise. I realize the whining noise may seem trivial to MS/Linux laptop users, but on an Apple machine, the silence is golden. Its one of the reasons you buy a Mac.
The people experience these problems are early adopters, and as every tech/geek knows, the early adopters are plagued with problems. When it comes to apple products specifically, the first generation of a product is full of problems. The second is closer to having them fixed. THe third has all the little b.s. problems fixed that should have been fixed before releasing a product. The fourth version has all the features included that should have been to begin with, and from there on it its just increases in tech specs and maybe a feature here or there. - munkt0n, on 10/12/2007, -3/+15ahhh, the gamble of buying first generation hardware..
- Uruviel, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10Sure. In the System Preferences there is an option called "Software update" which conveniently has a check box in front of "Search for updates" ... switching it off obviously disables automatic updates.
- noahhoward, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10That all depended on which run you got. After a certain serial number they had already made one attempt on the heat problem and got them significantly cooler.
Mine does still get hot, I haven't checked it since the update but m MBP was a second run model and was supposed to have had the heat issue fixed. It would get hot to the touch on the left side and across the bottom. Not scalding like some people think but havign a metal case probably did a better job of exposing what heat was there.
As for Other laptops not overheating. You'r out of your minds. Explain why there are so many products for PC laptop users to add to their laptop so it doesn't burn heir legs? You are cramming a whole load of electronics in far less space than they should ever be. The MBP is smaller than any PC laptop I ever had and, at its worst, the heat was just about what I was used to from my HP laptop. Like lnxaddct said, it's not like they woere overheatign really bad, but when you are used to a higher standard you complain about smaller issues. - boredzo, on 10/12/2007, -9/+18If your computer is mooing because it is overheating, the obvious solution is to pour cold milk on it.
(Joking...) - StrawberryFrog, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10waiwai: Any problem that affects the end user can be described in terms that they can understand. Sure they may not know what a "firmware" is, but they should understand a description like
"After applying this fix, your laptop will not get as hot, because the fan will be on more often. This may use more battery power".
Not bothering to explain this detail does *not* make sense: it is either lazy or arrogant. It's nothing but bad PR technique. They could even put the word firmware in a second part of the fix description and keep the techies happy too. - lnxaddct, on 10/12/2007, -7/+15Its not that the laptops were overheating, nor was the noise anything that most laptop users wouldn't be used to. Apple users are just picky as hell when it comes to their products. The MacBook Pro never went outside of its proper operating temperature (and it never really got hot, at least it doesn't feel hot to me), its just Apple users expect significantly better things than their PC counterparts and some felt that they weren't getting it. A small minority made a bunch of noise, and Apple answered their complaints. So... what's the story hear? Shouldn't all companies be like this?
- Spanca, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10Apple are hoping the fans will blow the thermal paste away.
- lnxaddct, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9The funny thing is though, the problems were hardly problems. The things that were happening were normal for "typical laptops", Apple users are just picky as hell.
- retral, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9To initiate the world domination programmed chip inside of each and every intel mac! Dun dun dun...
Btw, just joking around, actorboy: your response was classic ;) - pixelnet, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Off topic slightly but I was going to digg this article apart from the very annoying "page fold down ad" that appeared and stopped me doing anything. Awesome.
- ezascanbe, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6As a MacBook Pro (my first ever mac) owner, I'm happy they have relasesd this update. The decision not to make a statement about these issues previously while frustrating is not unexpected. I'm more satisfied with the overall result (ie. they fixed the over heating issue). Furthermore, it has been fixed without me having to pull my laptop apart and re-apply the thermal grease!
- ComAge, on 10/12/2007, -8/+14My wife is moaning right this moment... quick what should I pour on her???
Too late I figured it out :-) - bongo, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7My MacBook is still hot and sill whines. Didn't fix it for me.
- lnxaddct, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6Perhaps it implies that the "huge quantities of thermal paste" were really just a few isolated incidents. Other than some message board that got dugg, there wasn't much else to that. Though, Apple is notorious for improving hardware operation through firmware updates (see: iPod) so this update is nothing unexpected.
- veza, on 10/12/2007, -6/+11I should read more carefully these comments..my pc was moaning and I poured cold milk on it...
