MacBook 16-inch Fan Noise

Hey everyone!

I'm deciding between MBPro 16 i7 base model with an upgrade of the memory to 1TB, versus getting the higher end i9 model for the 16" MBPro which comes with 1TB already.

I will mainly be using the computer for heavy chrome usage with many tabs, microsoft office, and adobe pdfs. Not using it for gaming, video editing or photo editing or anything like that. I definitely want the larger screen size that the 16" offers.

My question is that does the i9 run hotter than the i7 model? Since I'm not running super heavy stuff, I don't think I really need the full 8 core and power of the i9, but I don't want it to run hot on light tasks. But if it doesn't run hotter idle and still offers more power, I'm not opposed to it.

Is there any instance where getting an i7 16" would be better than i9 16"? I wonder if the i9 will make things faster if at all since it has more cores? I just want a fast laptop since I have the budget for it, but is there a thing where too fast (i9) can be slow if not using it for heavy workloads?

Exactly. It takes up 18-20w all the time. But my question is whether the problem is only the noise it produces? Or the problem is that it might reduce the life span of your MacBook operating the graphics card at such power for 8 hours a day?

Are only the external factors like the noise and the wattage are the concern? So will the machine get effected in any way due to these things is my question.

So the whole point of these threads are just the noise of the fans? I mean even I had developed in my mind that the hardware/software is faulty when it is consuming so much power with an external monitor. But if it is not effecting the performance or the life span, is noise the only concern? At 2400rpm the machine is quiet.

Remember, if you go with an eGPU, the graphics card can use all 16 PCI lanes, but Thunderbolt can only utilize four lanes, so you’re not going to get the same performance as you would by running that graphics card in the PCIe slot of a desktop.

And I think I read somewhere that Apple Silicon Macs won’t support the eGPU.

@brycesteiner - thanks for your post, that gives me some hope, particularly as I was thinking about buying a TS3+ anyway. Would you mind confirming the spec of your machine? (Mine is i9/5500M).

Thanks!

Well man… happy for you. But I really do not get your point.

It's not me but thousands of people complaining about this problem. Buying another piece of hardware is not the solution after spending almost $4k for a laptop. It's simply crazy that a computer of that level can not be simply connected to an external monitor.

In this moment, only for writing this comment, with no other app open, the computer battery is drained from 100% to 70%… with the charger connected!?!

Perhaps many love this machine but that not a good reason at all for Apple ignoring thousands of people with a serious issue on a new $4k machine.

I need a stable machine to work and even if I use Apple since more than 10 years, I will need to buy a Lenovo (for less money).

Not happy at all with this solution, but at least I know it will work.

[Edited by Moderator]

I'm not sure why people think that companies should release driver updates monthly or on some schedule - really they are only needed if there is a bug that needs to be fixed.

I realize that many believe this issue to be a bug on AMD's part, but AMD has also stated in other forums that they aren't willing to reduce VRAM speed as it could result in flicker. You can accept that or not, but ultimately it's their GPU and they know what kind of experience they want to provide.

If they feel they got the driver right, there is no need for them to release an update.

Power usage isn't as simple a calculation as "look how much more power this version of the OS uses" as you would need to take into account what background tasks, if any are also being used and whether tweaks have been done to improve performance for certain functions at the cost of higher power usage.

dcristof wrote:

At this point, I can only hope for Apple to find a fix, or someone to put enough pressure on Apple to pay us or replace our machines with something that isn't defective.

A product is not defective because it doesn't operate in a manner you don't like.

Apple could disable software control altogether and just have the fans fire up at high speed from boot, and that wouldn't make the MBP 16 defective in any way.

If you want to warn people it runs hot, or fires up the fans in a way you find unacceptable, that's fine, but it's not a defect per se.

This computer is the "Muscle-car" of notebook computers, with more compute power and more graphics power in one small package than ever seen before in a MacBook Pro. In every configuration, it can drive its own 3072 by 1920 display and up to TWO Apple 6K displays at 60 Hz.

When you push it hard, it does what you ask it to do, but it may not stay silent while doing so. That is not as convenient as you might like, but that is NOT defective.

Almost right. The VRAM speed is not required to significantly change if you're moving from 1600x1200 to 1920x1200. But the consumption does. Which shows wrong calculations. And comparison with other notebooks shows that this works. However, there are also worse models. But never for the price of a MacBook Pro.

Thanks Lucapipolo,

I pray there may be a recall on the 16” but if not .the 15.6” might be a great alternative to the 16” nightmare it’s so bad I’ll take the downgrade and sell the 16” for a loss .

I want to be able to enjoy having an open display on the mbp while connected to an external without the ridiculous jet engine noise and heat !

thanks again!

thank you Lucapipolo!

Could anyone help answer this?

Would an i9 model be faster/less hotter than the i7 for the 16" given my use? I will be using for heavy google chrome (20-30 tabs at once), word, powerpoint, PDF reader, and some video playing all at once. I am not sure if I should go for the i9, or if the slightly higher clock speed for i7 would be good? I know both will get hot, but I want to know which one will get hot but still be fast.

It's only a $200 difference in my case to get i9 vs i7, since I will be upgrading the memory on base i7 to 1TB either way. Please help.

Rajp98 wrote:

Could anyone help answer this?

Would an i9 model be faster/less hotter than the i7 for the 16" given my use? I will be using for heavy google chrome (20-30 tabs at once), word, powerpoint, PDF reader, and some video playing all at once. I am not sure if I should go for the i9, or if the slightly higher clock speed for i7 would be good? I know both will get hot, but I want to know which one will get hot but still be fast.

It's only a $200 difference in my case to get i9 vs i7, since I will be upgrading the memory on base i7 to 1TB either way. Please help.

Probably not much difference between the i7 and i9 (I have an i9 and wish I would've just saved the $$$ and gotten an i7). These 16" MBPs get throttled like crazy due to the heat in heavy use

LucaPipolo wrote:

is the 2019 mbp 15.6” i9 2.4 Noticeably quieter ? While attached to an external monitor while keeping mbp 15.6” display open?

No. I own both currently and under the same screens the 2019 runs hotter and is quite a bit slower in my tasks in FCPx, Affinity software, and Adobe software. The heat, on my 2020 16" is much better managed.

You don't even bother to read the messages, the machine that he mentioned HAS THE SAME CPU and a GPU that is as powerful as the one on the 16-inch, the 5500 is only 9% more powerful and it's probably as powerful as the 5300 so as usual YOU ARE WRONG AGAIN.