MBP 14" M1 Max WiFi Issues - icon lags - connecting different network is very slow

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Level 1

14 points

MBP 14" M1 Max WiFi Issues - icon lags - connecting different network is very slow

I've been using MBP 13" Late 2016, MBP Late 2013, while Mac Air 2012 and 2013 are actively in use in the same household without any issues for over 1.5 decades. Now, got new shiny £4k laptop and WiFi experience is worse then the cheapest trash Windows system. Due to some reasons I have two different networks in two different places in house - my office and rest of the house. And I occasionally switch from one to another. As I said all devices, including phones work perfectly well in this setup - never had real issues, ever. But now:

When I click on WiFi icon I always see only currently connected network - never other, previously used, preferred, available networks. When I click on 'Other' it, very inconveniently opens dialog, when I have to select 'Show Networks' which at first shows empty list. Then if I repeat the process several times (3+) finally other networks show up. And then they show up in drop down to be selected as well. Really bad experience :( BTW I experimented with 'Show legacy networks and options' - no matter selected or not I get the same thing...

Then, when other networks finally show up, and I selected other network to connect with - status of the WiFi icon, WiFi icon's drop down menu and real situation of networking (as shown using 'ifconfig') does not match for 5 minutes or so. It would stay connected to previous network for another minute or two while drop down shows it is 'working' on selected network connection. Then it would switch (could be up to 5 minutes!), while drop down menu (and icon) would still show it is 'connecting' to other network for another 3-5 minutes.

Same lag of WiFi icon is when you turn off the WiFi. WiFi stays on for quite a long time after it was switched off (2-5min).

Does anyone know what could be done to fix it - or is it just shabby code in the latest OS (Monterey 12.0.1)? I never experienced anything so bad (and needed to be slick and fast) on OSX before. I can't say how disappointed I am with it - so - any hints, ideas and suggestions are welcome. Anything to make this laptop working at least close to anything/everything I had before from Apple...

MacBook Pro

Posted on Nov 28, 2021 5:51 AM

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Answer 1

lllaass

Level 10

210,459 points

Nov 28, 2021 6:42 AM in response to justclicky

Try booting to Safe Mode. Note that booting takes minutes. Safe Mode clears caches and other things that resolve many problems.

How to use safe mode on your Mac - Apple Support

If you can log in see if it continues after a normal startup

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Answer 2

PRP_53

Level 10

91,477 points

Nov 28, 2021 6:52 AM in response to justclicky

In Network Preference Drag the most frequented Network to the Top of the List. Remove any outdated or never used Network Access Point.

Recommended settings for Wi-Fi routers and access points

Hidden network

Set to Disabled

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Answer 3

xinyi240

Level 1

8 points

Jan 8, 2022 8:13 AM in response to michaeld961

I have exact same problem on same machine -

14" MBP m1
Takes up to 15 minutes to connect to known wifi network, at least 5 minutes
Will not show list of available networks - when I enter the network name and password under "join other network" it initially says cannot connect, then connects about 10 minutes later. Still shows nothing in list of available networks, even though there are 20+ shown on my iphone.
apple support was entirely unhelpful
am hoping that this is a software issue that will be resolved with a future update, can find no explanation.
The apple store did migrate my data from my older laptop. In theory we deleted all of the networking preference files in the process of getting the computer to log on to wifi after purchase. In reality of course, there could be something remaining from the intel based computer that is a problem, but it is a fair amount of work to nuke the hard drive and do a clean install and I have no indication that it would actually help.

Would like to hear if anyone comes up with a coherent resolution to this problem.

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Answer 4

justclicky Author

Level 1

14 points

Nov 28, 2021 7:16 AM in response to PRP_53

All my networks are already at the top of preferred list. Also, I am slightly upset now as I had moved some networks from previous laptop and they are removed from the list after rebooting in safe mode. One of the main reason of copying stuff from old laptop is not to need to re-enter passwords for all the networks I used and occasionally use only once and twice a year :(

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Answer 5

PRP_53

Level 10

91,477 points

Nov 28, 2021 7:35 AM in response to justclicky

justclicky wrote:

All my networks are already at the top of preferred list. Also, I am slightly upset now as I had moved some networks from previous laptop and they are removed from the list after rebooting in safe mode. One of the main reason of copying stuff from old laptop is not to need to re-enter passwords for all the networks I used and occasionally use only once and twice a year :(

If I may inquire deeper into " coping stuff from old laptop " as in in the literal sense copy or as in Migrated from Old to New computer ?