- estvir, on 10/12/2007, -7/+12"Or would that just mean you'd have to admit some of the issues we've been having?"
this guy has a point. - deusx, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5You can turn the automatic updates off, but you mostly likely don't want to - even if you think you do. OS X has security holes, just like any other OS, but it seems like Apple's got quick turnaround on patches delivered this way.
Then again, I've never ever had an issue with one of them, whereas some people have had really nasty problems crop up from an OS X point release update. So, eh, there's a checkbox you can click off, if you want to take your chances either way. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5I know nothing about OS X, so could someone tell me-- Can you switch these automatic updates off?
- sishgupta, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7Its a quick fix. And that sucks for existing mac owners.
What this does mean though is that they recognize the problem and that it most likely will not exist in the newly shipped MBP's and MBs. I guess thats speculation, but it would be dumb if they didn't fix ones are in production now. - thatsiebguy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Still waiting for the second Rev. before I buy.
- dark1152, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4@waiwai
Most every Mac user I know does, in fact, know what a firmware update is. The stereotype of a bunch of beatnicks using Mac I guess still exists, but is untrue. I am a Mac user and most of my friends are also Mac users as well. Not becuase it's 'hip' or whatever, but because it's a great platform for software developement. They all have a very good idea about what a firmware update is and exactly what it does. Even if a Mac user doesn't know what a firmware update is, all they need to do is post a question on the Mac support forums and in a bout 5 minutes you'll have 3 responses from various Mac zealots :) If a PC user wanted to do the same, they'd have to call India :( - TheSolomon, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Thumbs-up simply for the "free balling it" comment. Nice. ;-)
- deusx, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3"That's so not new technology."
No, but I imagine the manufacturing process for every new Apple product is just a *bit* different. So, it's to be expected that balls will be dropped and goofs will be made - even something as small as how much grease to smear and where. This isn't a fanboy excuse - I had 14 recalls on my first-year model Ford Focus, and it pissed me off, but I expected it. This is the reason why I'm looking forward to the next rev or so of the new laptops. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3ltbarcly: What do you call the "case" of the PC? The PC? The computer? I'm being serious here, I'm a techie and I've never really liked the options available. :)
- jimoshea, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2My concern is that running the fans more drains the crap out of my battery when free-balling it. I'm not surprised Apple didn't make a big deal of this release -- they never do. Whenever there's been issues in the past, they almost never admit there's a problem, they simply release a fix. This is all very "Apple"
- lolox, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Always in a new technology adoption by a computer manufacturer, issues will arise, and although I know that if no one would buy the first gen, we would buy the stocked computers later on, BUT I'M WAITING, and it's hard, but a grand for a heater? no thanks still got my P4 laptop, and a silent/cold/slow g4
- sedawk, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2My MacBook Pro has been in for service a few times -- Apple is finally sending me a new one. However, the "whine" can't be fix via software or firmware. The whine is cause by an faulty inverter board. It is *very* noticable if you hook up external speakers to a MacBook Pro -- the whine is amplified.
If your MacBook Pro has a whine, bring it to your service center, tell them about the problem and ask them to order a new inverter board. Apple seems to know this, but I think they are hoping that they don't have to replace 10's of thousands of inverter boards -- so they seem to be playing dumb. - actorboy, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4You can set you preferences to check for updates daily, weekly, monthly or not at all. But even with automatic update checks, you have the option to not install. It just tells you there is an update available and asks if you would like to download it.
- Phil246, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2i thought that most of the problem was due to the poor application of thermal paste between the cpu and the heat sink in the macbook?
a firmware update in this case might solve the symptoms but it doesnt sort the problem
http://forums.macnn.com/showthread.php?p=2969665 - BobSmith, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3This offer is restricted solely to Apple customers who have purchased an Apple CPU in the past 90 days and registered their new CPU via the Setup Assistant.
This is from an e-mail I recieved this morning from....Apple.
Apparently the Apple employee who drafted this is one of those "dregs of the earth idiot PC users" or, maybe CPU is an accepted term for the computer unit. You decide. - noahhoward, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I would think that issuing a fix would pretty much be admitting there was a problem.
