ffredburger

Q: MacBook Pro constantly losing wireless connectivity

Hi folks,

Well, I read a ton of posts regarding MacBook Pro wireless networking issues before buying a wireless router last month, and now it's "me too."

Our iBook has no problems whatsoever with dropped connections, but the MBP loses access every few minutes or so. I usually follow a sequence of "Turn AirPort Off"/"Turn Airport On" to cycle the connection, and sometimes this works. It's an almost constant problem. This is a standard configuration MBP.

The router happens to be a D-Link DIR-615, but I've seen enough posts about problems with the Airport Express and MacBook Pros to know it's not the router that's the problem--it's the MacBook Pro (I notice a few similar posts even on the first page of this forum).

Dear Apple: what are you doing about this issue?

Has anyone else somehow resolved this problem? If there was only a couple of posts about this issue, then it might be written off as problems with a specific router, or specific users. But when there's a ton of messages all complaining about the same problem, then it's more likely a significant defect that needs to be fixed by the manufacturer, and won't be fixed by standard troubleshooting procedures of the mundane kind (Tech Support Theater: "Is your router turned on?").

Dear Apple: where are you?

MBP, Mac OS X (10.4.11), non

Posted on Jan 20, 2008 8:45 AM

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Q: MacBook Pro constantly losing wireless connectivity

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  • by Army Brat Army Wife,

    Army Brat Army Wife Army Brat Army Wife Aug 19, 2010 2:22 PM in response to ffredburger
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 19, 2010 2:22 PM in response to ffredburger
    Adding my two cents to this subject seems pointless, given the 58 pages of discussion already posted on the topic, but in case someone at Apple is listening, I wanted to add my voice. I agonized over what computer to buy to replace my slow, but still working, Dell desktop that is 8-years-ancient. I checked a lot of different sites and discussions, but put the most weight behind the Consumer Reports computer ratings. As a result of their recommendations, I spent more than I could comfortably afford on more computer than I really need. Thus my 15.4" MacBook Pro. A Porsche when a Pinto with a little zip would do. There are a lot of things to love about the MacBook Pro, but there's one specific reason that causes me to dearly regret my decision to bring it into my life: I too, like many other users, lose my wireless connectivity CONSTANTLY. To say it is at least 6 times an hour would be a conservative estimate.

    In an attempt to solve the problem I have contacted AT&T twice and Apple three times, two of those times at my "local" Apple stores (Oakbrook and Schaumburg, IL - both an hour away). It is fair to say that I have a very stable, reliable internet connection. My husband's army-issue Dell laptop never, ever loses connectivity. AT&T ran diagnostics on the line and found absolutely no issues. And we've never had any complaints. I'm convinced, as are clearly many other MacBook Pro users, that there is a maddeningly elusive glitch in the laptop that creates the problem. The Apple tech that I spoke to on the phone told me the problem was with my wireless connection password. He said that calling AT&T and having them change it from a WEP to a WPA-Personal password would solve my problem. AT&T voiced their doubt, but obliged. It did not solve the problem. Five minutes after logging onto Safari with a WPA-Personal password, I dropped the internet. I did not take my computer with me to the Apple stores but I spoke to several people at the Genius Bar at two different stores about the problem. It was a split with some employees having heard of the problem and not having a solution and the rest not having heard of the problem. The best I got from both stores was an offer to "fiddle with the settings and see what we can do". I've used a number of different possible solutions suggested by other users with the same problem and done plenty of fiddling with the settings myself, thank you very much.

    I am typing this feedback on the MacBook and, as is typical with any work I do these days, I'm going to copy and paste it into a Word document before I send it because I will almost inevitably hit "post message" and get the "You Are Not Connected to the Internet" error screen I've come to know and love so well...

    Disclosure: I'm a research freak. I over-think and over-analyze almost any consumer decision I make. And I have, erroneously at times, been prideful about the thoroughness of my research. Given how much information is floating around on-line these days about the connectivity problems with the MacBook pro, my pride is trashed, and rightfully so. I feel like a chump. Shame on me for not being more thorough. I might have bought an Apple, but not the MacBook pro. It appears to be a problem without a solution. Perhaps eBay is my best option - recouping some of my investment right now is starting to feel like the only smart thing to do.
  • by NHC45,

    NHC45 NHC45 Aug 19, 2010 5:10 PM in response to Army Brat Army Wife
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 19, 2010 5:10 PM in response to Army Brat Army Wife
    I feel your pain! I completely understand your point of buying "more computer than you need for more than you wanted or needed to spend because you wanted the best". I'm exactly the same way. I could have easily purchased a windows machine for close to 1/3 the price I paid for my MB Pro BUT, I too wanted the best so I took the plunge. I also have another MacBook, a standard black one that is 2 years old. It has Snow Leopard Upgraded OS, 4 Gigs of ram and otherwise is identical to my Pro as far as software and so forth. It rarely if ever loses the wireless connection and has really never had a problem.

