Macbook Pro (2019) extremely slow, I am at a loss

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Level 1

8 points

Macbook Pro (2019) extremely slow, I am at a loss

Hi all, I am at a loss on how to resolve this (EtreCheck report attached in the additional text).

So far I've tried wiping my computer with a fresh install, reset SMC, reset NVRAM, reset Bluetooth module, and am still not able to nail down why the Macbook is very slow. I feel like I have faced different types of issues in terms of what is slow, but for now, I'll focus on the 2 that are happening daily.

For the specs this Macbook has, it is not able to handle multiple chrome tabs (10-15), VS Code, and Slack. The computer is just extremely slow and my gf's 2016 Macbook (i5, 16gb ram) is performing much better with the same type of usage.
After Big Sur, my Magic Mouse has been lagging. In some cases, the Magic Mouse will delay for several seconds. But if I use the trackpad, the mouse moves instantly. I am noticing the HIDDrivers process that has been eating up the CPU time lately after BigSur. Before this, it was a variety of processes, but for sake of focusing on current issues, I won't list them as they are not showing on the activity monitor as much.

EtreCheck Report

Here are my specs:

I've also attached EtreCheck report while having Slack, 22 chrome tabs open, and VS code. You can view it under the additional text.

I would appreciate any of your help. Thanks!

Posted on Dec 29, 2020 1:31 PM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

pomsense Author

Level 1

8 points

Dec 31, 2020 7:05 PM in response to HWTech

I am using an external USB-c multi-port adapter that has the option to plug the power in the multi-port adapter. I had done this to minimize the USB-C ports I am using as I am aware of the issue with Macbook Pro's running hot, and have read in another thread that if you avoid the left USB-C ports (which are closer to the CPU), it can reduce the temperatures. Although the power is full with it plugged directly in the adapter, I will plug it directly to the Macbook and monitor it for a day.

One thing I did notice right away that may help others is the com.apple.AppleUserHIDDrivers (the HID Drivers or the Human Interface Device Drivers) process stopped right away. This may help others if they are seeing the com.apple.AppleUserHIDDrivers process consume a lot of CPU time and I think it is useful info for the community.

I will report back here after a day or two.

Another thing to mention is, I had switched to Safari completely since yesterday, and that didn't resolve the issue, and I was facing the same issue as with Chrome. System seems smoother now after directly plugging to the computer. Thanks for the Tip on this @HWTech. Will report back soon and close it out if I don't face any other issue.

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Answer 2

babowa

Level 9

78,574 points

Dec 29, 2020 1:40 PM in response to pomsense

I couldn't see any of the "usual suspects" in the report, but one thing I did notice:

Chrome is an absolute resource hog - it will take everything you've got and want more and you have 22 tabs open??? I would not expect anything but a fully loaded iMac to handle that. Close all but 3 - 5 and see how it performs.

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Answer 3

pomsense Author

Level 1

8 points

Dec 29, 2020 1:56 PM in response to babowa

Thanks for the response Babowa. I went ahead and left only 6 chrome tabs open, all of them of the Apple Discussions. See EtreCheck report. The mouse is still lagging, and when I am typing there is also a lag. I am trying this on both the Macbook's built-in Keyboard mouse and the Apple Bluetooth Keyboard and Magic Mouse. It's unusable; I feel like I am back on my old Dell from 2003.

Here is a shot of the activity monitor and EtreCheck report is below.

I want to mention that 12 months ago, 40+ chrome tabs was a piece of cake for this Mac. Can't really pinpoint what changed.

EtreCheck

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Answer 4

babowa

Level 9

78,574 points

Dec 29, 2020 3:13 PM in response to pomsense

I am not an expert with Big Sur, but I do know that it requires a lot more resources what with the extra built in security effectively sequestering the OS and system. I used to think that 8 GB RAM was unbelievable - no it is barely enough to run the OS.

The only other thing I see are a lot of third party app(s) launching at bootup - in order to save resources, I never have anything open in the background that checks/phones home (to Apple or other servers) continuously. I have nothing in login items. I also have automatic updates off - checking for it yes; downloading in the background absolutely not. You've got a lot of launch processes running:

Launch Agents:
  [Running] com.bjango.istatmenus.agent.plist (Bjango Pty Ltd - installed 2020-11-18)
  [Running] com.bjango.istatmenus.status.plist (Bjango Pty Ltd - installed 2020-11-18)
  [Other] com.elgato.StreamDeck.plist (Corsair Memory, Inc. - installed 2020-10-14)
  [Running] com.fujitsu.pfu.ScanSnap.AOUMonitor.plist (PFU LIMITED - installed 2020-12-21)
  [Running] com.fujitsu.pfu.SshRegister.plist (PFU LIMITED - installed 2020-12-21)
  [Running] com.fujitsu.pfu.SshResident.plist (PFU LIMITED - installed 2020-12-21)
  [Running] com.fujitsu.pfu.SshSCloudWatch.plist (PFU LIMITED - installed 2020-12-21)
  [Loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist (Google, Inc. - installed 2020-10-19)
  [Loaded] com.google.keystone.xpcservice.plist (Google, Inc. - installed 2020-10-19)

Launch Daemons:
  [Running] com.allocinit.camtwistassistant.plist (Stephen Green - installed 2019-05-07)
  [Running] com.bjango.istatmenus.daemon.plist (Bjango Pty Ltd - installed 2020-11-18)
  [Running] com.bjango.istatmenus.fans.plist (Bjango Pty Ltd - installed 2020-11-18)
  [Loaded] com.bjango.istatmenus.installerhelper.plist (Bjango Pty Ltd - installed 2020-10-06)
  [Loaded] com.google.keystone.daemon.plist (Google, Inc. - installed 2020-10-19)

As for the trackpad/mouse problems: I would contact Apple support since you've already done the usual troubleshooting steps (SMC and NVRAM).

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Answer 5

Dec 29, 2020 8:12 PM in response to pomsense

Turn off your bluetooth keyboard and trackpad to see if that helps.

Disconnect all other external devices.

As @babowa mentions Chrome based browsers can really affect system performance. Do you have the same performance issues when Chrome is not being used?

When you did a "fresh install" did you erase the whole physical drive by selecting the "Apple SSD ...." to erase? The physical drive is hidden by default in Disk Utility now. To see the physical drive you need to click on "View" within Disk Utility and select "Show All Devices". Unless you erased the whole physical drive you may not really have created a new file system. I have seen some of our organization's Macs have severe system performance issues due to APFS file system issues that First Aid was unable to correct (in fact First Aid reported everything as "Ok", but by clicking "Show Details" revealed First Aid found lots of APFS errors that were not fixed).

Also when testing with a clean install, did you test the system before restoring or migrating from a backup? Or before installing any third party apps? If a clean install works just fine with just the original Apple software, then try installing one third party app at a time to see if you notice a problem. It is possible you are bringing the problem back if you are migrating from a backup (even if you only migrate the user account(s) ).

Edit: A battery or power issue can also cause these USB-C Apple laptops to run extremely slow since the CPU will be throttled. Does the system get really hot when under extreme load so that the fans run at high speed? If not, then it may indicate a battery or other power related issue. Run "mprime" in Torture Test mode and monitor the fan speed and CPU temperatures using Macs Fan Control (if you don't provide an admin password it won't install the driver).

Is the power adapter plugged directly into the laptop or are you using a USB-C muli-port adapter or dock which may not provide full power to the laptop?

Also run the Apple Diagnostics.

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Macbook Pro (2019) extremely slow, I am at a loss

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