Notes app slow on M1 Mac when displaying Notes w/ PDFs or Scans

axelwiese wrote:

• Dear community,

since the update to MacOs Ventura I am experiencing a huge lag when I try to use the Notes App on my M1 MBP. This actually renders the Notes app unusable .

I am not experiencing it on an iPad or iPhone.

There are a lot of notes in my notes app and the lag occurs when I am scrolling through or editing notes with multiple PDFs or scans attached to the notes.

What I already tried so far:

used disk utility

1 - used notes app with a test user on the same mac --> app appeared to be ok

1 - This would tend to indicate some Third Party Software is interfering with the Normal Operations of the computer

2- re-installed ventura --> no change / lag still present

3 - restored a backup within a new user profile --> no change / lag still present

3 - That would have Carried over the Existing Issue into the new account

- started OS in safe mode --> no change / lag still present

5 - moved "NotesContent" in Library so it was recreated --> no change / lag still present

6 - tried to copy and paste some notes with scans or pdfs into new notes --> no change / lag still present

All good work by user 👍

But most of what was done above would not really fix the Under laying issue of this suspected Third Party Software installed and used on this machine

Download the Application Etrecheck directly from the Developer.

This is a Diagnostic Tool that makes no changes to the computer.

It makes a coherent and readable inventory of both the Hardware and Software used on the computer 

Run the Application from the Admin Account of this computer

The application is free or paid from added features. 

The Report will Not Reveal Any Personal Information. 

Post back the Full Report - copy and paste - >>>> using the Additional Text Icon ( 3rd Icon to last ) <<<<

We can have a look at the report for possible issues and may have possible suggestions to resolve the issues

Problem: Apps are crashing

Description: Apple Notes lagging excessively

Major Issues:

Q - Unsigned files - There are unsigned software files installed that could be malicious and should be reviewed.

A - Self explanatory and the suer may consider checking for updates, upgrades ad or Replacement Application that are Apple Silicon and Ventura Compatible

Q - More than one antivirus app - This computer has multiple antivirus apps installed.

Q - Antivirus software: Apple, Avast, and Malwarebytes

A - There are no known Windows-like Viruses in the wild that self replicate and affect macOS, because of the underling UNIX  Foundation and Permission Limitation. 

Additionally, specific to Big Sur macOS 11 and above. The Operating System resides in a Sealed and Read Only Volume that can not be opened by the User.

The Only thing this Antivirus software is protecting is the Bank Account of the Developers and for zero return to the User aside from the problems this software creates.

AntiVirus Developers purposefully Market their product to create a “ Fear Factor “. In so doing, creating a False Need for their Product.

The The Built in Security  is all that is required to protect the computer.

A - Any of the below should be removed as per Developers Instructions

Avast AntiVirus

Read some of the posting and arrive at your own conclusions.

Q - Launchd: /Library/LaunchAgents/com.avast.userinit.plist

 Executable: /Applications/Avast.app/Contents/Backend/hub/userinit.sh

Details: Exact match found in the legitimate list - probably OK

Q - Launchd: ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.bittorrent.BitTorrent.plist

A - A Great way to download Malware and Adware

VPNs:

Q - [Other] com.expressvpn.ExpressVPN.agent.plist (Not signed - installed 2018-12-25)

Q - tunnelExtension - /Applications/NordVPN IKE.app

A - If this used for Connection to a Working Off Site otherwise not needed

To the One or Two VPNs still installed.

No matter how fast yourInternet Connect is , expect at least 30% reduction in Internet Speed/

Added are the Packet Losses that will occur

If you what to disable Only the Notes from Syncing, do so.

I suggest restarting the computer and pause. The Re-Enable the sync function.

As this machine as Loads of Notes, expect this Sync Process to take some time before it finishes

I'm actually having the same problem.For context, I have over 14.5k notes. I barely experience any lag on my iPad (Pro 11-in, 3rd Gen). On my iPhone (13 Pro Max), I experience a bit, but overall, it's negligible. It's only when I use it on my laptop (Air 2020 M1, 512GB SSD 8GB RAM) that the Notes app becomes unbearable. To paint a picture, imagine typing something, only to have it rendered on the screen 2-3 seconds later. Trying Etrecheck now!

Interesting but there are persons ( some ) that may have their Notes Application syncing to More than one Cloud based Service at the same time.

Some ( again ) are not even aware that Notes is syncing with iCloud and / or ( drum roll ) Google services

I was on with support twice this past weekend and, after trying all of the troubleshooting options, they escalated the issue to more senior support. But I've gotten no responses since then.

The support rep told me, effectively, that I might want to just stick with Evernote as Apple Notes just isn't built to handle a lot of notes. So I guess I'll stick with old faithful. I thought Apple Notes might be a viable alternative.

Thanks for the quick reply. Now that you mention it, I do have a Google account sink in my Notes app, but it may be worth mentioning that when I create notes using it, there’s zero lag. So that might be another clue I think. I tried Etrecheck. Shall I share it here? It’s quite long

Got it. Thanks for the reply!

I have since removed avast and made other changes and I think there's been an improvement in my EtreCheck report (which I'll attach below) but sadly, the lag in Notes hasn't changed. Another thing that came to mind is a year or so ago when Apple rolled out the #tagging feature in Notes, that's when I noticed things starting to lag. My gut feeling (since I don't experience any lag on my iPhone, and iPad) is something may have gotten corrupted in the local .sqlite file on my old Macbook Air, which has since just been carried over onto my new Mac through Migration Assistant. Although I have 2TB of iCloud storage and all my notes are stored there, I hesitate to make any adjustments to the .sqlite file, but I do feel that a hard reset locally and then re-downloading notes from iCloud could be worth a try (I'm just not sure how to carry that out).

So I have the same issue as the person who made this original post. I'm on a 2022 MacBook Pro 16" M1 Pro with 16GB of RAM.

I've tried the following items addressed by the original poster to no avail:

• used disk utility
• used notes app with a test user on the same mac --> app appeared to be ok
• re-installed ventura --> no change / lag still present
• started OS in safe mode --> no change / lag still present
• Removed cache and re-synced

All efforts result in the same delayed response in typing, scrolling, switching smart folders, etc. Notes app erformance is fine on all iOS devices and even on iCloud.com. It's exclusive to my laptop.

I've attached an EtreCheckPro report in hopes that you might be able to look it over, like the last one posted. Any support is greatly appreciated. I'm inclined to abandon Apple Notes if I can't correct this issue.

And a few other notes:

1. I have no VPN clients installed.
2. I use Google Fiber and consistently get 650Mbps download speed and 650+ Mbps upload speeds.
3. I only use Apple Notes via my iCloud account. No other Notes apps are active (e.g., Google, Exchange, etc.)
4. I have 4,083 Notes and 14 smart folders that filter based on a single tag (e.g., finances, personal, health, etc.) with all notes stored in my Notes folder within the app.

Same issues here in my computer M1 2022 16".

My Notes is not only lagging, but it is almost impossible to use. It takes minutes to do anything. And I only have around 1200 notes.

Has anyone figured it out?

Thanks

Really. That is crazy! Apple, with a M1-M2 can handle a simple app Notes? Hard to believe. And I don't think the amount of notes is the issue, I have only a few compared to other people, but I use it constantly! :(

We will be happy to have look 👀

Here it is:

Thank you for the Report.

We will dissect it in detail. 

Will get back to you shortly