- lane.montgomery, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2FWIW, in middle school when I took my computer classes they tested us on terms and the answer for that thing sitting next to my leg right now was CPU. It stands for Central Processing Unit (in case you didn't know) so I don't see how that has to be ascribed to only the actual processor.
It's a magic black box to most people, so CPU is really a fitting description for how most people understand it to work. It's where the stuff get's done. - bongo, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3And virii, adware, and operating system crashes are "typical" of other computer systems, but as Apple users we expect a little more.
- X111, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Did it make any difference for your Mini's temperature? I have no idea what the normal temp is supposed to be, but according to http://macbricol.free.fr/coreduotemp it apparently is around 58 degrees celsius when my Mini is doing nothing.
- generic109, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Read the other posts on that same site. No one else was able to reproduce the results. I applied the firmware and my cpu clock speed is the same.
- geoffpado, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1And being an Apple computer, it'll be just fine. True story: I had a glass of milk sitting on my desk. As I was moving some wires around, one knocked over the glass into my iBook's keyboard. The machine shut off immediately. I poured the milk out, brought it into the Apple Store, and they said they wouldn't fix it under warranty because it was my fault. No big deal, I knew I probably wouldn't get anything. I brought it home, let it air out a few days, then attempted to reboot. It worked fine. The FireWire connection was spotty for a while, but eventually it too started working like new. I'm still using that machine to type this message today, and except for a broken keyboard latch (from where I ripped it open to attempt to pour out the milk), it's like the day I got it.
- frem001, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1ok mistakes can be made but they need to be rectified correctly, something apple has yet to do for the macbook pros. I don't want to be a Beta tester for £1700 ($3,135.82)
- stuartr, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3I have a new Mac Mini and there was a firmware upgrade for it as well.
- aristobrat, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1No, but when they do finally fix the thermal paste problem, those MacBook Pros will really run cool!
- boogie, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I'm currently (MBP, xx11 series) not experiencing any whines also. Fingers crossed, but the CPU-whine did not bother me: or on AC power = no whine, or "portable" with QuietMBP on whenever my bluetooth apple mouse wasn't connected. No worries. Recent switcher from PC (Acer 2.6 Ghz laptop) to Macbook Pro, and loving it!
- deepsub, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2I read this on another site:
"Just installed the SMC firmware update. Cooler: Running CoreDuoTemp v0.51, I couldn't push the temp past 70, whereas I reached mid 80's before.
But SLOWER: I can't (according to the CoreDuoTemp program) push it past 1000Mhz, the chip's minimum. It used to idle at 1500, and push to 1830. To boot, things like iTunes visualizer are noticeably slower."
From this, combined with the 'whine' issue (which is caused by periodic high current demands on the internal power supply), it sounds like the Core Duo's are running hotter (and thus sucking more current) than Intel/Apple had planned. It seems this firmware takes care of the whine and heat problem at the expense of performance.
It's like Pentium 4 all over again.
Why buy top end Core Duo's laptops if the firmware is just going to dial back the clock speed?
This is a retarded turn of events, Apple, Intel. :-| - deepsub, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"Its not Intel. There are several laptops that have Core Duos and X1600's in a 15.4in package. They aren't having the same heat issues. It is poor design by Apple."
Intel designed the board.
Apple designed the box.
Both are at fault.
It's important to remember that both Apple and Intel are essentially beta testing transitional first gen hardware in the style of Micorsoft. Apple is transistioning architectures, while Intel is changing both architectures and fabrication tech. However, they rushed to market (probably at Jobs' behest), so as many have commented in past Apple hyping, never buy rev A hardware.
However, the saving grace is that the next gen of Macintel iron should be jawdroppping. I can only imagine how badass the quadcore replacement for the desktop G5 is going to be. - lintmonkey, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I applied the firmware update to my iMac and, yes, it did run the fans at full speed for all of the four seconds it took. I assume there was a reason for that, and am not concerned.
The update does seem to have fixed the flaky shutdown issues I was having. On my PowerBook G4, it shuts down quickly. Before the firmware update, the iMac seemed like it was taking longer to shut down than it was to start up. -
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