    LIke you, I've also considered selling my Pro on ebay to recoup some of the money I have in it. So far, since I've gotten it back from the Apple store, it has been MUCH better as far as the wireless connection is concerned, but I confess, it has still glitched on me a few times in the week I've been using it. Again, not nearly as bad as it was before. It now maintains connection just about all day and even after it's been to sleep and awakened. I've still lost connection a couple times and had to restart and reset the airport extreme but that might have been a router issue...

    Here is what I did to get it working:

    *Spent time on the phone with Apple support which was useless as they claimed they'd never heard of this. They actually wanted to charge me something like $49 to do a remote system check*

    *Got fed up and took it in to the store, mentioned these FIFTY EIGHT pages of posts going back two years and how shocked I was that nobody at Apple seems to know about this.*

    *Left it there for further analysis and repair for 6 days, during which the airport card was replaced and the "Disk Permissions" utility was run.*

    *Brought it home and totally backed up, secure erased & formatted the HD, Reinstalled the OS, Ran all of the updates, and then ran the disk permissions utility again.*

    You would be surprised at how many permissions it found needed to be repaired starting with a clean unused copy of Snow Leopard and virtually nothing else yet on the HD! For whatever reason, this seems to have solved the problem for the most part. I've been on the computer for hours at a time without a problem since, (other than the one or two glitches). I did have it lock up once while surfing the internet. A website link I clicked on refused to load and safari locked up. Then the connection dropped and the issue was back same as before with the airport connection asking for my password again. I ended up "resetting" safari, restarting the computer and haven't had a problem since. I'm wondering if the web page had some rogue software trying to load in the back ground? Make sure your fire wall is turned on!

    So in short, take your computer to the store, you might print out a couple of pages from this topic to point out this is a fairly widespread issue. Ask them to check your airport card and bug them enough to replace it. Then run your disk permissions repair utility a couple of times. You might even reinstall Snow Leopard. This seems to be working for me so far...

    Good Luck.

    P.S. If you don't think Apple is reading these posts, trust me they are. One day when I was particularly frustrated with this issue and had just hung up with "Apple Care", I posted a rant and suggested a class action suit. That post was removed the same day and cited as being a "non technical rant" or something like that. So, they are indeed watching. Why they haven't found a solution and posted it here or sent an update, I have no idea. We wanted the best, seems like we got average...
  • by nycindyloo,

    nycindyloo nycindyloo Aug 19, 2010 8:02 PM in response to ffredburger
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 19, 2010 8:02 PM in response to ffredburger
    Since my last two posts were just deleted by Apple, I am adding a third. I won't post the Facebook page I have that addresses this issue. I will simply add my experience:

    Internet connectivity is a major problem.
    No one at Apple is fessing up to the problem or addressing how to fix it (and I mean TRULY fix it).
    I have changed routers, had connection tests done through Time Warner Cable, changed password encryption and switched between WEP and WPA passwords. All to no avail. My suggestion? Don't buy a Mac.
    My roommates old junky Dell laptop works just fine. She hasn't had one issue with our internet. It's just me and my Macbook!

    I am so frustrated by this whole thing. Thanks, Apple for staying the course and fixing your bugs. (read: SARCASM)

    A non-impressed customer,
    C.D.
  • by Bob Kujda,

    Bob Kujda Bob Kujda Aug 20, 2010 6:22 PM in response to NHC45
    Level 1 (20 points)
    Aug 20, 2010 6:22 PM in response to NHC45
    Just to add to your experiential suggestions:

    In addition, to the erase - total OSX reinstall & Disk Utility to fix preferences
    use/run DiskWarrior, Cocktail, Onyx regularly - religiously
    you also have directories to repair & caches to clean & unix processes
    & raise the height of the wireless router/ Airport extreme as high in the environment as reasonably possible - interference issue

    I had the same connectivity issues initially - Macbook Pro 15 now connects reliably in all kinds of challenging wireless environments - Washington DC

    Still believe it -- cause is Fat, Dumb & Happy (FDH) engineer!
  • by lausley,

    lausley lausley Aug 29, 2010 8:58 AM in response to ffredburger
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 29, 2010 8:58 AM in response to ffredburger
    I'm having a similar problem with a brand new Macbook with all software updates and a Buffalo WHR-G300N wireless router. Oddly, it's losing signal in the same room as the wireless router (albeit it still sees the signal with full bars, won't reconnect and times out on the reconnect attempt). As soon as I walk out of the room with the laptop, it will regain and retain signal everywhere else in the house. I hope Steve J doesn't respond "Well, don't use it in that room". I'm a big Apple fanboy and it makes these problems hurt all the worse.
  • by NHC45,

    NHC45 NHC45 Aug 29, 2010 9:22 AM in response to lausley
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 29, 2010 9:22 AM in response to lausley
    Well, it's been two weeks or more since I took mine in for service. I've posted above all the things I did to resolve the issue. So far, I've had a very stable connection with zero to no issues!!!!