If migrated from Old to New - just how much stuff was migrated.

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Answer 6

justclicky Author

Level 1

14 points

Nov 28, 2021 7:40 AM in response to PRP_53

I've run migration process (Migration Assistant) from MBP 13" 2016. Even migration process was a pain! It didn't want to finish over WiFi. I have tried 4 times and it would stop and not continue or just not start(!). So, I had to connect both laptops to the network and it worked perfectly well (800GB in 2-3hrs).

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Answer 7

PRP_53

Level 10

91,477 points

Nov 28, 2021 7:59 AM in response to justclicky

Wet blanket here.

The Migration from the Intel computer to new Apple Silicon ARMs Mx CPU may have introduced whatever issues may have existed on the old into the new.

This may have effectively negated the Pristine and Virginal installation on the new.

Yes, Migration Assist, in theory, should work but the moment the new ARMs CPU is in the mix - IMHO all bests are off and work as expected.

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Answer 8

PRP_53

Level 10

91,477 points

Nov 28, 2021 8:07 AM in response to co1234c

co1234c wrote:

it might be because your ruing macOS monetary. macOS Monterey is still in betta Apple might be working to fix it

Respectfully totally disagree.

Monterey was released to the Public October 25, 2021

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Answer 9

justclicky Author

Level 1

14 points

Nov 28, 2021 8:59 AM in response to co1234c

MBP 14" M1 was delivered with Monterey - I had not done anything specific to select it or choose it. I can always act ignorant and accept defaults provided by Apple. If they are not quite up to standard we expect - it can't be my fault, really :(

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Answer 10

justclicky Author

Level 1

14 points

Nov 28, 2021 9:07 AM in response to PRP_53

True, but, again, nowhere in any of parts of the process was any warning about possibilities for it not to work or spoil something. I would expect things that might cause issue to be nicely omitted or users pre-warned.

Still, lag between icon and what system is doing doesn't seem to be one which Migration Assistant should be able to affect. I never complained about it not connecting but icon not showing what is going on in the real time. Also, fact that all other networks I know about and would like to be able to switch to are by default hidden (and I find them still hidden until I do the jig - click "Other..." which opens dialog "Find and join Wi-Fi network", click "Show Networks' (which at the moment shows known and available networks), close all and go back to the icon drop down which at this moment shows my available, preferred, known networks to switch to one of them. That behaviour wasn't in previous OSes - things were always smooth with WiFi (unlike other people with non-Apple hardware/software I saw around me in years).

Similarly goes with switching off WiFi on the drop down and observing WiFi working for a while before it really drops... And then switching it on again, computer connects to the access point, DHCP obtained all the details and all were set up and I can use internet - while icon is still showing it still connects (same drop down)... I am bit baffled nobody else noticed such behaviour.

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Answer 11

Jan 5, 2022 7:34 AM in response to justclicky

I have this same exact problem, on 14" MPB M1 Pro. The lag to connect to known networks after being out of the house is incredibly long, and the WiFi drop down menu shows no available networks when there are at least 15 in the vicinity. Also, if I'm out and have to connect to my phone's hotspot it will eventually connect but the WiFi icon in my mac's menu is still greyed out and doesn't show a connection. My mid 2015 MBP connects with no lag and behaves normally, as do all of the other devices in the house. Is this a Monterrey issue or something to do with these new MBPs?

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Answer 12

justclicky Author

Level 1

14 points

Nov 28, 2021 7:14 AM in response to lllaass

Thanks. I'm definitively give it a go. I've just recycled it through Save Mode boot and it seems more responsive right now. But I am yet to leave it through several days and test it.

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Answer 13

co1234c

Level 1

12 points

Nov 28, 2021 8:05 AM in response to justclicky

it might be because your ruing macOS monetary. macOS Monterey is still in betta Apple might be working to fix it

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MBP 14" M1 Max WiFi Issues - icon lags - connecting different network is very slow

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