Unable to use USB-powered devices with MacBook Air M1 2020

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Level 1

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Unable to use USB-powered devices with MacBook Air M1 2020

I just bought this MacBook Air M1 2020 (Ventura 13.2.1), and I got the official Apple USB-C to USB Adapter to plug in things like an external hard drive, or external DVD/CD drive. Little things that are powered by the machine they are plugged into to work.

But they aren't working. My WD Passport for Mac will try its best, blinking its indicator light at me, but the drive doesn't show up in the Finder sidebar.

My Samsung Portable DVD writer will sometimes work, but mostly it just sort of pulses in an attempt to read the disc, or it will work for a while and then stop, so then I can't open it to remove the disc without plugging the usb into a wall socket. (Oddly it seems to have more trouble with Japanese import music CDs, but that may be a coincidence.)

I changed the system settings in Privacy & Security>Allow accessories to connect to "Always"

I'm not getting any error messages about USB devices not having enough power, or using too much power, or anything.

Are my MacBook Air ports having issues, is it a bad adapter, or is there a fix to make the MacBook Air power the devices consistently?

MacBook Air 13″, macOS 13.2

Posted on Mar 8, 2023 3:23 PM

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Answer 1

ShannonM1

Community Specialist

Mar 9, 2023 1:54 PM in response to CCPDX

Hello CCPDX,

Given what you are describing, we'd first recommend that you follow the troubleshooting steps within the article If a USB device doesn’t work with Mac - Apple Support

That'll help cover the main bases and narrow down where the problem may lie. If things persist, then we'd recommend that you contact Apple Support for ongoing assistance.

Thanks for using Apple Support Communities!

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Answer 2

HWTech

Level 9

60,344 points

Mar 11, 2023 4:15 PM in response to CCPDX

Try connecting it to another USB-C port especially on the other side of the laptop if possible. Make sure all other external devices are disconnected in case one of them is causing a problem.

Maybe those devices require more power than the laptop is able to provide. Do any of those devices have an option for their own dedicated power adapter? Or maybe you can try using a powered USB3 hub to connect the devices.

Also some third party external devices may not be compatible with an M1/M2 Silicon Mac (especially older devices).

While I've never had an issue using the Apple USB-C to USB-A Adapter with any of my older USB devices, perhaps your devices have a compatibility issue with the adapter. Maybe try using another brand of USB adapter.

Also try booting into Safe Mode to see whether you can access the devices.

Are you using any anti-virus apps, or cleaning/optimizer apps, or third party security software which is interfering with the normal operation of macOS?

I'm going on the assumption here that these items have never worked on this laptop before.

Edit: Are you referring to the USB-C to USB-A Apple adapter? Or the Apple USB-C to multi-port adapter? If the latter, are the devices in question being connected to the adapter's USB-A port? The USB-C port on the multi-port adapter is only meant for charging the laptop (it has a power symbol next to the connector).

Also, make sure the charger is connected to see if that makes any difference.

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Unable to use USB-powered devices with MacBook Air M1 2020

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