    In fact, I had to take 14 hours of online education over the course of two days. I did this and the connection didn't drop once. I can leave the laptop on all day, let is sleep, wake it up, have the other older laptop running, whatever you'd normally want to do and my connection issues seem to be resolved so far. So, I do think this issue is resolvable.

    At this point, my biggest complaint is: I paid almost $2000 for this just over 6 months ago. I saw the exact same model at Best Buy over the other day with an even bigger hard drive for just $1199! Are you kidding me? I was hoping to either sell this one or trade it in on a 15 or 17 inch model, that is impossible now. I bet used it isn't worth more than $850. Any resale value was completely destroyed by this. Thanks Steve J. Great job!
  • by TheZuL,

    TheZuL TheZuL Sep 2, 2010 5:53 AM in response to lausley
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 2, 2010 5:53 AM in response to lausley
    I have the same problem as you...just that my wireless works only at one part of the house (the kitchen to be precise). I occupy the 2nd level of an apartment and the router is in my landlord's level (the 1st).

    Previously there were no problems getting wireless anywhere in the house, just started 2-3 weeks ago and it drove me crazy as nothing was changed nor moved about.

    The strange thing is that only the Macbook Pros are affected, I own the 15inch and my girlfriend owns the 13inch, we're running the new macbook pros on Snow Leopard.

    We happen to have an old 17inch Powerbook and an Acer laptop, no problems on the wireless, even my old Nokia has no problem connecting to our network..

    By the way I did everything from clearing my DNS, deleting

    com.apple.airport.preferences.plist
    NetworkInterfaces.plist
    preferences.plist
    com.apple.nat.plist

    in the system pref folder...assigning own IP..no go no go...

    So..any help?

    Thanks!

    Message was edited by: zulkr9n
  • by soundstep,

    soundstep soundstep Sep 4, 2010 9:20 AM in response to ffredburger
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 4, 2010 9:20 AM in response to ffredburger
    Crazy 58 pages posts...

    Anyway, my problem was losing the wireless signal with distance.

    Mac book pro 2.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo

    Close to the modem:

    64 bytes from 173.194.36.104: icmp_seq=342 ttl=58 time=19.097 ms
    64 bytes from 173.194.36.104: icmp_seq=343 ttl=58 time=17.941 ms
    64 bytes from 173.194.36.104: icmp_seq=344 ttl=58 time=15.944 ms
    64 bytes from 173.194.36.104: icmp_seq=345 ttl=58 time=16.741 ms
    64 bytes from 173.194.36.104: icmp_seq=346 ttl=58 time=18.289 ms
    64 bytes from 173.194.36.104: icmp_seq=347 ttl=58 time=18.615 ms
    64 bytes from 173.194.36.104: icmp_seq=348 ttl=58 time=18.374 ms
    64 bytes from 173.194.36.104: icmp_seq=349 ttl=58 time=15.925 ms

    I move 3 meters away, I get this:

    Request timeout for icmp_seq 365
    64 bytes from 173.194.36.104: icmp_seq=366 ttl=58 time=119.194 ms
    64 bytes from 173.194.36.104: icmp_seq=367 ttl=58 time=19.984 ms
    Request timeout for icmp_seq 368
    64 bytes from 173.194.36.104: icmp_seq=369 ttl=58 time=265.974 ms
    Request timeout for icmp_seq 370
    64 bytes from 173.194.36.104: icmp_seq=371 ttl=58 time=17.838 ms
    64 bytes from 173.194.36.104: icmp_seq=372 ttl=58 time=332.076 ms
    64 bytes from 173.194.36.104: icmp_seq=373 ttl=58 time=332.396 ms

    5 meters gives me time out all the time.

    The solution I found:

    Switch my modem from WPA/WPA2 to WEP, now I get 15 ms average everywhere.... definitely software matter...

    Romu
  • by Richelle Jones,

    Richelle Jones Richelle Jones Sep 4, 2010 6:59 PM in response to Army Brat Army Wife
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 4, 2010 6:59 PM in response to Army Brat Army Wife
    My husband bought a macbook pro yesterday and has complained about constantly losing internet connection all day so after googling I found this thread. I feel bad because he's spent at least 12 hours transferring his files and setting it up like he wants, and he only bought this because I rave about my iMac all the time. I think he's going to return it tomorrow, it's driving him crazy and from the 59 pages here it looks like there's not really a fix.

