2023 M2 Pro Max MacBook Pro slower than 2017 i7 iMac

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2023 M2 Pro Max MacBook Pro slower than 2017 i7 iMac

I just upgraded to a M2 Pro Max MacBook 14" 32G/1TB as a replacement for my 2017 i7 iMac 16GB/1TB. I used the Migration Assistant app to transfer all my files. I am using the same (newest) version of Ventura as my iMac, and my SSD is only 40% full. My issue is the M2 machine is taking much longer to open programs than my 2017 iMac. With just Safari and Mail open, it takes Activity Monitor 5-6 seconds to populate the process list (it was instantaneous on my iMac), and other programs like Office takes considerably longer to load as well. I checked my CPU usage, and my machine is only using a total of 5%. I have plenty of available memory, and activity of my SSD is only showing minimal Bytes being sent and received.

I can't understand how this new machine can be so much slower than my old one. I have the identical programs on both machines. I have not installed any new software at all.

Could someone please help me understand what is happening? I would really appreciate some piece of mind. Thanks...

Posted on Oct 25, 2023 4:48 PM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

John Galt

Level 10

146,324 points

Oct 25, 2023 6:35 PM in response to JPS1230

Sounds like you did everything right, but that Mac should be considerably faster than the older one.

Please determine if it performs just as poorly in "Safe Mode": Use safe mode on your Mac - Apple Support. Then, restart your Mac normally (not "Safe Mode") and determine if there are any changes to its performance.

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Answer 2

JPS1230 Author

Level 1

4 points

Oct 27, 2023 6:21 AM in response to John Galt

Thank you for your response. Unfortunately, booting into safe mode, removing all my login programs, and checking different processes did not help. Looks like it is time to do a clean install of my OS and start from scratch. One more question if you don't mind, is it too early to install Sonoma? I usually wait a bit, but thought this may be the time. Thoughts...

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Answer 3

Oct 27, 2023 7:11 AM in response to JPS1230

If you are using Intel-only applications on the new Mac, there will be a delay the first time that you run them. This is for Rosetta 2 to translate the Intel code to ARM code, and cache the ARM code for future use.

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Answer 4

Oct 31, 2023 2:25 PM in response to JPS1230

Curious if you are still having the same issues after doing a full reset and OS download. I too just got a brand new 2023 MacBook Pro M2 Max with Sonoma. It's the 16 in and is literally the top of the line as far as CPU, GPU, and unified memory go however I am not joking when I say that it is glitchy as all ****. It constantly does weird buggy **** that no Mac should do and seems borderline jacked up. I made sure all my updates were installed and everything but no luck for me. Really frustrating. Backed up my data with Data Migration just like you and so far you are one of the few people that I can find online that has been having issues with the M2 Max that are similar to mine. Really curious about how your Mac is doing now.

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Answer 5

JPS1230 Author

Level 1

4 points

Oct 31, 2023 4:55 PM in response to knightfallsfast

I did not upgrade to Sonoma, but I did upgrade Ventura to its most recent version. Some application do appear to load faster now, but it still takes Activity Monitor 5-6 seconds to populate the screen with only one or two apps running. Other programs like Wondershare Video Converter take around 8 seconds to load. Never had this long of a wait on my Intel machine.

For what I use it for, I cannot see any real performance improvements. I have checked all my login items, cleared caches, and used MacCleaner and Activity Monitor to try and identify any problem areas. I think upgrading to the latest version of Ventura helped for a bit (I want to wait a bit before loading Sonoma), but I am still disappointed overall that a Mac released six years after my iMac doesn't seem more responsive.

In your case, I wonder if Sonoma might need a few more version updates to work out any kinks. I would love to know your findings as you continue tweaking settings. Finally, it is always possible the Migration Tool might be to blame. Unfortunately, completely wiping my computer and reloading all the software is more of a headache than I want at the moment.

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Answer 6

John Galt

Level 10

146,324 points

Oct 27, 2023 7:01 AM in response to JPS1230

"Safe Mode" isn't intended to fix anything. Sometimes it does, but did it perform just as poorly in that mode?

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2023 M2 Pro Max MacBook Pro slower than 2017 i7 iMac

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