    BTW we have Verizon FIOS, it's their router and it's less than a year old. It's set on WPA2. We had the same problem with my iPad and I finally purchased the 3G plan just so I could use it, I still cannot connect with wifi on it without it asking me to re-enter the network ID and password every 10 minutes.
  • by Tommyball,

    Tommyball Tommyball Sep 8, 2010 11:01 AM in response to Trystero
    Level 1 (13 points)
    Desktops
    Sep 8, 2010 11:01 AM in response to Trystero
    I have the same issue and have tried many of the remedies here with only limited success. I think the longest I've gone is 2 days of mixed usage only to lose the wireless connection again.

    Has anyone emailed Steve about this? With 59 pages and a few other threads, the only real fix is going to come from an OS update.

    -Todd
  • by MacBook Pro Refund,

    MacBook Pro Refund MacBook Pro Refund Sep 11, 2010 3:45 PM in response to Tommyball
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 11, 2010 3:45 PM in response to Tommyball
    I had perfect connectivity in the USA. Here in the UAE. This trifling MacBook cuts off every 5-6minutes. I bought 3 Macbooks before I cam and I am returning ALL three along with every Mac thing I purchased to come here. Applecare even admitted there was nothing they can do and agreed to return my money even though the return period has expired. So the solution thus far is to get a REFUND ASAP. Maybe once sales slow down, Steve Jobs will jump on the discussion boards and realize buyers prefer computers that have sustained internet capability.
  • by MacBook Pro Refund,

    MacBook Pro Refund MacBook Pro Refund Sep 11, 2010 4:14 PM in response to MacBook Pro Refund
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 11, 2010 4:14 PM in response to MacBook Pro Refund
    I filed a complaint with the BBB referencing the store that I purchase it from and am appealing to customer relations about refunding 100% without a restocking fee. I am even pushing the envelop to request a refund for the Windows 7 that I purchased from Bestbuy to load onto MacBook Pro as I was told that the computer could sustain 2 operating systems. It can't sustain a doggone email much less multiple operating systems. For what it's worth I warned everybody at my company (1000+) teachers on contract overseas to stay away from MacBook Pro unless they just want to practice their typing and re-clicking skills. My advice to anyone within the return window...REFUND request. Maybe when Steve Jobs sees revenue decline he might traipse his trifling self on over to the wireless network division and fix this mess until then this company could go bankrupt for all I give a you know what.
  • by TheZuL,

    TheZuL TheZuL Sep 18, 2010 6:14 AM in response to ffredburger
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 18, 2010 6:14 AM in response to ffredburger
    59 pages and no concrete solution for us who trust by the brand...to say disappointed is an understatement
  • by bluangel,

    bluangel bluangel Oct 12, 2010 5:52 PM in response to TheZuL
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Oct 12, 2010 5:52 PM in response to TheZuL
    I am heartbroken and so disappointed in Apple by what I'm finding here on these discussion boards about the wireless connection problems on the MacBook Pro. I upgraded from a PowerBook because I wanted a more powerful computer because I'm building a web site, and I have probably only spent a few days on it wirelessly after owning it for a month already. Same story, connected fine at first then within a few days started dropping the signal--I've spent hours on the telephone with my ISP's technical support changing this setting, or the security only to have it work for a day then go out again. Took it in to an authorized Apple repair shop (not Apple store) and they professed not to know about the problem and suggested it was the modem--not modem, had it checked out, besides the two other PowerBooks in the house connect just fine. I guess I should consider myself lucky that I bought it secondhand and didn't pay full price for it, but it looks like I might have to go back to my Powerbook. I have an appointment tomorrow at a Genius Bar, but I'm not holding out much hope after reading all these posts. How could Apple do this to us? I'm going to ask the techie at the Apple store tomorrow if he can tell me what good is a wireless connection if you can't use it wirelessly??
  • by Sam Friedman,

    Sam Friedman Sam Friedman Oct 12, 2010 6:30 PM in response to bluangel
    Level 2 (205 points)
    Oct 12, 2010 6:30 PM in response to bluangel
    I also had this issue, but I found that replacing the Airport Card solved the problem. I replaced the original Atheros card with a Broadcom card meant for the Mac Pro, not only did I upgrade to 802.11n (which my Core Duo model didn't have) but I stopped having dropouts. Note that this is with a 802.11g router. It may be faulty boards, but it may also be faulty wireless cards...
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